Saturday, October 5, 2019

Sykes Enterprises Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Sykes Enterprises - Case Study Example His primary focus has been financial return and he has used finances as the basis for expansion, retraction and other strategies. However, it is necessary for the top management to reconsider some of the strategies from a financial point-of-view so that it can streamline its current operations. It may not be necessary that a call center should require closure if it is not doing well. There can be consolidation of operations as well as optimization of activities that would result in cost-reduction. Initiative by the top management will be the only reason why call center managers would want to look at their operations and search for cost-minimization strategies. The change should come from the top management to the bottom and this would be the driving factor amongst call center managers for cost reduction. Convergys is the largest market holder in the call center and order processing business. Sykes Enterprises scale of operations is only a fraction of the two market leaders in this business. However, this cannot be attributed to any exceptional strategy on the part of Sykes' competitors. Sykes' aggressive strategy has been in terms of the number of call centers and its cost competitiveness. Sykes Enterprises did not see order processing and bill processing as a major industry and thus its corporate clients were always looking for Sykes when they needed a cost-effective solution. Reliability is one of the key features that is missing from the brand positioning of Sykes in the industry. Thus, Sykes needs to re-consider its position in the industry and work towards improving it from just another low-cost solution to a reliable and smart solutions company - that would work at lower costs not just because of low quality but because it has found the key to strategically reducing costs of its operations. Review of Mission and Objectives Sykes' existing mission and objectives are not very much suited to its operational strategy. Instead of focusing on the low-cost attractions to the corporate world, Sykes should focus on a moderate strategy on using its services and quality of operations as the focal point of attracting corporate customers. It should revise its mission and objectives to incorporate these ideas in its mission and objectives. Further, it should make sure that its strategies reflect this mission. 4.0 Strategic Alternatives and Recommended Strategy Strategic Alternatives It is obvious that Sykes can take more than one action to improve its revenues and build a profitable business. The closure of its operations in India have resulted in consolidation of its costs in the United States. The competitors of Sykes have resorted to opening up call centers in South East Asian nations such as the Philippines to counter the high turnover costs and possible wage rises in Indian cities due to growing economies. It is important for Sykes to focus on its costs and revenues. Sykes needs to increase its revenues and reduce its costs. Sykes can focus on increasing the number of services that it offers from its existing call centers so that the costs of the services do not rise, however, there will be a rise in the revenues for the services. Another recommended

Friday, October 4, 2019

Green cars (electric cars) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Green cars (electric cars) - Essay Example ough no one can argue that electricity is a form of â€Å"clean energy† as compared to traditional fossil fuels, the fact remains that this electricity must be generated in some way: whether from coal, nuclear, or hydro stations – all of which represent a definite environmental drawback. Thesis sentence: A tangential problem to electrical generation that few people spend much time thinking about concerns the material that is used to make the batteries which will store the electrical power for the vehicles. V. Total environmental impact of the production process as compared to total carbon output and green technology/electric/hybrid vehicles as compared to the environmental effect s of traditional automobile manufacturing Thesis statement: As factories will need to retool and diverse supplies of â€Å"rare earth† materials will need to be utilized in order to create these batteries, there will be a net loss of the earth’s resources as compared to traditional automotive manufacturing; as such, this analysis asks how this loss will be

