Aristotle and Modern Work Relationships

Aristotle and Modern Work Relationships Introduction Human beings are constantly in search of ways to realize a good life. Since people are social creatures who must interact with each other, achieving happiness in life requires establishing good and civil relationships with others. One area in life where relationships play a significant role is in the workplace.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Aristotle and Modern Work Relationships specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In modern society, the workplace is a crucial area since most people spend a significant amount of their time in this environment. Achieving good relationships in this setting is directly linked to the level of satisfaction that a person has in his/her life. Good relationships in the work setting also contribute to the productivity of the organization. As such, the notion of best places to work can be viewed through the lens of civic relationships. Many philosophers have covered the subject of interpersonal relationships over the centuries. Aristotle, who is considered one of the most influential philosophers, came up with some enlightening ideas on civic relationships, happiness, the virtues, deliberation, justice and friendship that might provide some insight on modern work relationships. This paper will set out to present Aristotle’s ideas on civic relationships and analyze how they compare and contrast with contemporary notions of best places to work. Aristotle’s Ideas The renowned Greek Philosopher, Aristotle, developed some ideas that have continued to be influential on the subject of civic relationships to the present time. Aristotle addressed happiness, which is a quality that all people seek to achieve for themselves. By definition, happiness is the overall satisfaction with life and a high level of enjoyment achieved by a person. A number of external factors contribute to the happiness of a person. According to Aristotle, a necessary condition for happiness was active participation in the discussion of what civic goods the society should pursue. As such, happiness could not be achieved if the individual was not allowed to voice his/her opinion on what was to be done. In Aristotles definition of happiness, this value is centered on exercising virtue meaning that a person cannot be truly happy if he is not virtuous. Aristotle offered elaborate ethical principles of virtue that if properly applied, could lead to the attainment of happiness by people in the society. For Aristotle, happiness is invariably linked to virtue as is evident from his assertion that happiness is activity of soul in accordance with virtue exercised over a long life and supported by additional goods such as money and health. Aristotle contends that cultivating virtue is necessary for happiness to be achieved since virtue promotes individual happiness as well as that of others. According to him, virtues are a means through which further happiness can be ach ieved by the individual.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Aristotle also introduced the idea of civic virtues, which he describes as the dispositions that people in the society should strive to exhibit. This dispositions result in people being moral or achieving some level of excellence in their dealings with others. The civic virtues are mutually agreed-on and rationally justifiable actions that sustain the quest for the good. The civic virtues also highlight the modes of conduct that may be detrimental to the achievement of the common good. Another quality that is essential for ideal civic relationships is justice. Justice is important since it ensures that all individuals are given the opportunity to enjoy their lives and achieve happiness and success. Aristotle considered justice to be the thing that tended to promote the common interest of the people. The indiv iduals in the society share in the pursuit of this common interest and they benefit from their efforts. Aristotle observed that Justice is a very important aspect of happiness is injustice prevents people from realizing the human good. For Aristotle, injustice is caused by the greed for external material such as money or psychological things such as power and honor. Aristotle introduced some ideas of friendship that have continued to influence modern Western thought on the subject. According to Aristotle, friendship is the attribute that holds the society together since when men are friends; they treat each other with consideration and avoid acts of injustice against each other. In addition to this, friendship encourages selfless acts by individuals and this produces happiness. This claim by Aristotle is supported by studies that review that virtues of altruism in helping others tend to make individuals happier. Aristotle defined three types of friendship that might exist in the soc iety. The first is a friendship that is based on virtue and in this case, there exists a bond between individuals who are alike in excellence or virtue. In this form of friendship, the individuals increase the happiness of each other for the sake of it. The relationship in this case is altruistic and therefore of a perfect nature. The second type of friendship is one that is based on the utility. In this case, the individuals feel affection towards each other because of their usefulness to each other. The third friendship is grounded on pleasure and it is typically driven by emotions. This form of friendship is most prevalent among young people and it is not lasting in nature. Aristotle holds friendship in high regard since without friendship, other virtues such as justice could not exist. Traits of the Best Places to Work All employees would like to be part of organizations that are best places to work in. The Great Place to Work Institute asserts that while generous compensation p ackages and good policies and practices play a role in creating a work environment that the employees appreciate, this are not the only things that employees consider. Some additional desirable traits must be present for a work place is considered by the employees.