Essay --

Report on family Breedlove Evaluator Morgan Bluebird, MSW intern February 12 2013 All personal information collected and used is protected from unauthorized disclosure by the Privacy Act. The Privacy Act also affords family of the clients the right to challenge the accuracy and completeness of the information and have it amended as appropriate. Identifying Information and Referral Source Clients’ name: Cholly Breedlove Client’s name: Pauline Williams Breedlove Day of birth: 21-06-1901 Day of birth: 13-03-1903 Role: Man of the house Role: lady of the house Civil status: Married Civil status: Married Clients’ name: Sammy Breedlove Daay of birth: 11-09- 1925 Role: Son of mr. Breedlove and mrs. Breedlove Civil status: Not applicable Client’s name: Pecola Breedlove Day of birth: 07-04-1928 Role: Daughter of mr. Breedlove and mrs. Breedlove Civil status: Not applicable The problem stated in this assessment relates to Pecola Breedlove, therefore when speaking of the client, it refers to her. The client is referred by her primary social worker, Dr.Trampene. Presenting the problem Pecola Breedlove, daughter of Cholly and Pauline Breedlove is suffering under the rough treatment at the hand of her family, what is more the functioning of her family in total. As mentioned before the development of the client may be thwarted if no intervention will be applied. The dysfunctional family causes the most damage to her because of the everyday violence as well as it engenders several negative external factors. The client is facing problems that relate to an inferiority complex, also Anxio... ... cruelty - physical abuse - sexual abuse - Z62.4 Emotional neglect of child Cholly Breedlove: - Z61.1 Removal from home in childhood - Z62.4 Emotional neglect of child - Z61.8 Other negative life events in childhood - F43.1 Post-traumatic stress disorder - Z72.6 High-risk sexual behaviour Pauline Breedlove: - F60.2 Dissocial personality disorder, not out of the question - Z60.4 Social exclusion and rejection - Z61.8 Other negative life events in childhood Treatment: 1. Weekly individual psychotherapy to reduce depressive symptoms and improve social and occupational areas for all four client. 2. Psychiatric evaluation to address potential use of antidepressant medication, for Pecola and Cholly Breedlove. Antidepressant drugs may be used in addition. 3. Out of home placement client 4. Biweekly couples Therapy session

Nigrescence Model of Racial Identity Development Essay -- Psychology

In 1971, William E. Cross, Jr., Ph.D., a Black psychologist and prominent researcher (specializing in Black psychology) developed a framework for assessing how black Americans come to understand what it means to be Black. Dr. Cross introduced his ideologies as the â€Å"Nigrescence Model of Racial Identity Developmentâ€Å". He asserts that every black American must undergo a series of identity stages to develop a healthy and balanced understanding of the Black experience and become well-rounded in our global society. This model encompasses five stages of identity development, which Dr. Cross emphasizes, must be performed in order to successfully accomplish this goal. The first stage of Black racial identity development refers to the pre-encounter stage. This depicts the juncture in life when a black American displays a lack awareness of his/her own race and is uninterested in racial differences (to include those that affect Blacks). This stage delineates two types of identities, namely the â€Å"anti-Black† and â€Å"assimilationâ€Å" clusters. The anti-Black pre-encounter stage represents a cluster of black Americans that take pride in White standards, values, and beliefs; they view the White race and culture as emblems of beauty and perfection. These people hold a high level of hatred for the Black race and openly expresses their opinion on the matter. In contrast, the assimilation pre-encounter stage represents a cluster of black Americans that exhibits low salience for being Black. This cluster does not blatantly express hate for the Black race, however, they prefer to identify themselves with being something other than black Americ ans. They embrace color blindness and maintain a race-neutral demeanor towards humanity. Whether classified within ... ...of many concepts forwarded by academicians that inaccurately assesses identity development. Dr. Cross conceptualized theories are oversimplified, as they implicate all black Americans as unified in their upbringing; family structure; values systems, beliefs, economic status, level of education, and exposures to racial indifference; which is clearly inaccurate. Simplistic models of this sort exclude an individual’s experiential background, which provides important variables to consider when assessing one’s comprehension of what it means to be black. Further, Dr. Cross’ model failed to explicate a connection between identity and psychological functions. It is vitally important that we suspend these types conceptual theories that label and classify our experiences, and develop accurate psychological theories that encompasses all variables that makes us who we are.

