There may be no joy in Japan for JavaJoy

Patrick Darnell

Select a region of the world (not North America) where you feel a market for high-end coffee brewing equipment exists. Beginning with your knowledge of domestic data sources, research your selected region using the Cybrary and the Internet. Summarize your search strategy and research results.
Hank has doubts that funds will be available to contract with an external research organization. He asks if you would be able to perform adequate marketing research by yourself using information on the Internet. (CTUOnline: Task Detail 2006)

Title: JapanJoy

Introduction

Budding, embryonic and emerging describes Japanese coffee-brewing markets enticing JavaJoy to pursue. The Japanese population buying attitudes may be transforming a little toward convenience-seeking, departing past Spartan, Zen, humble-seeking. I ask is there available to JavaJoy international research basis supporting growth potential for USA based retail groups in Japan? Pieces here and there, scattered about, make the toil high priority and labor intensive. The mission to discover associations, institutions, societies, editorial boards, and efficient subscriptions is to reckon the deeper grounds for growth.

I have found shopping out functional marketing tools for international ventures for independent region Japan, claims high prices. Sprouting practical sources from very start is easier said than done.

Contriving limit hypothesis’s about international regions, like Japan, often come out as conjecture, biased and otherwise less-than qualitative sourced. Tunnel vision opinions and ambivalent generalizations come ready-made from incomplete history, and stilted associations stemming from one-sided interviews during, say, post-war reconstructions. If quantitative documentation exists, it is embedded in research techniques that are patent process of international marketing researchers. It is difficult to wrestle from multinationals what is their livelihood.

Technique for marketing research outside USA has many implicit land mines, and explicit barriers. If a successful marketing researcher, like Kraft International, Nestle and perhaps Hilton were actually sharing freely its international coffee sources and supply business information on the internet, those groupings would be soon out of business. So multinational corporate effectively builds a moat around a fortress for itself.
Just as JavaJoy is unwilling to post names and addresses of its entire supply chain for all to see, also others humbly take a back step to sharing information over the internet. In a catholic case for JavaJoy Inc, making sound judgments’ about sectors outside USA, less is not more. If JavaJoy does not expect funds enough to hire a successful international marketing group, it will have to wait until it is better suited financially.

Discussion: Coffee is 99% H2O

As a jump off point, I ask: what is the condition of the tap water in Osaka, Japan? Information is embedded in research techniques that transcend browsers we use everyday, but somewhat obtainable up to a point. The first stage search is “potable water, Japan, Osaka...” and produces good results. For instance:
Freshwater supply is the most important prerequisite for sustaining human life and achieving sustainable development. UNEP-IETC, In May 1991, UNEP's Governing Council took a decision to further strengthen UNEP's role in sustainable urban and freshwater basin management by calling for the creation of an International Environmental Technology Centre (IETC). The Centre was inaugurated in October 1992 in Japan and its offices in Osaka and Shiga officially opened in April 1994 (UNEP, 2004).

Tap water is the main ingredient of fresh-brewed coffee. Water quality may influence buying impulse of the potential JapanJoy consumer. In European sectors a record reports:

“Wyndham James, Progreso's managing director, said: ‘We definitely think there is room for us in the market. This is a bona fide commercial venture. We will be launching smart, contemporary outlets that provide consumers with fantastic coffee and help growers through ready-made retail outlets’" (Economist; 2006). Progreso has a unique process that “helps growers.”

Therefore if I ask: what is the condition of tap water in Ethiopia, because much coffee is grown in Ethiopia, interesting combinations appear in non-commercial web-sites.
Martin Walshe, Senior Water Adviser at the UK Department for International
Development (DFID), said:

"The importance of water and its fundamental contribution to sustainable development is now recognized, but the contribution of water to poverty reduction will only be realized if it is set in the broader context of social and economic development and environmental improvement. At a regional level groundwater is of huge importance in Africa, Asia and Central and South America.
Nationally, countries from Palestine to Denmark are dependent on groundwater and
examples of local reliance can be drawn from Mexico City to Ethiopia" (Vanguard
June 10, 2003).

Surprisingly, loops of strange coincidence do not stop there. My next limiter in topic search is of course a huge coffee middlemen Starbucks, who is in today news being sued by Ethiopian coffee growers.

