Short writing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Short writing - Essay Example government and its Border Patrol are constructing a steel wall ten feet high to span sections of the border with Mexico†(Silko, 2013, p.122). The vivid descriptions of the situation at the border come because of the narratives being personal experiences of the situation. The narratives have a significant difference in that most of the events described by Biss occur in Mexico while Silko describes events occurring in the border. While crossing the border Biss was not subjected to the dehumanizing search, but observed that Mexicans were being mistreated, resulting in the development of hatred for Americans, while staying in Mexico. Silko was personally subjected to the ill treatment while attempting to move across the border, and realized that all individuals moving across the border were subjected to similar actions. Sometimes, the treatment was worse, as the officers might have beaten them. The experience through which Silko underwent leads to the conclusion that the patrols cannot stop the migration since this is a natural event. For Biss, however, the experience was different and was based on the observation of lifestyles of the Mexican people. This resulted in a retaliation act by hating Americans for mistreating the Mexican

The major threats in revenue cycle

The major threats in revenue cycle The objectives of the billing process are to ensure the customers are billed for all sales, invoices are accurate, and the customers are billed for all sales. Accurate billing is crucial and requires information identifying the items and quantities shipped, prices, and special sales terms. But, sometimes threats might happen; the transaction might result from either a mistake or a fraud. The company might face failure to bill customers. The failure will cause loss of assets and revenues and inaccurate sales, inventory and accounts receivable data. For example, the employees who ship the product to might not bill the customers as they customers are their friends. Besides, no reconciliation of inventory amounts shipped with billings might cause failure to bill customers. This could result in undetected underbilling. In addition, the bookkeeper might do not periodically verify that all sales orders and shipping advices have been invoiced. So, the company must observe the problems faced and reduce the risk of errors and fraud. The company may separate the shipping and billing function to prevent that the failure to bill customers. The internal control can manage the billing and shipping records should be integrated on the computer system to provide for reconciliation of inventory amounts shipped and billed. The company internal control must periodically verify that all sales orders and shipping advices have been invoiced. This is because accurate and timely billing is crucial. The Billing Department may require information from the Shipping Department on items and quantities shipped and from Sales on prices and other sales terms. The basic document created is the sales invoice. Invoices may be sent or received in paper form and in invoice-less systems, ensure every shipment is recorded, since the shipment triggers recording of the account receivable. The wellà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬managed internal control should also merge the billing process with sales and marketing by using data about a customerà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s past purchases to send information about related products and services with the monthly statement. All sales tickets should be prenumbered and accounted for. This would quickly spot missing tickets. On top of that, I suggest that the On-line data entry by sales staff. The system should include credit checks on customers as well as check inventory availability Email notification of each department (shipping, billing, etc.) whenever another department performs an action (e.g., billing is notified whenever shipping enters data indicating that an order has been released) Furthermore, there might be the billing error occurred during the sales transaction. The billing might be underbilling or overbilling. This may cause loss of asset and customer dissatisfaction. The employee might prepare the invoices without notification about what was shipped and when. This will cause the billing mistakes when shipping goods. The employees maybe deal with the wrong price list of the products or goods to cause overbilling customers. The solution for the billing error can be controlled by prepare invoice only after receive copy of shipping advice indicating quantities shipped and date. The internal control can use the prices of computer-based such as have the computer retrieve prices from the inventory master file. This can prevent the wrong price with the goods shipping or even wrong price wrong goods. Moreover, the company can use date entry edit control to eliminate the billing error. Have the system to check the inventory availability as order data are entered with the prices of it. The company also can use online terminal to enter sales order date into the system as orders are received to avoid the quantity error with billing error. Internal control can also do have a system to save all the inventory or product list with pricing list so that the company can use barcode scanners to scan the products order. It can prevent the data key in error. Furthermore, for the billing error I suggest that use passwords to limit access to authorized users, and to restrict the duties