Procedural Democracy :: essays research papers

For a country to be truly democratic, it must practice procedural democracy and substantive democracy. A solid foundation and variety of different procedures is what makes a democracy work as it does for us today. There will always be problems with any system and there will always be someone complaining about how the government works. Without a doubt, we will never have a perfect government and we will probably never find one person without some sort of disagreement with the way things are run. But, a democracy is run off of compromises, and it will only work if the people are pleased with the progress that it has made. Democracy is supposed to be run by the people, but which people actually count. Many democracies don’t even allow the majority of their people vote. All democratic governments have some sort of regulations on who is allowed to vote. Even the United States of America, which we perceive to be one of the most democratic countries in the world, has regulations. If you are; too young, have ever been convicted of a felony, not a certified U.S. citizen, or are not mentally competent, you are not allowed to vote. This list has shrunk since the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendment though. Women, blacks, and even the poor have been discriminated upon to keep the people â€Å"we† want in the office. Slaves were even counted as only three-fifths of a vote at one time. It has been a hard fought battle by many people to get whom they think are the right people voting. What may be the most famous line of the Declaration of Independence states â€Å"We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . This line sets the tone for the rest of American life. It lets us know that there should be political equality and every live is as important as the next. It lets us know that one mans opinion is just as important as the other mans opinion. The majority will rule when it comes down to it, but minorities cannot be completely tossed away.

