Why Is the Soft Drink Industry so Profitable Essay Example

Why Is the Soft Drink Industry so Profitable? Paper An industry analysis through Porter’s Five Forces reveals that market forces are favorable for profitability. Defining the industry: Both concentrate producers (CP) and bottlers are profitable. These two parts of the industry are extremely interdependent, sharing costs in procurement, production, marketing and distribution. Many of their functions overlap; for instance, CPs do some bottling, and bottlers conduct many promotional activities. The industry is already vertically integrated to some extent. They also deal with similar suppliers and buyers. Entry into the industry would involve developing operations in either or both disciplines. Beverage substitutes would threaten both CPs and their associated bottlers. Because of operational overlap and similarities in their market environment, we can include both CPs and bottlers in our definition of the soft drink industry. In 1993, CPs earned 29% pretax profits on their sales, while bottlers earned 9% profits on their sales, for a total industry profitability of 14% (Exhibit 1). This industry as a whole generates positive economic profits. Rivalry: Revenues are extremely concentrated in this industry, with Coke and Pepsi, together with their associated bottlers, commanding 73% of the case market in 1994. Adding in the next tier of soft drink companies, the top six controlled 89% of the market. In fact, one could characterize the soft drink market as an oligopoly, or even a duopoly between Coke and Pepsi, resulting in positive economic profits. To be sure, there was tough competition between Coke and Pepsi for market share, and this occasionally hampered profitability. For example, price wars resulted in weak brand loyalty and eroded margins for both companies in the 1980s. We will write a custom essay sample on Why Is the Soft Drink Industry so Profitable? specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Why Is the Soft Drink Industry so Profitable? specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Why Is the Soft Drink Industry so Profitable? specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The Pepsi Challenge, meanwhile, affected market share without hampering per case profitability, as Pepsi was able to compete on attributes other than price. Substitutes: Through the early 1960s, soft drinks were synonymous with â€Å"colas† in the mind of consumers. Over time, however, other beverages, from bottled water to teas, became more popular, especially in the 1980s and 1990s. Coke and Pepsi responded by expanding their offerings, through alliances (e. g. Coke and Nestea), acquisitions (e. g. Coke and Minute Maid), and internal product innovation (e. g. Pepsi creating Orange Slice), capturing the value of increasingly popular substitutes internally. Proliferation in the number of brands did threaten the profitability of bottlers through 1986, as they more frequent line set-ups, increased capital investment, and development of special management skills for more complex manufacturing operations and distribution. Bottlers were able to overcome these operational challenges through consolidation to achieve economies of scale. Overall, because of the CPs efforts in diversification, however, substitutes became less of a threat. Power of Suppliers: The inputs for Coke and Pepsi’s products were primarily sugar and packaging. Sugar could be purchased from many sources on the open market, and if sugar became too expensive, the firms could easily switch to corn syrup, as they did in the early 1980s. So suppliers of nutritive sweeteners did not have much bargaining power against Coke, Pepsi, or their bottlers. NutraSweet, meanwhile, had recently come off patent in 1992, and the soft drink industry gained another supplier, Holland Sweetener, which reduced Searle’s bargaining power and lowering the price of aspartame. With an abundant supply of inexpensive aluminum in the early 1990s and several can companies competing for contracts with bottlers, can suppliers had very little supplier power. Furthermore, Coke and Pepsi effectively further reduced the supplier of can makers by negotiating on behalf of their bottlers, thereby reducing the number of major contracts available to two. With more than two companies vying for these contracts, Coke and Pepsi were able to negotiate extremely favorable agreements. In the plastic bottle business, again there were more suppliers than major contracts, so direct negotiation by the CPs was again effective at reducing supplier power. Power of buyers: The soft drink industry sold to consumers through five principal channels: food stores, convenience and gas, fountain, vending, and mass merchandisers (primary part of â€Å"Other† in â€Å"Cola Wars†¦Ã¢â‚¬  case). Supermarkets, the principal customer for soft drink makers, were a highly fragmented industry. The stores counted on soft drinks to generate consumer traffic, so they needed Coke and Pepsi products. But due to their tremendous degree of fragmentation (the biggest chain made up 6% of food retail sales, and the largest chains controlled up to 25% of a region), these stores did not have much bargaining power. Their only power was control over premium shelf space, which could be allocated to Coke or Pepsi products. This power did give them some control over soft drink profitability. Furthermore, consumers expected to pay less through this channel, so prices were