Recersch Proposal - 1454 Words

Recruitment and Selection Case Study : 28th July 2010 Tel-Comm-Tek Case Study (ref: Daniels et al, 2009. International Business: Environments Operations, Pearson, chapter 20 Human Resource Management.) Tel-Comm-Tek (TCT) manufactures a variety of small office equipment such as copying machines, dictation units, laser printers, and paper shredders. The company is headquartered in the U.S., but has an Indian subsidiary. Mark Hopkins, the managing director of TCT’s Indian subsidiary, has just resigned and needs to be replaced. Six candidates have been identified as possibilities to fill the position. Due to plans for the construction of a factory in Bengaluru, the new director will need to have manufacturing experience as well as†¦show more content†¦2. Polycentric Approach. A polycentric staffing policy uses host- country nationals to manage local subsidiaries and helps local motivation and morale. a. Advantages of the Polycentric Approach. A polycentric approach is used to control costs, to cater to host-country nationalism, to develop local management talent, to boost employee morale, to counteract high expatriate failure rates, and to maximize local adaptations for particular products. †¢ Political Considerations. Hiring local managers may be an astute political choice in that they may be seen as better citizens, improve employee morale, and be the preferred choice of employees of the local company. †¢ Economic Considerations. The high cost of sending someone to work overseas makes the choice of a local manager in many cases a better economic decision. †¢ Considerations of Efficiency and Effectiveness. Local managers should be able to perform better, sooner, given their understanding of local customers, markets, and institutions. b. Drawbacks to the Polycentric Approach. This approach can, however, result in problems of accountability and allegiance if a gap develops between headquarters and local operations. Compounding the situation

One Step to Freedom Free Essays

â€Å"100% of the shots you never take, never get in†. In the middle of the arid desert, Colorado. A group of Cypriots and myself among them, crossed through the desert to reach the camping site where we would spend the night. We will write a custom essay sample on One Step to Freedom? or any similar topic only for you Order Now Continuously attacking us, the blazing sun followed our every footstep, as our bodies were melting down like defenceless ice cubes. After a couple of hundreds of metres of walk, my feet started to numb. I was exhausted. My bottle, constantly in my hand, was running out of water. â€Å"Can my day get worse?†, I wondered. What I didn’t know was, that these obstacles were nothing compared to the inner conflict I would be going through soon. â€Å"Does anyone want to have a break? Does anyone want to have a swim?†, Michael, our leader asked. Suddenly the feelings of joy and excitement replaced the tiredness and everyone was now smiling; I noticed I was smiling too. Impatiently we all followed Michael. That is when I first came face to face with my own Via Dolorosa. The worst of all is that I was not aware of how difficult it would be for me, that small step I was asked to take, for which I had to grapple hard with my own thoughts and deepest fears which I was not even aware of. How can you fight something you cannot see? Following the flow of my friends and climbing on a small hill, I reached the beginning of my slow and painful torture. I was standing at the edge of a rocky knoll, about three metres above the ground and beneath me, a tiny lake with crystal clear water. I could already picture myself, in the lake, with the cool water fighting off the heat, while my body was enjoying the luxuries of nature. As I lowered my head to face my reflection on the calm surface of the lake, the truth hit me in the face. I will never forget how shocked I was when I realised I was not ready; I couldn’t jump; I didn’t want to. â€Å"Nicola, are you going to jump or not?†, Shane asked me. The question brought me to my senses like . . . . . . . â€Å"No. Go on. I will go later.†, I replied. While watching them jumping with such comfort, as if it was fun, as if they were enjoying themselves, I felt angry with myself. Why had I stopped? It couldn’t be that difficult, after all nobody else seemed to find it challenging, on the contrary they all thought of it as amusing. If they could do it, so could I. All of a sudden I changed my mind. I felt this urge, this push, the desire to jump as well. â€Å"I can do this†, I told myself. Once again I found myself standing at the edge of the hill determined to jump and once again I changed my mind, as my fears came to life; my body froze instantly. It was as if my legs were glued into place, I couldn’t move. Out of the blue, the battle started; the battle over which I had no control, the battle which was going on in my head and whose winner would determine my decision. On one side my limiting beliefs and fears joined forces, to stop me from jumping while on the other side my desire to jump was defensively trying to repulse the attack. The damage to the defence lines was unavoidable and since my fears took control over my body, I stepped back instead of going forward. Time was going by so quickly, as I tended to oscillate between the determination of jumping and the fear of falling. Over twenty minutes had passed since my last attempt and I was not looking forward to another one. â€Å"Nicola we will be leaving soon, if you are going to jump, do it now, or else come down so that we can continue.† No! , a voice inside my head screamed. I am not giving up. I am not leaving unless I jump. As these wild thoughts were passing through my head, the sun sank lower. Trying to convince myself that I could do it, I once more stepped at the doorstep of fear. â€Å"You have thirty seconds to jump.† I took a deep breath. â€Å"Come on Nicolas!†, a friend of mine shouted. â€Å"It’s only one step!† â€Å"Twenty-nine, twenty-eight . . .† Puzzled as I were, I looked around as if searching for an answer. Suddenly I realised that everyone was staring at me. Was it really only one step? Then what? Freedom? â€Å"Sixteen, fifteen . . .† The countdown continued. â€Å"Hey Nicola, listen to me! Stop thinking so hard. Just jump! It’s only one step.† It was of no use. I didn’t hear a thing. â€Å"Nine, eight, seven . . .† I looked down at the lake. How could falling equate to freedom? There were fluctuations in my feelings. I couldn’t decide. I couldn’t even take a small step. â€Å"Three, two, one. Come on Nicolas we are leaving! Come down!† I took a glance at the azure sky as if it was my last one. I took a last deep breath. â€Å"I am coming†, the words burst like bullets out of my mouth. I closed my eyes. I could hear the blood booming in my ears. The cold breeze made me shiver. I found myself trembling like an undersized flower in a furious storm of hesitant feelings and fears. I slowly bent my knees and jumped. Time stopped. My life was passing through my mind like an old black and white movie. I panicked. I didn’t want to fall. I regretted jumping. I waved my hands desperately, trying to hold onto something. A rock, a stone anything. Nothing; there was nothing. I wanted to throw up. It was as if air was pushing my stomach up in my chest and out of my mouth. Even today, when I recall the situation and when I picture the whole scene in my mind, the same feelings come up; fear, anxiety, fluctuation, regret. The same feelings which filled me up then, which still do, as if I am there. As if I never left. As if I never jumped. As if it was all for nothing. Although I am not free from my fears, I know it was not for nothing. I took the risk, I took the shot and I ‘m proud of myself. The cheers and the congratulations I received as I came out of the lake, almost made up for the torture I went through. I was still feeling a bit dizzy from the fall so I sat to rest. That is when Michael came and told me: â€Å"100% of the shots you never take, never get in†. Now this quote is one of my favourites. It was actually a quote of Michael Jordan’s referring to basketball. When I first heard it, I didn’t really understand what it meant, but after thinking about it, I became aware of its true meaning. It means that if someone does not dare to shoot the ball, because it may not go in the basket, he will never score. â€Å"It’s risky not taking risks† a wise man said. In the middle of the arid desert, Colorado, I took the risk. I jumped. I may have not been freed from my fears but I learned my lesson. This experience shaped me into who I am today. A man who is not afraid of taking risks, and making steps beyond the limits of fears and limiting beliefs. How to cite One Step to Freedom?, Papers

Future Of Leadership Samples for Students †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Future Of Business Leadership. Answer: Review of key concept It is seen that the future of leadership will be volatile in nature wherein the leaders will be faced with different difficult and uncertain situations. The leadership can be saved from volatile environment in future by development of different strategies and making the leadership flexible and strong in nature to maintain competitive advantage. The development of leadership has been done through education and training activities and this has made leadership development more profolic in nature. The development of leadership can be done through experience wherein on the job training can be applied as to develop leadership in effective way. The potential of leadership has been developed as well that included philosophical approaches in understanding how the leadership is perceived in organizations. The performance appraisal technique of 360-degree appraisal helps in development of organizations in an effective manner. The leader-oriented techniques are cost effective and simple in nature as well. Lastly, the effects of leadership have been measured wherein variety of approaches has been discussed for development of leadership. Reflection on vision of future of business leadership I feel that future of business leaders are going to be uncertain as well as difficult in nature wherein the leaders will be faced with different challenges. The challenges are related to the communication, financial and security wherein the risk is high and there is volatility. According to me, I feel that the leaders need to take up different kind of techniques as that will help them in managing the different tasks in an effective manner. I feel that the development of the leadership has to be done with the implementation of different leadership theories and methods that will help in succession planning of leadership in an effectual manner. Furthermore, I feel that the leaders are the ones who take up different challenges and that needs to be handled by them in an effective manner. The leaders can implement the different on and off the job training methods that will help them in solving different issues and establish a proper and effective environment as well. I feel with different educational programs, the leadership can be developed effectively and this will help in developing leadership effectively. Analysis of issues faced by business leaders in future There can be different issues that can be faced by different business leaders in the future that include the following: Humility during gaining success is one of the challenges that can be faced by leaders in the future as there can be lack of confidence during the setback period (Klenke 2016) There can be volatility in the market that can cause issues for the leaders to perform well in the market (Huffman et al. 2014) Due to the volatility, the leaders may commit mistakes that can affect them in putting the plans into actions effectively (Mendenhall et al. 2017) Building the team can be difficult for the leaders when the leaders do not undergo any kind of training programs such as on and off the job training techniques (Northouse 2018) References Huffman, J.B., Hipp, K.A., Pankake, A.M. and Moller, G.A.Y.L.E., 2014. Professional learning communities: Leadership, purposeful decision making, and job-embedded staff development.Journal of School Leadership,11(5), pp.448-463. Klenke, K., 2016.Qualitative research in the study of leadership. Emerald Group Publishing Limited Mendenhall, M.E., Osland, J., Bird, A., Oddou, G.R., Stevens, M.J., Maznevski, M.L. and Stahl, G.K. eds., 2017.Global leadership: Research, practice, and development. Routledge. Northouse, P.G., 2018.Leadership: Theory and practice. Sage publications.