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Aristotle and Modern Work Relationships specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More While the traits might vary from organization to organization, the Best Places to Work Institute has come up with a number of traits that are common in all employee friendly organizations. The first common trait is an environment of trust. The employees are able to demonstrate trust for their employers and this trust springs from the credibility of the companys management. This trust arises when the employees perceive that they are treated in a fair manner and with respect. The second trait is a high level of pride by the employees in what they are doi ng in the organization. Employees are hired by the organization to carry out certain specified tasks. The employee needs to be proud of their work and experience a sense of delight in his/her activities. The pride leads to a sense of satisfaction by the workers and it produces a feeling of happiness in the employee. Another trait of the great workplace is a high sense of camaraderie among the employees. The workers need to experience genuine connection with their fellow workmates. They have to exhibit a level of enjoyment working with each other. The Great Place to Work institute contends that the employees should be able to work together as a family. The Great Place to Work institute declares that the degree of human touch is crucial to the development of an ideal work place. The institute observes that without a high degree of human touch, employees are unlikely to demonstrate the high level of commitment necessary to bring about high levels of success to the company. In addition to this, another trait is the provision of opportunities for the employees to contribute their talents to the organization. Great Place to Work Institute declares that the best work environment provides inspiration for the employees and motivates them to foster their creativity and talents. Each employee is given the chance to make a positive contribution to the growth and development of the organization. Comparing Aristotle’s Ideas and Contemporary Notions There are a number of evident similarities between Aristotle’s ideas on civic relationships and the notions of the best work place as articulated by the Great Place to Work institute. The first similarity is in the importance of active participation by the individual in the affairs of the society or organization. For Aristotle, participation in public affairs is crucial for the happiness of the person. The Great Place to Work institute also deems participation in organizational matters as an important component for happiness. The institute declares that a great place to work is one where the employees are given the opportunity to showcase their talents and creativity. Management includes the workers in the decision-making process and shows consideration to their suggestions.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More There is agreement between Aristotle and the contemporary notions that certain physical and psychological factors contribute to the positive assessment of the workplace. Aristotle admits that happiness requires some external goods such as wealth, power, and health. He states that a certain level of power and honor leads to the increase in happiness by the individual. The Great Place to Work institute declares that employees must have some level of pride in their work. It then proposes that employees want to feel respected and appreciated by their employers and colleagues. This suggests that power and honor are important in the best work place. When addressing the issue of human happiness, Aristotle declares that all human activities seek to accomplish some particular good as the goal. This observation is true in contemporary work places where the employees seek to achieve some predetermined goals and objectives. Another similarity is in the importance of friendship bonds between ind ividuals working together. In the great place to work, the employees experience a form of friendship with each other as they do things both with each other and for their fellow workers. The employees have a level of authentic connection and camaraderie with each other. This results in greater enjoyment of the work environment as the workers operate as a family. The friendships formed in the best places of work conform to the second type of friendship highlighted by Aristotle. These workplace friendships are often grounded in utility. The employees feel affection not necessarily for one another but in terms of their usefulness to each other. The