...Design Methods for decision-making Introduction The figure of designer is a hybrid between the artist, the mathematician an the scientist, but he can not be identify with nobody of this three figures (Jones, 1992). In fact the designer, to take decisions within a project, applies both creative and mathematical methods. The aim of this essay is to demonstrate if these two approaches to the design are more useful and utilized in the effective project or in commercial environment. Thus, to understand what is the reason for which they are used, it is decided to analyse two creative methods, brainstorming and mood board, and two mathematical, evaluation matrix and QFD. What is resulted from the analysis of these two approaches to the design it is that the creative methods are really used by the designer for the project, while the mathematical methods are more useful for commercial purposes and in business environment. Creative methods Brainstorming Brainstorming is a technique very utilized in the design environment, because it allows to maintain wide the project area and because it is a method which can be used in every step of the design process. The word itself can guess what is the function of this method: to produce many ideas quickly (Jones, 1992). Osborn, the inventor of this technique, has dictated very precise rules (Cross, 1994): - No criticism is allowed during the session - A large quantity of ideas is wanted - Seemingly crazy ideas are quite welcome ...
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...annoying and difficult for users to recognize and understand (Block et al., 1999; Ulfvengren, 2006) During recent time there has been an increasing interest to investigate new and more complex nonspeech sounds to convey information in critical situations (Stevens et al., 2006; Ulfvengren, 2006; McKeown, 2005). The Sonic studio, part of the Interactive Institute in Sweden, is a research unit focusing on applied research within sound, interactivity and new technology. Sound for information-delivery is a recently started research project at the studio. One particular focus is to explore alternative methods to design warning signals for user environments. So far, a literature study has been carried to with the aim to investigate the progress which has taken place within this branch of sound design research, identify issues related to this type of research, and to point out some new potential ways to design warning signals. The objective of this paper has been to present and discuss the important findings of this study. 2 Speech and non-speech sounds A common approach in auditory display research today is to distinguish between speech and non-speech sounds. General advantages and disadvantages of both categories of sound have been proposed. Speech-based signals may require minimal learning (Leung et al. 1997) and are suggested to have advantages over non-speech sounds in situations when the information to be conveyed is very complex, when the number of warnings in a...
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...Annex A: Entry Form for “My Maritime Impressions” T-Shirt Design Competition *Compulsory fields *Name (Underline surname): ________________________________________________________ Gender: M / F NGUYEN PHU VUONG G0608838X *NRIC / Passport No: _________________ *Email address: ___________________________________________ pvuong.nguyen@gmail.com 065 98915974 *Mobile number: __________________________________ Category: Open / LASALLE Design Communication How did you find out about this competition? ______________________________________________________ LASALLE College of the Arts *Design title: __________________________________________________________________________________ SAIL *Please provide a description of your entry (max. 100 words). Share with us your design concept, background information on what inspired your work and elaborate on the important elements of your design. ___________________________________________________________________ Using waves as the main source of inspiration, the idea is to show a breakthrough into business and a symbol of leadership into maritime for Singapore. ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ...
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...Business Development Tips 1. Identify the appropriate market and target the appropriate segments within the market -- Deep pockets; ability to leverage core product from one segment to another without major design/development changes. 2. Make sure there exists a market problem/pain that currently demands a solution. Is the problem large enough to justify the price of your solution? Is someone with P/L responsibility willing to pay for the solution? Test: Are you able to clearly delineate a value proposition that gets a customer’s attention? 3. Solve the customers problem, don’t just build cool technology. Value is always in the application of the technology, not technology per se 4. Have a clear understanding of your value chain. Know who are your partners, competitors, and customers – it isn't always obvious 5. Understand where you are in the market cycle, from a timing perspective: new technology, competitors entering, segmentation, consolidation, solutions offering, commoditized, etc. 6. Don’t fight the market and where it is in its life cycle – you will lose 7. Price based on value of solution, not to undercut competitors. Compete first on functionality, not price. If you truly are the only one solving the customer’s problem, you should be able to price your offering based on value of your product/solution to the customer You compete on price only after the product/solution has become a commodity – end of the life cycle 8. Techies should never...