Medieval Medicine Essays - Ancient Greek Medicine, Humorism

Medieval Medicine Medieval Medicine The medieval period is normally not associated with advances in technology, nor with contributions that benefit society. Yet, our medicine today owes much of its development to physicians of that time. Medicine of that era was strongly influenced by superstition and the doctrine of the Christian church, and did not have much foundation for practical application. The need for medicine in Middle Ages was certainly great, considering the extreme amounts of plague and disease prevalent during that time (Grigsby 2). Unfortunately, medical knowledge of that day was of very little help (Margotta 68). Physicians had no concept of disease causing bacteria or viruses. Unfortunately, it was thought in that day that illness was either due to old age, heredity, or immoderate living. Is was also believed that certain sins could affect one's health (Grigsby 2). Medical practice of the time revolved around a concept called the "doctrine of the four humors". Diagnoses of illness almost solely relied upon the examination of the human body's four humors- blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. Each of the four humors was associated with a specific body part and certain elemental qualities. Blood was associated with the heart, and air. Phlegm was associated with the brain and water. Yellow bile was associated with the liver and fire, and black bile was associated with the spleen and Earth. When one's bodily humors were in equilibrium, that person was normally considered to be in good health. Sickness was thought to be a result of imbalance of the humors (Gottfried 106). Diagnosis, except in the few rare cases, was usually based on the interpretation of the color and smell of the blood, the smell and the color of the phlegm and, most commonly, on the examination of the urine. There were countless methods of examinations, each explaining how a detailed diagnoses of all types of illnesses could be determined from the color and the odor of the urine and from the layers of sediment in the collecting flasks. Cloudiness in the upper layer of the collecting flask indicated that the origin of illness was in the head, and lower level layers of cloudiness indicated declining conditions of the bladder or genital organs. The diagnosis was often optimistically simple (Margotta 66). Medieval physicians had almost nothing more than their interpretations of a patient's humors upon which to base their diagnosis. Their ultimate objective was to restore equilibrium of the humors to the sick patient. Physicians had a variety of ways to do this, yet they often attempted to purge the cause of the ailment from the body, by whatever means were deemed necessary (Gottfreid 106). Bloodletting was very common (Margotta 66). Bloodletting therapy was based on the theory of opposites. Doctors believed diseases could be caused by excessive amounts of body fluids. For its alleviation, bloodletting was the main treatment. This procedure was thought to move the material causing one's illness and make it pass from one organ to another, thereby making it easier to eliminate. When blood was taken from the side of the body opposite from where the disease was situated, it was supposed to relieve the patient's plethora and pain. Detailed directions were given regarding the most favorable days and hours for bloodletting, the correct veins to be tapped, the amount of blood to be taken, and the number of bleedings required. Blood was usually taken by opening a vein with a lancet, although bloodsucking leeches were regularly used (Margotta 66). Not all aspects of medieval medicine were as particularly brutal as bloodletting. Pharmacy, or the prescribing of drugs or herbs, was a major part of the medieval physician's cure. Apothecaries were the pharmacists of the day; however, their role in medicine extended further than simply the filling of prescribed drugs. In many cases the Apothecary would actually prescribe drugs and give treatment to a sick patient. Apothecaries usually had no training in the medical field except as herbalists. They had little knowledge of the workings of the human body or diseases that affected it. In fact, since the herbs that Apothecaries used to make their medicines were usually extremely expensive spices, most doubled as merchants (Gottfreid 108). Physicians were the primary treatment practitioners during the middle ages, yet into the 13th century, numerous medical treatments were being conducted by a new and separate group of people known as barbers, barber-surgeons, and surgeons. These new groups increasingly took on the responsibilities of many types of invasive and non-invasive procedures. These new groups did not receive their training from universities, but from a hierarchy of apprenticeships regulated by guilds. The contributions of their procedures however, were significant (Duin

Cliques in School

Cliques in School Walking through the halls at any normal high school it can be very obvious the separations that exist. Many schools have different Cliques. Cliques usually are made up of a group of friends who have similar interests. There are the nerds, jocks, the popular crowd, freaks and any other group that teens choose to label. As teens discover their own identities, it can be comforting to hang around people interested in the same things.Growing up can be a very difficult time in life. Adolescence and teenagers are the hardest years of our lives. Adolescence is defined as the time period from the onset of puberty to the attainment of physiological or psychological maturity. During this era, adolescences are dealing with many things in their head along with other life issues. This is the period when they are trying to find their own identity, sexuality, and deal with issues of deciding what to do with their life.My files (found the original; it's not much better...With school, work, friendship s, dating, and everything their forced to deal with, adolescences face a lot of stress. Finding yourself and your own identity is part of that growing up.What teens wear and how they look is very important in high school, and even in middle school. The search to fit in and find a group can begin as early as age eight (Peterson).It?s not just high school where cliques can exist. Certain fashions and brand-name clothing become the uniforms for particular groups. Hairstyles (and colors), makeup, body piercings, and tattoos also give kids both an individual and group identity, placing them into a specific clique. ?Cliques can be based on appearance, athletic ability, academic achievement, social or economic status, talent, ability to attract the opposite sex, or seeming sophistication? (Americas). The most prominent characteristic of a clique usually becomes...

Theoretical Perspective - Definition Examples in Sociology

Theoretical Perspective s in Sociology A theoretical perspective is a set of assumptions about reality that inform the questions we ask and the kinds of answers we arrive at as a result. In this sense, a theoretical perspective can be understood as a lens through which we look, serving to focus or distort what we see. It can also be thought of as a frame, which serves to both include and exclude certain things from our view.  The field of sociology itself is a theoretical perspective based on the assumption that  social systems  such as society and the family actually exist, that culture,  social structure, statuses, and roles are real. A theoretical perspective is important for research because it serves to organize our thoughts and ideas and make them clear to others. Often, sociologists use multiple theoretical perspectives simultaneously as they frame research questions, design and conduct research, and analyze their results. Well review some of the major theoretical perspectives within sociology, but readers should bear in mind that there are many others. Macro versus Micro There is one major theoretical and practical division within the field of sociology, and that is the division between macro and micro approaches to studying society. Though they are often viewed as competing perspectiveswith macro focused on the big picture of social structure, patterns, and trends, and micro-focused on the minutiae of individual experience and everyday lifethey are actually complementary and mutually dependent. The Functionalist Perspective The functionalist perspective  also called functionalism, originates in the work of French sociologist Émile Durkheim, one of the founding thinkers of sociology. Durkheims interest was in how social order could be possible, and how society maintains stability. His writings on this topic came to be viewed as the essence of the functionalist perspective, but others contributed to and refined it, including Herbert Spencer, Talcott Parsons, and Robert K. Merton. The functionalist perspective operates on the macro-theoretical level. The Interactionist Perspective The interactionist perspective was developed by American sociologist George Herbert Mead. It is a micro-theoretical approach that focuses on understanding how meaning is generated through processes of social interaction. This perspective assumes that meaning is derived from everyday social interaction, and thus, is a social construct. Another prominent theoretical perspective, that of symbolic interaction, was developed by another American, Herbert Blumer, from the interactionist paradigm. This theory, which you can read more about here, focuses on how we use as symbols, like clothing, to communicate with each other; how we create, maintain, and present a coherent self to those around us, and how through social interaction we create and maintain a certain understanding of society and what happens within it. The Conflict Perspective The conflict perspective is derived from the writing of Karl Marx  and assumes that  conflicts arise when resources, status, and power are unevenly distributed between groups in society. According to this theory, conflicts that arise because of inequality are what foster social change. From the conflict perspective, power can take the form of control of material resources and wealth, of politics and the institutions that make up society, and can be measured as a function of ones social status relative to others (as with race, class, and gender, among other things). Other sociologists and scholars associated with this perspective include Antonio Gramsci, C. Wright Mills, and the members of the Frankfurt School, who developed critical theory.

Genetically Modified Organisms Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Genetically Modified Organisms - Research Paper Example This paper will focus on discussing several issues concerning genetically modified organisms. In the first section, the paper will define these organisms and describe the process of their production. In addition, the paper will pay attention to the myths and truths surrounding GMOs, and outline the areas of application. All the organisms have a definitive genetic makeup that determines the traits that they exhibit. Since the genotype determines all the phenotypic characteristics of organism, any change in the genetic set up translates to a change in the phenotype. This forms the basis of the construction of genetically modified organisms. After the success of several fundamental studies that sought to analyze the genetic constitution of organisms, science moved to a different level (Tyagi, 2009). After scientists succeeded in sequencing several genomes, this success served as a benchmark in understanding the entire genetic constitution in an organism. Moreover, the discovery of restr iction enzymes played a critical role in making gene recombination a possibility. The application of the new knowledge helped scientists develop techniques of altering the genotype of an organism (U.S. Department of Energy Genome Program, 2012). Genetically modified organisms are organisms whose genetic constitution has been altered the introduction of gene from a different species, conferring a new trait to the organism. The production of genetically modified organism focuses on exploiting the positive side of the modification process. Therefore, scientists only seek to induce genetic changes that confer positive qualities such as resistance to diseases and pests. Currently, there are genetically modified organisms from both the plant and animal families (Philips, 2008). The initial genetically modified organisms had only one gene inserted into their genomes and exhibited only one additional quality that was not evident in the wild types. However, the recent advances in biotechnolo gy have presented new realms of inserting several genes into the genome of an organism. Scientists introduced genetically modified organisms as way of scientifically introducing a desirable trait to an organism (Antoniou, Robinson, & Fagan, 2012). Prior to the development of modifying organisms by introducing a new gene, scientists had tried artificial breeding to replace the rather random natural selection. This confirms that science is directly linked with GM. Natural selection denotes the natural breeding that occurs without the influence of the choice of mates by humans. In this case, breeding within species occurs only under the control of the law of inheritance as described by Mendel. According to Mendel, the offspring inherits one of each pair of characters that are different in the parent’s genotype (Kuldell, 2005). However, for each gene, one allele is dominant, explaining the law of dominance as explained further by Mendel. Mendel provided laws that served to explai n the inheritance of qualities through the dominant-recessive principles. Mendel’s work formed a strong foundation for understanding genetics. Other geneticists later described co dominance and incomplete dominance; patterns that are important have proved to be of great significance in understanding the inheritance of some critical traits. Patterns of inheritance that surround natural selection often confer undesirable traits. Therefore, artificial selection came into place to exert a level of control