each employee may perform and which files they may access in case to prevent the inventory data and prices changed by the employees. Next we can also check quantities on packing slip against quantities on sales order to make sure again the right goods shipping and the billing cost. In addition, posting errors in updating accounts receivable is one of the threats of the billing in revenue cycle. Accounts can be written off to cover theft of cash due to uncollectible accounts are not determined on the basis of established criteria. Any of fees earned, cash receipts, and uncollectible accounts expense could be either understated or overstated because of undetected differences between the subsidiary ledger and the general ledger. Also, fees earned and cash receipts or accounts receivable could be understated because of failure to record billings, cash receipts, and write-offs accurately. Trial balances of the accounts receivable subsidiary ledger are not prepared independently of, or verified and reconciled to, the accounts receivable control account in the general ledger. It causes customer dissatisfaction and loss of sales and may indicate theft of cash To solve of this threat problems, the internal control can establish and use criteria for writing off accounts receivable. Write off should be authorized by someone who does not have access to cash and periodic reconciliation of the subsidiary accounts receivable ledger to the general ledger control account for accounts receivable. Besides, the invoice shall be prepared as soon as the order is approved and the inventory, accounts receivable and general ledger files are updated at that time to prevent the delay between order and shipment so that the bill can post into account receivable just in time to avoid any error happened. Between, in case to avoid the error in maintaining the customer accounts, the company internal control may edit checks such as validity checks on customer and invoice numbers so amounts are applied to the correct account. The company can also make the field check on it to ensure payment amounts are numeric. To make sure there are no error occurred during the up dating of account receivable, the internal control shall make the reconciliation of subsidiary accounts receivable ledger with general ledger and sending the monthly statements to every customer to provide independent review. To reduce this threat, I suggest that the company can compare the number of accounts updated with the number of check received. A variety of inputs edit checks (limit checks, range checks, reasonableness tests, etc.) to ensure completeness of data entry and accuracy. Besides, establishment of electronic lockboxes with banks so that customer payments go directly to companyà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s account. Use email notification of each department whenever another department performs an action. The system that provide should include the credit checks on customers as well as check inventory availability to avoid the posting error in updating account receivable and maintaining customer accounts.

The Physics of Human Strength :: physics sport sports weight lifting strong

Welcome to the Physics of Strength What make a person strong? According to Frederick Hatfield, Ph.D. and former world record holder in the Squat, there are 38 factors affecting strength. I have put them here for you to read quickly, but the original article can be found on www.drsquat.com. 1. Muscle Fiber Arrangement 2. Musculoskeletal Leverage 3. Tissue Leverage 4. Freedom of Movement Between Fibers 5. Tissue Viscoelasticity 6. Intramuscular/intracellular friction 7. Ratio of Fiber Types 8. Range of Motion 9. Freedom From Injury 10. Connective Tissue Structure 11. Stretch Reflex 12. The Feedback Loop 13. Endocrine System Functions (hormones) 14. Extent of hyperplasia (cell splitting) or fiber fusion 15. Extent of myofibrillarization 16. Motor Unit Recruitment 17. Energy transfer systems' efficiency 18. Extensiveness of capillarization 19. Mitochondrial growth and proliferation 20. Stroke volume of the left ventricle 21. Ejection fraction of the left ventricle 22. Pulmonary (ventilatory) capacity 23. Efficiency of gas exchange in the lungs 24. Heart rate 25. Max VO2 uptake 26. Freedom from disease 27. Arousal Level ("psych") 28. Ability to concentrate 29. Incentive 30. Social learning 31. Coordination 32. "Spiritual" factors 33. The "placebo" effect 34. Equipment 35. Environment 36. Effect of gravity 37. Opposing and assisting forces This pretty much covers everything. As you can see, it takes a culmination of physical, natural, mental, spiritual, and psychological factors to be strong. It also takes time. The laws of physics play a huge role in what it means to be strong. On this site we will focus especially on the last two, the effect of gravity and forces. The physical concepts that will be used in this site include Newton's laws (of course), gravity, work, power, velocity and acceleration, static equilibrium, and conservation of mechanical energy. All concepts and useful equations will be explained as they are used. What is the Squat? The parallel squat (shown to the left) is the most important lift in all of sports and the most efficient exercise in building strength. It incorporates back and leg strength, stability, and coordination. Almost every athlete can benefit from doing squats. How do you do Squats? Squats are done with a weighted bar on your shoulders, in the natural groove between the muscles, with your feet a little farther than shoulder-width apart.