Allegory of the Cave Essay

Theme of Freedom, Responsibility & Education in the Allegory of the Cave The myth of the cave is a famous allegory, written by Plato in The Republic. It was written in the form of conversation between Socrates and Glaucon and covers the idea of shadow against light or how far our nature is enlightened or unenlightened. The story tells about the cave in which people live from their childhood, and have their legs and necks chained so that they cannot move, and can only see before them and cannot turn their heads. Behind them is a fire which is blazing in a distance. Between people and the fire there is a roadway where puppeteers are carrying all sorts of figures and statues of animals. Prisoners can only see the shadows of these figures and completely unaware that these are only soulless statues. The idea of the cave symbolizes shadow or what we believe to be real, while the sun represents education, enlightenment and truth. Further Socrates tells that if prisoners are released from th eir chains, than they would probably believe that the shadows are more real than what is really produces them. Or in other words if to show the prisoner the statues which are the initial cause of these shadows, than he or she would not know what they are. For him or her, the shadow will be more real than the actual thing. And if one of the prisoners will go out of the cave, then he or she will not be able to distinguish which world is real and which one is unrealistic. Plato depicts the path of teaching as the route to freedom, as a release from those chains which tie human beings to the play of shadows, as the flight from this land of bondage into a shape in which humanity becomes aware both of his previous state of bondage and of the origin of those shadows to which he was before. The main aim of education is to lead mankind into freedom and the core value of education is supported by freedom. Returning back to the cave, released man will have to decide which world to choose as real. Would he or she be happy in comparison to the other prisoners who have not yet seen outside of the cave. And here Socrates clarifies to Glaucon whether he or she will try to free the rest of people and explain them about the world outside. In this situation every human is free to draw their own selections and apply their  own substance for life; nonetheless, the choices men make are what they believe all human beings to do, causing men to be responsible for their activities. All men have a moral responsibility to their fellows. The escaped prisoner is responsible for passing away back and informing the rest of the captives of what he witnessed. He has to explain to them that the ultimate reality is not the phantoms along the rampart, but what is seen once you’re in the light. He then experiences anguish because the prisoners will not trust him. Every man suffers anxiety they have freedom and at the same time bear great amount of responsibility for all people. Therefore every choice that a man makes should be honest and responsible. Connection of freedom and responsibility with education is crucial in the contemporary world. Allegory of the cave is simplified picture of what happens in our society Most of the modern educational institutions do not support freedom. Students can just like the prisoners be affected by the so-called puppeteers with wrong side of the reality. Process writing â€Å"An unjust law is no law at all† All people have equal right, it does not matter what race you are or how old are you or where you are from. All of us should have equal rights. I think that African-Americans should reach for their aim, aim not to be discriminated and to have equal right. That time they had strong desire to live in peace. Martin Luter King is a leader of African-Americans who struggle for African-Americans freedom. He is the great leader, because he want to reach freedom without violence. He was great thinker, because he did not start disorders in country, he just wanted to make economic withdrawal program. It shows that African-Americans had strong desire to be free, and desire to reach it without violence. Equality is not always justice EqualityJustice Equality as shown in the first picture is when all people get strictly the same things, no matter of their needs and possibilities. Equality in my opinion is not perfect, and does not take into consideration different  possibilities of different social classes which lead to the inequality in the society. What is justice? Justice – is a concept of rightness, which is based on ethics, law, religious and other aspects. In my opinion equality is not always justice. Every class of people should separately get help and benefits from government or administration. This picture above very well helps us to realize that justice and equality are different things. Most of us sometimes mix these two words. I also can give another example: Sometimes different organizations support orphans who need additional help from the society. If to equally treat them they will not get equal to other children, who have parents. This is because they will not be able in the same conditions afford parents immediately. While within the concept of justice, these children should get more benefits from government and different social organizations rather than usual children, who get care and support directly from their parents. La Jetee La Jetee is a science fictional movie filmed by Chris Marker in 1962 in France. Compounded almost from photos, it tells us about post 3rd world war and experiments with time travelling. From French La Jetee is translated runway, which is a place where planes take off. In the movie, people who survived after 3rd world war were living under destroyed Paris, and most of them were imprisoned criminals and prisoners of war. Scientists researched injection which could make humans mind to travel in time. They wanted to rescue the present and ask for help from future and past. They found an experimental who could mentally withstand the shock of time travel. Finally they found him, and he was a prisoner. They sent him to the past the his pre-war childhood where he saw a woman and a mystical murder on the observation platform. After several attempts, he could reach different period of his life. There he built a romantic relationship with the woman on the observation platform in his childhood. After this he was sent to the future, where he meet with the highly developed people of the future. They give him a power unit which is able to recreate his destroyed world. After all these, he returned back to his time, where he was sentenced to death. But the people of the future offer him to go with them; he refuses and asks them to send him to the past to his childhood, to meet his beloved woman, on  the observation platform. Finally, when he goes back to that time, to that platform, where he hopes to meet that woman, he will be killed by a person. He realizes that the murder which he saw as a child, was his own murder. What is common between Antigone and Allegory of the cave? These three works can be connected with three ideas. Idea of freedom, honesty and responsibility In both works we can see theme of freedom. It is freedom of choice. In Plato’s Allegory of the cave prisoner who was released have a choice to be enlightened or unenlightened and another choice to run away or to come back and tell every one the truth. In Sophocle’s work Antigone Kreon have a choice to change his law or to punish everyone who will break a law. The theme of honesty also presents here. Antigone was honesty with her king Kreon and tells him everything what she feels. She was against of king’s law because that law was unjust law. We can say that she was agree with St. Augustine’s phrase â€Å"unjust law is not law at all†. In Plato’s work prisoner was, who was released, honesty with his co-prisoners, he does not run away he come back and tell everything what he see outside of the cave. The last theme of our orientation week is responsibility. Prisoner in Plato’s work come back and tell everyone the truth. He want to show them another side of reality, with this action he shows us his responsibility for others â€Å"the truly free individual is the one who is experiencing guilty for everything around him†. And Antigone also was responsible. She brakes a law and bury his brother with all funerals. My poem about nature Hello, hello, hello, Listen to me dear all, I go to walk With my classmates And then I saw this beautiful vase. I was confused How beautiful it was This vase was huge in size But then I realize That I get behind I run away Back to my classmates It was pretty good To see this vase

