Structural Functionalist Theory

This essay is an attempt to discuss the problems political parties in Zambia are facing by using structural-functionalist and their contributions to liberal democracy. The academic piece shall begin by defining the key terms; those being, structural-functionalist, political parties and liberal democracy. This will be followed by a comprehensive discussion of political parties, focused on, with examples, the Zambian scene. Lastly, a brief conclusion based on the discussion will be outlined.â€Å"Functionalism holds that society is a complex system whose various parts work together to produce stability and solidarity† (Giddens 2006:20). It also views society in terms of their functions. Merton (1968), made an important distinctions between manifest and latent functions. The manifest functions of an institution are open, stated, conscious functions. They involve intended, recognized consequences of an aspect of the society such as the university’s role in classifying acade mic competence and excellence.By contrast, latent functions as unconscious or unintended functions and may reflect hidden purposes of an institution. Structural-functionalist acknowledges that not all parts of the society contribute to its stability all the time. This function refers to an element or process in society that may actually disrupt as social system or lead to a decrease in stability† (Schaefer, 2004: 14). Social life depends on unity and cooperation of a group.The functionalist points out that for society to be stable the different parts of the society must contribute to the stability of society. For instance, the teachers should teach the society to reduce illiteracy, the doctors are making sure that society is healthy, and the police maintain order. Hence society becomes stable since everyone is contributing. According to MacIver (1962), a political party is an association organized in support of some principles or policy which constitutional means it endeavors to make the determinant of government.Not only that, a political party consists of a group of citizens, more or less organized, who act as a political unit and who by the use of their voting power, aim to control the government and carry out their general policies. Similarly, a political party is different from a pressure group, though in some cases the distinction between the two is almost blurred. According to Ball (1976), It may be said that a political party is an organization of numerous people who are openly committed to broad matters of public policy and who want to assume direct responsibility  for their policies by seeking monopolize power or share it with other parties in a position of political power.According to Barker (1951), the panorama of a party system is so fluid that a good number of pressure groups behave like political parties. The cases of fragmentation and polarization of political parties may also be taken note of. It is also possible that some minor politi cal organizations emerge at the time of elections and then they disappear. But the most essential fact remains that three, four even more parties manage to share power.For instance, in Zambia before voting is taken place, there are many parties heard like Movement for Multiparty Development (MMD), United Party for National Development (UPND), Patriot Front (PF) and Heritage Party (HP). But at the end of elections only few will be available to be strong holding oppositions party for example the UPND and MMD. Political parties act as a check against the tendency of absolutism and totalitarianism, ideologies also known by names such as ‘Caesarism’ and ‘Bonapartism’ (CITE). When one party forms government or few form coalition to hold power, other parties play a role of opposition.It not only keeps the government vigilant, it also prevents it from being arbitrary and irresponsible. The leaders of the opposition expose acts of corruption, nepotism, scandals and maladministration in which great men in power are involved. According to Lasswell (1950), the political parties enable the power to hold the government in check. The constant presence of a recognized opposition is an obstacle to despotism, with a programmed fairly within the limits of a possible public opinion, is a bulwark against the tyranny, not only of a despot but also a practical political majority.Significant political developments have occurred in Zambia since the 2001 tripartite elections. After having had two previous elections in 1991 and 1996, the 2001 elections produced a multiparty Parliament for the first time since Zambia’s independence in 1964. These elections seem to signal that the country has moved from a dominant one party political system to a competitive multi-party system According to The Post Newspaper (20/01/2013), opposition parties have serious financial difficulties.And for the new member of the opposition, MMD, this is even worse. The MMD doesn't