It’s Your Ship

Book Information Title: It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy Author: Captain D. Michael Abrashoff Publisher’s Name: Warner Books, Inc.Publisher’s Location, Year of Publication: New York, NY, 2002 Number of Pages: 210 pages Content The overall objective of the book is to teach new, and old, leaders to become better leaders. While anyone can benefit from reading this book, the intended audience is leaders in any organization. One statistic that should be alarming to all leaders of businesses was that 65 percent of people leave their companies because of the managers (Abrashoff, 2002). How do leaders change that statistic?Abrashoff believes that running a ship is very similar to running any business; it takes motivating a crew to perform at the best of their abilities to achieve optimal efficiency and completion of tasks. He successfully takes his experiences from leading a Naval crew and teaches the audience how to apply it to t heir organizations. Along with highlighting every winning moment he and his crew experienced on the USS Benfold, Captain Abrashoff also shows failing moments the team had to endure. Those examples show the audience that in order to succeed, there has to be some trials along the way.Abrashoff introduces readers to the 11 lessons he has learned that helped him become a better leader: take command; lead by example; listen aggressively; communicate purpose and meaning; create a climate of trust; look for results, not salutes; take calculated risks; go beyond standard procedure; build people up; generate unity; and improve the crew’s quality of life. He dedicated a chapter to each lesson and explains the importance of each and how to apply them to any business. Chapter one talks about how Abrashoff became the captain of USS Benfold and how he had to take command.His first obstacle was wondering if everyone was going to like him. He quickly realized that â€Å"be likable is not hi gh among a ship captain’s job requirements†¦ to be respected, trusted, and effective† is (Abrashoff, 2002, p. 12). After that, he realized â€Å"a challenge for leaders†¦ is attracting and retaining †¦ the best employees and more important, how to motivate them so that they work with passion, energy, and enthusiasm† (Abrashoff, 2002, p. 12). Leaders need to listen to their employees so they can better understand what they are going through. Along with listening, employees need to be motivated.Motivation helps employees want to do their work and do the best job. Another obstacle was learning the real reason why soldiers were not re-enlisting. Abrashoff (2002) stated the following: I read some exit surveys, interviews conducted by the military to find out why people are leaving. I assumed that low pay would be the first reason, but in fact it was fifth. The top reason was not being treated with respect or dignity; second was being prevented from maki ng an impact on the organization; third, not being listened to; and fourth, not being rewarded with more responsibility. p. 13) All of those reasons are very similar to why people are leaving civilian jobs. Only one conclusion could come from it: all leaders are making the same mistakes. The best answer for those obstacles was summed up perfectly when he talked about his organizing principle. Abrashoff (2002) said â€Å"the key to being a successful skipper is to see the ship through the eyes of the crew† (p. 13). The leader does not always come up with the ideas; leaders would benefit greatly if they listened to their crew more. Empowering employees makes them realize their potential.When â€Å"given the right environment, there are few limits to what people can achieve† (p. 31). After taking command, a great leader must lead by example. In chapter two, Abrashoff discovered â€Å"90 percent of the time, I was at least as much a part if the problem as my people wereâ €  (p. 33). When things go wrong and tasks are not completed, a manager usually blames the employees. Abrashoff used a different approach; he looked at himself and wondered what he may have done wrong in certain situations. By recognizing their own faults, a leader can learn from them and show their employees that they are learning from them.There were four sections of the chapter that was very important. The first section was on remembering the effect one has on people. Leaders need to understand how they affect their people, â€Å"their optimism and pessimism are equally infectious† (p. 35). If the leader is in a bad mood, the employees will sense that and be in the same mood. Abrashoff talks about his â€Å"dark side† and how he purposely stays away from his crew when he is having a bad day. The second section talks about holding leaders accountable. Leaders need to make sure they recognized their part in a mishap and take some of the blame.The Washington Post te st was the next section. If there is any concern on whether something is the right thing to do, picture it being on the front page of a newspaper. Would it cause embarrassment or would it be something to celebrate? Abrashoff thinks that every decision a leader can make should be based on that test. The last section is about obeying a policy even when a leader disagrees. There are plenty of times a manager will disagree with a policy or procedure handed down by upper management; a great leader will support it anyway.Undermining superiors will show employees that they can do