Thursday, October 3, 2019

How to Succeed in College Essay Example for Free

How to Succeed in College Essay For most, the collegiate experience represents a major cornerstone in life. Attending college can provide identity, give direction and fortify the foundation of its students. Success in college means always demonstrating responsible decision making. Attendance policies and rules of participation may not appear to be significant, but they can move a student to the right or to the left in the grading scale. It is also crucial to adhere to rigid standards that command accountability. Some Professors are adamant about participation and class involvement. Academia mandates setting goals and becoming objective. You will discover that these habits, when applied, enhance the window of opportunity for success to enter. Confidence is an essential part of being a successful college student. Likewise, a student that lacks this sort of discipline, readiness and mental strength will most likely be lackadaisical and less likely to thrive in college. The first key to succeeding in college is attendance. Being present and on time ensures that pertinent knowledge is ascertained. Most of all, showing up on time for every class allows the individual to develop positive attendance habits that are just as important in the job market. These habits reflect a sense of dependability to professors and employers alike. A student simply cannot gain information from a lecture if they are not present. Nonetheless, being present is only half of the equation. The next step is class participation. Professors want to see that their students can apply what is being taught to them. This element may stimulate debate, or even trigger thorough research on something in particular. At the college level, participation and attentiveness really exercise the mind. Consequently, when students work in groups, are involved in research and share opinions they are able to hone their communication skills. Subsequently, it is critical for any college student to set goals and concise objectives for accomplishing them. Individuals with something to work toward are most likely to thrive in any c ollege or university. Goals provide the determination to fuel students through adversity; school related or not. Objectives should be well-defined. They are actually small steps indicative of levels of accomplishment and success. For college students, enormous goals are not far-fetched, nor do they seem impossible to reach when clear  objectives exist. Students who regularly set goals and objectives possess more ambition and drive than those who do not. Goal-oriented people have a more resilient work ethic due to the fact that they can see the progression of their hard work when they arrive at specific objectives. This hard work creates a sense of gratitude and individual accomplishment. Ultimately, college students must be prepared mentally and harbor a positive attitude. Self-confidence must be present if anyone is to endure the investment and sacrifice that pave the way to becoming a college graduate. A confident student is one that can evade social distractions and work through personal adversity to get to the finish line. Successful college students and college graduates are mentally poised. This frame of mind beckons the hard-working college student to accept challenges, explore new modes of learning and to appreciate their individuality. A confident mind is a mind for success. The rigors of college can, at times, seem overwhelming. With so much information to process, students are bound to enter their respective careers with a solid grasp on what they are doing. Success in college is contingent almost completely on attitude and fortitude. The college freshman will discover that the road ahead is bumpy, demanding and can be painstaking. The graduating senior will be indebted forever for the journey. The investment is precious; the success affiliated with reaching the destination is boundless.

Moths as Ecological Indicators

Moths as Ecological Indicators Results Articles from peer-reviewed journals, revolving around the topic of moths as ecological indicators, were collected and reviewed. The articles dealt with various studies conducted in different parts of the world and reveal the relationship between various anthropogenic impacts on ecosystem and change in moth diversity. To begin with, the studies carried out in the Australian rain forest, the moth assemblages were considered to be an effective indicator of the ecosystem. Light trap method was used to study the differences in diversity and richness of moths between the disturbed and undisturbed sites. As a result, a clear decrease was accounted in the number of moths of few of the studied species from less disturbed to more disturbed locations whereas few other species showed the exact opposite response. The reason behind this variation in the response could be the presence of the flora on which that particular species depends for its food. The literature shows that the moths present on the undisturbed site were mainly dependent on those large trees and the moths on the disturbed sites depend on herbaceous plants. Another study was carried out in the Eastern deciduous forests of North America where several moth families were studied as indicators of habitat disturbance. The selection of moth species was done on the basis of ease of sampling and the ease of identification. A comparative study was done in terms of accessing the moth communities of the prevailing forest edge and that of the interior habitat. Forest edges, recovering clear-cut stands, and small forest remnants were considered disturbed habitat types (Brown and Hutchings,1997; Usher and Keiller, 1998; Hamer and Hill, 2000;Summerville and Crist, 2003). There was a considerable decrease in the species richness in the interiors as compared to that of the edge. This shows that the selected species of moths can be considered as indicators of habitat disturbance. The phenomenon of global warming has devastation implications. The next study deals with the effects of climate change on moths in the forest ecosystem. The change in climate leads to an increase in temperature which in turn leads to termination of diapauses. It is a condition during which the development is on a standstill. This is considered to be a good example of indicator of climate change. Another article deals with the study carried out in Carinthian Alps in the years 2002 and 2004 which dealt with the study of population trends of moths as a result of restoration and the conservation and control sites were defined and monitored. It revealed that there was a decrease in the number of moths from 2002 to 2004 but the decline was more in conservation sites that control ones. This decline was attributed to the transformation of dense forest like habitats into open landscapes with the final outcome of semi natural grasslands with are rich in species. Therefore, the transformation from forest to open habitat is considered to be negative for moths. Moths proved to be an effective indicator to define the health of a forest ecosystem. The final article is based on the similar concepts and addresses the impacts of climate change on moth populations. Discussion and conclusions The study involved a literature review of several articles from peer-reviewed journals and was focused on the consideration of moths as ecological indicators. The main factors identified were: the effects of restoration, habitat changes, climate change and other anthropogenic activities on the moth population and the way in which they respond to it. Overall, the review revealed that the influence of the above mentioned factors on moth population has been well studied. However, there were many constrains in the studies. The studies were mainly limited to the local scale and local geographical and environmental conditions which can be considered as a limiting factor. The selected species of moths might be considered as an accurate indicator of ecosystem quality the articles reflected the same. The selection of such an indicator species to monitor the health of an ecosystem can be considered as a powerful tool for the analysis. It can be noted from the articles that climate shifts are the drivers of extinctions and the habitat contractions of moth species. It can also be inferred that the role of the host plant plays a major role, in the response of moths, towards ecological changes. As we saw in one of the articles, few species of moths showed higher richness in the disturbed sites because of the presence of the preferred plant. We can even compare the inferences of this article with the results we obtained at Agumbe Rainforest Research Station, where we studied the moth diversity over three different sites. By taking into consideration the results of the Shannon-Wiener index, the highest diversity was obtained in the forest site which was the least damaged as compared to the other two sites where the damage was comparatively higher. However, we cannot completely rely on the results because the study was too short. An inference can still be made out of it because the disturbance had negative impacts on moth diversity. Therefore, the decline in the moth population has been a matter of concern and these declines point towards the catastrophic loss of biodiversity because of anthropogenic environmental and habitat changes. On a concluding note, I would like to say that a future research based on the impacts of anthropogenic activities and climate change and its relation with moth population is necessary. An understanding has to be developed regarding the decrease in moth population and related conservative steps has to be taken. References S. Netherer, A. Schopf. 2010. Potential effects of climate change on insect herbivores in European forests—General aspects and the pine processionary moth as specià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ c exampleJournal ofForest Ecology and Management259:831–838. P. Dieker et al. 2011. Two high-mountain burnet moth species (Lepidoptera, Zygaenidae) react differently to the global change drivers climate and land-useJournal of Biological Conservation. 144:2810–2818. R.L. Kitching et al. 2000. Moth assemblages as indicators of environmental quality in remnants of upland Australian rain forest.Journal of Applied Ecology37:284-297 F. Richard. 2013. The decline of moths in Great Britain: a review of possible causesJournal ofInsect Conservation and Diversity6:5–19. L. Rà ¡kosy, T. Schmitt. 2011. Are butterflies and moths suitable ecological indicator systems for restoration measures of semi-natural calcareous grassland habitats?Journal of Ecological Indicators11:1040–1045. K.S. Summerville et al. 2004. Forest moth taxa as indicators of lepidopteran richness and habitat disturbance: a preliminary assessmentJournal of Biological Conservation116:9–18. .