Abstract: This article describes a dispute between the coffee giant Starbucks
and Oxfam. The Fairtrade movement to certify ethically-grown coffee has caught
on with consumers, so when Oxfam accused Starbucks of cheating Ethiopian
farmers, customers responded angrily. Starbucks denies the charges and counters
that it buys more Fair-trade coffee than anyone. (Economist; 12/2/2006)

At this point in finding a good source for Japan coffee buying habits, a counter-productive issue interrupts continuity. Researching a sector market for international expansion requires “Buy-in” to numerous associations, organizations, watch agencies, and providers of organized research nickel and dimes marketing effort to death.

Every internet site introduces persistent links and notes one can investigate, but for a fee. Not everyone is librarian science intellect, and many searches lead to many dead ends in secondary sources. I venture to concede doing international survey in-house is counter-productive, because quantitative primary research is needed, opposed to secondary Internet style analysis. This concludes my introduction; are there any questions?

So, the question becomes “How difficult is it to identify a regional coffee buying behavior?”
1. Were you able to find useful sources of data on the buying behavior for your product in that region?
Key consideration: The stakeholders and owner are not confident enough to spend funds on a qualified international market research partner; I refer to as Marketing Research Consultant, MRC.
Confidence is low already. How is some not-so-familiar aspect of secondary research somehow going to improve confidence? Yes, I have found some useful sources of data to further discourage forming a JapanJoy branch. It is difficult at this time to find useful secondary sources for coffee buying behavior in Japan.
Scouring the various sources, has initially given little more than antagonisms, and self-loathing. Let’s go back to Kraft International. Kraft International campus was built as it stands today in Northbrook, IL since late 1980’s. Kraft Foods is built on a simple held patent of how to process ingredients to make cheese that is an altogether synthetic food group. The beautiful Kraft International HQ that they built is testament to a very successful united global market research effort. As I once applied there, do you think I even could get my foot in the door? No, I was not allowed even to visit their library. So I am reticent about Kraft sharing today.
If, unfortunately, wrestling information from Kraft Intl is dead-ending illusive, then moreover, giant multinational corporations everywhere are in various stages of winding down or introducing segment market coffee products worldwide, based on their costly, primary, and controlled group research. Any news released from a MNC coffee related marketing venture is stale tales. Kraft and others releases news only in self-interest, and why not?
Furthermore, as mentioned the push-back is also energetic as poverty-stricken regions looks for criteria guiding real-time futures. It turns out Ethiopia is trade-marking its “famous brands of beans” in the faces of the middlemen, Starbucks, who skirt around new policies like Fairtrade.

Discussion: no JapanJoy

I strongly regard Japan is never going to buy retail coffee paraphernalia from JavaJoy International since Japan is effectively investing much in Ethiopia’s potable water and sanitation recovery. Ethiopia therefore will no doubt become a first level trade partner with Japan. It will supply raw food to its benefactor, including coffee bean, with its new irrigation and sanitation systems, developed by Japan for its own CoffeeJoy Luck Club retail markets.

2. Did you generate enough data to support a strategic initiative into that region?
Key consideration: What makes a culture drink fresh-brewed coffee?
The recent market testing activities of the Oxfam Organization and its new partners is in advance of JavaJoy International bid for the Japan independent sector market. There is no strategic initiative to enter Japan coffee products market with retail products. The only way in is with raw beans or OEM patents. Japan traditionally controls imports in the Nippon Kiritsu, meaning umbrella of MNC that is Japan industry. If new generation Japanese want fresh-brewed coffee, Nippon will control its own bean and water.
If JavaJoy has OEM strategies and introduces a patent for brewing, then the Nippon Kiritsu may address the possibility of allowing coffee related imports. JavaJoy might be called in to collaborate.
Should there have been one good source that correlates JavaJoy in its JapanJoy International storming for the in-house marketing team, that search will have included joining the fee-based following Japanese internet sources: Associations · Trade Councils · Events and Shows · Trade Magazines

A better search will have included additionally access to primary search:
International consumer Research, Product life cycles, Ability for Regional consumer affording JavaJoy gourmet coffee systems

At this juncture it may help to show the actual regions as segmented in UN based
documentations. What are the global Regions? Global regions are loosely defined
as “a synthesis of country clusters...” where Japan is an independent relative
member. The USA is included in the Anglo Region (Griffin, Pustay, 2006):
Regional Clusters:
· Anglo · Latin America · Germanic · Latin European · Nordic Near Eastern · Arabian · Far Eastern
Independent clusters:
· Brazil · India · Israel · Japan
(Griffin, 2006, p 103)

3. What is your recommendation to Hank on how to research the international market?
Key consideration: Going International is at what stage of actualization for JavaJoy Inc?
It is common for Owner/ Managers to fail to set deadlines on all decisions and if made rarely stick to them. In our case finding missions, for best region has no time limit stated. The imposition of due dates is however mandatory for the research of going international. Because the event is costly and demands much attention, due dates are more critical.
The Marketing team led by the research must enforce push-back and delegate tasks, and schedule steps leading toward obtainable objectives. Recommended for now is to say marketing research for incursion of Japan should be tabled. No more valuable time should be spent on Japanese buying habits. Further work in this sector is counter-productive. Other international regions will prove more conducive to JavaJoy Inc middle market temperament.