the same. In chapter three, Abrashoff stresses the importance of listening. He talked about his experiences with watching William Perry have conversations with people and how Perry always gave his complete attention to each person. In result, Perry was respected and people felt good in his presence. Abrashoff started to focus on really listening to his crew and treating each conversation like it was the most impor tant conversation he was having. While having these conversations, Abrashoff learned to â€Å"see the ship through the crew’s eyes† (p. 4). He discovered that his crew had many good ideas about how to make the environment more enjoyable; they were there every single day and knew a lot about the day-to-day operations on the ship. It would make sense to listen to their ideas. One of his first goals was to learn every soldier’s name, their spouse’s name, and all the names of their children. Then, he continued to learn different things about each of them. He talks about realizing his crew was just like him, â€Å"they had hopes, dreams, loved ones, and they wanted to believe that what they were doing was important† (p. 46).In turn, his crew earned more of his respect and it became easier for them to talk to him and share their ideas. Finding round people for round holes was his next point in the chapter. Since he knew his people so well, he was able to match them with the perfect job. After having an assistant that was not good at handling paperwork, Abrashoff found a younger seaman named David Lauer, who was labeled as a â€Å"troublemaker† to take over the task. Lauer shined in that task and Abrashoff asked him why he had so much trouble in his last job. The seaman said that he felt like his suggestions were not being heard and he just gave up.This example proved that listening aggressively can benefit leaders immensely. â€Å"Word magic† was the last lesson Perry taught Abrashoff. Abrashoff believed â€Å"if leaders back their words with action†¦ practice what they preach, their words create a self-fulfilling prophecy† (p. 50). Every time someone talked about the USS Benfold, it was referred to as â€Å"the best damn ship in the Navy. † He wanted his crew to say it so they believed it and in turn, everyone else believed it. The next lesson is about communicating the purpose and meaning of every task.Abrashoff said it best in the first sentence of chapter four, â€Å"the whole secret of leading a ship or managing a company is to articulate a common goal that inspires a diverse group of people to work hard together† (p. 52). When employees understand why a task it needed and how they can benefit from it, they are more likely to give their all in completing it. It is a shame that someone spends so much time at work and does not believe in the work they are doing. He wanted his crew to really love what they were doing every time they boarded that ship.If a leader makes their crew think they can do anything, they will believe it. Abrashoff thought that if he communicated with his crew about everything, they would understand and be more involved. He was against keeping his people in the dark, â€Å"secrecy spawns isolation, not success† (p. 55). It would be an advantage to the entire team when everyone knew the goals. That ties into opening up the clogged channels in an organization. By communicating the information effectively, the team produced better results. Abrashoff gave the example of the communication system in the Gulf War and how vital messages were never received.With the idea from one of his crew members, John Rafalko, the airways were cleared and messages were received. Abrashoff gave complete credit to Rafalko, claiming he only listened to the idea and supported Rafalko. Chapter five addressed the importance of creating a trusting environment, â€Å"the best way to keep a ship—or any organization—on course for success is to give the troops all the responsibility they can handle and then stand back† (p. 63). When employees are trusted to do their jobs, it makes it easier for them to focus on the task, not the micromanaging.Another way to encourage trust in the workplace was to not make employees compete against each other. Abrashoff wanted his candidates to work together instead of working against each other . He believed that that competition created distrust and division among the crew and in the long run, did not help the entire crew. Abrashoff said that anyone can bounce back from a bad decision. By helping someone recognize their screw up, it sends a message to the entire team that they will receive the same attention. By giving up on someone, â€Å"they understand instantly that there’s no room for redemption†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (p. 7). Also, never bring a problem to the boss if it can be fixed without him; Abrashoff did advise to only get the boss involved if it cannot. Finally, when dealing with a difficult boss, it is best to shield the crew from that person. The morale stays high and it is less likely for employees to be corrupted or turned off by that person. The chapter on looking for results, not salutes, talked about looking at every one as an equal. Abrashoff encouraged leaders to let their crews speak up with their ideas; they should be able to question the authority.B y knocking down barriers between the captains and the crew members, it encourages people to get to know one another and be more likely to speak up