lower, resulting in somewhat lower profitability. National mass merchandising chains such as Wal-Mart, on the other hand, had much more bargaining power. While these stores did carry both Coke and Pepsi products, they could negotiate more effectively due to their scale and the magnitude of their contracts. For this reason, the mass merchandiser channel was relatively less profitable for soft drink makers. The least profitable channel for soft drinks, however, was fountain sales. Profitability at these locations was so abysmal for Coke and Pepsi that they considered this channel â€Å"paid sampling. † This was because buyers at major fast food chains only needed to stock the products of one manufacturer, so they could negotiate for optimal pricing. Coke and Pepsi found these channels important, however, as an avenue to build brand recognition and loyalty, so they invested in the fountain equipment and cups that were used to serve their products at these outlets. As a result, while Coke and Pepsi gained only 5% margins, fast food chains made 75% gross margin on fountain drinks. Vending, meanwhile, was the most profitable channel for the soft drink industry. Essentially there were no buyers to bargain with at these locations, where Coke and Pepsi bottlers could sell directly to consumers through machines owned by bottlers. Property owners were paid a sales commission on Coke and Pepsi products sold through machines on their property, so their incentives were properly aligned with those of the soft drink makers, and prices remained high. The customer in this case was the consumer, who was generally limited on thirst quenching alternatives. The final channel to consider is convenience stores and gas stations. If Mobil or Seven-Eleven were to negotiate on behalf of its stations, it would be able to exert significant buyer power in transactions with 3 Coke and Pepsi. Apparently, though, this was not the nature of the relationship between soft drink producers and this channel, where bottlers’ profits were relatively high, at $0. 40 per case, in 1993. With this high profitability, it seems likely that Coke and Pepsi bottlers negotiated directly with convenience store and gas station owners. So the only buyers with dominant power were fast food outlets. Although these outlets captured most of the soft drink profitability in their channel, they accounted for less than 20% of total soft drink sales. Through other markets, however, the industry enjoyed substantial profitability because of limited buyer power. Barriers to Entry: It would be nearly impossible for either a new CP or a new bottler to enter the industry. New CPs would need to overcome the tremendous marketing muscle and market presence of Coke, Pepsi, and a few others, who had established brand names that were as much as a century old. Through their DSD practices, these companies had intimate relationships with their retail channels and would be able to defend their positions effectively through discounting or other tactics. So, although the CP industry is not very capital intensive, other barriers would prevent entry. Entering bottling, meanwhile, would require substantial capital investment, which would deter entry. Further complicating entry into this market, existing bottlers had exclusive territories in which to distribute their products. Regulatory approval of intrabrand exclusive territories, via the Soft Drink Interbrand Competition Act of 1980, ratified this strategy, making it impossible for new bottlers to get started in any region where an existing bottler operated, which included every significant market in the US. In conclusion, an industry analysis by Porter’s Five Forces reveals that the soft drink industry in 1994 was favorable for positive economic profitability, as evidenced in companies’ financial outcomes. Compare the economics of the concentrate business to the bottling business. Why is the profitability so different? In some ways, the economics of the concentrate business and the bottling business should be inextricably linked. The CPs negotiate on behalf of their suppliers, and they are ultimately dependent on the same customers. Even in the case of materials, such as aspartame, that are incorporated directly into concentrates, CPs pass along any negotiated savings directly to their bottlers. Yet the industries are quite different in terms of profitability. The fundamental difference between CPs and bottlers is added value. The biggest source of added value for CPs is their proprietary, branded products. Coke has protected its recipe for over a hundred years as a trade secret, and has gone to great lengths to prevent others from learning its cola formula. The company even left a billion-person market (India) to avoid revealing this information. As a result of extended histories and successful advertising efforts, Coke and Pepsi are respected household names, giving their products an aura of value that cannot be easily replicated. Also hard to replicate are Coke and Pepsi’s sophisticated strategic and operational management practices, another source of added value. Bottlers have significantly less added value. Unlike their CP counterparts, they do not have branded products or unique formulas. Their added value stems from their relationships with CPs and with their 4 customers. They have repeatedly negotiated contracts with their customers, with whom they work on an ongoing basis, and whose idiosyncratic needs are familiar to them. Through