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...1. CheckPoint: Business Models and Systems Consider a local business whose services you frequently use. What are the main components of this company's business model? Write a 200- to 300-word response describing the three components of the business system that comprise the local business you selected. Use Figure 1.2 on p. 11 of Introduction to Business as a reference. The three main components of the Centralia Recreational Center are business commerce, business occupation, and business organization. The business commerce of the Centralia Recreational Center would be that citizens of this community and citizens of the surrounding areas can pay a set amount of money periodically to become a member and have full access to all of the features of this business. Of course, the value of this is better fitness and health for the members, and quality family time spent together by exercising, swimming, or participating in certain family oriented activities. The business occupation of the Centralia Recreational Center are the swimming pools, hot tubs, basketball court, running track, weightlifting and fitness room, and some of the classes the business offers for a variety of aerobics and fitness programs for people of all ages. The Centralia Recreational Center also hosts a number of tournaments for basketball, swimming, and volleyball. In my hometown, there are several other businesses that offer similar services to their customers, but none of them have the services that the...
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...Cost Factors Amazon has a fixed cost business model, they use the Internet to gain highest possible leverage out of their fixed assets. They sell music, books and consumer electronics, which means they are selling ownership of a physical product, this is called asset sales. They have a massive IT infrastructure that needs maintenance to keep their costumers. Amazon let individuals and companies pay a small fee to use their infrastructure, using it as storage for their business. This is cheaper for the customers and Amazon benefits from it. It may seem that Amazon is struggling economically since they keep losing profits, but investors keep putting money into the business, pushing them to a higher level. It is shown that Amazon is a very beneficial platform due to the fact that people wish to sell via their homepage. They tend to loose money due to their massive investments, but in the end they profit from all of their transactions. Amazon's annual report from 2012 shows a decrease in operations income by 22% in 2012, a 3% decrease since 2010. However their cost of sales has increased to 24,8% in 2012, 2,5% increase since 2010. References Noren, E (2013) Digital Business Models, How Companies Make Money Online. Available at: http://www.digitalbusinessmodelguru.com/2013/07/analysis-of-amazon-business-model.html (Accessed: 21 November 2013) Business Insider (2013) Former Amazon Employee Explains How The Company's Business Model Really Works. Available at: http://www...
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...Check Point: Business Models and Systems * Consider a local business whose services you frequently use. What are the main components of this company's business model? Write a 200- to 300-word response describing the three components of the business system that comprise the local business you selected. Use Figure 1.2 on p. 11 of Introduction to Business as a reference. The business I chose is Adore Nails and Spa, in Riverside, California. I have been going here to get my nails and toes done for the last few years. I have been to a lot of different place that did a good job, but Adore Nails and Spa is the best. The business System is the combination of business commerce, occupations, and organizations that produces and distributes the goods and services that creates value for people in a society. Business commerce is defined as the process which people produce exchange and trade goods and services. To me this means to barter in a sense. I do not believe that this business does this because it is a nail salon that does top of the line nails and massage therapy. Business occupation is defined as the acquired set of specialized skills and abilities that allows people to create valuable goods and services. Adore Nails and Spa employees are all state licensed in Cosmetology and Massage Therapy. I personally believe that this business has the best quality and customer service in town. Business organization is the system of task and authority relationship which coordinates...