Making financial decision based on financial decision Essay

Making financial decision based on financial decision - Essay Example Cash budget would allow the owner to analyse how much the company is earning and the investment and cash disbursement for the project. Cash disbursement is the outflows of cash. Cash receipts are the inflows of cash. The first investment opportunity that the company has is Quad Bikes. The ticket price for Quad Bikes has already been estimated by the owners and it is equal to $15. The cash budget for Quad Bikes showing the cash recipients and cash disbursement is as follows: The ticket price for Paint Ball has been estimated by the management of Hall Hill Farm and the price is expected to be $13. Using this price and other costs that have been estimated, the cash budget for the company for Paint Ball would be: The other major project and investment opportunity that the Farm has is to invest in Fish Hatchery which the management has been planning for some time. The price for fish hatchery has not been estimated by the management, however to prepare a cash budget the price is estimated to be $12. Using the price $12 for each of the visitor for fish hatchery, the cash budget would be: At the moment, the cash position of the Hall Hill Farm is unfavourable. Therefore it is important for the farm to analyse the loopholes in the cost structure and come up with strategies that could improve the current position. After analysing the cash budget of the company, it has been analysed that most of the costs of the company is the fixed cost and these costs are to be paid regardless of the earnings of the company. Therefore it is important for firm to expand its services and facilities so that more visitors are attracted and the revenue can be increased. One of the recommendations to improve the current cash position of the farm is to rent retailers outlets and shops at the farm. This would allow the farm to improve its revenues, as the farm has substantial space vacant. Besides allowing

Will Texas Secede From the United States Essay Example for Free

Will Texas Secede From the United States Essay We live in a country that is splitting due to political differences. It is expected that some states may want to leave the United States in future years. Governor Rick Perry once said during his time as Texas state governor, â€Å"Here is what we know after more than a decade of Republican rule: Texas works. Even The New York Times let it slip into its pages that, Texas is the future† (Perry). Good morning, my name is Caleb Taylor and today I will be discussing with you why Texas is likely to secede from the United States. First let me begin with a brief preview of Texas history, in 1835 the rebels of Texas revolted against the oppressive Mexican government. Then one year later in 1836, after numerous skirmishes with the Mexican army including the battle of the Alamo, the incident of â€Å"Come and Take it† in Gonzales, and then the final victory at the Battle of San Jacinto Texas obtained it’s independence and earned the right to be a country. Then in 1845, Texas joined the United States because it was a middle ground between the raging Mexico and United States. Texas is capable of seceding and maintaining a country for three main reasons. First, due to booms in the amount of natural resources produced in Texas every year, the economy flourishes. Secondly, because Texas is such a large landmass with a substantially large population, the body count would be capable of maintaining a country. The third reason Texas is likely to secede from the nation, is because of Texan’s pride. Texas’ economy thrives due to natural resource productivity. The state proves to provide the United States with plentiful amounts of oil, gas, petroleum, and other crude oils annually per year. â€Å"In 2009, the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimated the states proved reserves at 529 million barrels† (U.S. Energy Information Administration). If Texas were to secede, Texan’s would be able to maintain billions of dollars through natural resource production alone that means that the other thousands of jobs would be a bonus to the Texas economy. The second reason why Texas would be successful in seceding from the United States is due to the amount of land and population in Texas. Texas is approximately 268,800 square miles, which is over 21 times bigger than the state of Maryland. There are also approximately 25,674,681 people in the Texas. The size of Texas proves to be large enough to be a country because as of 2010, Texas was bigger than 125 other countries in the world. The third and most important reason Texas will be able to secede from the nation is because Texan’s pride. The people who populate Texas are proud to be Texans. Texas is called the â€Å"Lone Star† state, â€Å"The nickname The Lone Star State originates from the star on the 1836 flag of the Republic of Texas† (State Symbols USA). Texas is the â€Å"Lone Star† state because it is the only state that was a country before it joined the United States. If Texas was a country before she was a state, who’s to say that she will not become a country again? In conclusion, it is possible that Texas could secede from the United States because of Texas’ thriving economy, the amount of land and population in Texas, and because of the amount of pride that Texan’s have for Texas. Thank you, and God Bless Texas. Work Cited List of Texas Natural Resources. Travel Tips. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2012. . Texas State Nickname The Lone Star State. Texas State Nickname The Lone Star State. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2012. . BrainyQuote. Xplore, n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2012. .

America Needs a Variable Minimum Wage Essay -- Minimum Wage Essays

Minimum wage is the least amount of money that an employer is legally required to pay an employee. It is something that all people in the American workforce know about. It was made to prevent the employer from taking advantage of employees. It is what creates the bare minimum standard of living for the 73.9 million hourly wage workers in the United States. However, there are many different jobs with varying amount of skills that are needed for those jobs. This is where the problem arises because a worker may still be under paid for the job that they do. This problem splits the population into two main groups, one that wants the minimum wage to be raised and another that wants the minimum wage to remain the same, or to even be abolished. However there is a third and possibly more successful option that many people do not propose. Minimum wage as it stands now is too generalized and low for the scope of jobs it applies to. Therefore this third option is that working wages should vary a mong the different sectors of the workforce depending on the different skills needed and effort required for those jobs. Minimum wage was first established in 1938 during the Great Depression by President Franklin Roosevelt to protect the tens of thousands of workers working in sweat shops and factories in America from exploitation. He signed the Fair Labor Standards Act that year which introduced various regulations including banning child labor, establishing workplace safety statutes and arguably the most influential, creating a minimum wage standard of 25 cents per hour. Historically, many employers and fiscal conservatives violently opposed the law arguing that minimum wage could hurt employers, much as they argue now. But President Roosevelt'... ....S 1)" as people who earn this wage can not afford health insurance. It is not enough to handle the different needs of the people who work in different work places and is not acceptable for people who work for far less than they legally should get. Works Cited Soltas, Evans."Two Reasons Not to Raise minimum WageWage". Bloomberg News, Web Jan 03, 2013. Messerli Joe. "Should the Minimum Wage be Abolished (i.e Reduced to $0.00)". BalancedPolitics, web. Oct 12, 2013. Romer, Christina. "The Business of the Minimum Wage" NYTIMES, web. March 2, 2013. The Economist."Trickle-up Economics; Raising the minimum wage" 16 Feb. 2013: 30(US), Student Resources in Context. Web, 18 Oct, 2013. "History of the United States' Minimum Wage" Marathon Studios Enterprises, web. 30 Oct, 2013 Winter, Michael. "L.A. to boost minimum wage to $15", USA TODAY May 19, 2015 America Needs a Variable Minimum Wage Essay -- Minimum Wage Essays Minimum wage is the least amount of money that an employer is legally required to pay an employee. It is something that all people in the American workforce know about. It was made to prevent the employer from taking advantage of employees. It is what creates the bare minimum standard of living for the 73.9 million hourly wage workers in the United States. However, there are many different jobs with varying amount of skills that are needed for those jobs. This is where the problem arises because a worker may still be under paid for the job that they do. This problem splits the population into two main groups, one that wants the minimum wage to be raised and another that wants the minimum wage to remain the same, or to even be abolished. However there is a third and possibly more successful option that many people do not propose. Minimum wage as it stands now is too generalized and low for the scope of jobs it applies to. Therefore this third option is that working wages should vary a mong the different sectors of the workforce depending on the different skills needed and effort required for those jobs. Minimum wage was first established in 1938 during the Great Depression by President Franklin Roosevelt to protect the tens of thousands of workers working in sweat shops and factories in America from exploitation. He signed the Fair Labor Standards Act that year which introduced various regulations including banning child labor, establishing workplace safety statutes and arguably the most influential, creating a minimum wage standard of 25 cents per hour. Historically, many employers and fiscal conservatives violently opposed the law arguing that minimum wage could hurt employers, much as they argue now. But President Roosevelt'... ....S 1)" as people who earn this wage can not afford health insurance. It is not enough to handle the different needs of the people who work in different work places and is not acceptable for people who work for far less than they legally should get. Works Cited Soltas, Evans."Two Reasons Not to Raise minimum WageWage". Bloomberg News, Web Jan 03, 2013. Messerli Joe. "Should the Minimum Wage be Abolished (i.e Reduced to $0.00)". BalancedPolitics, web. Oct 12, 2013. Romer, Christina. "The Business of the Minimum Wage" NYTIMES, web. March 2, 2013. The Economist."Trickle-up Economics; Raising the minimum wage" 16 Feb. 2013: 30(US), Student Resources in Context. Web, 18 Oct, 2013. "History of the United States' Minimum Wage" Marathon Studios Enterprises, web. 30 Oct, 2013 Winter, Michael. "L.A. to boost minimum wage to $15", USA TODAY May 19, 2015