long-term, in depth relationships with their customers, they are able to serve customers effectively. Through DSD programs, they lower their customers’ costs, making it possible for their customers to purchase and sell more product. In this way, bottlers are able to grow the pie of the soft drink market. Their other source of profitability is their contract relationships with CPs, which grant them exclusive territories and share some cost savings. Exclusive territories prevent intrabrand competition, creating oligopolies at the bottler level, which reduce rivalry and allow profits. To further build â€Å"glass houses,† as described by Nalebuff and Brandenberger (Co-opetition, p. 88), for their bottlers, CPs pass along some of their negotiated supply savings to their bottlers. Coke gives 2/3 of negotiated aspartame savings to its bottlers by contract, and Pepsi does this in practice. This practice keeps bottlers comfortable enough, so that they are unlikely to challenge their contracts. Bottlers’ principal ability is to use their capital resources effectively. Such operational effectiveness is not a driver of added value, however, as operational effectiveness is easily replicated. Between 1986 and 1993, the differences in added value between CPs and bottlers resulted in a major shift in profitability within the industry. Exhibit 1 demonstrates these dramatic changes. While industry profitability increased by 11%, CP profits rose by 130% on a per case basis, from $0. 10 to $0. 23. During this period, bottler profits actually dropped on a per case basis by 23%, from $0. 5 to 0. 27. One possibility is that product line expansion in defense against new age beverages helped CPs but hurt bottlers. This would be expected if bottler’s per case costs increased due to the operational challenges and capital costs of producing and distributing broader product lines. This, however, was not the case; cost of sales per case decreased for both CPs and bottlers by 27% during this period, mostly due to economies of scale developed through consolidation. The real difference between the fortunes of CPs and bottlers through this period, then, is in top line revenues. While CPs were able to charge more for their products, bottlers faced price pressure, resulting in lower revenues per case. These per case revenue changes occurred during a period of slowing growth in the industry, as shown in Exhibit 2. Growth in per capita consumption of soft drinks slowed to a 1. 2% CAGR in the period 1989 to 1993, while case volume growth tapered to 2. 3%. In an struggle to secure limited shelf space with more products and slower overall growth, bottlers were probably forced to give up more margin on their products. CPs, meanwhile, could continue increasing the prices for their concentrates with the consumer price index. Coke had negotiated this flexibility into its Master Bottling Contact in 1986, and Pepsi had worked price increases based on the CPI into its bottling contracts. So, while the bottlers faced increasing price pressure in a slowing market, CPs could continue raising their prices. Despite improvements in per case costs, bottlers could not improve their profitability as a percent of total sales. As a result, through the period of 1986 to 1993, bottlers did not gain any of the profitability gains enjoyed by CPs. Why have contracts between CPs and bottlers taken the form they have in the soft drink industry? Contracts between CPs and bottlers were strategically constructed by the CPs. Although beneficial to bottlers on the surface, the contracts favored the CPs’ long-term strategies in important ways. First, territorial exclusivity is beneficial to bottlers, as it prevents intrabrand competition, ensures bargaining power over buyers and establishes barriers to entry. But it is also beneficial to CPs, who are also not subject to price wars within their own brand. The contracts also excluded bottlers from producing the flagship products of competitors. This created monopoly status for the CPs, from the bottler perspective. Each bottler could only negotiate with one supplier for its premium product. Violation of this stipulation would result in termination of the contract, which would leave the bottler in a difficult position. Historically, contracts were designed hold syrup prices constant into perpetuity, only influenced by rising prices of sugar. This changed in 1978 and 1986, as contracts were renegotiated, first to accommodate for rises in the CPI, and then to give general flexibility to the CP (Coke) in setting prices. Coke could negotiate this more flexible pricing because its bottlers were dependent on it for business. It further ensured that its bottlers would be captive to its monopoly status by buying major bottlers and then selling them into the CCE holding company, which would only produce Coke products. Coke would capture 49% of the dividends from CCE, without the complications of vertical integration. Should concentrate producers vertically integrate into bottling? Given the data in Exhibit 1, indicating the CP business has grown more profitable over the last seven years, while the bottling industry has struggled to retain any profitability, it would not be advisable to vertically integrate. Stuckey and White (p. 8) indicate that a firm should â€Å"Integrate into those stages of the industry chain where the most economic surplus is available, irrespective of closeness to the customer or the absolute size of the value