when something can be done better. Abrashoff gave many examples throughout the book about his team questioning some of the decisions and policies in place and in the end, the team improved some things. Here, again, he stresses the importance of involving the team in everything and letting them get involved in the decision-making process, â€Å"innovation knows no rank† (p. 96). With the achievements, he did tell leaders to accept failures.Leaders should not reprimand employees when they make an attempt to solve a problem and it does not work; everyone should have the â€Å"freedom to fail† (p. 94). The next chapter talked about taking calculated risks. Employees worry about taking risks because the consequences can be devastating. Disciplinary action, even termination, can be the result of taking a risk and failing. Abrashof f believes in celebrating the risk-takers, even if it ends in failure. Everyone makes mistake; â€Å"show me someone who has never made a mistake, and I will show you someone who is not doing anything to improve your organization† (p. 04). The people that make their own decisions are the ones leaders should really be behind. Abrashoff said â€Å"if all you give are orders, then all you will get are order-takers† (p. 107). Leaders need to let their employees take responsibility; that is how self-starters are born. When that self-starter is unearthed, leaders need to take a chance on them. Abrashoff proved that even the delinquent crew member can turn out to be a hard working one. He used the example of the crew member who was left behind because he forgot to set his alarm.The sailor was placed on restriction since it was a serious offense, but he continued to excel in his job. When he found out his mother was ill, he put in for leave and was turned down by every leader. Abrashoff decided to grant him the leave and it did wonders for the sailor. He was very motivated to do a great job and to not let down his team mates again. In the end, the sailor left the Navy and became a defense contractor. The last section of the chapter was about breaking rules. Abrashoff said to break the rules that did not make sense and break the ones that did make sense, just very carefully.This part was pretty self-explanatory; it is okay to challenge the rules. As he was saying throughout the entire book, if something is wrong, find another way to do it. There are bad rules and it is the leader’s job to find a better way to do things, or encourage their employees to find a better way. Chapter eight was all about going above and beyond. Abrashoff thought to get outstanding results, leaders had to go beyond the standard procedures, â€Å"innovation and progress are achieved only by those who venture beyond standard operating procedures† (p. 119).Like he has said many times in the book, Abrashoff wanted his crew to take those risks and really think of way to change the system. He wanted self-starters and people with great ideas because it was not just his ship, it was everybody’s ship. In chapter nine, Abrashoff goes back to his people and talked about building them up. This chapter had a lot of points in it and it is one of the important lessons in the book; confident employees help any organization. Building self-esteem in the individual benefits the entire team, â€Å"never tear them down; help them grow strong† (p. 41). The message ties in with the trust piece; showing an employee that they are trusted and cared for makes a big difference in the way they work. Praise every single success, no matter how big or small, was important to Abrashoff. He believed that this practice, not only, worked on crew members, but it could be used on the big bosses: If you want to achieve anything in a large bureaucracy, get inside the b osses’ head. Anticipate what they want before they know they want it. Take on their problems; make them look so good that you become indispensable.When they can’t get along without you, they will support nearly anything you seek to accomplish. (p. 141) If leaders just trusted their people more, they would see that they usually get it right. People with talent, when motivated, can surprise people and move up in the ranks. Employees want to do a good job and prove they can do the job; leaders should trust that they can. And leaders must trust the new people and teach them well. New people are a great asset to any organization; they can be molded, with the proper training, into anything the leader wants.It is important to keep them fired up; any old influences—older crew members—can ruin their attitudes with any negativity. A proper â€Å"welcome aboard† program is imperative; newbies can be discouraged very easily if their first day is a disaster. Mo st importantly, expect the best from every employee. Leaders need to invest fully into their people and they will get it back tenfold. Abrashoff stated that if we â€Å"stopped treating them as if they are stupid, they would perform better† (p. 158). When they are not performing at their best, leaders should give honest feedback constantly.The employees cannot fix their problems if they do not know what they are doing wrong. This reduced the surprises during the review process; leaders would not have to talk about all the things that need improving during the review if they do it in the moment. Another best practice is to ask the bottom performers to rate their performances themselves. They are more honest to the fact