References:

Brussels, (23 August 2006) European companies set to increase their R&D Investment over the next three years, Commission survey shows

Economist; 12/2/2006Storm in a coffee cup, Vol. 381 Issue 8506, p66-67, 2p, 1c Article COFFEE FARMERS ETHIOPIA STARBUCKS Corp. DUNS Number: 030327733 OXFAM Organization FAIRTRADE Foundation

Griffin, and Pustay (2006), p 103, Simcha, Ronen and Oded Shenkar, Clustering countries on attitudinal dimensions: a review and synthesis, Academy of management review, vol 10, no 3 (1985) p 449

Nicola, Clark, (11/15/2006) Tassimo scales back work after sales Disappoint, By: Clark, Nicola, Marketing (00253650), 00253650, 11/15/2006 Database: Section: News Kraft is slashing marketing activity for its Tassimo coffee range following poor sales.

UNEP Gigiri, (11th – 13th March 2003) UNEP / DGDC / UNESCO / UN-HABITAT / ECA ASSESSMENT OF POLLUTION AND VULNERABILITY OF WATER SUPPLY AQUIFERS OF AFRICA CITIES Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Zambia LAUNCHING WORKSHOP Nairobi, Kenya,

Vanguard HEADLINE: (June 10, 2003) Nigeria; UNEP Urges Action to Better Manage the Globe's Groundwater’s LOAD-DATE: June 10, 2003

Global Position Mission

Charter Member RED Team

Opportunity Abroad: Must be targeted
Following the Basics of Principles of Marketing, global or anywhere in the universe, Customers and Markets are made of these things:
Product
Distribution
Promotion
Price
Introduction: Global Position Mission
Somewhere in the infinite body of knowledge that is market research may lay the answer for any business success in the face of adversity. The three I's of success are innovation, ingenuity, and indomitability. The Owner and Stakeholders are pushing the boundaries of technical innovation for exploring holistic systems, devising and executing business strategies and goals. An ideal of successful marketing in global terms is the determination propelling JavaJoy Inc forward in its business. Consider these tips and tools for global strategy decisions, in context of partnering with Multinational Corporations, as means to JavaJoy Inc’s future home.
Questions to Consider
How resistant is the owner and stakeholders of JavaJoy to doing business completely differently, with a new partner?
Is the current domestic business of JavaJoy resistant to change greater in scale than the pressure of urgency to start plans for global expansion? Or, is the executive willing to spread the news to its present workforce?
Is the path to global expansion brave, determined, and impossible to defeat or paved in risk to frighten and dissuade?
Those suffering risk aversion are not the first choice for starting foreign business strategies, or partnering with. Is the firm ready to recruit new people?
The development of business strategy from a position of strength will propel the firm into the international markets they desire. Preparations must be done with least disruption possible. Is the firm willing to play a subordinate role in this mission?
Some Companies that are already in the country of choice, such as Hilton is with its "370,000 rooms worldwide with catering services" make the transition easily. The question is "How does Hilton forecast global demand for its product and services?"(EWeek; June 19, 2006).
Hilton "imports data from six systems into one data warehouse that requires 7 million rows, running on Microsoft SQL Server 2005, and analyzing 1.4 million records a day" (2006). How much buy-in is JavaJoy willing to front in IT and other system upgrades?
Is JavaJoy willing to re-define its business in context of global partnership? Thus, like Eric Lundquist says: ...some claim all the talk about 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0 versions of anything is simply marketing spin ...I argue that a new set of characteristics does require a new definition. (EWeek; June 19, 2006, Pp. 10)
Does JavaJoy Inc require alignment with their own markets before taking on a partner? If so these will be asked of the potential partners: Ask four key questions, that are similar to all previous primary problem areas:
What do we know now about our markets, our market opportunities, and our own strategic and marketing goals?
What are the best marketing and operational opportunities as we understand them now?
How can we frame our marketing and strategic options based on what we know now?
What do we need to know that we do not know now -- about strengths, weaknesses, our products, our markets, and our customers?