Wednesday, October 2, 2019

Eastman Chemical :: essays research papers

Eastman Chemical Company located in Kingsport, Tennessee is in an industry that produces basic and immediate chemicals, specialty chemicals, agricultural chemicals, petrochemicals, plastics and fibers, and paints and coatings. Eastman also manufactures over 1200 chemicals, fibers and plastics; as well as being the largest supplier of polyester plastics. Currently Eastman employs over 15,000 people in 30 countries with manufacturing sites tactically located in 17 countries, with Asia Pacific Region Office being one of their key offices.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Eastman is known in the chemical industry as a world leader in the e-business. They are the first chemical company to provide their customers with e-business, which allowed them to do business in a much easier and efficient manner. Eastman e-business specializes in an online storefront and transactional Customer Centra; Web-enable auctions; alliances and investments in digital business, along with system-to-system ERP connections. The main focus of Eastman’s e-business was:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  1. Creating customer-centric solutions   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2. Portfolio of option, along with providing solutions for customers via electronic means   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  3. Invest in technologies/capabilities that bring value to customers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  4. Be externally focused   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  5. Form partnerships   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  6. Build an e-brand, which attract customers, suppliers and technology partners   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  7. Leverage its intellectual capital, industry knowledge, network of contacts, credibility, brand and customer base   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  By implementing the e-business, Eastman’s customers were able to view products, check status of orders, access certificates of analysis, material safety data sheets, etc. The only problem Eastman originally saw with the e-business model which they have worked so hard to implement was that only 22 of the companies, which they do business with, are connected. And it’s very important to get all the companies connected into their infrastructure, which will provide all their customers with the seven foundational principles.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Knowing the importance of getting the industry knowledgeable and connected to the e-business, Craig Knight, the Asia Pacific Digital Business and Customer Service Manager of Eastman Asia Division was tasked to sell the Eastman’s philosophy. Knight made a two-week trip to Tokyo, Shanghai, and Malaysia to sell Eastman’s integrated electronic supply chain, known as the Integrated System Solution (ISS), to business partners in the industry. He was able to sell Nagase & Co., Ltd, a company in Japan on the ISS, but they had some concerns regarding the system. Knight truly understood their concerns, and made every effort to ease the process by providing the long-term benefits of the ISS to Nagase & Co., Ltd and other business partners.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  According to George Eastman, â€Å"business as usual can put you out of business†.