that they are the bottom performers compared to their team mates. After that, come up with an action plan and set expectations on when to fix the problems.Leaders, then, should continue to coach in the moment and be open and honest with their employees. A team c annot succeed if they is no unity. Chapter ten addressed the importance of unity in a team and how the leader must create that with his employees. He claimed that â€Å"one of the toughest things for organizations to accomplish is to get people to set aside personal differences and work for the good of everyone involved† (p. 168). One of his main focuses was to train for unity. He started off with finding common interests among everyone. Then, he wanted his crew to find â€Å"positive reasons to value others† (p. 173).He, ultimately, experienced a decline in the reports on racial prejudice and sexual harassment because the ship’s morale was very positive. Punishment needs to be dealt out fairly in organizations. Leaders need to hold their team accountable for their actions, but also, learn to give them a second chance. Every employee needs to know they will be punished accordingly and after they have paid for their crime, the slate is wiped clean. Going back to the chapter about accepting the failures, it is important to learn from it and move on. Abrashoff believed everyone deserves a second chance, just like the sailor how overslept.Now any man would say if his woman is not happy, he is not happy; Abrashoff agreed with that ideal. By making the women feel like part of the team, just as the men did, Abrashoff prevented gender issues. Sexual harassment was down and everyone respected one another. It, also, helped the men on the ship calm down and be more mature. They saw the women as their equals and pushed them to step it up a bit. This lesson is very important in civilian organizations; equality between the sexes still has not been achieved and many leaders should take notes on this chapter.Abrashoff ended the chapter with examples of extraordinary female sailors he has worked with and how important they were to his team. The last lesson that Abrashoff talked about was improving the quality of the team’s life. He embraced the idea of having fun with the team and making the work environment fun. Many leaders frown upon fraternization and would probably look at Abrashoff’s practices as that. But his message was all about enjoying life and friends and he did it in very simple ways. He organized karaoke and alcohol-free happy hour on Fridays, movie nights on Saturdays, and playing music anytime work was involved.It lifted the morale and everyone was laughing and having fun. Good food was another important part of improving the quality of life in the crew members. Abrashoff saw food as an important part of the ship. People could relax and socialize over a good meal and productivity could only increase. Even having a Thanksgiving meal when one is far away from home sends a caring message to the crew and makes people feel good. Reviewer’s Evaluation In my opinion, this book can be very helpful to anyone trying to be a better manager.It really opens the reader’s eyes on the proper way to manage and how to let go of the â€Å"typical† manager style. I really like the part about looking through the employee’s eyes and getting the employees more motivated to do a better job. I believe Abrashoff really challenges the common ideal that managers should be unapproachable and listened to; authority and rules should never be questioned and always followed. He promotes risk-taking and challenging bad rules and really wants the leader to empower their team to make decisions and be innovative.It’s Your Ship is an informative book that can help any leader become a better leader or learn new techniques to become the best leader. I am not sure how this book looks compared to other books like it, but I know the title alone is catchy and I would probably pick this one up first if I had to choose (I think it is because the word â€Å"damn† is on the cover! ). I think it was very appropriate for us BBA students in the business administration field because most of the jobs are supervisor positions. Not only can we students benefit from it, I think everyone can take some pointers from this book.Some may not make it to a supervisor position in an office or retail setting, but there are leader positions everywhere: churches, volunteer work, etc. Each and every leader/manager can really profit from this book. The contribution of the book is huge; the message is so important to all managers. From my experience, I have been managed by many managers and became a manager myself. Many of these lessons would have been an advantage to my superiors and to me. Some of the chapters really spoke to me, such as learning to trust people to do their jobs.I can admit that that was one area that I struggled in when I was a store manager. I really feel that Abrashoff did a great job explaining his practices and he made it very interesting to learn about them. I would definitely recommend this book not only to BBA students, but to many of my retail friends and som e of my current supervisors. Reviewer’s Information Name: Shanita Kitts Affiliation: Averett University Address: 1300 Dover Place, Lynchburg, VA 24502 References Abrashoff, D. M. (2002). It’s your ship: Management techniques from the best damn ship in the navy. New York, NY: Warner Books, Inc.