How willing is JavaJoy to adopt a broad view of Marketing Intelligence? At (Blog)red we use the "Intelligence Platform with three components: data, ideas, and management drivers." Will JavaJoy compromise its quality standards for partnership privilege?
How willing is JavaJoy to pinpoint decision-making to drive market research objectives and design? How much share of cost in intense, primary research is JavaJoy willing to pay?
Even after shouldering expenses in primary research, is JavaJoy willing to pay for more to answer: Do we have solid marketing information, or is more funds for market research needed?
Does the partner being considered for global diffusion have a strong customer base of US citizens who are looking for the familiar as they travel to foreign lands as tourists and business agents?
Is the executive at JavaJoy willing to talk to enough firms until they find several with which they are comfortable? And, wait long enough to obtain background materials, references or examples of past work?
Decisions of the magnitude that JavaJoy is suggesting do not come without problems. As mentioned before, the elected company leaders, VP's, CFO, President, and the advisors who are on the tangent of global venture must identify the strengths within their business that makes transparency possible. Does JavaJoy believe Transparency is their position of strength?
Global leaders establish structured goals. Why structured? The goal as practiced must withstand both implicit and explicit threats abroad. The goals must be accomplished easily, and become the "open standard." Do the leaders of JavaJoy believe its Technology will be structured, as mentioned before, to support say, the first goal of "Creditworthiness?"
Having sufficient credit backed with austerity and technology is the first and most important tool in the toolbox. Does JavaJoy have in place technology that will cope with inflows/ outflows of cash in differing denominations?
Do JavaJoy's gathered planners make goals that in principle will thwart crisis and global hegemony or subjugation?
Can JavaJoy remain functional in crisis where there is interruption in cash-flows throughout the supply chain, and to creditors?
The analysis will most probably be inconclusive, but it is on record that the process is started. When JavaJoy Inc proceeds will it go with its advisors from say: "JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs or Morgan Stanley to ensure market makers have a common interest from the start (Strong, Norman; 7/12/2006)?"
Conclusion
In context of market research management the corollaries do after all exist between Basic Principles of Marketing and the impulse to find a partner for global incursion. The previous list of questions needs further refinement if a path to partnership is desired by the firm, JavaJoy Inc.
References
Lundquist, Eric, E. D.; eWeek, June 19, 2006; Ziff Davis Media, front cover, MacDonald, John go eWeek com web log
Vass, Will; VP, CIO Sun Microsystems, eWeek, June 19, 2006
Thompson, David; CIO Symantec, eWeek, June 19, 2006
Strong, Norman; 7/12/2006, How to default: a primer, leftbusinessobserver
Griffin, Ricky W, and Pustay, Michael W; International Business, a Managerial Perspective, fourth Edition, 2005, Pearson/ Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle river, NJ


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Accounting Mixed-costs Mastery

MEMO
Company: Claire’s Anteeks, Incorporated
Date: June 12, 2006

To: Sheepsmell Compostholestoy, CPA; Accounting Manager at Claire's Anteeks
From: Patrick Darnell, CBW and BMW

Subject: Historical Marker – Mixed Costs Mastery

Refer: Changing the course of business for Claire’s Anteeks, Incorporated, by determining the fixed and variable portion of each mixed cost such as utility costs, maintenance costs, and beyond.

Dear Mr. Compostholestoy:
The gift of Accounting Management is not to be taken frivolously. In the business of increasing the efficiency of manufacturing and non-manufacturing numerations the result is only limited by the specificity of the query. Mixed costs are a semi-fixed-cost “plus” semi-variable-cost classification that algebraically can define the future of Claire’s Anteeks.
With mushrooming competition coming in from the globalization of manufacturing, Claire’s Anteeks may use now its new technology of mixed cost corollaries to maneuver through the ensuing storm.
Never look the gift-horse of “accounting by managerial inquiry” in the mouth, without first considering the source. Benefits to be achieved are the “higher level” of care by Claire’s Anteeks special employees and managers, who want to achieve best operating practices.
Frankincense and myrrh may only be tree sap, but like the gifts of managerial accountancy they are more precious than gold.
We in accounting management are recommending further classifications of internal costing strategies, using mixed costing technology. Internally at Claire’s Anteeks, our non-manufacturing costs and manufacturing costs can be flexible or capacity driven.
Direct and indirect costs organized by categories for “planning and evaluating” will benefit in-house security, and will make certain continuing growth and improvement of Claire’s Anteeks. Please read the following to see why I am so confident you will find compelling reasons to seek various cost strategies.