Quality Management

Elan employs 3 full-time workers year round and 7 seasonal employees in the summer months. Elan Management has been successful through the con injections it has with one of America's top builders, DRP Horton. DRP Horton has chosen Elan Management as one Of its go-to management communities in the Atlanta metro area. Elan does a good job of quality control in keeping the clients happy but there are several competitors in this industry and in order for the company to grow, Elan will need to implement ways to improve quality through quality planning and assurance. Robber Statement We are focused on becoming the go-to firm for other builders in the metro Atlanta area. We have deiced that we have an issue with quality planning and implementation which is needed if the company is to grow in the next few years as it would like. Elan is looking to obtain on average 3- 4 new clients per year. The current quality planning initiatives are basically non-existent. It appears to be more of a  "go with the flow' type of planning. In other words, if something comes up, then it will be handled, if not no one worries about it.This process is not sustainable for growth and the company will never gain more clientele. We need to incorporate procedures on how to build clientele and implement those procedures timely. When Elan Management opened in 2008, we had 6 clients (communities). Over the next 4 years, we gained 8 more clients. These clients were assigned to us directly by the builder of the communities. There was no effort on our part to obtain the communities. In the past 2 years, 4 of the communities have since turned over to the homeowners and we no longer manage them.The goal of all homeowner's associations is to eventually turnover to the homeowners if they are willing. If we are unable to develop better quality management skills, we will eventually have no clients and will continue to wait for DRP Horton or other builders to provide hem to us instead of us attempting to get the clients on our own. Literature Review As stated by Catalina â€Å"In the current market economy, companies are constantly struggling to achieve a sustained competitive advantage that will enable them to improve performance, which results in increased competitiveness, and of course, profit.Among the few competitive advantages that can become sustainable competitive advantages, quality plays a crucial 234) In the current state, Elan cannot compete with those top local management agencies such as Community Management Associates or All Property Management which have oratorios that is considerably larger than ours. We have to be willing to create ways to better market our company to potential clients. Although, we are able to maintain the quality with our current clients, future clients are seemingly unaware of our existence.As stated by Crosby ‘There is no such thing as a quality problem. Problems originate in functional departments. Thus, a firm may experience account ing problems, manufacturing problems, design problems, technical support problems, and so on. In Crosby view, these are all quality problems, but the burden of the responsibility for solving them falls on these national departments and not in the quality department. The role of the quality department should be to measure conformance, report results, and provide leadership and support to drive quality improvement. † (p. 3) Since Elan Management is such a small company, there is no dedicated quality department to turn to for answers on quality improvement so each individual employee in some way will need to contribute to the quality process. According to Schroeder, â€Å"Managers and employees should be trained in the quality initiatives the company has implemented. Employees should be a part of the process in developing methods to assist in getting other employees involved in quality improvement and acceptance. † (p. 6) As I stated above, since Elan doesn't have a qualit y management team, all employees should have input in the quality process.Not only will it benefit the clients that we serve but it will also increase employee morale. Although there are only 3 full-time employees, having them involved would show them that they are appreciated and their opinions are valued. According to Kenton, â€Å"the process of collaborative planning can promote networks, coordination, and buy-in that promotes implementation, even if the plan itself is not directly influential. † (p. 436) So, having a bottom-up approach and including members of the entire company is beneficial overall even if it doesn't fully result in what was expected. The quality experience process occurs when firms (alone or with customers) deliver attributes for customers to experience and customers perceive these attributes through the lens of their measurement knowledge and motivation, emotions, and expectations. † (Colder, p. 4) Incorporating ways to enhance the customer exp erience is critical. Including customers in the process through voice-of-the-customer (VOCE) analysis with customer input would be helpful. Many organizations currently invest in quality improvement programmers.However, the literature has revealed that many companies felt that the quality improvement programmers had fallen short of their expectations and that these programmers were not generating the anticipated improvements (L am, 1997). The key reason for this gap between quality improvement expectations and the realization of benefits is the absence of an effective quality planning process before its implementation (Curran and Godlier, 2000). Thus, quality planning is identified as the most significant phase in a corporate quality management process requiring ore attention. † (Generate, p. 02) As Generate states, quality plan inning is pertinent to the quality management process. Companies have to create a clear cut plan in order to become successful. In order for companies to be in a position to improve and offer a higher standard of quality, they must come up with avenues to make it happen. Analysis Elan Management's problem starts with the lack of a quality planning process. By not having a quality plan, we are not allowing ourselves to improve and go after what we want, which is increased clientele. Elan blames a lot Of its lack Of progression on the size Of he company rather than its lack of utilizing available resources.Just because the company is small does not mean that it cannot grow and be as successful as those larger management firms in the area. The owner must realize the importance of providing quality to the clients and how we have managed for this long. Clearly, we are capable since we are still in business. Although, an actually quality management department cannot be created with the amount of staff we have, it is possible to hire an expert that could lead us in the right direction. â€Å"Project management requires achieving cost, schedule, and performance arrests while providing an outcome that satisfies the client.A measure of the value of the project to the client is the level of quality associated with the completed project. â€Å"(Liberator, p. 422) For Elan, our project is simply how do we get more clients and once we get the clients how do we not only keep them but also have them to refer others to us as well. With property management, our clients are the Board of Directors for each community. If the Board feels we are doing a great job, they will be more inclined when a friend or relative gives them a horror story about their HOW management many, to let them know about us and all the things we offer that would benefit their community.Recommendations have a few recommendations for Elan Management. First, I would suggest root-cause analysis. In root-cause analysis, organizations must identify the root causes of their quality problems and fix them rather than only dealing with the symptoms of the proble ms. In order to get to the root of the problem, Six Sigma should be used. In the Analyze phase, we ask the 5 Whys to get to the root. By starting here, we begin to see what how the problem arose and leading to the next steps o resolve them.Secondly, I would suggest benchmarking which is when the company examines other like companies so they are able to take actions that will lead to performance improvement. Researching your competition is essential as you all are reaching out to the same clients. Whichever company has the better plan or more knowledgeable, better quality product or service will more than likely surpass the others. Elan needs to plan, plan, and plan in order to be successful. Allowing the company to basically move freely without structure is not going to allow Elan to receive the type of clients hey want or even gain more clients.