Business Model Canvas of United States Postal Service Essay

USPS caters the mail and package delivery services to a mass of different customers. It has different variety of services depending on what the customer wants. So customer segments are divided according to the type of services the USPS provides. 1. Individual citizens: The USPS has the first class mail and standard mail that the citizens can use to use to send personal cards, letters, bill payments, etc. Basically anything that is less than 13 ounces can be sent through first class, and is delivered within 2 to 3 days in the contiguous states. First class mail is sealed and protected, while standard mailed is not (standard mail may also receive deferred handling but it is more cost effective for customers). Also package services are provided to send packages more than 70 lbs. 2. Businesses: The USPS also caters to all the mailing needs of businesses. Banks use first class mail for delivery of debit or credit cards, and other confidential information as it is protected and handled properly. Also the standard mail, which is a cost-effective bulk mail class, is used by businesses for mailing advertisements, product samples, etc. and is delivered within 9 to 10 days. Businesses even use package services for delivery of delivery of customer orders. a. These customers include business to consumer delivery (e-commerce) such as Amazon and EBay. 3. Publishers: The USPS has Periodicals, which is a mail class for authorized publishers to send magazines, newspapers, journals, etc. 4. Other mail providers: The USPS has partnered with FedEx and UPS for their â€Å"last mile† mail delivery. Since the cost of delivery in rural areas is high for both FedEx and UPS, they have partnered with the USPS to deliver their mail and packages in areas where the cost for delivery would be higher for them; the USPS delivers about 30. 4% of the ground shipments of FedEx. Besides this, the USPS also offers services as Post Office Box, tracking of the mail etc. It also provides insurance on items shipped to domestic or international areas, if they have a value of above 200 dollars. Value Proposition The mission of the postal service is to provide the nation with reliable, affordable, universal mail service. By law, its basic function is â€Å"†¦ to bind the Nation together through the personal, educational, literary, and business correspondence of the people. It [the Postal Service] shall provide prompt, reliable, and efficient services to patrons in all areas and shall render postal services to all communities. † Affordable Prices: The price of sending a package or mail by USPS is much lower than its competitors. Ubiquitous presence: The Postal Services has large number of offices in the United States making it accessible to almost every customer of the USPS. They have 31,272 retail offices. Reliable service: The Postal Service delivers to 151 million addresses six days a week, and collects outgoing mail and packages at the time of delivery. It provides mailing and shipping services through tens of thousands of postal and non-postal retail outlets as well as usps. com. The USPS provides many different services; First-Class Mail, Standard Mail, Packages and Shipping, International Mail and Periodicals each catering to different needs of their customers. Channels The USPS provides direct delivery to the customer. They have all US addresses and their delivery system is direct, from the sender to the receiver. They are spread out in the entire United States and have huge amount of deliveries every week. The USPS operates over 30,000 Post Offices all over the United States where customers can come to send their packages and mail. Customers can also drop their mail in post boxes located at multiple locations in every town and city. Stamps and postage can be bought at numerous locations such as supermarkets, drug stores and post offices. The USPS also operates a service where the postman can come to pickup a shipment from your house free of charge. USPS also uses traditional advertisements and promotions to reach their customers on a daily basis. Figure 1: USPS’ services (source: USPS Annual Report 2012) Customer Relationships USPS’s customers demand reliable, fast and affordable service and they serve each customer segment in a different way. For individuals, customer service is mainly through sending and receiving letters and packages. For businesses the USPS offers various business solutions such as advertising campaigns, e-commerce solutions and special mass mail business prices. For other mail providers such as FedEx and UPS the USPS provides delivery of their packages both in rural areas and of small packages. For all customers the USPS also offers customer service by phone, online and in Post Offices. The USPS has good brand recognition, most US citizens are aware of the USPS’ services and the â€Å"postman† that comes to every house every day. Therefore the customers expect good service and the USPS uses customer outreach programs, both for individuals and businesses, to get feedback and information about how they can improve their services. According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) from June 2013, both FedEx and UPS score higher than the USPS in the Express/Priority Service Mail Sector. Overall the regular mail services of USPS are at a new ACSI high of 77 points.