know how to operate without a lot of money. They were used to receiving a lot of money from all sorts of characters doing business with government. And the MMD was also parasitic on government institutions for resources. As a result of this, a series of other problems have appeared. Passions about the future of their party rightly fired people up, but wrongly led them to attack and despise their colleagues. The impact of disunity upon members of the party is clear to see.They must in the very near future learn again to display the camaraderie and common purpose that are fundamental to a party's prospects. If they don't do so, they stand no chance of being re-elected Also, according to Okar (2005), the ruling parties deliberately employ a â€Å"divide-and rule† tactic to fragment and weaken the opposition parties. Wilson (1956) says, â€Å"The numbers of parties that appeared with the opening to democratization is not a demonstration of increased participation, but rather of fragmentation and therefore weakness of the party systems†.Zambia had more than five political parties, and the dominant party was the movement for multi party democracy (MMD), which ruled the country since 1991 to 2011. According to The Post Newspaper (20/01/2013), opposition political parties like, UPND, that was bound together by regional, cultural and language ties is also now failing to conceal its problems and challenges. The regional, tribal and cultural glue that held them together is also starting to weaken. The hopes that they had of getting into government by 2011 have disappeared. The illusions that they had about their popularity have also dried up.And they can no longer deny the fact that they are a regional political party that has serious problems and challenges becoming national. Their arrogance and pomposity can no longer carry them. The bragging of being this and that has proved unsustainable because it is unrealistic. They can no longer claim to be the mos t educated, the most knowledgeable when it comes to business and economic matters, the leading entrepreneurs. Parliamentary statistics actually show that UPND has the least educated members of parliament of the three major political parties.And their leader, Hakainde Hichilema, who tried to project himself as a leading entrepreneur, an outstanding economist and a very rich man can no longer lay much claim to these credentials. According to Mwansa,(2012), The leadership of opposition parties suffer from overly rated ambition for power and pride, such that it overcrowds their effective participation on important national matters that affect the citizenry and poor people. They could be more effective by engaging government and the ruling party in debating policy frameworks on how to develop the country.Particularly,  pushing policies that address the needs of poor people such as improving access to clean water and sanitation, quality healthcare, education, rural and agricultural deve lopment, and debate macroeconomic policy frameworks required for growth and development, critically contributing to poverty eradication, employment creation and addressing inequalities. According to Soko, (2013), the opposition parties have to find their own political shoes rather than to follow in Sata's shoes if they are to earn confidence of the electorates on social and developmental programmers’.The strategies the opposition want to use today, of protesting against the Chief Justice, the demand to have a medical board to examine president Sata's health, the demand to have the constitution changed, among others were Sata's strategies when he was in the opposition. The opposition just seem to be recycling Sata's political strategies with the hope of gaining confidence and trust from the Zambians but this will not work for them as they are being viewed as imitators instead of being initiators.Opposition parties are also not given a fair chance by media. Media is always crit icizing them and portraying opposition parties in a horrible way. All favor is upon the ruling party which is not supposed to be the case. Lastly, one of the very crucial problems in Africa at present is the unwillingness of the incumbent parties to be opposition parties due to their over-dependence on the benefits available to the ruling parties. Therefore, they are ill-equipped to become the opposition.In conclusion, the ruling party in Zambia should try by all means to incorporate the opposition parties in some development decisions, there also has to be inter-party dialogue over how to move beyond the dominant party situation. Because the ruling party feel comfortable once in power and do not want to give chance to the opposition parties to rule the nation. Media should also be an independent source of information and not favor any party but be like a no man’s land that is not owned by anyone, the opposition parties should be able to broadcast their manifestos to the publ ic.