Yours truly,
Patrick Darnell
Ps. Your invoice is in the mail.

RiskStorming
By Patrick Darnell
11/19/2006 Managing Project Risk and Opportunities

Introduction

According to Kotter and Cohen, “Sending clear, credible, and heartfelt messages about the direction of change [is].... Establishing genuine gut-level buy-in that shows up in how people act. Use of words, deeds, and new technologies to unclog communication channels [will have prevailed to] overcome confusion and distrust” (2002).
Project management is a liaison career, where the Project Manager is collecting information from stakeholders in the company he represents, and translating that into tasks to assign his subordinates and contractors to execute and take a project to completion. As projects roll along, the informed PM is responsible to inform his customer who hired his company in first place of how things are going. Customers will have suggestions, and upgrades, and second thoughts for pieces to drop and parts to add. Essentially, stakeholders will have last word input as to what fits core competency of their own company.
There is complexity to measure. It is implicit value our Project Manager adds as leader in his or her ability to handle divergence of strategies and risks. All core focus topics, including risk, are augmented by weighing and learning of the Project Manager. Thereby, the endorsed role, of Project Manager in charge of reserves of information to be doled out to various involved groups, is well defined.
Even when the Project Manager “brings up risk management and sees questioning looks in [the] eyes” of his project team members; his project knowledge intuition tells him that “all will soon realize that risk management means different things to different people” (Task Detail; 2006).
This discussion paper tries to pull together several layers of very comprehensive and lengthy bodies of information, to summarize the blending of many secondary resources for reason of illuminating some of the thinking behind management of risk.
Anticipating Risks
George Jucan in his review of PMBOK Third Edition “provides a comprehensive classification through knowledge area definitions.” This is useful because “...One of the main reasons to estimate project complexity is to be able to compare projects” (Jucan; June 21, 2006). For example:
In some cases, maybe the human resources aspect of the project needs special attention because of high turnover or labor unrest in the specific department. For fixed-price projects, maybe the cost dimension is more important, while the first project for a new customer might have an increased focus on scope management to fully satisfy the client (Jucan; June 21, 2006).
Project Manager’s role in defined terms is; he will be able to “summarize the above considerations, and apply [to] project complexity ...as project integration management [using] indicators that:”
· Consolidate indicators of other eight knowledge areas: scope, time, cost, quality, human resources, communication, and procurement.
· Ask: Is it objective at organization level, to be valid for any undertaken project?
· Ask: Is it subjective at project level, to account for the unique characteristics of each project? (Jucan; June 21, 2006)
Chapter Eleven of the Project Management Body of Knowledge, PMBOK, identifies risk management as one of the nine most important awareness structures. Using simple scales with three choices each for “probability and for impact” we can turn the confused facial expressions to concentration on responses to early warnings of risky business (PMBOK, 2004).
Risk Management is not the act of going through the proposals and pointing out why every task has a high potential to fail. No, that is not the higher purpose for understanding risk. Truer intention rises above this single-minded intuition; rather risk identification means to remove masks of risks inherent in all projects. A risk managed is a resource conserved.
Risk is Iterative
Risk management fits the iterative processes of project management like keys unlocking closed doors to opportunities that have doors to other opportunities. “Many processes are fashioned in response to critical cost areas, and to redundancy” that indicate and rectify risk (Krajewski, L J, & Ritzman, L P; 2005). A template for qualitative risk analysis might take a form like the one in Dick Billows article.


Achievement-Driven Project Management
Risk Event
Probability of Occurrence
Magnitude of Impact