How To Move Past Cultural Elements Essay

There are two ways in which cultural elemental change must be supported. The first is in the manner of executive support. This is not merely â€Å"yessing† the voiced suggestions of staff. Rather, it is though the changed behavior of the executive that staff will change is well. This is termed as behavioral support. Executives must model the behavior that they want to see in their subordinates. They must also follow the rules that they expect their workers to adhere to until that rule has changed. Help the team members achieve goals that are not only important to the team, but important to the individual team members as well. â€Å"Use every possible communication tool to build commitment and support for the big goal, your organization’s values and the culture you want to create† ( (Heathfield). Leadership is not proven by making unrealistic promises or brutal tactics in order to impress or intimidate. It is proven when an executive means what he says and does what he says. The second way in which cultural elemental change must be supported is the training of the support team. The executive cannot merely expect to perform without ensuring that they have the proper training. A support team cannot be expected to support without a clear interpretation of what is expected and desired of them. Here it is useful to create a value and belief statement that the entire team subscribes to. Change the reward structure and redesign the operational structure to reflect the new organizational culture that is coming in. Bibliography Heathfield. (n. d. ). How to Walk Your Talk, leadership in Action. Retrieved August 09, 2010, from Ask. com: http://humanresources. about. com/cs/managementissues/a/walktalk. htm