Multicultural Awareness Essay

The purpose of this paper is to analyze oneself by taking the Multicultural-Self Assessment and learn about the â€Å"Other† of one self. This will help one to associate with clients from different cultures. Multicultural Self-Assessment Summary The results of the Multicultural Self-Assessment were not surprising to me. Thirteen of the answers were five (5), which is not surprising to me because I was taught by my family and I to accept â€Å"Others† and not to judge anyone if you do not want to be judge yourself. What two four’s (4) were not want I thought I would answer but I had to think very hard on it. I do like to listen to others ideas to a certain point. The point would be when the idea is against a certain group and that’s where I draw line or it just benefits one certain group I will also draw the line there. I have learned to be much opened mind in the area of different cultural in our society and in the rest of the world. My behavior is the same with enter acting with peers, strangers, family, and co-workers. I refuse to change because of someone’s culture. The saying â€Å"What you see is what you get† (Flip Wilson, 1960) that is how I see myself. Story of Being â€Å"Other† The story of â€Å"Other† did not come until I went away for the first time to the University of New Mexico. I notice that there were many different organizations that were comprised of different races and cultures. I did not realize that there were people who did not like certain races or cultures. I was walking by my dorm and this young man who I see around campus before stopped me and ask me why my people (Mexican) come to this country and take away jobs of white people . I had to take a double take when he told me that and turn around and replied what type of jobs is being taken away from his people? He answered all types. I was angry but remained calm and told him that most of the jobs are in the fields, washing dishes, maid, and gardeners. He went on to say that those jobs are for them and in which I said I have not seen anyone out in the hot sun picking crops for more than  eight hours. The young man told me to return to my country and stop taking up space that belong to his people. I have never been so offend so much in my life that it shocked me that I did not realize that I was being discriminated against . I finally opened my mind and eyes as to what is going on and finally told him that I will never leave this country because it’s where I was born here. Then he went on to say that he was going to call ICE on me and I told him to go ahead and that I was half-Mexican and Native American. He then stop talking to me and started too walked away and turned around and said â€Å"Dirty Mexican.† This situation made me open my eyes and I started to realize that within our society we need to understand different cultures and races and give the respect and honor them. â€Å"Other† and Multicultural-Self Assessment Reflection Being the â€Å"Other† and taking the Multicultural-Self Assessment has a great meaning to me, because of the up-bring I am the person that I am now days. With the help of my parents and my religious education that I had made me see that the world is filled with different types of people and one can learn many things about the different cultural and one can learn something from those cultures. I enjoy to meeting people and I do in my work and I have enjoyed working with everyone. I was not surprise that in the result of receiving so many 5 in the assessment. I have been told that I make friends easy and accept everyone without judgment. I am not saying I am perfect but I do have some faults. Next Steps The action that I would take is to use Emic when it comes to dealing with one’s client. Emic approaches allow for the professional counselor to conceptualize the client as an individual and attend to cultural variations and culturally specific interventions (Hays & Gray, 2014). To be opened minded towards a person who has different beliefs and cultural. One must be able to work with clients that come from different cultures and to be able use knowledge of their cultures to can help one as a professional to help his or her client. Statement of Counseling Identity This one was a little harder to think about but my Statement of Counseling.  Identity would be â€Å"I am the person who you will fire after you are on your right path .† I want to be known for the counselor that her client does not need anymore. To let my clients know what to expect from me as their counselor. Explain that I am neither a psychologist nor a license clinical social worker (Coppock, 2012). Importance of Multicultural Awareness and Competence in Counseling Multicultural Awareness is very handy tool for a counselor; it shows where how one interacts with different cultures. This tool can show what one’s weakness is and one’s strong area is. Using the assessment is used then one is in competence to their clients. It must be able to fulfill the right outcome to one’s clients with using any judgmental or basis. References Coppock , Timothy E. (March 1, 2012) â€Å"A Closer Look at Developing Counselor Identity,† Counseling Today: Retrieve from www ct.counseling.org/2012/†¦/a-closer-look-at-developing-counselor-identity. Petrone, M. C. (2004). Multicultural self-assessment. In M. D. Cox & L. Richlin (Eds.), Building faculty learning communities (pp. 122–123). San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons. Vernon, A., & Erford, B.T. (2014). Human Development throughout the Lifespan. In B. T. Erford (Ed.), Orientation to the Counseling Profession: Advocacy, Ethics, and Essential Professional Foundations (2nd. ed.). (pp. 215–239). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

Literary Analysis: Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet as a Historical Fiction Essay

In Jamie Ford’s historical fiction Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, this split narrative focuses on two eras: 1942 and 1986. Within these era’s, Ford’s novel focuses on a Chinese boy, Henry Lee, and what it was like to grow up in the international district with prejudice everywhere, especially in his own family being a first generation American. His novel tells the story of Henry, as well as a Japanese girl by the name of Keiko. The novel tells the story of these two young friends and the hardships faced when the government sends Keiko and her family away to the Japanese internment camps in the Northwest in the 1940’s. His novel displays the effects of the prejudice held against the Japanese during the 1940’s wartime, and the effects it had on the lives of not only those Japanese, but also all Americans, Chinese and other nationalities. We use Anne Scott MacLeod’s essay â€Å"Rewriting History† as a framework while reading Ford’s Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. â€Å"Rewriting History† is a persuasive essay giving criteria of a â€Å"good† Historical Fiction vs. â€Å"bad† Historical Fiction. This essay focuses on three of MacLeod’s criteria for a â€Å"good† Historical Fiction: not rewarding rebellion, not appealing to â€Å"modern sensibilities†, and not overcoming social mores easily. Ford’s novel Hotel on the Corner of Biter and Sweet successfully meets MacLeod’s requirements for a â€Å"good† historical fiction in many ways, although, there are some flaws in a couple of his historical facts, nevertheless, the â€Å"good† historical facts and information in Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet out ways the few historical flaws. First of all, Ford makes sure to give Henry consequences to his rebellious acts; something MacLeod says many â€Å"bad† historical fictions do not do, they only reward with happy endings. Secondly, Ford uses racial discriminations that would have been used back in the 1940’s; another thing MacLeod says that â€Å"bad† historical fiction accommodates to, making it non-offensive and politically correct for the readers. In addition, Henry does not easily overcome the social mores of 1942; again something MacLeod says that â€Å"bad† historical fiction makes it seem easy to overcome the social mores of the era. First of all, meeting MacLeod’s criteria for a â€Å"good† historical fiction†, Ford’s novel does not â€Å"make overt rebellion seem nearly painless and nearly always successful†. Ford displays this when Keiko is taken away Henry keeps some of her belongings safe under his dresser, as well as when Henry sneaks into two different Japanese internment camps searching for Keiko. Though this rebellion seems rewarded at first, as we continue reading we see how, by going to the internment camps and keeping Keiko’s belongings, Henry unknowingly starts a chain of events leading to one, giant consequence. Because Henry keeps Keiko’s belonging, and later writes her letters, his mother finds out and tells Henry’s father. Henry comes home one day and finds his parents at the kitchen table waiting for him with all of Keiko’s pictures spread all over the table. Because of this, Henry’s father gives him a choice: walk out the door and no longer be part of the family or stay and forget about Keiko. In the end Henry chooses to follow his heart and leaves his family (182-185). This forever affects the relationship between Henry and his father, even on his father’s deathbed. Secondly, according to MacLeod’s standard, Ford’s novel is a â€Å"good† historical fiction by not appealing to â€Å"modern sensibilities, so that protagonists experience their own societies as though they were time-travelers, noting racism, sexism, religious bigotry, and outmoded beliefs as outsiders, not as people of and in their cultures. † Ford uses dialect in his novel consisting of racial slurs and comments that would have been used back in the 1940’s. Ford doesn’t accommodate to readers by making the book non-offensive or politically correct. Ford makes the book historically correct as possible. Thirdly, by MacLeod’s criteria, Ford’s novel is a â€Å"good† historical fiction by not â€Å"set[ing] aside the social mores of the past as though they were minor afflictions, small obstacles, easy—and painless—for an independent mind to overcome†. This is displayed near the beginning of the book after Chaz, the bully, snatches Henry’s â€Å"I am Chinese† pin off of his shirt. While walking away Keiko tries to grab Henry’s hand for comfort, but he pushes it away thinking, â€Å"My father would fall over dead†¦ And in town, someone would see us† (23). Ford made the transition of Henry opening up to Keiko take time; they didn’t become immediate friends. Ford makes sure to make the relationship between Keiko and Henry plausible. They both are ‘scholarshipping’ at an all-white school and met working in the school kitchen, as payment for scholarshipping. Their connection is somewhat immediate, yet their relationship progresses slowly. Fourthly, according to MacLeod’s standard, Ford’s novel is a â€Å"good† historical fiction by not omitting â€Å"the less attractive pieces of the past to make . . . arratives meet current social and political preferences†. The 1940’s for the Japanese-Americans were dark times; Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet does anything but omit these facts. From the harsh realities of the hatred between the Chinese and the Japanese displayed between Henry’s father, Henry, and Keiko, to the removal of the Japanese, Ford’s novel spares no â€Å"less attractive piece of the past† to make this novel appealing to the average human in this generation. Ford makes sure to put historical fact ahead of the appealing story’s fiction. Lastly, Ford’s novel is a â€Å"good† historical fiction, by MacLeod’s criteria, because It does not imply that â€Å"people of another time either understood or should have understood the world as we do now. † Though Henry and Keiko had an unusual relationship that most Chinese and Japanese children in the 1940’s wouldn’t have had, it isn’t entirely implausible. Think of it like this†¦ The world is always changing, so how does it change? Someone has to be the one to make those changes happen. We don’t have the same view of the Japanese, or any race for that matter, that we did in past generations. So again, what changed? Obviously Ford’s novel is under the category of ‘fiction’ and the actions of Henry didn’t have this amazing effect of the 1940’s that changed history forever†¦ However, someone’s actions, somewhere in the 1940’s, affected history. This fact makes the relationship between Henry and Keiko, as well as Ford’s novel as a whole, historically plausible. In conclusion Ford’s novel has an overwhelming amount of evidence backing up the hypothesis that his novel is a â€Å"good† work of historical fiction by MacLeod’s standard. Though the end of the novel rewards you with a cheesy, sappy love story ending, something slightly implausible, Ford does his best he can to keep the history in this ‘historical fiction’ factual and true. Over all this novel is a highly plausible, and by MacLeod’s criteria, a â€Å"good† work of Historical Fiction. Ford’s novel is also a reminder of the injustice against the Japanese-Americans during the wartime of the 1940’s and cautions us to never let ourselves as a people treat anyone we see as ‘different’ with the prejudice we so easily treated the Japanese with.