From this survey, the bias of risk is in two areas: 1. the probability of occurrence, and 2. the magnitude of impact.
The language of Project Management is “intensely combed through for every project in iterative trials of cause and effect to cleanse to acknowledge best practices for each project. The work is amazingly correlated as simply: Realization >> Strategic Choice >> Tactical Contingency... Moreover, sub-processes today also employ sophisticated feedback tools developed to help in cost control;” the major indicator of risks: cost overruns (Bredillet, Christophe N; 2002).
Risk is beat down by frequent reporting, and auditing of changes in iterative vernacular. A risk identified and scoring high in both “probably will occur, with high magnitude of impact” is a risk that needs further study. And to make sure the additional study will be done with controlled experiments that provide quantitative results.
Conflict is an unavoidable pretext in project context, as each entity has unique and differing thoughts, ideas, and opinions. Therefore, it is important to learn ways to minimize and manage this difficulty, in order to ensure “efficient and harmonious iterative interactions during the project’s life-cycle” (CTUOnline, Live Chat; Nov 2006).
Risk Management
Dick Billows, PMP, GCA of 4PM says, “We can do a few minutes of risk management on even the smallest project and get good return for the effort. Dealing with risk does not have to be a paperwork jungle.” Project managers run the risk of “fighting fires for the rest of the project... [When] even a small project can under-take a simple risk assessment process,” at the first team meetings, says Billows. “Because the sponsor wants to start quickly without wasting time on things like risk management, Project Managers often skip the risk assessment process” (Billows, Dick, 2006).
The handiest way to “prioritize our risks in terms of their significance” (Billows) for the project -- “Automated Mobile Defense System, AMDS,” -- is to use qualitative techniques like the survey template above to pre-qualify certain risk areas for higher costing quantitative techniques of risk analysis. This team and project manager have been assigned to “lead Project X, which will design, develop, test, demonstrate and deploy 10 AMDS units to a location to be determined by the DOD assuming a successful demonstration” (CTUOnline, Task Detail; 2006).
The PMBoK framework provides the fundamentals of project management in respect to the type of project to be completed and is structured around 5 basic progression placeholders. Those progressive process groups are Initiate, Plan, Execute, Control, and Close.
George Jucan in his article Complexity Matters describes time savings is “at the start... Taking your time to measure before you cut is always good advice. In a Project Manager's world, spending the time to plan the project and open up probable risks is proven to dramatically increase the chances of success” in:
· Planning: defining the scope of the project risk and putting a value to it makes the necessary campaign to carry it out.
· Executing: Now that we have identified our project risk and planned for its purpose, our next step is to put our plan into action by adjusting and...
· Controlling: we monitor all aspects of the project risk. We review and check the integrity of all inputs and outputs in respect to the project threats.
· Closing: we make sure the final product has the quality and completion that was originally planned and that all risks are conserved in documentation and covered monetarily.
Therefore, the project starts with half a day of teams “risk-storming” to identify, and qualify risks in each of the sub-processes. After that they will determine the risks most impacting the life-cycle and put some heavier tools of quantitative analysis to work. This will have unlocked potential for increased probability and impact of events positive to the project.
Conclusion
The beauty of project management is that with knowledge and learning, the wheel doesn’t have to be re-invented each time a project begins. Project Management Body of Knowledge, PMBoK, is a compilation of processes and knowledge areas generally accepted as best practices in context of Project Management discipline (pmi org, 2006). Each new project gives rise to opportunity to re-visit honesty and integrity. In a lifetime of projects, a little reliability goes a long way to satisfy all risks in projects.
References
Billows, Dick; (2006) Risk management & analysis prevention not lots of paperwork, 4PM Project management training and certification, Denver, CO, The Hampton Group
Bredillet, Christophe N; (2002) PMI July 14 2002, Seattle, International Educational Network, PPT, founding principles for the development of a value added network for global education
CTUOnline (November 2006) Live Chat, MPM450 03 0604B Managing Project Risk and Opportunities
CTUOnline (November 2006) Task Detail, MPM450 03 0604B Managing Project Risk and Opportunities
Encarta MSN online dictionary; (2003) English: American 2003
Jucan George, MSc, PMP, OCP, SSGB (June 21, 2006) Complexity Matters, [Gantt head]>home>departments>Project Portfolio Management, retrieved 10/10/06
Kotter, John P and Cohen, Dan S; (2002) the Heart of Change: Real-Life Stories of How People Change Their Organizations (Hardcover) HBS Press Book, Pub. Date: June 17, 2002, 208p
Krajewski, L. J., & Ritzman, L. P. (2005) Operations Management Processes and Value Chains, 7th ed, Upper Saddle River, NJ, AK: Pearson Prentice Hall
PMBOK; (2004) A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, PMBOK Guide, third edition, 2004 project management Institute, 4 Campus Blvd, Newton Square, PA 19073 USA
Pmi org (2006) retrieved from web, Nov 15 2006 Project Management Institute (PMI) The Largest Project Management Association. Retrieved October 19, 2006, from pmi org info default asp