Social Engineering Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social Engineering - Essay Example Meanwhile, the aspect of social Engineering just happening from diverse institutions in the technological world however is not good or evil since it carries both positive as well as negative norms. Many companies usually work based on initiating database for effective delivery of their services and therefore they make sure that their servers are free from malicious hackers as well as avoid any forms of infiltrations on their servers. Social Engineering infrastructure has been affected through internet fraudulent activities. Social engineering is one the artistically as well as scientifically facet that involves skillfully articulations and it is used in diverse professional including, lawyer, students, researchers, psychologists. According to various researchers, social engineering is termed as a collection of various skills and sciences that leads to a certain action (Wilson and Hadnagy, 12-16). Pre-texting In the United Kingdom, pre-texting, also known as blagging as well as bohoin g activities, involves the act of creation and inventing ways to phish out divulging information. Moreover, pre-texting can also be defined as the act of inventing and creating certain traits that makes people perform certain actions. Pre-texting involves anything within imagination context. The rise of internet has majorly affected Pre-texting norm in many ways. Various hackers nowadays use Pre-texting technique as well as method phished from business domains in disclosing customer’s information as well as obtaining various records (Arnold, 20-23). Forms of social Engineering The forms of social Engineering entails the presence of hackers, penetration testers also known as pentester, spies framework, identity thieves, disgruntled employees, scum artists, executive recruiters, salespeople, governments as well as professionals such as lawyers, psychologists, and doctors. Many companies and software vendors are creating hardened as well as complex software, difficult to break i nto. Due to this reason, many hackers have decided to embark on the social engineering facets using the prevailing minor breaches as well as blend engineering attacks to initiate their purposes (Simson and Mitnick, 42-47). In real sense, we find that penetration testers are entity of people who uses black malicious skills in gaining personal information of someone or harming the targeted person. Remote hacking has been one of the major approaches that have been used as a penetration tester also known as pentester, which is offensive in nature. However, based on pentester facet, many organizations in business today uses pentester articulation to ensure that their clients remain secure in terms of their data manipulation. Many governmental organizations utilize social engineering perception by controlling their protocol domains and messaging systems they releases to their workers. Social proof, authorization, and scarcity are one of the social engineering aspects that are utilized, sh owing that social engineering is not always negative (Wilson and Hadnagy, 49-56). Uses of Social engineering Social engineering can be initiated and employed in many areas that pertain aspects of life and affects one positively or negatives depending on the prevailing issue. Generally, social engineering can be malicious or be friendly by either tearing down or building up someone life. Motivation is an aspect that is

Theories Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Theories - Coursework Example Some other areas of production include the production of compact discs, television sets and fridges. As until 2002, Royal Philps Electronic was not one organization that could be said to have been on an upsurge rise in terms of growth or downward decline in terms of growth (Gardener, 2001. This because the growth pattern of the company kept fluctuating by the years. Due to the need to arrest the growth rate of the company and ensure that there was stability in terms of growth, a number of organizational changes were recommended in the company. Most of these organizational changes were given birth to by the coming of Gerard Kleisterlee, who took over as the company’s president in the year 2001. The summary of the organizational change could be given as that, Gerard Kleisterlee saw the need for there to be integration in the operations and functioning of the organization (Koduah, 2001). This is because prior to his coming, â€Å"he found a company that was rigidly divided into six business divisions, with little or no communication among them† (Wyle, 2012). The result of this was that the organization could not have a common focus and so its programs and policies could not be closely monitored and evaluated under the same model. Much of the organizational change that took place at Royal Philips Electronics could be attributed to the personal background and personality of Gerard Kleisterlee, who took over as the president of the company and thus the global leader, responsible for controlling the fortunes and visions orientation of the company (Moynihan and Henry, 2006). This is because the leader was born in the very country of origin of the company and so had very insightful idea about the formal and informal operations of the company. Moreover, the leader received university education in electronics, which gave him an excellent understanding of the core duties and operations of Royal Philips, which was of course, an electronic company.