Competition in the Movie Rental Industry in 2008

Competition in the Movie Rental Industry in 2008: Netflix and Blockbuster Battle for Market Leadership Although the corporate strategies implemented by Netflix and Blockbuster have allowed them to become leaders of competitive advantage in the movie rental industry, they sometimes encounter strategic issues that slow down their product and services process. My research of Netflix and Blockbuster will enable me to present a SWOT analysis and recommendations for each company. Netflix, founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings, has achieved its goal of becoming the largest online movie rental service in the world. By the end of 2007, Netflix recorded revenues of $1. 2 billion. With a library of 100,000 movie titles and a subscriber base of over seven million, they had become the leaders of the movie rental industry (Gamble & Thompson, 2011). Netflix’s business model of internet subscription enabled them to compete in the movie industry. Consumers love going to the movies, but with increasing theatre prices found it too expensive to attend public viewings. Netflix provided an inexpensive way to view movies which could be done from the comforts of home. According to the text, (Essentials of Strategic Management, 2010), â€Å"Netflix’s success is due to its six-pronged strategy of providing comprehensive selection of DVDs, easy way to choose movies, fast delivery, no return due dates, and convenient drop in mail movie returns† (Gamble & Thompson, 2010). In an online survey by Nielsen Online, Netflix was rated number one for three years and for nine consecutive periods by Forsee/FGI Research (Netflix, 2009). Netflix Strategic Issues Blockbuster, Netflix’s fiercest competitor, experience many rental issues until 2007 when they regained market shares forcing Netflix to reduce subscription prices. Not only did Blockbuster gain presence, other competitors like Redbox also gained presence in the market due to new technologies (VOD & DVR) that are influencing the business environment. The business model used by Netflix caused a stir in the market industry. However, the damage control strategies of competitors and competitor recapture of market shares is threatening Netflix’s competitive advantage. Netflix has to change with the times. Competitive Forces Netflix and Blockbuster are affected by the five forces of competition which are potential new entrants, bargaining power of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of substitutes, and rivalry among existing competitors (Gamble & Thompson, 2010). The companies must understand how these forces work and affect their operation. Threats of New Entrants -In the home video/game industries, new entrants must own large amounts of movies/games for rental or sale to fulfill customers' demands. Meanwhile they have to build up various distribution channels for products to reach customers in a very quick way (Xie & Lin, 2008). Bargaining Power of Suppliers -The inputs of suppliers in the home video/game industries are very important and since there are only a few qualified suppliers in the industry, their bargaining power is high. Netflix acquires its movies from movie studios and distributors, buying DVDs on a fee-per-DVD basis, paying license content fees, and signing revenue sharing agreements. Blockbuster also has revenue sharing agreements with its suppliers. To some extent, these agreements reduce the bargaining power of suppliers. In terms of the computer system, Blockbuster is using Provia's Viaware warehouse management system (packaging, sorting, and distributing rental products) in its supply chain management to keep costs down (Xie & Lin, 2008). Threats of substitutes -Substitutes include movie theaters, satellite TV, and cable TV. Customers can go to movie theaters and enjoy the vivid atmosphere. Alternatively, they can order â€Å"pay-per-view† or subscribe â€Å"on-demand† from satellite TV and/or cable TV providers to watch movies at home. Users can watch anytime they want. Satellite and cable TV offer sufficient selections of new releases and are is easy to watch with just click on remote. Netflix and Blockbuster compete for customers by offering various kinds of movies and internet access (Xie & Lin, 2008). Rivalry among industry competitors – Netflix and Blockbuster are in a highly competitive industry. Competitors include merchant retailers, such as Wal-Mart, Best Buy, and Target; video and game store like Hollywood Video, Movie Gallery, and Game Stop; supermarkets, convenient stores such as Publix, and McDonald's. The significant rival is Hollywood Video which offers movie and game rentals (Xie & Lin, 2008). Bargaining power of buyers -Buyers are not in concentrated groups and do not buy in large amounts. However, within the entertainment industry, customers have a lot of alternatives and have no switching cost. However the introduction of DVDs, influenced customers to purchase DVDs since the cost is almost the same cost of rentals. This makes buyer power moderate (Xie & Lin, 2008). The five forces of competition of the movie rental industry presents little force against a competitor’s market position based on buyer power, supplier power, and new entrant threats. However, threat of substitutes and rivalry among competitors can affect the amount of profits a company will gain and retain. Netflix SWOT Analysis The presence of Netflix and Blockbuster in the movie rental industry has assisted me in developing this analysis of each corporation’s strength, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats as followed: Netflix’s strengths are: Good reputation, unlimited movie rental subscription, no due dates or late fees, easy website access, and large movie selection. Netflix’s weaknesses are: Limited to internet rental access, and long waiting period