added. † In the soft drink industry, CPs generally miss out on the profits earned through fountain sales. Pepsi, realizing that fast food chains were capturing most of the value of fountain sales, entered the fast food business by purchasing Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and KFC. These mergers allowed the firm to capture more value from its soft drink sales, but these mergers could also be problematic. For example, PepsiCo might not have a core competency in food sales or a strong position in the industry. Because it might not be able to effectively transfer skills or share activities with its fast food businesses, the mergers might not be successful in the long run. Stuckey and White also point out that â€Å"high-surplus stages must, by definition, be protected by barriers to entry. † So it could be difficult for Coke to enter the fast food business. It could be prohibitively expensive to purchase McDonalds or Burger King, and developing a chain of its own against such formidable competition would be extremely risky. So integration into this phase of the value chain would be difficult or impossible for Coke. As Stuckey and White say, â€Å"don’t vertically integrate unless it is absolutely necessary to create or protect value. † We shall address each of these individually to formally refute the plausibility of vertical integration of CPs into bottling. (1) â€Å"The market is too risky and unreliable. † On the contrary, the concentrate market is highly stable and will be for a long time to come. (2) â€Å"Companies in adjacent stages of the industry 6 chain have more market power than companies in your stage. The opposite is true, CPs already have more market power than bottlers, so they should not vertically integrate. (3) â€Å"Integration would create or exploit market power by raising barriers to entry or allowing price discrimination across customer segments. † In fact, CPs already have market power through efficient barriers to entry, and effectively price discriminate through various retail channels. (4) â€Å"The market is young and the company must forward integrate to develop a market, or the market is declining and independents are pulling out of adjacent stages. † The market is neither young nor declining. Having determined that a vertical integration strategy fails all four of Stuckey and White’s tests, CPs should not pursue vertical integration into bottling.

Find Out More About Global Warming Causes

Find Out More About Global Warming Causes The Consequences of Warming World One of the main causes of global warming is an existence of the exceeded amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is connected to such human activities as burning oils, gas, cutting down the forests, etc. As a result, CO2 creates and performs a function of a blanket that covers out planet. It leads to the fact that the average temperature rises, which causes different negative effects on the natural processes. Global Warming Can Be Dealt With! Based on different climate change facts, global warming effects can be reduced. As it has been mentioned before, the main reason of global warming is intensive CO2 emissions, which are not likely to be reduced in the nearest future due to the human dependence on such natural resources as oil, gas, coal, etc. As a result, there is an urgent need for developing alternative sources of energy, which will reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. In other case, global warming may have diverse negative effects not only on people living today but also on future generations. The issue has been widely discussed and there are numerous debates regarding the issue of a warming world. However, it has become obvious that people can reduce the negative outcomes of this threat! First of all, the level of emissions should be sufficiently reduced. Moreover, it should be done as soon as possible not to let the things get worse. The more people hesitate in taking necessary measures, the most costly it w ill be in the future. Warming World Consequences The researchers provide shocking facts regarding global warming. The last 10 years were the hottest years in the history of the mankind, which is quite disturbing. The average temperature has increased by 0.7C (1F) globally over the last century. Though it may not seem sufficient, such a temperature change causes numerous problems for all living things on the planet. The statistics show that the number of hot days in year increase drastically, while the number of cold days and nights reduces. The other negative consequences of global warming include the increased sea level, more often droughts, storms, snow pattern,s to name just a few. Actions to Be Taken to Reduce the Warming World Negative Effects It is extremely important to ordain specific laws to mitigate the threat. However, not only states governments are responsible for the effects of global warming. Every person can add to solving one of the greatest problems of the modern world. The level of carbon dioxide emissions differs from community to community, making it a problem of every region. Sometimes, it is a decision of the community members but not a state law that greatly contributes to the reduction of such emissions. For example, there are regions where people refuse from the common means of transportation in favor of energy-saving transport, etc. So, global warming is a problem of every individual and it is our common task to overcome this threat!