Are gun control policies effective or ineffective Essay

Are gun control policies effective or ineffective - Essay Example Implementing strict and effective gun control measures serve as a platform to reduce the increasing crime and irresponsible behavior. These irrational behaviors cause the deaths of many innocent citizens. According to criminologists, intensified gun control measure of disarming all citizens is considered the most applicable means of minimizing possible effects. I concur with this argument, since this irrational behavior is in existence in developing countries. All citizens seek protection from the state and other communal means of security. In fact, gun controls do not decrease crime; the gist of the matter lies with the enforcement of laws, which is the way forward to solve the dilemma of gun control. I really admire the communal relationship in developing countries; where each individual takes the burden of the other as if it is his own. In most instances, human beings are triggered to act the way they do due to the environment they find themselves in, not really out of their innat e behavior but as environment derived behavior. According to criminologists, the possession of firearms by individuals is perceived to be a factor that contributes to the likelihood of gun fatality. When an individual finds himself in possession of a gun, which probably is not in use, he is moved to formulate ways to utilize it. In this perspective, the person ends up engaging in crime due to presence of unused guns, which could be controlled initially by restricting ownership of personal guns. This has been propagated by the fact that all individuals possess many pressing issues,

Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis - Essay Example Examples of these contradictory human traits abound throughout the novel. George believed in material possessions as definitions of his worth, but his discontent with them is evident thus: He hadn't even any satisfaction in the new water cooler! And it was the very best of water coolers,..(p. 26 Chp. 3). His weakness regarding attempts to stop smoking is frequently portrayed, with little plans to thwart himself, such as locking his cigars in a filing cabinet and hiding the key, and his many promises to quit. After his Maine vacation, he had to leave the train to buy a cigar, then later our days later, he again remembered that he had stopped smoking, but he was too busy catching up with his office work to keep it remembered.(p. 116 Chp. 12) When he found himself accepted as a good orator, at the real estate convention, he was full of bombastic pride, but also a simple pleasure in having his ability so recognized. guess some of the folks on Floral Heights will sit up and take notice now, pay a little attention to old Georgie!(p.128 Chp. 13) There is much endearing boyishness in his enthusiasms and frequent attempts to improve in many areas of his life. His continuing success as an orator has something sadly nostalgic about it, as Babbitt harks back to his unfulfilled desire to have been a lawyer. His snobbery and social climbing were evident when, after the alumni reunion, he and Mrs. Babbitt gave a disastrous dinner party for the rich McKelveys. He rationalized the fact that these people would not be their friends by telling his wife ut I like to have a chance to visit with you and the children instead of all this idiotic chasing around.(p. 152 Chp. 15). hey did not speak of the McKelveys again.and these words were applied to the Overbrooks, whom the Babbitts considered beneath them, again after an awkward dinner. Both instances demonstrated the good and bad in Babbitt's character and values. Love and loyalty were shown where Paul Reisling was concerned. Babbitt defended his friend, managed a week of freedom for him from his nagging wife, Zilla and rushed to the prison after Paul shot her. 'm not going to be moral, I just want to do anything I can.(p. 204, Chp. 22) He even offered to perjure himself to get Paul his freedom. With his family, although he found them hard to tolerate, Babbitt showed concern always for their well-being and futures. He spent time with Tinka and Myra and never ignored Ted or Verona, despite their annoying him. When he changed radically in his attempts to break away from his conventional life, he seemed to embrace all that was opposite to his previous character, drinking, dancing, having the affair, and criticizing his old friends. But he showed kindness, loyalty and love when Myra got sick, and returned to being the character first portrayed at the beginning of the novel. There was a depth of self-awareness in the handling of Ted's youthful marriage and desire to leave university. His reactions and advice to his son showed him as an empathetic and even likable character, despite what is known about him. 've never done a single thing I've wanted to in my whole life! I don't know's I've accomplished anything except just get along....Take your factory job if you want to...Don't be scared...of yourself, like I've been. Go ahead old man! The world is yours!(p. 305 Chp. 34) In

W7Q Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