workers will therefore have a bond based on the value they add to the workplace. Aristotle and the Great Place to Work institute agree on the importance of virtue in human interactions. From Aristotles teachings on ethics and virtues, one can deduce that virtue tends to promote happiness while vice tends to promote unhappiness. These ideas ar e compatible with the modern work setting where virtuous acts tend to produce good results for the employees and the company while vices tend to promote negative results for all the individuals involved. A significant difference between Aristotle’s ideas and those of the contemporary work place is with regard to happiness. Aristotle’s definition of happiness is strongly tied to morality since he asserts that individuals have to act in morally desirable ways in order to promote happiness. In the modern workplace, the definition of happiness is morally neutral and subjective in nature. The moral neutrality of happiness is partly due to the diversity of moral views by individuals in the workplace. The heterogeneous nature of the modern workplace makes it undesirable to impose uniform moral values on all employees. The Great Place to Work institute favors the adoption of policies that are all inclusive. Workers are able to attain ideal civic relationships and a high level of happiness in the morally neutral environment. There is also a major difference between Aristotle’s ideas and contemporary notions on how happiness can be derived from work. Aristotle suggests that an employee can derive happiness from undertaking his given task according to the highest standards. He argues that the activity that the employee engages in brings about the highest good. This is not the case in the contemporary work place where a myriad of factors contribute to the happiness of the employees. In most cases, the individual does not derive joy from engaging in his designated task. On the contrary, most employees find their work repetitive and boring. It is therefore unlikely that absolute happiness can be achieved by carrying out these uninspiring activities every day. Aristotle’s ideas of justice are not compatible with the contemporary notions of the good work place. The high levels of individualization and personal ambition for success in the modern soc iety differ from Aristotles teachings on justice. In all work places, employees strive to achieve the maximum benefit for themselves. The employer on the other hand aims to increase the productivity of the employees in order to increase profits. In this setting, all individuals have a desire to gain more external and psychological goods for themselves. In most instances, these goods are not shared in an equitable manner among the individuals working in the organization. Conclusion This paper set out to discuss Aristotles understanding of ethics and virtues and compare these ideas with contemporary notions of best places to work. It began by noting that happiness is an important attribute in human life. It then discussed Aristotle’s ideas of civic relationship and expounded on his concepts of civic relationships. The paper then provided a concise review of the traits of the best places to work as articulated by the Best Places to Work institute. It noted that trust, pride, and a sense of camaraderie are some of the most important traits from the employee’s perspective. The paper has shown that the ideas of friendship, virtue, and respect are agree on by Aristotle and the contemporary notions of best places to work. However, there is a significant difference in the concept of happiness and justice as articulated by Aristotle and as it is applied in the contemporary work place. On the whole, it can be concluded that Aristotle’s ideas on civic relationship are by the large applicable to modern work relationships.

Understanding the Eval () PHP Language Construct

Understanding the Eval () PHP Language Construct The PHP eval () construct is used to evaluate an input string as PHP and then process it as such. Eval() is not a function, but it works like one in the sense that it outputs everything- except instead of outputting it as text, it outputs it as PHP code to be executed. One use of the eval() construct is to store code in a database to execute later. Example of Eval() LanguageConstruct Here is a simple example of coding for the eval() language construct. ; eval(\$a \$a\;); print $a . ; ? This code example outputs My friends are $name and $name2 when first called with the print statement, and it outputs  My friends are Joe and Jim when called the second time after running eval (). Requirements and Characteristics of Eval() The passed code cant be wrapped in opening and closing PHP tags.The passed code must be valid PHP.All statements must be terminated with a semicolon.A return statement terminates the code evaluation.Any variable defined or changed in eval() remains after it terminates.What a fatal error occurs in the evaluated code, the script exits.Because eval() is a language construct and not a function, it cant be used in higher-order functions. The Danger of Using Eval() The PHP manual discourages the use of the eval() construct, stressing its use is very dangerous because arbitrary PHP code can be executed. Users are instructed to use any other option than eval() unless that is not possible. The use of PHP eval() construct presents security risks.