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Terrorism - Analysis of Pan Am 103 and the Tokyo Subway :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

Lessons from Pan Am 103 and the Tokyo Subway      Ã‚   ABSTRACT: Terrorists were very active long before September 11. This essay reviews the 1988 downing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland and the March 1995 gas attack in the Tokyo subway. The results of these terrorist acts, who carried them out, how they were carried out, and what can be done in the future to prevent such incidents from happening again are all investigated.    On December 21, 1988 the world was shocked as a Boeing 747 Pan American Airlines flight from London's Heathrow Airport to New York City crashed in a fiery ball due to a terrorist-placed bomb in the forward luggage compartment. After the explosion the plane proceeded to break up into three different parts. The wings broke off separately, as did the main fuselage, and the first-class/cockpit area. All 259 people on-board, from twenty-one different countries, died, as well as eleven people of the town of Lockerbie, Scotland, where the plane was downed.    In a remarkably short amount of time after the crash hundreds of people were on the scene doing the initial investigative work that would eventually lead to finding the crash's cause as well as the perpetrators of the offense. Over one thousand police officers were dispensed on to the scene, over six hundred military personnel, morticians from the Royal Air Force, and teams of investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Central Intelligence Agency, the National Transportation Safety Board, the U.S. State Department, the Federal Aviation Agency, the Boeing Company, and Pratt and Whitney. These people started surveying a land area that was seemingly too large to negotiate, 845 square miles. The United States also moved some of their extremely sophisticated spy satellites over southern Scotland to give the investigating teams high-resolution reconnaissance photographs of the area being searched.    The investigators were able to figure out fairly quickly that what brought down Flight 103 was a bomb, as it had all of the tell-tale signs, including no emergency or distress calls prior to the crash. The bomb had been concealed inside a Toshiba radio, which was placed inside a hard-sided Samsonite suitcase that had been designated as an unaccompanied bag. The suitcase had been transferred from an Air Malta feeder flight out of Valletta.    By June of 1990, six months after the