W7Q - Essay Example 260). In organizational development, managers are more focused on developing unique patterns of behavior and culture that could effectively solve organizational problems within the internal and external business environment. Normally, this can be done with the use of good leadership skills. Since managers are made responsible in aligning organizational culture and behavior in accordance to the business goals and objectives, it is safe to conclude that both managerial efficiency and effectiveness can be accomplished in organizational development. It is possible for manager to be efficient but not effective in terms of achieving the business goal. In general, there is a significant relationship between organizational work environment and musculoskeletal disorders such that a poor working environment like having insufficient lighting or the presence of excessive noise pollution could also lead to stressful working condition (Gershon et al., 2007). In relation to this example, a manager may be efficient in terms of his work attendance or the ability to communicate well with employees but not able to meet the business goal of increasing the production output There are many ways in which a business organization can evaluate the transformation of– and organizational effect which could result from organizational change. Depending on the main purpose of the evaluation, managers can choose between internal and external auditing or by conducting internal survey to obtain feedback directly from employees. One of the best ways is to conduct organizational audits. Basically, the result of organizational auditing can be used as a bench mark when developing and implementing a cultural change plan (Gershon, 2010). Since managers will have a base line in measuring or evaluating the success or failure of a significant organizational

BreadTalk Group Limited Essay Example for Free

BreadTalk Group Limited Essay Bread is one of the most popular staple in the Asian food culture. In the years, BreadTalk has successfully expanded their influence and reputation to 16 countries with more than 500 bakeries all around the world. BreadTalk is known for their see thru kitchen concept which enables their chefs a platform to showcase the skills and capabilities. This also allows interaction between customers and employees. A comprehensive analysis of the business strategy of BreadTalk Group Limited for the Thailand market revealed that its strategic objectives are aligned to the company’s vision and mission statement: Vision Establish BreadTalk as the foremost international, trend-setting lifestyle bakery brand | Mission Leading a new lifestyle culture with new, innovative changes and creative differentiation to craft products with passion and vibrancy | Innovative improvement and design of their products increased awareness of the brand, BreadTalk, complimented with the use of locations with high human traffic are increasing the market share of its bakery arm within the Thailand market. Lessons drawn from the analysis have shown that BreadTalk is consistently seeking improvement and reviewing their strategies to stay abreast. Being in a country with cultural differences in food preferences, working attitudes and lifestyle, BreadTalk’s adaptation and globalization strategies has proven to be effective. Success is reflected in the confident future investment promise and processes in place to overcome their strategic implementation issues. Introduction BreadTalk is aggressively expanding globally and leaves footprints in China, Indonesia and Thailand. With Singapore and China markets dominating the overall revenue for the bakery arm, a review on the business strategy for the Thailand market carried out. Strategies and implementation issues are identified to increase the market share and revenue for BreadTalk Thailand using the rational / formal model. BreadTalk’s company history and background is attached in Appendix A. With a strategic analysis on the external and internal environments using models / theories like PESTEL, Porters’ 5 Forces, analysis of turbulences and internal strategic competitive advantage, useful strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats are identified in this report. Strategic implementation and implementation issues are discussed further. Successful implementations are useful lessons for review. Strategic Analysis External analysis: General environment PESTEL model Political/Legal Thailand has faced various political/government instabilities, such as the Thai coup dà ©tat in 2006, the elections for a new constitution in 2007, a political crisis in 2008, and crackdowns and protests which involved violence from 2009-2010. Although the ruling of the July 2011 elections belonged to the Pheu Thai Party, the political situation was still shaky. There was a conflict between the â€Å"red shirts† (supporters of current ruling Pheu Thai Party) and â€Å"yellow shirts† (oppositions of the Pheu Thai Party), resulting in continuous tensions. All the bloodshed also damaged the economy, sinking the already suffering consumer confidence even more. Besides this matter, Thailands also having issues with its neighboring country, Malaysia. Both countries relationships have soured greatly because of the Pattani separatists’ issue, which involved the struggle of independence by the ethnic Malays in Southern Thailand. These incidents have raised concerns among foreign investors and manufacturers regarding Thailands political stability. Thailand has strict regulations when it comes to working terms and conditions. A proper visa must be applied from a Royal Thai Embassy, with some countries needing to obtain an entry visa, which allows a stay of 15 days upon arrival in Thailand. However, Singapore is one of the countries that could stay for 30 days without an entry visa, but must obtain an entry stamp on their passports. The disadvantage of Thailands employment regulation is that it is time consuming, expensive and has a tedious amount of