Industry Analysis & Company Profiles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Industry Analysis & Company Profiles - Essay Example Some of these top companies that explore and refine oil include; Gazprom, Saudi Aramco and the Royal Dutch Shell companies. This paper will look at the three oil companies and give a detailed discussion of the historical background and their development over the years. Gazprom Neft is an oil company that has its headquarters in Russia has achieved to be among the fastest growing company in  oil production across the industry. Gazprom Neft has attained a 10.6% annual growth against  a  production volume of  10, 85 million tones (Usa, 2010). The Priobskoye Oil field that is owned by  Gazprom Neft- is  one of  the largest oil fields that the company owns and is also one of the most promising oil field. Full development of  this field began in  2004, and since then, the field has contributed to 33% of  the Company’s total oil output by 2011. The Company has plans to  design and develop new oil fields both in  both Russia and other countries outside Russia. There are fields found in  the north of  the Yamal Peninsula that have huge potential and are be  able to  produce more 20  million tones once they developed (Usa, 2010). Another oil company is the Saudi Aramco Oil Company. The Saudi Aramco company has always focused on initiatives that are seen to bear the potential to create and invest the oil sector in Saudi Arabia as well as create more jobs for the nationals of Saudi Arabia. Apart from being a leader in creating an enterprise culture in the Kingdom, the company wants to diversify the national oil economy and attract more overseas investors into the kingdom. In order for the company to achieve these objectives, there is a close collaboration with the different business lines that exist across the company that serves to leverage Saudi Aramco’s assets as well as its liabilities. The Localization & Clusters Department has the responsibility of seeing Saudi Aramco’s process of procurement of its goods and

Pompeii Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Pompeii - Essay Example The Greeks defeated the Etruscans in both 524 and 474 BCE and probably proceeded to take control of Pompeii (qtd. from Pompeii before the Romans involvement, 2005).As evidence, the hill near the mouth of the Sarno River or Sarnus River was used as a safe port by Greek and Phoenician sailors (Wikipedia, 2005). This theory is supported by the architecture and art in Pompeii that was influenced by the Greeks, such as the temple to Apollo mentioned earlier. Around 420 BCE the Samnites came to occupy the city of Pompeii (Leppman, 1968). The Samnites seem to have imposed their language, customs, and civic organizations upon Pompeii (qtd. from Pompeii before the Romans involvement, 2005). Rome entered onto the Pompeiian scene following the end of the Second Samnite War (290 BCE). The Romans landed their fleet at the mouth of the Sarno and sacked neighboring Salerno (Leppman, 1968). For almost two hundred years, however, the Roman rule of Pompeii was more a "matter of form than substance" (Leppman, 1968). Pompeii was under Rome's control, however, its inhabitants were practically independent (qtd. from Roman involvement in Pompeii, 2005). Although Pompeii was practically independent, its future was tangled with that of Rome. The Roman success in war over Carthage in the Second Punic War (218-201) and Romes victorious marches into Greece, Asia Minor, and Syria paved the way for an abundant economic enterprise for the Pompeiians (qtd. from Roman involvement in Pompeii, 2005). A colony of Roman veterans was planted in Rome as a punishment for Pompeiis role in the Social War (Carrington, 1994). Scholars have pointed out, however, that the Pompeiians ended up profiting in the whole ordeal, since Pompeii was quick to take advantage of the Roman destruction of neighboring Stabiae. This conflict did, however, mark the end of Pompeii's virtual independence, as Rome became much more active in Pompeii. This shift in power is borne out by the fact that ten years after the Social War, Rome renamed Pompeii Colonia Cornelia Venena Pompeianorum (qtd. from Roman involvement in Pompeii, 2005). Physical description The city of Pompeii has an irregular shape because it was formed by a prehistoric lava flow. Excavations indicate that the southwestern part of the town is the oldest, but scholars do not agree on the stages by which the walls were expanded or on who the builders were. The walls are 2 miles (3 km) in circumference, and they enclose an area of about 163 acres (66 hectares). Seven city gates have been excavated (Description of the remains, 2005).