Find Out More About Global Warming Causes

Find Out More About Global Warming Causes The Consequences of Warming World One of the main causes of global warming is an existence of the exceeded amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is connected to such human activities as burning oils, gas, cutting down the forests, etc. As a result, CO2 creates and performs a function of a blanket that covers out planet. It leads to the fact that the average temperature rises, which causes different negative effects on the natural processes. Global Warming Can Be Dealt With! Based on different climate change facts, global warming effects can be reduced. As it has been mentioned before, the main reason of global warming is intensive CO2 emissions, which are not likely to be reduced in the nearest future due to the human dependence on such natural resources as oil, gas, coal, etc. As a result, there is an urgent need for developing alternative sources of energy, which will reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. In other case, global warming may have diverse negative effects not only on people living today but also on future generations. The issue has been widely discussed and there are numerous debates regarding the issue of a warming world. However, it has become obvious that people can reduce the negative outcomes of this threat! First of all, the level of emissions should be sufficiently reduced. Moreover, it should be done as soon as possible not to let the things get worse. The more people hesitate in taking necessary measures, the most costly it w ill be in the future. Warming World Consequences The researchers provide shocking facts regarding global warming. The last 10 years were the hottest years in the history of the mankind, which is quite disturbing. The average temperature has increased by 0.7C (1F) globally over the last century. Though it may not seem sufficient, such a temperature change causes numerous problems for all living things on the planet. The statistics show that the number of hot days in year increase drastically, while the number of cold days and nights reduces. The other negative consequences of global warming include the increased sea level, more often droughts, storms, snow pattern,s to name just a few. Actions to Be Taken to Reduce the Warming World Negative Effects It is extremely important to ordain specific laws to mitigate the threat. However, not only states governments are responsible for the effects of global warming. Every person can add to solving one of the greatest problems of the modern world. The level of carbon dioxide emissions differs from community to community, making it a problem of every region. Sometimes, it is a decision of the community members but not a state law that greatly contributes to the reduction of such emissions. For example, there are regions where people refuse from the common means of transportation in favor of energy-saving transport, etc. So, global warming is a problem of every individual and it is our common task to overcome this threat!

Find Out More About Global Warming Causes

Find Out More About Global Warming Causes The Consequences of Warming World One of the main causes of global warming is an existence of the exceeded amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is connected to such human activities as burning oils, gas, cutting down the forests, etc. As a result, CO2 creates and performs a function of a blanket that covers out planet. It leads to the fact that the average temperature rises, which causes different negative effects on the natural processes. Global Warming Can Be Dealt With! Based on different climate change facts, global warming effects can be reduced. As it has been mentioned before, the main reason of global warming is intensive CO2 emissions, which are not likely to be reduced in the nearest future due to the human dependence on such natural resources as oil, gas, coal, etc. As a result, there is an urgent need for developing alternative sources of energy, which will reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. In other case, global warming may have diverse negative effects not only on people living today but also on future generations. The issue has been widely discussed and there are numerous debates regarding the issue of a warming world. However, it has become obvious that people can reduce the negative outcomes of this threat! First of all, the level of emissions should be sufficiently reduced. Moreover, it should be done as soon as possible not to let the things get worse. The more people hesitate in taking necessary measures, the most costly it w ill be in the future. Warming World Consequences The researchers provide shocking facts regarding global warming. The last 10 years were the hottest years in the history of the mankind, which is quite disturbing. The average temperature has increased by 0.7C (1F) globally over the last century. Though it may not seem sufficient, such a temperature change causes numerous problems for all living things on the planet. The statistics show that the number of hot days in year increase drastically, while the number of cold days and nights reduces. The other negative consequences of global warming include the increased sea level, more often droughts, storms, snow pattern,s to name just a few. Actions to Be Taken to Reduce the Warming World Negative Effects It is extremely important to ordain specific laws to mitigate the threat. However, not only states governments are responsible for the effects of global warming. Every person can add to solving one of the greatest problems of the modern world. The level of carbon dioxide emissions differs from community to community, making it a problem of every region. Sometimes, it is a decision of the community members but not a state law that greatly contributes to the reduction of such emissions. For example, there are regions where people refuse from the common means of transportation in favor of energy-saving transport, etc. So, global warming is a problem of every individual and it is our common task to overcome this threat!