paperwork. Economic Following the constant tremors in the economy in 2008 and late 2011’s Euro crisis, Thailand has suffered duly in retrospect. With a staggering 41.06% debt of Thailand’s total GDP January this year and an additional 2 trillion baht for the beginning of next year (Good only at borrowing jibe haunts Pheu Thai Party, 2012), the country has much to recover from. The nation’s currency, Thai baht, has also taken a beating from the economic crisis in 2008 and 2011, falling from a high of 43.6 baht in 2002 to 29.44 baht per 1 USD today. However, it is to be noted that Thailand has come a long way since its third world country days back in the 90s. It has reduced its poverty by a third, from 27% in 1997 to 9.8% in 2002, and even has a health care policy which covers approximately 70% of its citizens (Data Thailand). Countries surrounding Thailand portray a mixed basket of economy statuses. With Myanmar slowly opening its doors to foreign investors, and Malaysia running a high risk of going into debt (Budget 2013 proof Malaysia falling into debt crisis as income slows, says MP, 2012), Thailand has to weigh its opportunities and costs with great consideration in order to maximize its potential in this crisis-stricken economy. Social/Cultural Buddhism is the main religion in Thailand (about 85%) and it greatly influences the Thais’ working attitude such as respect and politeness, forgiving and thoughtfulness. Respect is also reflected in the country’s monarchy system with military-dominated hierarchy present in both the society and workplace (Bi, 2012). In addition to their religious beliefs, modern Thais also display patience and hospitality at work emphasizing positive outlook. Thais prefer to work in a group, with ample time for completion in social environment; isolating them will lead to stress and discomfort. They have great respect for age and authority, preferring obedience and tolerance to conflict (Gross, 2001). Thai cooking is under the influence from the Chinese from southern China, Indians nearby and Malays from the south; the main dietary staple is rice. Due to the social nature and friendliness of Thai people, dishes are shared and enjoyed together. They love to eat in groups and eating alone is considered bad luck. Thais are known to take 7 meals a day; besides breakfast, lunch and dinner, they ‘snack’ a lot, savouring snacks along roadside or marketplaces anytime. Bread is becoming popular due its convenience. Baked products are expecting an annual growth of 5-6% (Jitpleecheep, 2012). Technology According to Internet World Stats, Thailand is ranked 9th in 2011 amongst countries in Asia, in terms of number of Internet users. Currently the population of Thailand is at 66.7 million; the country has an Internet penetration rate of approximately 31%, which amounts to 20.7 million in 2011 (Singapore Management University, 2012). There is a growing percentage of advertising spend with more large firms diverting a proportion of their advertising budgets to online advertising (Appendix B). Amongst the Asia-Pacific countries, businesses in Thailand are relatively active on social media channels (Kemp, 2012). As enterprises tap on social media for their business, they play on the personal touch factor that social media is able to achieve. Social media inspires and influence the behavior of Internet users, such as purchasing a product, by stimulating and attracting them to participate in online activities (New Media Trend Watch, 2012). This participation makes the purchasing process more personalized, hence increases sales. Thus, if BreadTalk intend to increase their sales in the FB industry in Thailand, they could make use of the developing social media platforms to aid in publicising the brand and its products (MVF GLOBAL, 2012). In this case, it would be more effective and they can reach to a wider audience too, bringing BreadTalk to greater heights. Environment The Thai Government has been focusing on the social and economic development for the past 35 years. Nevertheless, over the past decade Thailand has been increasingly threatened by the problems of industrial waste, hazardous wastes, natural resources degradation and water pollution (Thailand Info : Economy, 2008). Thailand has been suffering the threat of floods in the recent years. This has caused a dip in their production of rice-their staple and in their tourism industry. During the times of floods, there was a scarcity of food supplies. According to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Thailand (MNRE), since 1992 the Government has made protecting the environment one of its top priorities. Thailand can be described as a tropical and humid country throughout the year. They claim to have only two seasons, the wet and dry. The summer extends from March to June with a temperature of 320 C to 360 C and monsoon extends from July to October with temperatures averaging around 290 C (The Global Climate Change Regime, 2012). This climate is suitable for BreadTalk. The process of fermentation and baking of various types of breads needs a tropical environment. Extreme weathers would change the uniformity of the ‘raising process’ for the bread and its fermentation process. External analysis: Industry Related Porter’s 5 forces Threat of new entrants (HIGH) The threat of new entrants is high as barriers of entry are low due to the little regulations from the government, the low capital outlay as compared to other industries, low Research and Development costs, and it is likely a highly profitable market. Also, because food has always been popular