Session Musician Intericate Research Essay Example for Free

Session Musician Intericate Research Essay Go on tour with bands. Session musicians sometimes go on tour with bands; this involves getting paid a certain amount to play various gigs and concerts around a certain part of the world (or indeed all of it!). A session musician will either ask the company, or the company will ask the session musician to go and play either a whole tour, or just a few numbers in the tour. There is a large amount of gambling involved when it comes to being a session musician or hiring one. This is due to the fact that: a session musician gets pain a certain amount for the show (say  £1,000), if the show is a total flop then the record label will lose money, BUT if the show is a roaring success then the record label will make mega bucks. The gamble for the session musician is that he or she can’t go back and claim a percentage of the profits if it is particularly good. The session musician gets paid a set amount and no more. Recording sessions. Quite often a session musician will go for a recording of a single or a few tracks. This will involve the producer talking with the session musician, and agreeing a set amount of pay, agreeing the song(s) that will be performed, and how long it will take, and possible whether it will be split over multiple sessions of not. After the terms have been agreed, the rehearsal and tuning will be done, this involves the band and session musician playing the first few seconds of each song, and adjusting their instruments until they are in proper tune. Finally the actual recording will begin, this involves the session musician and the band playing a set list of songs perfectly, whilst being recorded. Again there is still the gamble that if the song if a flop, then the session musician will still get full pay. Practice/ individual techniques. In order to be a successful session musician, you must receive some kind of musical tuition. This is because you really need to be the best in the business to be a decent session musician, in order to be the best, and make your songs worthwhile, (and make the big companies pay large sums of money for your musical genius). Rehearsals with bands/ singers. Obviously the session musician will need to play with other on a regular basis, as solo practice is not quite enough to cut the mustard, and a second opinion on your music can make a world of difference. The session musician will have to practice all of the songs he/ she will play in a band, because if they didn’t then the tempo might not line up properly, he/ she would be unaware of any changes made to the track, and furthermore the session musician would have less time to improve their musical craft. During a rehearsal each member of the group (and the SM) will play a few scales, tune up properly and strum a few finger loosening exercises, or something of the like. Then it is down to business with playing through a song that needs to be learnt, identifying the weak areas, tightening them up, and moving on to the next part. Promote themselves. Session musicians are forced to promote themselves, otherwise they would not get anywhere in their career. Promoting yourself consists of, making a few you tube videos, creating a website (hired or self designed), putting up posters, or just making some mix tapes of various songs that show of your various skills. This is probably the hardest part about being a session musician, as there is so much competition. Session musicians are a dying breed, so any opening is quickly snapped up by the fastest and the best. The best approach is to make a site, create a few videos on you tube, call a few companies, and hope for the best. If there isn’t work out there, then make work. Do their own accounts. Session musicians can be self employed, this means doing their own taxes and bills for things to do with their profession. This is the most unexciting branch of being a session musician, as you will have to dedicate a couple of hours a week to doing the tax returns, and the business costs (website maintenance etc). How do they link in with other parts of the music industry? Concert producer/ promoter. Session musicians link in with concert producers through the sharing of music, obviously. But what a lot of people are oblivious to is how the producers get a hold of the session musician and do business. As I have previously stated, the session musician will upload a few videos to You Tube and on other sites that may facilitate this. The producer will look at the musician’s videos, the number of views, and the number of likes and dislikes. After the producer has seen the video, given a verdict, and seen that it is awesome (or not), then the producer contacts the session musician and says â€Å"we have an opening, would you like to have a recording session and make a demo. If it is good then we will take you on tour† but then if you are not what they want, you get a recording session under your belt. Roadie. A roadie is a person who takes equipment etc from place to place. A roadie is one of the less thought about aspects of the music industry, they are not involved in music producing but they are involved in music, just not in the usual way. A session musician is quite dependant on the roadies, because they are busy people (along with the rest of the band) and need as much rehearsal time, and relaxing time before the show. Just imagine a full rock band (Bass, Rhythm guitar, Lead guitar, Full drum kit, and all the other gubbinz that may be needed) carrying their own things in, it would take forever. But luckily the burly roadie is here to take all of the kit in. also I am sure that no musician wants to play with a pulled muscle. Live sound technician. A live sound technician is the bands best friend, and a session musician’s messiah. The live sound technician has the power to make a concert a big hit, or make it fall flat on its face. The LST will first have a detailed conversation with the musicians about what needs to be done, this includes the volume, the dominance of the band instruments to the mic, and the times when certain bits of backing need to be played (if there are any). Session musicians rely quite heavily on these wonderful people. To put it into context â€Å"Jimmy Quake is a session musician, he is about to play his first signed gig. He is playing with Sepultura (a thrash metal band) and he wants to make a good first impression on the world for his debut. The LST says to him and the band what needs to be done to your track to make it a hit, and the band will say this that and the other. But if the LST didn’t do this, the track would fail and Jimmy would never reach the big time. However if the LST an d Jimmy work in unison, Jimmy hits the big time, and the world screams his name when he enters the room.