for new releases. Netflix’s opportunities are: To provide Video on Demand media access, music and movie download, and acquire partnership with gaming industry. Netflix’s threats are: Low DVD rentals, government regulation of rental distribution, high level of competition, and new movie media technology. Blockbuster SWOT Analysis Blockbuster’s strengths are: national and international recognition provides movie and game rentals, various vices for rental access (i. e. stores, kiosk, and internet), offers snacks and beverages for purchase in stores, and accommodates all customer types. Blockbuster’s weaknesses are: Poor distribution process, increased operating expense, decreased reputation, limited new released video games, unable to compete with game distributors (i. e. GameStop), and constant rental policy changes. Blockbuster opportunities are: Unlimited access to downloadable media libraries, increased production of brand movie rentals, and partnership with gaming system industry. Blockbuster’s threats are: New video formats, decreased DVD movie rentals, increased competition, and government regulation of movie rentals. The SWOT analysis shows that Netflix and Blockbuster have strong strengths and opportunities, however in order to Netflix to maintain its competitive advantage there needs to be an upgrade in innovation and technology that will strengthen their reputation and reliability. Blockbuster’s loss in reputation will continually plague their ability to remain competitive and maintain the customer base that they have. Blockbuster will continually face challenges until they upgrade their innovation and technology to level where they will enter into recovery mode. As I studied the financial information presented in the text, it appears that Netflix has been able to offer customers the benefit of low rental fees because they have been able to maintain a low level of expenses. The benefits offered to customers have increased the amounts of net income and movie rentals. Netflix prides itself on promoting customer satisfaction and meeting demands of its internet base. According to the numbers presented by Internet World Stats, the percentage of internet penetration by the North American population was 74. 2 percent in 2009, which was a 134 percent increase from 2000. At this rate, Netflix could secure an internet rental customer base of 74. 2 percent which would strengthen its success (Miniwatts Marketing Group, 2009) Blockbuster’s biggest challenge is development of a viable strategic approach to price setting. When Netflix entered the game, Blockbuster began to lose profits. In an attempt to recoup some of its losses, Blockbuster presented campaign where the rental policy constantly changed leaving customers confused and unsure of the rental process. Although Blockbuster has a large selection of movie titles and global presence, its reputation of dissatisfied customers and inefficient distribution has caused its overall cost to rise significantly. Blockbuster’s competitive advantage is that it offers various channels by which customers can access entertainment media. According to Blockbuster, â€Å"The same customer can choose different ways to access media entertainment on different nights† (Blockbuster, 2010). Recommendations In order for Netflix to maintain its competitive advantage there must be an adjustment of their strategy. Customer satisfaction should be a key factor of its strategy. I recommend that they base their marketing promotions on increasing customer awareness of the variety of accessible content offered. They should also implement the availability of music content and digital media to their library. The development of an award program for customers with lengthy memberships would influence word of mouth recommendations. Most of all, Netflix must continue to offer their customers the benefit of more titles at modest cost subscription memberships. In order for Blockbuster to regain its competitive advantage and reputation there must be the development of a strategy that will increase their profit. They have to become more innovation in internet and in-store rental process. There should be monitoring devices placed on scanner registers and mailed movie rentals to better track returns in order to keep their cost at a minimum. Staff should be trained and monitored on a constant basis to ensure that customer satisfaction is the key priority. Blockbuster must implement policies that will be enforced and understood by customers. They should also team up with gaming system producers to ensure that they will be supplied with current games and possibly offer gaming system rentals. Most of all they should find their own niche market which will provide them with a specialized competitive advantage. The information researched on Netflix and Blockbuster has enabled me to conclude that competition in the movie rental industry is highly competitive. There are new companies entering the market that have a competitive advantage whether it consist of internet rental, vending machine rental access, or in-store rental access. Netflix and Blockbuster have taken the lead in providing thousands of movie title to be viewed in the comfort of our own homes without the expense of movie theatres. Although both companies have a competitive advantage, they each have a following of dedicated customers who will stay with them because of familiarity. Through my research I have learned that consumers are the controllers in the movie rental industry. If consumers dislike the way they are serviced or the cost of movie rentals they will most certainly move on to a company which will cater to their movie wants and needs. However, the movie rental industry must stay up on new innovations and technologies in order to remain competitive, profitable, and maintain modest levels of overall costs.