Three Reasons Why Im attending College essays

Three Reasons Why Im attending College essays Three Reasons Why I'm Attending Frontier Community College There are many reasons for my decision to attend Frontier Community College. For example, I wanted to create a positive atmosphere for my family so I would become a better role model for my children. While in the mean time, preparing a solid foundation for my career, and furthering my education to improve my own self-esteem. Creating a positive atmosphere, and being a good role model for my family, I feel is the most important reason for my decision to attend Frontier Community College. Hopefully, with experiencing my struggles, my children will realize it is easier to further their education earlier in life. I found by returning to college at age 35, it's twice the struggle to relearn the basic concepts of learning and preparing yourself for an exciting career. By creating this scholastic atmosphere, I feel my children have a better chance of furthering their education and provide the security they will need later in life. Subsequently, by building a solid foundation for my career, I am able to enhance my financial support for my children to achieve a solid foundation for their careers. Also by establishing a new and exciting career I will be able to earn and receive the benefits of a good job, and better pay, to provide my family with the security that I feel my family needs and deserves. My final, but none less important reason for my decision to attend Frontier Community College, is to further my own education, and to improve myself within the knowledge of a new career. Furthering my education will fulfill my need to learn and achieve the knowledge about the things that interest me most. Also, it will supply me with the feeling to be more comfortable with future situations, and gives me the knowledge and confidence to work under demanding pressures of everyday life. In conclusion to my decision to attend Frontier Community College, I believe it will c...