† What would happen if those bonds were not there? Concert producer/ promoter. Well. As you know, the concert promoter/ producer is going to hire the SM in the first place. So the musician would essentially not exist in live performances. Just imagine if you would only ever see bands in their original form. It might not seem that bad, but the band â€Å"them crooked vultures† was formed by merging: john Paul Jones (from led zeppelin), Dave Grohl (from Nirvana and Foo Fighters), and Josh Homme (from Queens Of The Stone Age). They also have a session musician that plays on live tours etc called Alain Johannes, he used to be a session musician, but his music was heard by John Paul Jones, and he decided that his sound needed to combine with the other members sound to create an extremely popular band. Strictly speaking Alain Johannes was not a session musician in all respects, but in many others, he was one. Roadie. A session musician would be lost without a Roadie to cart their various tools, instruments, and all manner of other kit to its proper destination. Hypothetically speaking, a session musician could survive without a Roadie, but it would be rather inconvenient and time wasting. â€Å"Joe is a SM, he is heading to Tokyo to play a $20 000 gig. He gets off the plane and gets into the van, ready to take him to the â€Å"Tokyo Dome†. Joe suddenly realizes that his Roadie no longer shared a bond with him; he takes all of the equipment out of the plane and loads it into the van. Then they set of. Joe has pulled a muscle in his back and is in crippling agony, he gets to the arena, lugs the rest of his things into the staging area, realizes that he is 2 hours late for practice, plays terribly because of his back and lack of practice, he is hung drawn and quartered for his crimes against music, and his career is over. (but realistically not his life.) Live sound technician. Well, as I have previously stated, a LST has the almighty power to change the sound of the music. The fans come for the merchandise, the concession, and the thrill, but the music is paramount over all of these other factors combined. If a SM does not have a LST then the concert would be a disaster waiting to happen.. if there was no live sound technician then the volumes would be all wrong, and any other tracks that may need to be played over it would not happen. Also the LST is the person who runs the rehearsals, so they would no longer happen, leading to an all round shoddy performance. Theoretically, a SM could live without a LST as well, but they would have to play acoustic, or just be realy in sync with the volume and timing of their performance.

Agricola as Hope for a Troubled Empire Essay -- Tacitus Agricola Essay

Agricola as Hope for a Troubled Empire Tacitus’ Agricola, though it traverses a significant part of Rome’s conquest of Britain, is primarily about the man from whom the book takes it title. Tacitus used British conquest to show the reader Agricola’s many virtues, and he explained why Romans should strive to follow Agricola’s example. At the same time, however, Tacitus echoed Agricola’s virtues to Rome, which, before and during the writing of his book, endured several tyrannical emperors. Tacitus’ book, besides praising an individual, suggested hope for an improved future to many troubled Romans when the virtues of the empire had decayed, and freedom that they once loved had largely disappeared. Despite the mostly laudatory writing in Agricola, Tacitus began the book on a melancholy tone. He expressed anger over what he considered autocratic ruling of Rome, suggesting that it was a terrible political fault. â€Å"An outstanding personality can still triumph over that blind antipathy to virtue which is a defect of all states, small and great alike.† (p.51) Tacitus expressed the idea that any state would carelessly disregard the virtues it once held as important, and by implication of the context he wrote in, find itself in a state of degradation similar to Rome’s at the time. He was not exclusively negative in that statement, however. His believed that one highly virtuous person could in fact successfully counteract a state’s decline. Agricola, he revealed throughout the book, was a paradigm for that person. Tacitus considered Agricola virtuous because he exhibited many qualities that Romans traditionally valued. Perhaps the most important virtue discussed was humility, or, as Tac... ...asting Domitian’s tyranny with Agricola’s equity, and specifically that the former resulted in disunity while the latter resulted in cohesion. Tacitus stated at the beginning of Agricola that it â€Å"†¦sets out to honor my father-in-law Agricola.† (p.53) One can not deny that Tacitus was successful in that effort, but it is also clear that he offered Roman readers much more than an inspiring story about a great man. At a time when many citizens of Rome were subdued by Domitian’s threats to opposition, Tacitus wrote in remembrance of Rome’s greatness and the freedom that Romans had previously enjoyed; and he wrote to inspire hope that they would experience both again in the future when the empire improved. Agricola embodied the ideals of that hope, and his example, Tacitus pointed out in chapter 46, would live forever with Roman destiny and its nobility.