Timeline from 1890 to 1900 - Significant Events

Timeline from 1890 to 1900 - Significant Events Decade By Decade: Timelines of the 1800s 1890 July 2, 1890: The Sherman Anti-Trust Act became law in the United States.July 13, 1890: John C. Frà ©mont, American explorer and political figure, died in New York City at the age of 77.July 29, 1890: Artist Vincent Van Gogh died in France at the age of 37 after shooting himself two days earlier.October 1, 1890: At the urging of John Muir, The U.S. Congress designated Yosemite a National Park. Carleton E. Watkins/Getty Images December 15, 1890: Sitting Bull, legendary Sioux leader, died at the age of 59 in South Dakota. He was killed while being arrested in the federal governments crackdown on the Ghost Dance movement.December 29, 1890: The Wounded Knee Massacre took place in South Dakota when U.S. Cavalry troopers fired on Lakota Sioux who had gathered. The killing of hundreds of unarmed men, women, and children essentially marked the end of Native American resistance to white rule in the West. 1891 February 14, 1891: William Tecumseh Sherman, Civil War general, died in New York City at the age of 71.March 17, 1891: The St. Patricks Day parade in New York City began using the traditional route up Fifth Avenue.April 7, 1891: American showman Phineas T. Barnum died in Bridgeport, Connecticut at the age of 80.May 5, 1891: Carnegie Hall opened in New York City. Gabriel Hackett/Archive Photos/Getty Images June 25, 1891: The character Sherlock Holmes, created by Arthur Conan Doyle, appeared in The Strand magazine for the first time.September 28, 1891: Herman Melville, author of Moby Dick, died in New York City at the age of 72. At the time of his death he was not well remember for his classic novel about whaling, but more for earlier books set in the South Seas.October 6, 1891: Irish political figure Charles Stewart Parnell died in Ireland at the age of 45.December 4, 1891: One of the richest men in America, financier Russell Sage, was nearly blown to bits in a bizarre dynamite attack in his Manhattan office. 1892 March 26, 1892: American poet Walt Whitman died in Camden, New Jersey at the age of 72.May 28, 1892: Writer and naturalist John Muir founded the Sierra Club. Muirs campaigning for conservation would exert an influence on American life in the 20th century.July 6, 1892: The Homestead Steel Strike in western Pennsylvania turned into a ferocious day-long battle between Pinkerton men and townspeople.August 4, 1892: Andrew Borden and his wife were murdered in Fall River, Massachusetts and his daughter Lizzie Borden was accused of the gruesome crime.November 8, 1892: Grover Cleveland won the U.S. presidential election, becoming the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms. Oscar White/Corbis/VCG/Getty Images   1893 January 17, 1893: Rutherford B. Hayes, who became president following the disputed election of 1876, died in Ohio at the age of 70.February 1893: Thomas A. Edison finished building his first motion picture studio.March 4, 1893: Grover Cleveland was inaugurated as president of the United States for the second time.May 1, 1893: The 1893 Worlds Fair, known as the Columbian Exposition, opened in Chicago.   Frances Benjamin Johnston/Library of Congress/Getty Images May 1893: A decline in the New York stock market triggered the Panic of 1893, which led to an economic depression second only to the Great Depression of the 1930s.June 20, 1893: Lizzie Borden was acquitted of murder.December 1893: The British public was outraged when Arthur Conan Doyle published a story in which Sherlock Holmes apparently died. 1894   Getty Images March 25, 1894: Coxeys Army, a march to protest unemployment that was largely the result of the Panic of 1893, departed from Ohio on its way to Washington, D.C.April 30, 1894: Coxeys Army reached Washington, D.C. and its leaders were arrested the next day. The demands of Jacob Coxey, which focused on great government intervention in the economy, would eventually move into the mainstream.May 1894: The Pullman Strike began, and spread throughout the summer before being put down by federal troops.June 22, 1894: Pierre de Coubertin organized a meeting which led to the creation of the International Olympic Committee.September 1894: The U.S. Congress designated the first Monday of September as a legal holiday, Labor Day, to mark the contributions of labor, in part as a peace offering to the labor movement following the crackdown on the Pullman Strike. 