A Survey of Information Technologies in Logistics Management

3528 Email: gurung@uta. edu ABSTRACT This paper analyzes the impact of information technologies (IT) on logistics by conducting a survey of literatures on academic logistics journals and practitioner journals. The literature survey and practice find that third party logistic providers have better opportunity to leverage IT since they need to have interoperable IT systems with their customers. The business philosophy of Just-In-Time (JIT) has also contributed to the impact of IT in logistics. Further, information technologies are identified that has benefited the logistics. Future directions of logistics are discussed. INTRODUCTION The proliferation of information technologies (IT) and the internet technologies have provided impetus and challenges to the logistics. New technologies present new means to manage the flow of information. IT as a productivity tool can be utilized to both increase the capability and decrease the cost at the same time (Closs et al. , 1997). It has been widely accepted that firms can achieve competitive advantage by cost reduction or differentiation with the proper implementation of IT (Porter Millar, 1985). Enabled by IT the logistics has become a source of competitive advantage for many firms. Two streams of research are identified that highlights the role of IT in logistics. First stream relates to just-in-time logistics information system (Anderson Quinn, 1986; Bookbinder Dilts, 1989; Das Handfield, 1997; Gomes Mentzer, 1988; Perry, 1988; Schwarz Weng, 2000; Spencer, M. S. et al. , 1994; Spencer, M. S. et al. , 1996; Takahashi Nakamura, 2000; Titone, 1996; Wafa Yasin, 1996). The other stream is the third party logistics (Lewis Talalayevsky, 2000; Peters et al. , 1998; Sauvage, 2003; Sink Langley, 1997; Vaidyanathan, 2005). Importance of IT in logistics has grown to some extent by business philosophy of Just-InTime (JIT) by firms. With the emphasis of firms on JIT, the impact of logistics has grown as it is increasingly recognized as a source of consistent, low lead time, damage free deliveries (Bardi et al. , 1994). In pursuit of competitive advantages, firms outsource their functions which are noncore competencies so that they can focus on their core competencies. A recent survey found that 83 percent of the surveyed Fortune 500 companies reported having at least one contract with a third-party logistics provider (Lieb Bentz, 2004). Over the years, the use of third-party logistics has been increasing. Similar survey of Fortune 500 companies taken in 1991 had only 38 percent of the respondents reporting the use of third-party logistics provider (Lieb, 1992). The 618 third party logistic operators attempt to harness the capability of information technology to provide superior services to their customers. The objective of this paper is to study how IT has impacted logistics. To this end, literature review of both leading academic and practitioner logistic journals is conducted. The next section will report the framework of logistics. The following section will analyze the IT enablers in logistics. Then, the implications of ecommerce are discussed followed by a section on future directions for logistics. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE A classification scheme logistics functions provides a meaningful way to study how IT has impacted the various functions of logistics. Previous research in logistics have categorized the use of information systems in logistics in different ways. A system of logistics functions can be divided into following five broad areas (Bowersox, 1974): facility location, transportation, inventory, communication and material movement. Based on the problem areas that application addresses, seven areas of logistics has been identified as facility location, inventory control, order entry, vehicle scheduling, warehouse layout planning, freight rate retrieval, and product and shipment tracing (Ballou, 1976). Another survey identified five categories as facility location, inventory control, transportation, production scheduling, and total physical distribution (House, 1978). These categories treated each category as individual entities rather than a whole system. Noting this shortcoming, Stenger (1986) proposed another classification consisting of transaction systems, short-term scheduling and inventory replenishment systems, flow planning systems, and network planning and design systems. Expanding on the framework developed by Bowersox, Novack et al (1992) divided logistics function into two categories. The first category refers to physical activities that are required various utilities of customer need. These will include inventory, transportation and customer service operations. The second category refers to flow of information or transaction activities that follow or initiate the physical activities. The physical and information flows in logistics function is well-depicted in Figure 1 that shows the categorization of logistics functions as described by Vaidyanathan (2005). As shown in the figure, information flows between logistics function are managed, coordinated and supported by various logistics technologies. 619 Inventory and Logistics Management: – Freight Consolidation – Freight Distribution – Shipment Planning – Traffic Management – Inventory Management – Carrier Selection – Order Entry/ Management Information Flow Customer Service: – Freight Payments – Auditing – Order Management – Fulfillment – Help Desk – Carrier Selection – Rate Negotiation Information Flow Warehousing: – Packaging – Product Making – Labeling – Warehousing Material Flow Transportation: – Fleet Management – Cross Docking – Product Return Figure 1: Categorization of Logistics Functions (adapted from Vaidyanathan 2005) IT enablers in Logistics The literature in logistics is full of instances where information technology has been touted as a means to enhance logistics competitiveness (Bowersox, 1974; Closs et al. , 1997; Rabinovich et al. , 1999; Stenger, 1986). Yet there has been few empirical studies that relates logistics information capabilities to logistics competence (Closs et al. , 1997). A popular framework in information systems discipline put forward by Gorry Morton (1989) place logistics decisions as structured and varying from operational to strategic. The role of logistics information systems as operational and strategic enablers in different areas of the firm’s supply chain has been stated in the literature (Langley et al. , 1988). There has been a shift of IT from being an enabler of operational and material handling functions to being an enabler of decision-making and activityplanning functions within the supply chain (La Londe Auker, 1973). Logistics Information System Logistics Information System (LIS) is the application component of logistics information technology. An effective LIS facilitates the proper information flow between inventory, 20 Information Flow warehousing and transportation to realize the high level of customer service. The ability to optimize the logistics cost and service levels is affected by the LIS of the firm and its partners. Firms that provide better logistics services at a lower cost can have competitive advantage over its competitors (Bardi et al. , 1994). Two classes of LIS has been recogn ized in the literature (Closs et al. , 1997). Logistics operating systems (LOS) refer to transactional applications such as order entry, order processing, warehousing, and transportation. Logistics planning systems (LPS) refer to coordinating applications such as forecasting, inventory management, and distribution requirements planning. EDI Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) has successfully enhanced the communication between firms which is essential for logistics. This technology requires firms to have common data formatting and transmission standards or protocols. Such technologies have been employed by companies to coordinate their value chain activities including logistics. Early applications of EDI has been on transmitting vehicle location information by railways to their customers. Other types of logistics information carried by EDI are purchase orders/releases and changes, advanced shipping notices, bills of lading, and invoices. Timely and accurate information is crucial in decision making about complex logistics problems. Japan Airlines (JAL) adopted EDI to manage their complex value chain logistics required for their operations, including procurement and just-in-time delivery of aircraft fuel, repair and maintenance aircraft parts, food catering and other customer requirements (Chatfield Bjorn-Andersen, 1997). The competitive advantage gained by companies employing EDI is cited in the literature. Firms utilizing EDI were better able to fulfill greater number of services to their customers (Rogers et al. , 1992). Bar coding Bar coding is one of the most IT enablers to date and has made significant impact in the practice. Starting in 1960’s some of the earliest implementation of bar codes were in rail road cars. Nowadays it is rampant in anything that needs to be identified and tracked. The different type of bar codes are available, known as symbologies, for different purposes. In practice, most firms prefer to use industry standards rather than proprietary standards for most of their bar codes on their products. By following industry standards, bar codes reduce the complications inherent in the use of multiple standards and thus provides a strong foundation for integrating the corporate logistics and the supply chain (Closs Kefeng, 2000). Real-time communications capability The logistics IT capability of real-time communications is essential for maintaining the flow of information. As noted by Dudley Lasserre (1989), one of the important roles of logistics IT is to substitute information for inventory. To make real-time tracking of goods, logistic information systems of business partners should have real-time communications capability. The business partners require an integrated messaging architecture which exchanges business data while customizing business flows and format transformation. Real-time communications also allows for schedule plans to change in dynamic routing and scheduling system when the vehicles are 621 already out on the road. Any last minute changes in routing and scheduling system or constant tracking has been possible only with real-time communications ability of the respective systems. RFID RFID helps to identify, track and locate items automatically. The use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is expected to increase rapidly in coming years. Often referred to as the next step in the evolution of bar-coding, RFID is growing rapidly in the automatic data capture and identification market (Srivastava, 2004). RFID is not a new technology, in fact, its use dates back to 1940’s but only now it is starting to make a significant impact within the supply chain. The growth in use of RFID will be enhanced to some extent by mandates from large retailers such as Wal-Mart and Target, and the US Department of Defense, who require their suppliers to adopt this technology within the next few years (Asif Mandviwalla, 2005). Among the companies that are piloting RFID in their supply chain management prominent ones are WalMart, Procter Gamble, Coca-cola and Gillette. Although the biggest driver in the popularity of RFID has been supply chain, companies are experimenting in other applications as well. Other applications are theft detection, asset tracking, mobile payments, in-process inventory tracking and luggage tracking. Dell, Seagate, Boeing and Ford are among other companies that are using RFID to track their in-process inventory in manufacturing. An RFID system includes transponders or tags that can identify items ; antennas that allows tags to be interrogated and to respond; and software that controls the RFID equipment, manages the data and interfaces with enterprise applications. RFID has lots of potential to improve the efficiency in the supply chain and reduce waste. For example, efficiency would result from automatic update of inventory system when products with RFID tags are unloaded from trucks into stores. The advantages of RFID over bar coding are as follows: RFID tags can provide longer read distances; store more data; require no direct line of sight between tag and reader; and can collect data from multiple sources simultaneously (Asif Mandviwalla, 2005). There are some technical and business challenges to overcome before RFID can be ubiquitous. Technical issues include problems of interference, security and accuracy while business issues relate to costs and lack of standards. Another significant business challenge in adopting RFID faced by managers is to work out a business case for the executive board. Early adopters of these technologies are marred by problems such as possible adverse consumer outbursts to perceived invasion of privacy, reliability of the RFID system, and issues related to health, safety and IT integration. IMPLICATION OF ECOMMERCE ON LOGISTICS The growth of ecommerce pose opportunities and challenges for logistics. As internet retailing increases the companies are accepting orders from their clientele across the borders. In many instances the location of clients are not covered by any existing distribution system of the companies. On such occasions the companies have no resort but to turn towards third party logistics operators for physical flow of goods. As for the information flow, the companies need to have capabilities for ecommerce applications. The group of technologies and processes for coordinating logistics information flow has been named e-logistics. An important web 622 technology that facilitates the exchange of business data among logistics business partners across different platforms is extra markup language (XML). For example, UPS is exploiting the power of the web services to streamline its information flows for logistics activities such as RFQ, shipping and tracking. Changing Trends in Logistics Consultants are beginning to take an active part in helping out the shippers select third party logistics operators. Shippers hire consultants to help them align business processes with supply chain strategies. The newly coined term â€Å"4PL† for consultants stands for dominant role that consultants will be taking in managing the resources, the technology and the processes in the supply chain. It is yet to be seen whether the shippers will let the consultants manage all the logistics processes. Instead of handing over the authority to manage the logistics processes to the consulting firms, shippers may choose to develop alliance with the third party logistics operators and maintain the supply chain themselves. The key thing that will allow coordination between shipper firms and the third party logistics will be information technology and management skills to run the supply chain effectively. This implies that firms should also have proper logistic technologies in place to enjoy the full benefits of use of third party logistics. FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The research directions that are available for researchers in logistics are numerous. Before companies implement new logistic information technologies such as RFID it is important to assess the viability of adopting the technology. What would be the expected benefits? What is the ROI? Researchers can come up with various econometric models to predict the outcomes of adopting logistics technologies. Modeling techniques can be used to assess the scenarios that would be beneficial for adopting new technologies. As companies are entering into ecommerce, better coordinating techniques are required to streamline logistics activities for transactions taking place on the internet. Collaborative technologies for supporting e-logistics would greatly enhance the future logistics. Multi-agent systems (MAS) provide an interesting avenue of research that is applicable for supporting logistics technologies on the internet. Intelligent software agents can be used to assess the bids offered by multiple third-party logistics operators. To support global ecommerce the companies need to have different options for global logistics. The best way to traverse the geographical distribution is through technology. What are the communication channels and technologies that would benefit the company in terms of monitoring and coordination logistics functions? More empirical evidence will be preferred to establish the direct link between organizational performance and logistics information systems. Researchers can seek to examine the complex relationships between logistics technologies and performance from different paradigms and theories. The perspective of organizational learning can be used to evaluate the performance gained by employing logistics information systems. 