A Quick Tour of Jupiters Moons

A Quick Tour of Jupiters Moons Meet the Moons of Jupiter The planet Jupiter  is the largest world in the solar system. It has at least 67 known moons and a thin dusty ring. Its four largest moons are called the Galileans, after astronomer ​Galileo Galilei, who discovered them in 1610. The individual moon names are Callisto, Europa, ​Ganymede, and Io, and come from Greek mythology. Although astronomers studied them extensively from the ground, it wasnt until the first spacecraft explorations of the Jupiter system that we knew how strange these little worlds are. The first spacecraft to image them were the Voyager probes in 1979. Since then, these four worlds  have been explored by the Galileo, Cassini and New Horizons missions, which provided extremely good views of these little moons. The Hubble Space Telescope has also studied and imaged Jupiter and the Galileans many times. The Juno mission to Jupiter, which arrived in summer 2016, will provide more images of these tiny worlds as it orbits around the giant planet taking images and data.   Explore the Galileans Io is the closest moon to Jupiter and, at 2,263 miles across, is the second smallest of the Galilean satellites. It is often called the â€Å"Pizza Moon† because its colorful surface looks like a pizza pie. Planetary scientists found out it was a volcanic world in 1979  when the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft flew by and captured the first up-close images. Io has more than 400 volcanoes that spew out sulfur and sulfur dioxide across the surface, to  give it that colorful look. Because these volcanoes are constantly repaving Io, planetary scientists say that its surface is  geologically young.   Europa is the smallest of the Galilean moons. It measures only 1,972 miles across  and is made mostly of rock. Europa’s surface is a thick layer of ice, and underneath it,  there may be a salty ocean of water about  60 miles deep. Occasionally Europa  sends plumes of water out  into fountains that tower more than 100 miles above the surface. Those plumes have been seen in data sent back by Hubble Space Telescope.  Europa is often mentioned as a place that could be habitable for some forms of life. It has an energy source, as well as organic material that could aid in the formation of life, plus plenty of water. Whether it is or not remains an open question. Astronomers have long talked about sending missions to Europa to search for evidence of life. Ganymede is the largest moon in the solar system, measuring 3,273 miles across. It’s made mostly of rock and has a layer of salt water more than 120 miles below the cratered and crusty surface. Ganymede’s landscape is divided between two types of landforms: very old cratered regions which are dark-colored, and younger areas containing grooves and ridges. Planetary scientists found a very thin atmosphere on Ganymede, and it’s the only moon known so far that has its own magnetic field. Callisto is the third-largest moon in the solar system and, at 2,995 miles in diameter, is nearly the same size as the planet Mercury (which is just over 3,031 miles across). It’s the most distant of the four Galilean moons. Callisto’s surface tells us that it was bombarded throughout its history. Its 60-mile thick surface is covered with craters. That suggests the icy crust is very old and hasn’t been resurfaced through ice volcanism. There may be a subsurface water ocean on Callisto, but conditions for life to arise there are less favorable than for neighboring Europa.   Finding Jupiters Moons From Your Back Yard Whenever Jupiter is visible in the nighttime sky, try to find the Galilean moons. Jupiter itself is quite bright, and its moons will look like tiny dots on either side of it. Under good dark skies, they can be seen through a pair of binoculars.  A good backyard-type telescope  will give a better view, and for the avid stargazer, a larger telescope will show the moons AND features in Jupiter’s colorful clouds.

What Does Your Handshake Say About You

What Does Your Handshake Say About You We all think we have a killer handshake. And we’ve all shaken a few hands that left us feeling†¦ less than impressed. Find out if any of these subpar shakes apply to you. The Cold FishThe worst handshake is the limp handshake. It makes everybody squeamish. If you’re not squeezing or shaking, but merely laying your hand (or worse, just your fingers!) into someone else’s, then it might be time for remedial work.The Wet FishRegardless of the limpness factor, if your hand is sweaty or clammy, you don’t stand a chance of making a good first impression. Clamminess implies that you are nervous- or worse, ill- or just generally moist. If sweating is a problem for you, try using a bit of talc after you wash your hands to keep them dry.The PrincessYou know who you are. You lay your fingers daintily into someone else’s waiting grip, but nothing further. Unless you’re actually royalty, this is sending all the wrong signals. Man up and shake hands!Th e Knuckle CrusherYou also know who you are. You enjoy watching people flinch as you shock and awe them with your grip and grasp. If you’re not aware of your own strength, ask yourself: does your handshake make people’s eyes water? Can you feel their rings crushing their fingers? If so, go a little gentler.The CreeperIndustry standard is grab, shake three times, release. If you’re lingering any longer than the time it takes to pump your interviewer’s hand a couple of times, then you’re lingering too long. Save the tender contact for the dinner table with your sweetheart and get back to business.The Two-HanderThis is for family on occasions such as funerals and weddings and reunions. Or for your Great Aunt Rita. Or for politicians and priests. It’s not for you. And certainly not for the office. Stick to the basics!We make our first impression in just over five minutes; that’s not a lot of time. Don’t spoil it with a bad handshake .Instead, follow the golden rule: warm, friendly, confident, and dry. Make sure to touch the web of your hand (between your thumb and index finger) to theirs, grip comfortably and firmly (not too firmly!), shake three times (but not religiously!), let go, and smile your surest smile.