Analysis Aqualisa Quartz Essay

Every company dreams that one day they can bring something unique and very competitive, and use it to dominate the market. But things might not be as easy as they thought. In Aqualisa case, Harry Rawlinson, managing director of Aqualisa, gives us an example that even with new significant shower product Quartz, which seems to be perfect in every aspect, they cannot make a relative progress in U.K. shower market. Quartz is designed to solve all the troubles that exist in U.K. showers. It provides efficient and reliable water pressure and temperature, needs less space in bathroom, has a stylish looking and is easy to use and install. Although Quartz leaps all other showers, the initial sales results turned to be gloomy, as Rawlinson said â€Å"For some reason, it simply wasn’t selling†. To reveal these â€Å"reasons†, we will first look at the general shower market status, and then we will analysis two main factors that cause Quart fail in initial Sales: Quart itself and Plumber. Finally, we will examine Aqualisa’s marketing strategy and find out what is the right thing to do. Shower market in U.K. The U.K. shower market has 3 distribution channels, 3 buyer segments, and 2 Special roles: Plumber and Developer. To give a brief summary, we will use some charts to demonstrate characteristics of these elements, and use it for latter discussions. As we can see, Quartz has 61% in Rate of return (manufacturer) and 47% in Rate of return (retailer), which is not the highest among other products. And we notice that Aquavalve Value, which is in value segment, and Aquaforce 1. 0/1. 5 Bar, which is in Standard segment, have higher Rate of return, but these product sold well in lower segments. Thus Quartz cannot be blamed for overprice, at least it was no more expensive than Aqualisa’s other product. Besides, if we consider the installation cost that saved by Quartz (2 days to half day, with 40-80/hour), Quartz is even cheaper. So either the price was not the reason, or the price was misunderstood. Consumer could be blinded by Quartz’s high retail price and ignore its relatively high produce cost. Besides, Aqualisa â€Å"was generally recognized as having top quality showers, a premium brand, and great service†, that reputation could make consumers form the idea that Quartz is just another premium product which is not cost-effective. This misjudgment of Quartz’s value is the true reason that Quartz was not accepted in lower market. Thus lower Quartz’s price would have less result if the misconception remains unchanged. To solve this problem, Aqualisa need more effort to spread the idea that Quartz is economical and practical. Quartz’s former advertisement plan shows most of its progressiveness, like the picture in Exhibit-9, they list all the priorities, make it even more like a premium product. They need to give some economy features such as the cost of installation, the durability of Quartz’s parts, Quartz’s life time budget etc, and compare Quartz’s features with traditional showers, to remind consumers that Quartz values for their money. Plumber, Friend or Foe? Plumber is an important role in shower market. Exhibit-4 shows that about 73% shower selection are influenced by Plumbers. Yet Plumbers are â€Å"wary of innovation, particularly any innovation involving electronics†, AKA Quartz. The negative impact of Plumber’s attitude is obvious, and even Aqualisa calling â€Å"face-to-face introduce and explain the new product† to their â€Å"very loyal† plumbers, nothing changed in short term. Rawlinson was so desperate to plumbers that he thought about abandon plumbers and target consumers directly. Considering the plumbers’ high clout in current market share, and Aqualisa already have high market share (70%) in Do-It-Yourself Sheds which target consumer directly, give up plumbers would be ineffective and useless. Rather than evade the issue, let’s face it straight: Why Plumbers oppose Quartz and how to change it. The main reason that plumbers reject innovation derived from risk aversion. Because â€Å"unfamiliar products could present unknown performance problems†, which will make plumbers pay money and time to adjust. Former failure case like â€Å"push-button† controls in 1980s had Strengthened plumbers’ stubborn. But Quartz has no substantive contradiction with plumbers, on the contrary, it’s easy to install and operate that could give plumbers substantial benefits. As a matter of fact, Plumbers who â€Å"puts one in†, becomes â€Å"convert†. Thus Plumbers’ prejudice will disappear by time. By saying â€Å"Adoption is a long, slow process† Pestell, Aqualisa national sales manager, did not realize that they do have some ways to speed up the process. In fact, it seems that Aqualisa did not consider plumbers as a distinct important part