23 CONCLUSION The objective of this paper was to observe the impact of information technology on the logistics functions. A literature review of the academic and practitioners journals was conducted. The information technologies that have been used to support logistics functions were discussed. It is evident that academic researchers are aware of new tec hnologies in practice such as RFID. Development in technologies offer sources of competitive advantage for companies. Adoption of new technologies provide challenge and opportunities for the companies. Proper business case and calculation of ROI needs to be done to assess the expected benefits from new technologies. Changing trends in business in terms of ecommerce open new markets for firms for all sizes to expand their market share. Strategic use of information resource would bear results of competitive advantage and thus leading to success stories. The best practices in logistic information technologies need to be adopted by firms in alignment of their strategic goals. Future trends in logistics may prompt companies to rethink their logistics strategies. Firms may choose to use third party logistics in order to focus on their core competencies. However, firms need to have logistics information systems in place that is compatible with the third party operators in order to fully benefit from their services. REFERENCES Anderson, D. L. Quinn, R. J. 1986, â€Å"The Role of Transportation in Long Supply Line Just-InTime Logistics Channels â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 68-88. Asif, Z. Mandviwalla, M. 2005, â€Å"Integrating the Supply Chain with RFID: a Technical and Business Analysis†, Communications of the AIS, vol. 15, pp. 393-427. Ballou, R. H. 976, â€Å"Computer Methods in Transportation-Distribution†, Transportation Journal, vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 72-85. Bardi, E. J. , Raghunathan, T. S. Bagchi, P. K. 1994, â€Å"Logistics information systems: The strategic role of top management†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 7185. Bookbinder, J. H. Dilts, D. M. 1989, â€Å"L ogistics Information Systems in a Just-In-Time Environment â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 50-67. Bowersox, D. J. 1974, Logistics Management: A Systems Integration of Physical Distribution Management and Materials Management, Macmillan Publishing, New York, NY. Chatfield, A. T. Bjorn-Andersen, N. 1997, â€Å"The impact of IOS-enabled business process change on business outcomes: Transformation of the Value Chain of Japan Airlines†, Journal of Management Information Systems, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 13-40. Closs, D. J. Kefeng, X. 2000, â€Å"Logistics information technology practice in manufacturing and merchandising firms† An international benchmarking study versus world class logistics firms†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 30, no. 10, pp. 869-86. 624 Closs, D. J. , Goldsby, T. J. Clinton, S. R. 1997, â€Å"Information technology influences on world class logistics capability†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 4-17. Das, A. Handfield, R. B. 1997, â€Å"Just-in-time and logistics in global sourcing: An empirical study†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 27, no. 3/4, pp. 244-59. Dudley, L. Lasserre, P. 1989, â€Å"Information as a Substitute for Inventories â€Å", European Economic Review, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 67-88. Gomes, R. Mentzer, J. T. 988, â€Å"A Systems Approach to the Investigation of Just-In-Time â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 71-88. Gorry, G. A. Morton, M. S. S. 1989, â€Å"A Framework for Management Information Systems†, Sloan Management Review, vol. 30, no. 3, pp. 49-61. House, R. G. 1978, â€Å"Computer Models in Distribution Management†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 1, no. 1, p p. 129-52. La Londe, B. J. Auker, K. 1973, â€Å"A Survey of Computer Applications and Practices in Transportation and Distribution†, International Journal of Physical Distribution, vol. 3, no. 5, pp. 92-301. Langley, C. J. , Carlisle, D. P. , Probst, S. B. , Biggs, D. F. Cail, R. E. 1988, â€Å"Microcomputers as a Logistics Information Strategy†, International Journal of Physical Distribution and Materials Management, vol. 18, no. 6, pp. 11-7. Lewis, I. Talalayevsky, A. 2000, â€Å"Third-Party Logistics: Leveraging Information Technology â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 173-85. Lieb, R. C. 1992, â€Å"The use of third-party logistics services by large American manufacturers†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 29-42. Lieb, R. C. Bentz, B. A. 004, â€Å"The Use of Third-Party Logistics Services by Large American Manufacturers: The 2003 Survey†, Transportation Journal, vol. 43, no. 3, pp. 24-33. Novack, R. A. , Rinehart, L. M. Wells, M. V. 1992, â€Å"Rethinking concept foundations in logistics management†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 233-67. Perry, J. H. 1988, â€Å"Firm Behavior and Operating Performance in Just-In-Time Logistics Channels â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 19-33. Peters, M. J. , Lieb, R. C. Randall, H. L. 1998, â€Å"The use of third-party logistics services by European industry†, Transport Logistics, vol. , no. 3, pp. 167-79. Porter, M. E. Millar, V. E. 1985, â€Å"How information gives you competitive advantage†, Harvard Business Review, vol. 63, no. 4, pp. 149-60. Rabinovich, E. , Windle, R. , Dresner, M. Corsi, T. 1999, â€Å"Outsourcing of integrated logistics functions†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 29, no. 6, pp. 353-73. Rogers, D. S. , Daugherty, P. J. Stank, T. P. 1992, â€Å"Enhancing service responsiveness: the strategic potential of EDI†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 22, no. 8, pp. 15-20. Sauvage, T. 2003, â€Å"The relationship between technology and logistics third-party providers†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 33, no. 3, pp. 236-53. Schwarz, L. B. Weng, Z. K. 2000, â€Å"The Design of a JIT Supply Chain: The Effect of Leadtime Uncertainty on Safety Stock â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 231-52. 625 Sink, H. L. Langley, J. C. J. 1997, â€Å"A managerial framework for the acquisition of third-party logistics services†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 18, p. 163. Spencer, M. S. , Dale, S. R. Patricia, J. D. 1994, â€Å"JIT Systems and External Logistics Suppliers†, International Journal of Operations Production Management, vol. 14, no. 6, pp. 6074. Spencer, M. S. , Daugherty, P. J. Rogers, D. S. 1996, â€Å"Logistics support for JIF implementation†, International Journal of Production Research, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 701-14. Srivastava, B. 2004, â€Å"Radio frequency ID technology: The next revolution in SCM†, Business Horizons, vol. 47, no. 6, pp. 60-8. Stenger, A. J. 1986, â€Å"Information Systems in Logistics Management: Past, Present, and Future†, Transportation Journal, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 5-82. Takahashi, K. Nakamura, N. 2000, â€Å"Reactive logistics in a JIT environment†, Production Planning Control, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 20-31. Titone, R. 1996, â€Å"Moving Beyond JIT to Logistics Planning†, IIE Solutions, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 22-4. Vaidyanathan, G. 2005, â€Å"A Framework for Evaluating Third-Party Logistics†, Communications o f the ACM, vol. 48, no. 1, pp. 89-94. Wafa, M. A. Yasin, M. M. 1996, â€Å"The impact of supplier proximity on JIT success: an informational perspective†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 23-34. 626 A Survey of Information Technologies in Logistics Management 3528 Email: gurung@uta. edu ABSTRACT This paper analyzes the impact of information technologies (IT) on logistics by conducting a survey of literatures on academic logistics journals and practitioner journals. The literature survey and practice find that third party logistic providers have better opportunity to leverage IT since they need to have interoperable IT systems with their customers. The business philosophy of Just-In-Time (JIT) has also contributed to the impact of IT in logistics. Further, information technologies are identified that has benefited the logistics. Future directions of logistics are discussed. INTRODUCTION The proliferation of information technologies (IT) and the internet technologies have provided impetus and challenges to the logistics. New technologies present new means to manage the flow of information. IT as a productivity tool can be utilized to both increase the capability and decrease the cost at the same time (Closs et al. , 1997). It has been widely accepted that firms can achieve competitive advantage by cost reduction or differentiation with the proper implementation of IT (Porter Millar, 1985). Enabled by IT the logistics has become a source of competitive advantage for many firms. Two streams of research are identified that highlights the role of IT in logistics. First stream relates to just-in-time logistics information system (Anderson Quinn, 1986; Bookbinder Dilts, 1989; Das Handfield, 1997; Gomes Mentzer, 1988; Perry, 1988; Schwarz Weng, 2000; Spencer, M. S. et al. , 1994; Spencer, M. S. et al. , 1996; Takahashi Nakamura, 2000; Titone, 1996; Wafa Yasin, 1996). The other stream is the third party logistics (Lewis Talalayevsky, 2000; Peters et al. , 1998; Sauvage, 2003; Sink Langley, 1997; Vaidyanathan, 2005). Importance of IT in logistics has grown to some extent by business philosophy of Just-InTime (JIT) by firms. With the emphasis of firms on JIT, the impact of logistics has grown as it is increasingly recognized as a source of consistent, low lead time, damage free deliveries (Bardi et al. , 1994). In pursuit of competitive advantages, firms outsource their functions which are noncore competencies so that they can focus on their core competencies. A recent survey found that 83 percent of the surveyed Fortune 500 companies reported having at least one contract with a third-party logistics provider (Lieb Bentz, 2004). Over the years, the use of third-party logistics has been increasing. Similar survey of Fortune 500 companies taken in 1991 had only 38 percent of the respondents reporting the use of third-party logistics provider (Lieb, 1992). The 618 third party logistic operators attempt to harness the capability of information technology to provide superior services to their customers. The objective of this paper is to study how IT has impacted logistics. To this end, literature review of both leading academic and practitioner logistic journals is conducted. The next section will report the framework of logistics. The following section will analyze the IT enablers in logistics. Then, the implications of ecommerce are discussed followed by a section on future directions for logistics. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE A classification scheme logistics functions provides a meaningful way to study how IT has impacted the various functions of logistics. Previous research in logistics have categorized the use of information systems in logistics in different ways. A system of logistics functions can be divided into following five broad areas (Bowersox, 1974): facility location, transportation, inventory, communication and material movement. Based on the problem areas that application addresses, seven areas of logistics has been identified as facility location, inventory control, order entry, vehicle scheduling, warehouse layout planning, freight rate retrieval, and product and shipment tracing (Ballou, 1976). Another survey identified five categories as facility location, inventory control, transportation, production scheduling, and total physical distribution (House, 1978). These categories treated each category as individual entities rather than a whole system. Noting this shortcoming, Stenger (1986) proposed another classification consisting of transaction systems, short-term scheduling and inventory replenishment systems, flow planning systems, and network planning and design systems. Expanding on the framework developed by Bowersox, Novack et al (1992) divided logistics function into two categories. The first category refers to physical activities that are required various utilities of customer need. These will include inventory, transportation and customer service operations. The second category refers to flow of information or transaction activities that follow or initiate the physical activities. The physical and information flows in logistics function is well-depicted in Figure 1 that shows the categorization of logistics functions as described by Vaidyanathan (2005). As shown in the figure, information flows between logistics function are managed, coordinated and supported by various logistics technologies. 619 Inventory and Logistics Management: – Freight Consolidation – Freight Distribution – Shipment Planning – Traffic Management – Inventory Management – Carrier Selection – Order Entry/ Management Information Flow Customer Service: – Freight Payments – Auditing – Order Management – Fulfillment – Help Desk – Carrier Selection – Rate Negotiation Information Flow Warehousing: – Packaging – Product Making – Labeling – Warehousing Material Flow Transportation: – Fleet Management – Cross Docking – Product Return Figure 1: Categorization of Logistics Functions (adapted from Vaidyanathan 2005) IT enablers in Logistics The literature in logistics is full of instances where information technology has been touted as a means to enhance logistics competitiveness (Bowersox, 1974; Closs et al. , 1997; Rabinovich et al. , 1999; Stenger, 1986). Yet there has been few empirical studies that relates logistics information capabilities to logistics competence (Closs et al. , 1997). A popular framework in information systems discipline put forward by Gorry Morton (1989) place logistics decisions as structured and varying from operational to strategic. The role of logistics information systems as operational and strategic enablers in different areas of the firm’s supply chain has been stated in the literature (Langley et al. , 1988). There has been a shift of IT from being an enabler of operational and material handling functions to being an enabler of decision-making and activityplanning functions within the supply chain (La Londe Auker, 1973). Logistics Information System Logistics Information System (LIS) is the application component of logistics information technology. An effective LIS facilitates the proper information flow between inventory, 20 Information Flow warehousing and transportation to realize the high level of customer service. The ability to optimize the logistics cost and service levels is affected by the LIS of the firm and its partners. Firms that provide better logistics services at a lower cost can have competitive advantage over its competitors (Bardi et al. , 1994). Two classes of LIS has been recogn ized in the literature (Closs et al. , 1997). Logistics operating systems (LOS) refer to transactional applications such as order entry, order processing, warehousing, and transportation. Logistics planning systems (LPS) refer to coordinating applications such as forecasting, inventory management, and distribution requirements planning. EDI Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) has successfully enhanced the communication between firms which is essential for logistics. This technology requires firms to have common data formatting and transmission standards or protocols. Such technologies have been employed by companies to coordinate their value chain activities including logistics. Early applications of EDI has been on transmitting vehicle location information by railways to their customers. Other types of logistics information carried by EDI are purchase orders/releases