Create and sell an accessory collection (starting a small business) Essay

The main reason I’ve chosen this topic is because as you will also read in the introduction, making accessories is something I really like doing; It is the first time I can accomplish a school task that has been given to me, doing something that I enjoy. It is just perfect! It will not only help me with my school life, but it could also be the beginnings of a promising future. The aim of my project, parallel to the fact of making accessories and selling them is to see if determination and skills are enough to start a business of my own. I do not believe it would be difficult to design and sell the new collection. What I have to see is how I will finance the whole process. But I am really enthusiastic about it and I will really try hard to put all my ideas into action. Since we had to do a project to pass the middle age program I tried to do a project that nobody else has ever done and something I really liked to do, so the best thing I could think was this topic I’ve chosen, I love doing accessories, it is very original, and I get a profit from it. Every day I work a little bit on this project since October of 2002 when they told us about it. I’ve been designing, creating, promoting, and selling my creations. But in order to do it right, I take down notes of every single thing I do as regards this job. How much I sell, I buy, I design, etc. I have divided my project into subtitles to organize the information in the way it will be easier for the reader to understand the whole process. The areas of interaction related to my project is: Approaches to learning, I had to do methodological work, my sense of effort, being able to hand in a project that hasn’t got any mistake, order of the project, communication and expression of experiences and searching for information and summarizing it. Homo Faber, I started a project of a small business and crated a project that is relatively new, inventing designs, and putting into practice purposes of Homo Faber. Environment, accessories are really involved with fashion and I take the designs from my surroundings, what is fashionable, styles, etc. Social Education, to show people that teenagers can start their own little business and to encourage young people to develop what the really like since they are little because maybe when they grow up they can still do what they did when they were young and to develop their ideas and imagination. In my opinion Homo Faber is the predominant area of interaction because I am starting a business with its pros and cons, also I am working with my imagination and time in order to accomplish my objective. When they told me that I had to write a personal project in Level 4, I wanted to do something different, something that nobody else had ever done before, and it had to be personal, something that I really like doing and what I really like is to design accessories When I was only eleven (11) years old, my mother brought home some big beads and some elastic. I started playing with them and I made my first bracelet. I realized it was entertaining and I preferred spending my time making accessories instead of watching TV. My grandmother gave me some more money and I bought my first working material, since then I have spent days and nights making accessories. My parents complained because they said that because I devoted all my time and energy to this, I did not study. But now I have my opportunity to do both things. Do what I really like doing that is beaded accessories, and also comply it with my schoolwork. This is really great! The idea is not only to design my own accessories but also to see if an adolescent can handle and manage a small company. This of course meant a lot of work, because I have to design the accessory, then promote it and sell it etc. In October 2002 Miss Pat O’Malley told us that we had to chose a tutor for our projects, she said tutors could only have 4 or 5 students, I choose Miss Claudia Zacarian but she already had her 5 students, but after talking to Pat O’Malley they allowed me to be with her. We started working and giving a little bit of shape to the project, I plan the whole essay with her. At March 2003 for my surprise, I got the news that Miss Claudia was not working at school any longer. I felt disappointed because of all the work we have been doing we came to trust ourselves and got to know us better. I had to chose someone else, but it was quite difficult because most of the teaches I Level 5 were new and I wanted to choose a tutor who liked what I was doing and that could help me with my project because she is interested and not because is a school task, so I asked Gabriela Flaiban the level 5 coordinator to be my new tutor, I asked her because I knew she liked accessories. I kept on working with her and she showed me several projects to organize myself better and what was that I had to include in the different sections and to give me a guide on what to do as regards my written work, also she proposed many things (I will explain later) which were really useful to me. It was very difficult for me to organize my work. I told my tutor and she advised me to go slowly. I wanted to sell the accessories I had to think about the colors, shapes, sizes, etc. My tutor told me to start doing surveys and end up doing the design that was the most voted in order of not loosing time or money. But I had to make a difference between people of 12- 20, 25-40, and more than 40 years old. The first thing I had to do was to design the accessories, I drew on a paper different designs and I showed them to different people with different ages and evaluate their opinion and if they will succeed or not. The results are attached at the annexes pages†¦. I went shopping, visited different places and read piles of magazines, and keep doing it actually in order of having buyable. I could get to the conclusion that on the first part of my project, spring- summer collection I stepped against a romantic, and hippie style with lots of colors. But on the other side the autumn- fall collection is full of yellow, red, orange and brown. And both of them had bright colors such as pink turquoise, blue and green in all their varieties. By doing surveys and consulting people I can get to do things that people can get identified with, and as a result they will buy it, this is a tactic that many enterprises use in order to evaluate how much will the selling be so as to produce an amount of products that is adequate to the amount of demand it has. The first thing I did after meeting with Gaby Flaiban (tutor) was the survey. The survey was organized in the following way. It was repeated several times with different accessories. There were 10 (ten) accessories and I showed them to different people of different ages, they had to put them in order from worst to best. In that way I could see which were the three accessories people different ages liked the most. After choosing the final designs, to start businesses, I must have a budget; even tough it is a small one. Five years ago I asked my mother and Grandmother for money, they gave me $100 (mom $75 and grand mother $25). So I went to buy all my working material, and started working. Time made me perfection my style, and neatness but, no matter how good the beaded crafts were I was scared that I will never return my credit, it is very common that when you start a business you can be scared or believe that it won’t be good. So I had to work really hard. Now, five