in their sales. They barely treat plumbers like consumers or retailers, told plumbers how excellent or advanced Quartz is. But what they should do is telling how good Quartz will do to the plumbers themselves. They could show plumbers the contradistinctions in installing Quartz and traditional showers, and emphasize that Quartz will make their daily two days work to half day, reduce both their work intensity and work time. With this advantage, plumbers can do more jobs and be better off in more income. Aqualisa can also give more samples to plumbers or pay non-loyal plumbers to install Quartz to clear former haze of electronics. With focused promotion plan, Aqualisa will make plumbers realize Quartz is favorable, and turn them into steady alliance. Strategy, Breakthrough or Mark time? Aqualisa’s former strategy is Steady and comprehensive. They joined every segments of market and provided their products in all distribution channels. Their current core product is Aquavalve 609, and they had been in the upper level in the market share (â€Å"number two in mixing valves and number three in the overall UK shower market†), only surpass by Triton and Mira (Exhibit-2). When Quartz joins the family, it did not have a clear position among other siblings. Actually, Aqualisa showed no clear expectations in Quartz’s performance. They just spread it to whole market and hope it can dominate. This pointless strategy makes them unconscious to the market response thus they make no effective action when sales encountered difficulties. Even if their final target is the whole market, they could build milestones and interim objectives like enter the high-end market then extend to lower market or simplify the product to catch the lower market with low price then release advance model to premium user. Either way, the company should have a more specific positioning and targeting plan to meet the company’s expectation. Despite the former marketing strategy, Aqualisa now need to decide their next move. Rawlinson showed his trepidation that Aqualisa, which is profitable with its current products, may not be willing to take the risk of promoting Quartz. The risk comes from two sides: first, the development of Quartz has already spent 5. 8 million and three years times, further promotion could cost 3-4 million more. It’s hard to stay profitable with this huge investment. Second, the Quartz has competition effect with company’s Cash Cow product: Aquavalve, which also put company’s stable market share and benefit in uncertainty. The risk of launching new products is inevitable, but is it possible that Aqualisa can sit back, relax and enjoy its current benefit? As we learn from Exhibit-2 (U. K. Market Share Data 2000), Aqualisa, had 18. 1% market share in total units sold, while Triton and Mira were 30. 3% and 21. 7%. In the Electric Showers category, which Aqualisa sold most, the market share was 16. 9% while Triton had 43. 5%. And in Mixer showers category, where core product Aquavalve 609 rest, the market share was 20. 8% while Mira had 36. 4%. With these figure, we cannot say Aqualisa is in a safe place. They did not have domination in any part of the market, and there were significant gap between Aqualisa and market leader. With more than one competitor, Aqualisa could easily be replaced and fall into masses. At this situation, even promoting new product could cost a fortune, Aqualisa still need a breakthrough and Quartz is just what the company need. On the other hand, the existing market structure gives Quartz sufficient space to outspread. If Quartz is good enough to assault Aquavalve 609’s sale, it could also shake the leader position of Triton and Mira’s products. If Quartz is, as Rawlinson said, â€Å"first significant product innovation in the U. K. shower market since forever†, it will beat down others company’s products and increase Aqualisa’s market share, and not only in U. K. market, it can move forward to European markets or global markets, then the current promotion cost would be unremarkable. But if Aqualisa give up Quartz, the opportunity cost would be too big to accept. Rawlinson’s worry will become true: â€Å"In five years’ time, someone else will have got the world market for this technology†. Then the Aqualisa’s experiences would be competitors’ field test and its former investment would contribute to other’s benefit. Conclusion People usually consider that finding the goose is the hard part, but in fact, make the goose laid golden eggs is also not easy. Aqualisa holds its goose named Quartz, and shows us such an example. This case also told us it’s not only about what we have, it’s more about how to connect everything together, including product (Quartz), customer, collaborator (plumber), market, make right decisions and build relationships.