MSN says: Blog it and they will Come

Blog it and they will come (retrieved entirely from http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/help/HA012240831033.aspx , November 17, 2006) Others aspire to write may find this muy interesting!!!
"So is the hope of every blogger — or Web diarist — out there. Because everyone, whether they admit or not, wants to be heard, and a blog offers the perfect environment for just that.
Several of my readers have written to ask me what blogs ("Web logs") are all about. To be frank, I hadn't really been a big reader of blogs. But once I decided to delve deeper into the world of online Web logs and do some research, I discovered a brave new world out there. And sure, while I found some blogs to be pointless, others narcissistic, and yet others downright weird, I also discovered that there are many people out there who are interesting writers with unique perspectives on the world around them. In other words, I was pleasantly surprised, and it sucked the crabbiness right out of me — although my editor doesn't think so. (Regardless, don't worry; there are plenty of opportunities all around waiting to refill my crabby heart.)
You see, when the Internet first became a part of our common lexicon and people got a tiny amount of technical knowledge, personal Web pages became all the rage (and bane) of the Internet. I don't know how many of these are on the Net but I think I can safely say too many.
Blogs are a little different. While a blog can have many of the same qualities as a personal Web page, a blog is usually seen as more of a diary or a commentary, a core upon which a virtual community can form. (At least, that's my take on it, and from what I've read, there are as as many definitions for blog as there are bloggers.) Bloggers write about whatever is on their minds, be it personal, philosophical, or political. All of a sudden, their opinions are out there, for all to read, and their audience may just join them and create a community around one of their entries or ideas. And while personal Web pages were pretty much only for those who knew how to code a Web page, blogs can be created by anyone with an Internet connection since those who host blogs often provide the simple software and design choices that enable non-techie types to express themselves on the Web.
So what blogs are out there? There are blogs about hairless cats, blogs about politics, blogs extolling the virtues of nudist colonies, and blogs that serve the close-knit community of scientists studying the mating habits of paramecium. In other words, there are almost as many blogs as there are reasons to blog. And, according to comScore Networks, a company that provides information regarding consumer behavior in various industries, nearly 50 million Americans, or about 30 percent of the total U.S. Internet population, visited blogs in the first quarter (Q1) of 2005. That is a lot of people reading, interacting, and listening to what you have to say.
A blog by any other name is still a weird word
As I mentioned at the beginning of the column, as human beings, we have this need to express ourselves, and a blog is the perfect place to do that. Now, expression, as we know, comes in many forms, and so do blogs. Some blogs are strictly text based: the writer — or "blogger" — writes an entry every day, week, or however often he decides. If he develops a following of sorts, the audience expects to see his entries at certain intervals, and so a sort of community is formed. Some blogs incorporate photos, video clips, and lists, such as a list of links to other blogs or any other kind of sites. Sometimes readers of blogs can even provide comments, thereby enhancing the feeling of community.
So you can see why this type of communication is really catching on: If you nurture and pay attention to your blog, you can create a community out of thin air around yourself and your interests. For example, consider the blogs that gained notoriety during the last national election: Many of these bloggers became somewhat famous as their communities grew, and they were granted entry into the circles normally reserved for mainstream journalists.
Blogs can also be oriented toward business; they can perform such duties as exposing new products, or acting as forums to talk about everything from new inventions to changes in business practices. Remember that number of 50 million blog visitors in Q1 2005? Imagine the countless ways in which you can reach, connect, and correspond with your current — and prospective — customers.
You can see why blogs are growing more popular: It only takes a few minutes to set up a blog and it doesn't require that you be a computer geek.
Everyone else has one; I want one too
...and so now I have one. That's right: Crabby has her own blog. And while my blog isn't really where I post commentary and opinions, it is a place to read my column. But even better than that, you can access my blog (and therefore my column) using RSS, or Really Simple Syndication. RSS allows you to subscribe to "feeds," or content, from several sources and automatically combines the information into one list, a list that is contained in an RSS reader. You can quickly browse the list without visiting each site to search for new information of interest to you. It's ingenious, really; you don't have to bookmark all your favorite sites (such as my archive page); you just check in with your reader, see what's new and read what you want. When you subscribe to my blog on MSN Spaces via RSS, the moment I publish a notice that I have a new column, you can go and read it. Or, you can just read the intro and decide the content isn't for you right now.
More information about Crabby's blog
Get the latest Crabby columns with RSS.This article explains what RSS is
Crabby's Corner on MSN SpacesThis is my actual blog
Crabby RSS feedThis is a link to the place that explains how to subscribe to my RSS feed
Now, if after reading this column you're all hot to create a blog of your own, visit MSN Spaces. They make it nice and easy to get started and make your voice heard." (November 17, 2006)

Building a Small Business in Spectacular Times

• Correlations and Questions: WAG for Nags, things to ponder while building your business
  by Patrick Darnell
  PIGGYBANK is actually an acronym for the frustrated academician who has been left behind by those who pander the reality found in hard statistical analysis.
  P.I.G.G.Y.B.A.N.K.
  “Patterns in geometric gain yield bountiful academic nosegays of knowledge.”
  Or,
  “Probably, investigation gives geographic yields to bolster against ineffectual knowledge.”
  