years after, I also asked for a credit, this time a little bit bigger than the first inversion, I had my savings, I used $100, and asked my mother for another $100, my grandmother didn’t keep behind and bought me beads, and wool. After I do an accessory I immediately cost it, the things I take into account are: the cost of materials, hand labor, and how many exemplars I do of it (obviously if I do 10 of them and if there is a big offer of them I will price it less in order to sell it). Cost is very important because if I sell the final product in less money that the one I invested, I’ll be loosing money, but I must have an idea of how much I’ve spend on doing it because the price must be reasonable. Hand labor is also important in this branch there are included several things, time I have spent on doing it, work I had to do and promotion of the product. Offer and Demand are really important. If I do something really exclusive, I will cost more that if I do a dragonfly that are seen everywhere. And if there are lots of demand of something the price will be higher (this is the ABC, of economy) Promoting is as important as doing it, because if I do and don’t sell is the same as if didn’t do anything. As regards the estrategical view where to sell is a very big deal, especially nowadays. Propaganda is extremely important. I could say vital for this job. I usually give a certain amount of accessories to people that are close to me, like friends or relatives so whenever they go to parties or places where there are lots of people they are able to promote my collection, and that creates very good results because sometimes I get a phone call asking me to do a very important request of accessories or maybe people ask who was the one that did the accessory and when they get to see me they are still wishing to buy it, like the one they seen or maybe another they liked best. I also created a web page; you can find it at www. . com. In this web page which I specially created I will show every design I made and the final selling price, so if people like any accessory they can contact me by sending me an e- mail or calling me and buy any piece that has caught their attention. Web pages are a very interesting way of attracting people because as Internet is very used and calls a lot the attention, mainly because of the animation and colors. A very important fact is that being on the net creates a professional image, and that is what I want the customer to think about me because if people think I am professional they will believe that the quality of the accessories are better and that I am a person to trust on because a good image is really important. As an example we have Kosiuko the quality of clothes is not that good but as they do very good graphics, the clothes is original and they promote themselves very good by using very famous people as models such as Britney or Pampita they succeed on the industry. Nevertheless the most important way of selling is to get in contact with a boutique or a fair because I can leave my material and they sell it for me, in a way they make me save a step. As I said before promoting is really important. I tell everybody I do beaded crafts, and they ask me to show them, but it is not enough, shops are really important they make you save time and steps. Having good contacts is important too, the fact of having a friend working in a magazine or being a friend of somebody who is famous, can help me to sell better. This is the part I hate the most and I really don’t like it because I have problems telling the price, and persuade people to buy. I ask them if there’s a possibility of leaving them some of my accessories at their store and if they allow me to do so, they charge them a little bit, for them to be able to get profit out of it (usually 20% -25% of the price I ask for). To be able to keep continuity with the boutiques I am always renovating my stuff for them to keep calling and asking me to do different designs, keep doing that accessory that was very successful or maybe to invent new things such as napkin holders, handbags, sandals or belts, because continuity is very important if not you loose a contact and loosing contacts is a pity. I am actually giving my things to Cool Site, to Captiva and to different fairs in San Isidro. In the economical, fashionable, and practical view there are lots of advantages, but also disadvantages. To start with the disadvantages, the price of the material in Argentina has raised a lot and now I can do less with the same amount of money, materials raised 350% comparing to the past yea, with all the default problem, so it is really difficult to buy the same peaces of material I bought before with the same price or less charged as possible. Besides they are brought from, Brazil, Indonesia, china, and Thailand. A very important issue is that economical problems here in Argentina are serious; people won’t spend money buying accessories if they suffer from hunger. But in order to sell I must sell very cheap knowing the cost of the material for not to loose any money, because nowadays the hand labor cannot be well paid, as it was before. The advantages are that beads are very fashionable, so they are sold a lot, they stick to the fashion and they are really trendy, for every age since 5 to 99 but for each age there are different designs and that is something I like, I do different models following a trend and if they are for old or young people, and I can do with the same beads accessories dedicated to any age or style because it depends the person who is wearing them to see if that is an accessory is for her/him or not. Another advantages is that the crisis has pushed and prohibited people on buying new clothes and also the commodity of cotton has decreased 50% comparing to last year so every piece of clothes is really expensive, specially cotton clothes, that’s why people use old attires but they modernize them by using a beaded handbag or a big pin that calls more the attention than the attire itself so the attire doesn’t look old anymore and the whole outfit is brand new because of a little change, because beaded accessories are very cheap comparing them with the price of clothes. Another advantage is as I sell a lot I have my savings and I can use it for buying things for me like clothes or going on a trip, etc. This is a hobby that gives me money and that is really important for me. I like it and also can get a profit from it. When I started on October I asked the girls of my class, shop owners and my family what they would like me to do, it was an informal survey, because I haven’t wrote it down as a survey actually. But nevertheless I put it into practice. They asked for peace signs, lots of colors, many stars, and many earrings and pins. I kept everything I sold on a diary (annex page†¦) I worked September, October, November, December, and January. February was my holiday month so I didn’t work at all, also march, April, May, June and July. On that summer- spring collection I earned $520 with a mean of $100 a month and my expectations for the autumn-fall collection is better yet. Because I added one more store to give my accessories and promoted myself even better. BOOKS: * â€Å"Bead lings† BY Julie Collins and Candice Elton, Klutz editorial Magazines * Revista † mostacillas† 4th edition Evia ediciones * Internet * http://www.eviaediciones.com * http://www.klutz.com * http://www.mujer.tercera.cl/2001/10/27/moda.htm * http://www.derrochasvip.com.ar/latrama/canutillos.htm