1895 February 20, 1895: Abolitionist author Frederick Douglass died in Washington, D.C. at the age of 77.May 6, 1895: Future president  Theodore Roosevelt became president of the New York City police board, effectively becoming the police commissioner. His efforts to reform the police department became legendary and heightened his public profile.December 1895: President Grover Cleveland arranged for a White House Christmas tree lit with Edison electric bulbs.Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, arranged in his will for his estate to fund the Nobel Prize. Bettmann/Getty Images 1896 January 15, 1896: Photographer Mathew Brady died in New York City.April 1896: The first modern Olympic games, the idea of Pierre de Coubertin, are held in Athens, Greece.   Historica Graphica Collection/Heritage Images/Getty Images May 18, 1896: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Plessy v. Ferguson that the separate but equal principle of Jim Crow laws in the segregated American South is legal.July 1, 1896: Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of Uncle Toms Cabin, died in Hartford, Connecticut at the age of 85.November 3, 1896: William McKinley was elected president of the United States, defeating William Jennings Bryan.December 10, 1896: Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite and benefactor of the Nobel Prize, died in Italy at the age of 63. 1897 March 4, 1897: William McKinley was inaugurated as president of the United States.July 1897: The Klondike Gold Rush began in Alaska.   LaRoche/Library of Congress/Getty Images 1898 February 15, 1898: The American battleship U.S.S. Maine exploded in the harbor at Havana, Cuba, a mysterious event that will lead to the United States going to war with Spain.April 25, 1898: The United States declared war on Spain.May 1, 1898: At the Battle of Manila Bay, an American fleet in the Philippines defeated a Spanish naval force.May 19, 1898: William Ewart Gladstone, former prime minister of Britain, died in Wales at the age of 88.July 1, 1898: At the Battle of San Juan Hill, Col. Theodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders charged Spanish positions.   CORBIS/Historical/Getty Images July 30, 1898: German statesman Otto von Bismarck died at the age of 88. 1899 July 1899: Newsboys in New York City went on strike for several weeks in a significant action related to child labor.July 18, 1899: Writer Horatio Alger died in Massachusetts at the age of 67. Decade By Decade: 1800-1810 | 1810-1820 | 1820-1830 | 1830-1840 | 1840-1850 | 1850-1860 | 1860-1870 | 1870-1880 | 1880-1890 | The Civil War Year By Year

The Effect of Sildenafil on Embryo Development Literature review

The Effect of Sildenafil on Embryo Development - Literature review Example To increase the success rate of IVF, the clinical and laboratory procedures were enhanced in order to reduce the risk of side-effects on the part of patients (Gupta and Agarwa, 2010). Despite the effort to improve the use of IVF, Diedrich et al. (2007) revealed that successful pregnancy rates remain low. The common problems encountered with the use of the IVF procedure includes: (1) inadequate supply of nutrients and oxygen necessary to make the embryo implant itself in the endometrium lining (Forbes and Westwood, 2010; Raine-Fenning et al., 2004a; Kennedy, 1997); (2) lack of endometrial receptivity (Forbes and Westwood, 2010; Kennedy, 1997); (3) failed ovarian responses to the IVF protocols (Oudendijk et al., 2012; Tarlatzis et al., 2003); and (4) uterine blood flow abnormalities caused by poor angiogenesis or vasculogenesis (Satterfield et al., 2010; Huppertz et al., 2006). Due to the failure of the embryo implant itself in the endometrium lining, women can either experience a misc arriage, a recurrent miscarriage, implantation failure, or a recurrent implantation failure (Christiansen et al., 2006; Margalioth et al., 2006; Tomassetti et al., 2006). Based on the study of Achache and Revel (2006), approximately 2/3 of failed IVF is caused by the inability of the embryo implant itself in the endometrium lining. One of the pharmacological drugs that are being considered in treating problems related to the endometrium lining is the sildenafil citrate (Hattori and Tabata, 2006). Through the use of this particular drug, the presence of nitric oxide can will not only create a positive effect on the endometrium lining during the implantation stage but also help in preventing the presence