  P (Platonic’s) What may make the oriental culture so good at math, is the formidable task of learning the complexity inherent in their pictographic, written languages. Correlation: The number of pictographs in a language, or pictorial iconography may determine the height of that particular culture’s logic system.
  
  I (Interest) Tee shirt cotton & Denim, total sales and the advent of European Union for a one world uniform. Correlation: Just who makes all the denim, anyway? I want to buy stock in that company.
  
  G (Greed) Need for Casual Friday vs. the advent of the 32 hour work week. Correlation: The fewer hours worked in the week, the more hours one must spend doing side work, while others enjoy leisure-tronics.
  
  G (Gas Planets) Does the lag time in the Judicial system define its demise? Correlation: does the number of years the Judicial system lags behind technologic advances, relate to the number of years of stagnation in the US economy?
  
  Y (Yellow/Green Politics) What if possible to introduce a variety of aardvark into Texas to rid the prairies of red ants? Correlation: What quantity of aardvarks is needed to thrive in Texas to deter the spread of the red ant, by half?
  
  B (Bureaucracy). Why is Fiber-optics about the beginning of non-regulation of communications? Correlation: Do Communications ever return to the hands of the general public, who are party to size of optic bandwidth, available to communication moguls.
  
  A (Angst). What is the dollar amount per newborn child, with all variables of mortality figured in, that each innocent human owes on the US national debt at birth? Correlation: The inverse relationship of the interest payments on the national debt, to the increase in US population will make a pool, of how many taxpayers to pay into the coffers in the next twenty years.
  
  N (Nitrogen based fuel) How many carbon atoms are used in ignition of total SUV’s internal combustion engines throughout USA? Correlation: One SUV in a hundred will be outside the normal operating standards for air purity, and what is the ‘straw that will break the Ozone’s back? Is this true?
  
  K (Pawn to King) Yes, and, how many roads must a man walk down, before others will call him a man?
  
  Summary
  I have determined that while I have a crude knowledge now of the world just outside my understanding, that it is just that, a glimpse. I would stake much on the exponential increase in knowledge, as the middle ground of human’s wakes up to the expanding knowledge bases of every enterprise. Can an explosion of this magnitude be under-studied by, for example, me, the frustrated academician?
  
  Consider the decade in which we are living:
  
  Ahead of schedule, the statistics community has mapped the human genome.
  Before even a 386 could be decidedly put into a garbage dump legally, statisticians have put a Pentium Four in a package the size of a gnat’s eyebrow.
  My child’s Neo Pet has more processing power than the Mercury rocket program, of the 1960’s.
  There is an international space station orbiting the earth.
  I have forgotten more word processing than my children will ever know.
  
  Just a reminder, I will be there if you need a friend, only I might not have up to date information. Maybe that is also a disclaimer, if you later find a hole in my logic. Ciao.
  
  _______________________________________References/ Notes/ Links
  Why You Really Ought to Want to Love Your Work
  Part 1: Are You Working Long Hours on the Right Career?
  You Work Long Hours
  http://humanresources.about.com/od/motivationrewardretention/l/aalove_work.htm
  “The average American manager works 42 hours per week, but a substantial number of managers and professionals - three in 10, or 10.8 million people - work 49 or more hours per week. Of male managers and professionals, four in 10 work 49 hours. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2000 report, this number of working hours is substantially unchanged since 1989. More managers and professionals are working over 49 hours, but more are also working less which keeps the number steady.”
  
  “Comparatively, the hours that people work in non-supervisory or production jobs have steadily declined since the early 1960s in all categories except manufacturing, construction, and mining. In these jobs, hours have increased, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics Monthly Labor Review, July 2000. While the overall trend in working hours is down, with the average non-supervisory or production employee working 34.5 hours in 1999 as compared to 38.7 in 1964, this figure is skewed by workers in services and especially retail, who are working substantially fewer hours.”
  
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