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...Mission: As a business manager for GE Canada, Raj Bhatt needs to figure out how to maximize the potential from the Canadian energy-efficiency opportunities. Energy-Efficiency, attractive industry and business opportunity? Yes, the energy-efficiency is a very attractive industry and business opportunity. As the growing interests from Canadian public and government, the size of the potential market has increased substantially to billions of dollars. Further, the technology and industry expertise have developed to more sophisticate stage as the market has grown to maturity with fewer competitors left. Therefore, the risk and prediction of overall business have decreased significantly. In addition, GE has the advantages of being an all-inclusive powerhouse for this project, since GE does not only have technical advantages in lighting and motors but also has its own financing department which could support the project’s financial needs. More importantly, GE is a well-known global brand with respected reputation in the industry. Lastly, GE does not face the similar level of competition in the energy-efficiency industry, as there are only 7 full-services ESCos that can cover all three businesses needs. Even those ESCos are often facing problems like accessing the capital, or creditability issues etc. GE management system, GE Canada, implications for the energy management business? The organizational structure of GE is a “direct connect” structure, which consists 6 core businesses...
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...Understanding Business Research Terms and Concepts: Par RES/351 2/1/2016 University of Phoenix Understanding Business Research Terms and Concepts: Part 1 How can we embrace understanding business research terms and concepts by comparing Lender evaluations of start-up business prospects and understanding the effect of a web-based tutorial on problem formulation ability by using qualitative and quantitative research designs? The business of rental cars can benefit from both quantitative and qualitative research designs by combining both designs for maximum effect. Lender evaluations of start-up business prospects The study was collected in 2003 and 2005 from the data bases in Finnvera, a state-owned financial institution. The data collected allows the qualitative ways authors can examine the information based on personal history and firm-specific characteristics of business prospects, and market position impact firm performance. The weakness of using the qualitative design for lender evaluations is the understanding parts of the data because it can be misunderstood because of personal opinions of the researchers. By using the quantitative design, the researchers can begin to explain the data results and come to a more itemized way of using the data. Lenders struggle with the data results as stated Iselin (1988), “Some studies state that inconsistency in previous findings could result from improper measurement of information loads as well as failure to rule...
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...Business Research Methods – Part I University of Phoenix July 5, 2010 Introduction Business research is very important in solving business related problems. Business research, “is a process of planning, acquiring, analyzing and disseminating relevant data, information, and insights to decision makers in ways that mobile the organization to take appropriate actions, that in turn, maximize business performance” (Cooper & Schindler, 2006). Nonprofit organizations are currently having a tough time in this economy because of budget cuts. One place in particular suffering is the YMCA. This business research plan will form a research question, which arose from this dilemma as well as define the problem the YMCA is currently having. Along with the research question, an appropriate research design will be defined in order to try to fix the problem appropriately and then a sample design used for collecting data will be defined. Research Question Development When conducting research of any kind, it is crucial to address any potential problems that may arise to ensure that an organization is operating at its optimal level. Because of the turmoil in the economy, nonprofit organizations all over the nation are experiencing a tough time due to budget cuts. In addition to a lower budget there has been a significant decrease in employee satisfaction possibly due to a decrease in raises and incentives for YMCA employees. Finally, there has been an increase in employee absenteeism...
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...Conduct Business Research: Part 3 Introduction In further discussions of the merger with Staples and Office Depot, we need to look at with is going to be the primary research design, either qualitative or quantitative. We are also going to look at the power of both the qualitative or quantitative designs and how they can coexist together. Lastly, we are going to look at what are the drawbacks of using just one method over the other. In researching all business problems, we want to ensure our research design can properly accommodate the needs of the merger. It will be our suggestion that a mixed design of both qualitative and quantitative research be considered when making the final decision of what is the best research design moving forward. Which design (qualitative or quantitative) will become the primary research design? The primary and best research design to use for this merger would be a quantitative design. The quantitative research design will help measure the employee’s attitudes, behaviors, and opinions. Staples can create a survey for their new and current employees asking them how they feel about the merger and is the transition phase going smoothly, are they happy, and if they are not what are their immediate concerns and how do they feel Staples should address these concerns. This research method would also work well with the consumers, new and old ones. Staples will be able to use this research design...