of intrauterine adhesions during menstruation and maintain normal blood pressure during pregnancy (Nakatsuka et al., 2002; Sher et al., 2000; Norman and Cameron, 1996). Based on the study of Sher et al. (2000), the use of 25 mg of sildenafil citrate vaginal suppository for at least four (4) times each day for a period of one week prior to ovarian stimulation will not only increase the endometrium thickness by more than 8 mm but also improve the uterine blood flow. In a similar study, Paulus et al. (2002) examined the effects of 25 mg of sildenafil citrate vaginal suppository on ten (10) women with poor endometria l response to IVF. After administering the vaginal suppository for at least four (4) times each day, the authors noted a 9 mm increase in the endometrium thickness of nine (9) patients but no such improvements in the patients’ uterine blood flow (Paulus et al., 2002). Aside from having a trilaminar pattern during the ovulation period, Chanona et al. (2004) found that it is possible to increase the endometrium thickness up to more than 10 mm after administering 50 mg of sildenafil citrate vaginal suppository each day between the 9th to 12th day of menstruation cycle.  

MGT506 - Strategic Leadership, Mod 1 Case Assignment Essay

MGT506 - Strategic Leadership, Mod 1 Case Assignment - Essay Example Davis (2013) explained that business analytics is instrument to achieve objectives which transformed information as data to leverage in business competition. Admittedly, they have spent tremendous amount of obtaining invaluable assets and in developing storage or database to save essential uncovered insights as knowledge-base that can be useful, for instance, in social network analysis and in behavioural studies at multiple levels (Davis, 2013). This may include concerns on retail pricing, portfolio analysis, risks positions, banking or finance management, and the empirical demand of the market based on considered demography and customer needs (Davis, 2013). This expertise on business analytics is also provided as consultancy service to pharmaceuticals, industries, companies and institutions seeking expert consultancy on organizational capacity management (Davis, 2013). In a cursory look into the organization’s performance, it is driven to empower clients using advanced analyt ics for organizations to make use of its internal database to improve its competence, performance, financials, and its quest for meaningful innovative information (Davis, 2013). Through this, clients are inspired to make fact-based decision-making to generate great impact (SAS Inc., 2012). The company also partner with clients in all development process to ensure that they are able to generate maximum satisfaction of relevant services (SAS Inc., 2012). Such commitment target at getting shared outcome. The organization used creative capital for high performance analytics and client empowerment. This process is undertaken by optimizing technology in resolving problems on financial services, pharmaceutical market development, nurturing retail business opportunities, valuing customer relations, business risk management, optimizing information technology networks with cross-functional solutions via information management, analytics and business intelligence (SAS Inc., 2012). SAS services are rendered to 60,000 sites over 135 countries which include 90 of top companies of on the 2011 Fortune Global 500Â ® list (SAS Inc., 2012). The company has been an avid service provider on customer intelligence, improving governance, IT performance management, retail and supply chain in the manufacturing industry, product marketing, pricing and packaging, banking, insurance, risk management, Saas, business analytics, business intelligence, performance management, communications, health and life sciences, data integration, information management, alliances and channels, and relations (SAS.com. 2013). As of these days, it has developed 903 companies in partnerships and alliances based on its online directory (SAS.com, 2013). The success of this organization is obviously attained because they have clear vision, mission, goals, and sustained good relationship with its clienteles. They see tangible results of the SAS’s software and services (SAS.com, 2013). Their systems are m atched with mixture of transformational and transactional leadership that are applied in managing in its operation, in relating to customers, and in managing its human resources. CNNMoney (2012)