and changes, advanced shipping notices, bills of lading, and invoices. Timely and accurate information is crucial in decision making about complex logistics problems. Japan Airlines (JAL) adopted EDI to manage their complex value chain logistics required for their operations, including procurement and just-in-time delivery of aircraft fuel, repair and maintenance aircraft parts, food catering and other customer requirements (Chatfield Bjorn-Andersen, 1997). The competitive advantage gained by companies employing EDI is cited in the literature. Firms utilizing EDI were better able to fulfill greater number of services to their customers (Rogers et al. , 1992). Bar coding Bar coding is one of the most IT enablers to date and has made significant impact in the practice. Starting in 1960’s some of the earliest implementation of bar codes were in rail road cars. Nowadays it is rampant in anything that needs to be identified and tracked. The different type of bar codes are available, known as symbologies, for different purposes. In practice, most firms prefer to use industry standards rather than proprietary standards for most of their bar codes on their products. By following industry standards, bar codes reduce the complications inherent in the use of multiple standards and thus provides a strong foundation for integrating the corporate logistics and the supply chain (Closs Kefeng, 2000). Real-time communications capability The logistics IT capability of real-time communications is essential for maintaining the flow of information. As noted by Dudley Lasserre (1989), one of the important roles of logistics IT is to substitute information for inventory. To make real-time tracking of goods, logistic information systems of business partners should have real-time communications capability. The business partners require an integrated messaging architecture which exchanges business data while customizing business flows and format transformation. Real-time communications also allows for schedule plans to change in dynamic routing and scheduling system when the vehicles are 621 already out on the road. Any last minute changes in routing and scheduling system or constant tracking has been possible only with real-time communications ability of the respective systems. RFID RFID helps to identify, track and locate items automatically. The use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is expected to increase rapidly in coming years. Often referred to as the next step in the evolution of bar-coding, RFID is growing rapidly in the automatic data capture and identification market (Srivastava, 2004). RFID is not a new technology, in fact, its use dates back to 1940’s but only now it is starting to make a significant impact within the supply chain. The growth in use of RFID will be enhanced to some extent by mandates from large retailers such as Wal-Mart and Target, and the US Department of Defense, who require their suppliers to adopt this technology within the next few years (Asif Mandviwalla, 2005). Among the companies that are piloting RFID in their supply chain management prominent ones are WalMart, Procter Gamble, Coca-cola and Gillette. Although the biggest driver in the popularity of RFID has been supply chain, companies are experimenting in other applications as well. Other applications are theft detection, asset tracking, mobile payments, in-process inventory tracking and luggage tracking. Dell, Seagate, Boeing and Ford are among other companies that are using RFID to track their in-process inventory in manufacturing. An RFID system includes transponders or tags that can identify items ; antennas that allows tags to be interrogated and to respond; and software that controls the RFID equipment, manages the data and interfaces with enterprise applications. RFID has lots of potential to improve the efficiency in the supply chain and reduce waste. For example, efficiency would result from automatic update of inventory system when products with RFID tags are unloaded from trucks into stores. The advantages of RFID over bar coding are as follows: RFID tags can provide longer read distances; store more data; require no direct line of sight between tag and reader; and can collect data from multiple sources simultaneously (Asif Mandviwalla, 2005). There are some technical and business challenges to overcome before RFID can be ubiquitous. Technical issues include problems of interference, security and accuracy while business issues relate to costs and lack of standards. Another significant business challenge in adopting RFID faced by managers is to work out a business case for the executive board. Early adopters of these technologies are marred by problems such as possible adverse consumer outbursts to perceived invasion of privacy, reliability of the RFID system, and issues related to health, safety and IT integration. IMPLICATION OF ECOMMERCE ON LOGISTICS The growth of ecommerce pose opportunities and challenges for logistics. As internet retailing increases the companies are accepting orders from their clientele across the borders. In many instances the location of clients are not covered by any existing distribution system of the companies. On such occasions the companies have no resort but to turn towards third party logistics operators for physical flow of goods. As for the information flow, the companies need to have capabilities for ecommerce applications. The group of technologies and processes for coordinating logistics information flow has been named e-logistics. An important web 622 technology that facilitates the exchange of business data among logistics business partners across different platforms is extra markup language (XML). For example, UPS is exploiting the power of the web services to streamline its information flows for logistics activities such as RFQ, shipping and tracking. Changing Trends in Logistics Consultants are beginning to take an active part in helping out the shippers select third party logistics operators. Shippers hire consultants to help them align business processes with supply chain strategies. The newly coined term â€Å"4PL† for consultants stands for dominant role that consultants will be taking in managing the resources, the technology and the processes in the supply chain. It is yet to be seen whether the shippers will let the consultants manage all the logistics processes. Instead of handing over the authority to manage the logistics processes to the consulting firms, shippers may choose to develop alliance with the third party logistics operators and maintain the supply chain themselves. The key thing that will allow coordination between shipper firms and the third party logistics will be information technology and management skills to run the supply chain effectively. This implies that firms should also have proper logistic technologies in place to enjoy the full benefits of use of third party logistics. FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The research directions that are available for researchers in logistics are numerous. Before companies implement new logistic information technologies such as RFID it is important to assess the viability of adopting the technology. What would be the expected benefits? What is the ROI? Researchers can come up with various econometric models to predict the outcomes of adopting logistics technologies. Modeling techniques can be used to assess the scenarios that would be beneficial for adopting new technologies. As companies are entering into ecommerce, better coordinating techniques are required to streamline logistics activities for transactions taking place on the internet. Collaborative technologies for supporting e-logistics would greatly enhance the future logistics. Multi-agent systems (MAS) provide an interesting avenue of research that is applicable for supporting logistics technologies on the internet. Intelligent software agents can be used to assess the bids offered by multiple third-party logistics operators. To support global ecommerce the companies need to have different options for global logistics. The best way to traverse the geographical distribution is through technology. What are the communication channels and technologies that would benefit the company in terms of monitoring and coordination logistics functions? More empirical evidence will be preferred to establish the direct link between organizational performance and logistics information systems. Researchers can seek to examine the complex relationships between logistics technologies and performance from different paradigms and theories. The perspective of organizational learning can be used to evaluate the performance gained by employing logistics information systems. 23 CONCLUSION The objective of this paper was to observe the impact of information technology on the logistics functions. A literature review of the academic and practitioners journals was conducted. The information technologies that have been used to support logistics functions were discussed. It is evident that academic researchers are aware of new tec hnologies in practice such as RFID. Development in technologies offer sources of competitive advantage for companies. Adoption of new technologies provide challenge and opportunities for the companies. Proper business case and calculation of ROI needs to be done to assess the expected benefits from new technologies. Changing trends in business in terms of ecommerce open new markets for firms for all sizes to expand their market share. Strategic use of information resource would bear results of competitive advantage and thus leading to success stories. The best practices in logistic information technologies need to be adopted by firms in alignment of their strategic goals. Future trends in logistics may prompt companies to rethink their logistics strategies. Firms may choose to use third party logistics in order to focus on their core competencies. However, firms need to have logistics information systems in place that is compatible with the third party operators in order to fully benefit from their services. REFERENCES Anderson, D. L. Quinn, R. J. 1986, â€Å"The Role of Transportation in Long Supply Line Just-InTime Logistics Channels â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 68-88. Asif, Z. Mandviwalla, M. 2005, â€Å"Integrating the Supply Chain with RFID: a Technical and Business Analysis†, Communications of the AIS, vol. 15, pp. 393-427. Ballou, R. H. 976, â€Å"Computer Methods in Transportation-Distribution†, Transportation Journal, vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 72-85. Bardi, E. J. , Raghunathan, T. S. Bagchi, P. K. 1994, â€Å"Logistics information systems: The strategic role of top management†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 7185. Bookbinder, J. H. Dilts, D. M. 1989, â€Å"L ogistics Information Systems in a Just-In-Time Environment â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 50-67. Bowersox, D. J. 1974, Logistics Management: A Systems Integration of Physical Distribution Management and Materials Management, Macmillan Publishing, New York, NY. Chatfield, A. T. Bjorn-Andersen, N. 1997, â€Å"The impact of IOS-enabled business process change on business outcomes: Transformation of the Value Chain of Japan Airlines†, Journal of Management Information Systems, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 13-40. Closs, D. J. Kefeng, X. 2000, â€Å"Logistics information technology practice in manufacturing and merchandising firms† An international benchmarking study versus world class logistics firms†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 30, no. 10, pp. 869-86. 624 Closs, D. J. , Goldsby, T. J. Clinton, S. R. 1997, â€Å"Information technology influences on world class logistics capability†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 4-17. Das, A. Handfield, R. B. 1997, â€Å"Just-in-time and logistics in global sourcing: An empirical study†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 27, no. 3/4, pp. 244-59. Dudley, L. Lasserre, P. 1989, â€Å"Information as a Substitute for Inventories â€Å", European Economic Review, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 67-88. Gomes, R. Mentzer, J. T. 988, â€Å"A Systems Approach to the Investigation of Just-In-Time â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 71-88. Gorry, G. A. Morton, M. S. S. 1989, â€Å"A Framework for Management Information Systems†, Sloan Management Review, vol. 30, no. 3, pp. 49-61. House, R. G. 1978, â€Å"Computer Models in Distribution Management†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 1, no. 1, p p. 129-52. La Londe, B. J. Auker, K. 1973, â€Å"A Survey of Computer Applications and Practices in Transportation and Distribution†, International Journal of Physical Distribution, vol. 3, no. 5, pp. 92-301. Langley, C. J. , Carlisle, D. P. , Probst, S. B. , Biggs, D. F. Cail, R. E. 1988, â€Å"Microcomputers as a Logistics Information Strategy†, International Journal of Physical Distribution and Materials Management, vol. 18, no. 6, pp. 11-7. Lewis, I. Talalayevsky, A. 2000, â€Å"Third-Party Logistics: Leveraging Information Technology â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 173-85. Lieb, R. C. 1992, â€Å"The use of third-party logistics services by large American manufacturers†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 29-42. Lieb, R. C. Bentz, B. A. 004, â€Å"The Use of Third-Party Logistics Services by Large American Manufacturers: The 2003 Survey†, Transportation Journal, vol. 43, no. 3, pp. 24-33. Novack, R. A. , Rinehart, L. M. Wells, M. V. 1992, â€Å"Rethinking concept foundations in logistics management†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 233-67. Perry, J. H. 1988, â€Å"Firm Behavior and Operating Performance in Just-In-Time Logistics Channels â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 19-33. Peters, M. J. , Lieb, R. C. Randall, H. L. 1998, â€Å"The use of third-party logistics services by European industry†, Transport Logistics, vol. , no. 3, pp. 167-79. Porter, M. E. Millar, V. E. 1985, â€Å"How information gives you competitive advantage†, Harvard Business Review, vol. 63, no. 4, pp. 149-60. Rabinovich, E. , Windle, R. , Dresner, M. Corsi, T. 1999, â€Å"Outsourcing of integrated logistics functions†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 29, no. 6, pp. 353-73. Rogers, D. S. , Daugherty, P. J. Stank, T. P. 1992, â€Å"Enhancing service responsiveness: the strategic potential of EDI†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 22, no. 8, pp. 15-20. Sauvage, T. 2003, â€Å"The relationship between technology and logistics third-party providers†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 33, no. 3, pp. 236-53. Schwarz, L. B. Weng, Z. K. 2000, â€Å"The Design of a JIT Supply Chain: The Effect of Leadtime Uncertainty on Safety Stock â€Å", Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 231-52. 625 Sink, H. L. Langley, J. C. J. 1997, â€Å"A managerial framework for the acquisition of third-party logistics services†, Journal of Business Logistics, vol. 18, p. 163. Spencer, M. S. , Dale, S. R. Patricia, J. D. 1994, â€Å"JIT Systems and External Logistics Suppliers†, International Journal of Operations Production Management, vol. 14, no. 6, pp. 6074. Spencer, M. S. , Daugherty, P. J. Rogers, D. S. 1996, â€Å"Logistics support for JIF implementation†, International Journal of Production Research, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 701-14. Srivastava, B. 2004, â€Å"Radio frequency ID technology: The next revolution in SCM†, Business Horizons, vol. 47, no. 6, pp. 60-8. Stenger, A. J. 1986, â€Å"Information Systems in Logistics Management: Past, Present, and Future†, Transportation Journal, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 5-82. Takahashi, K. Nakamura, N. 2000, â€Å"Reactive logistics in a JIT environment†, Production Planning Control, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 20-31. Titone, R. 1996, â€Å"Moving Beyond JIT to Logistics Planning†, IIE Solutions, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 22-4. Vaidyanathan, G. 2005, â€Å"A Framework for Evaluating Third-Party Logistics†, Communications o f the ACM, vol. 48, no. 1, pp. 89-94. Wafa, M. A. Yasin, M. M. 1996, â€Å"The impact of supplier proximity on JIT success: an informational perspective†, International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 23-34. 626