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...Conduct Business Research Final Part 3 Melissa Perea, Ronnee Diaz, Kenneth Harmon, Kenneth Porchia RES/351 June 15, 2014 Professor Negussie Nega Abstract Seeking a new business location takes an exuberant amount of researching, time and effort. When conducting research there are different designs and figuring out which design best fits your research studies requires information like the hypothesis of the situation and what research questions you will need to address that pertain to your business. Gathering and conducting research on the demographics, psychographics, and life-stage to identify the best location for the new business. Other variables support identifying the best location. The results will give the best area and location for expansion of the business. Introduction Our business is a new advertising technology which has become a growing trend throughout the United States. We are a graphics design business that designs, prints, and applies vinyl advertising labeling wraps on vehicles. Currently, our business profits have been better than expected. Since our product is in high demand we are contemplating on expanding of our business in another city. Our home location is in Albuquerque, New Mexico and we are looking at many other cities for our expansion. The most favorable area that peaked our interest is Dallas, Texas. The purpose for our research is to determine if Dallas, Texas will be the best location for our new office. If our research determines...
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...| Syllabus School of Business QNT/TM561 Version 2 Research and Statistics for Process Control | Copyright Copyright © 2009, 2005 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. University of Phoenix® is a registered trademark of Apollo Group, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Microsoft®, Windows®, and Windows NT® are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Use of these marks is not intended to imply endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation. Edited in accordance with University of Phoenix® editorial standards and practices. Course Description This course prepares graduate students to apply statistics and probability concepts to business decisions in organizations that focus on process improvement. Students learn criteria for developing effective research questions, including the creation of appropriate sampling populations and instruments. Other topics include descriptive statistics, probability concepts, confidence intervals, sampling designs, data collection, and data analysis—including parametric and nonparametric tests of hypothesis and regression analysis. Policies Students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering...
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...Conduct Business Research Part 1 through 4 RES/351 November, 05, 2014 Joydip Barman Preparing to Conduct Business Research Part 1 through 4 Organizations face various problems, issues, and opportunities. Applying the principles of business research allow companies to handle business in a profitable, forward focus manner. The following information Team A will explore the inventory issues facings the food services company Sodexo. The information will begin touring issues, opportunity, and problems facing the organization. Next, the paper will tour the meaning, the possibilities, the greatness, and the prospect of finding an explanation to the issue, opportunity, and problem that Sodexo committee faces in reference inventories. Finally, the report will look into why inventories is an important issue for researching, as well as why the issue can be made better with business research. Describe the selected issue, opportunity, or problem facing the organization. Sodexo is the fifth largest food service contract companies in the United States. The company contracts with services from hospital care to campus dining. Sodexo faces an issue at several accounts with their physical inventory not be reconciled with their computerized inventory applications. Inventories are linked to the financial health of that company contract. In accurate inventory counts can potentially lead to higher cost for the customers and in a worst case scenario it could cause a business that they...
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...Understanding Business Research Terms and Concepts: Part 1 RES/351 January 12, 2015 Amy Ginsburg Understanding Business Research Terms and Concepts: Part 1 The research designs of quantitative or qualitative are methodologies used to measure information that is collected through various means of questioning. In the peer reviewed research articles summarized below, each methodology is utilized to collect the required data in similar business problems. Quantitative is used to help understand the attitudes of the employees at a company in India, while the qualitative methodology is used to obtain an in-depth understanding of employee business awareness. In the research article entitled, “What makes employees stay?: Exploring the dimensions in context of urban-centric business process outsourcing industry in India”, the author attempts to show why the current employees of the company choose to stay, helping overall retention. The author explains that the approach being used to collect the data will consist of a questionnaire or survey, by a large group of employees. This questionnaire measured the employees’ attitudes towards the “importance of the factors responsible for their sustenance in the organization” (Santoshi, 2013). While a questionnaire would be utilized to aid in the main data analysis, a telephonic interview would also be incorporated to help substantiate the data gathered. During this questionnaire process, simple random sampling would be used to gather...
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