with people, and people are always looking for something new and fresh, many food joints have been opening, resulting in high amount of entry candidates. What attracts consumers is the variety of food being offered, therefore BreadTalk can consider widening their variety of breads, or by coming up with new flavors seasonally so as to stay competitive with the new entrants. Bargaining power of customers (HIGH) Customers have a generally strong bargaining power due to the high competition in the Food Beverage (FB) industry. Should customers not be satisfied with BreadTalk’s provision of goods and services, they have the power to boycott and purchase from a different provider, causing huge losses to the company. BreadTalk has to constantly update itself on customers’ tastes and preferences to better cater to their needs. It should also focus on hearing what consumers have to say, to be able to meet consumers’ expectations. Bargaining power of supplier (LOW) The overall bargaining power of suppliers for the FB industry is usually low due to the similar quality of the products. Bulk purchases lead to economies of scale, further bring down the prices of the supplies. Suppliers of these FB ingredients are in abundance; many in the market that lead to price competition. However, the bargaining power of the suppliers may escalate due to climatic influence that may cause shortages in the supplies; the supplier may then choose to work with companies who are willing to pay more. BreadTalk has its advantage over the suppliers, as the ingredients and packaging material are normal goods that are available from many suppliers. Threat of substitutes (HIGH) The Food and Beverage market has a big industry span and goes a long way back into history, therefore the risk of substitutes for food is actually very high (Aswe Travel, 2011). The food vendors must take note of mutual substitution. Congruently for bread-wise, there is no need for customers to consume them, especially in Thailand where its unique food culture provides various alternatives like rice and noodles that can fulfill the same purpose altogether (Aswe Travel, 2011). Thus, there is a certain level of risk for BreadTalk’s expansion and they need to tackle into the eating habits of the population, in order to win them over. Overall, there is a high threat of substitutes in Thailand for BreadTalk. Competitive rivalry – price war, elasticity within the bread industry (HIGH) The Food and Beverage industry normally experiences intense competition. The bakery market in Thailand is increasingly growing since bread can be favored as substitute for rice. In the meantime, competitors may want to get advantage of this growing trend. With growing urbanization in Thailand, now comprising of 33% of the total population have been observed to move away from traditional open air markets to retail stores (Exporter Guide THAILAND FOOD BEVERAGE Market Profile, 2011). The competitors in this industry for BreadTalk can be roughly categorized into Cafà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s Coffee shops, in-store shops in restaurants and hotels and open-air wet/flea markets. Recently over the past 5 years, there is an emergence of regional cafà © come bakery concept (Exporter Guide THAILAND FOOD BEVERAGE Market Profile, 2011). The main competitors of BreadTalk in Thailand are Ka-nom, U-Bake, Pee Pee Bakery and The Human Bakery. An analysis of the Porters’ 5 Forces reflected that despite the overall competition for BreadTalk within the industry being strong, BreadTalk is still able to sustain and achieve above average profitability due to the following: Turbulences Complexity BreadTalk is positioned at the â€Å"Moderately Complex Environment† due to the wide range of products and competitive substitutes available but low interconnectedness among the products, markets and competitors; the bakery market in Thailand is relatively small (Appendix C). Dynamism FB industry in Thailand is generally low dynamism and is said to be in a â€Å"static environment’; the intensity and frequency of change is minimal and not drastic for this industry (Appendix D). Predictability Besides the normal business cycle, other influences such as natural disaster eg flood and drought caused the environment to be unpredictable. Despite this influence, tourism is still picking up (ranking 39 in 2009 and 42 in 2008 (Blanke Chiesa, 2009)) and growth of private investment is healthy (East Asia Pacific Economic Update Navigating Turbulence, Sustaining Growth, 2011). Internal analysis: BreadTalk Strategic Competitive Advantage Consistent with the company business strategy, BreadTalk continues to seek competitive advantages (Loh, 2011) based on their unique: BreadTalk is consistently pushing out new products and upgrading of retail space to enhance customers’ experience. Their innovative achievement is strongly supported from top management to front-liners, starting from strategic planning by the top management, support from staff and feedback from customers, high quality control baking process and release of new products frequently. SWOT Analysis With the above analysis on the external and internal environment, the following SWOT is identified and a summary attached in Appendix E: Strengths BreadTalk has the capacity of preparing the raw material (dough) for all the outlets ensuring strict quality control and a team of innovative designer taking care of new product design and customer experience. Its unique branding and concept attract customers giving them new snacking experience at convenient locations. Weaknesses There is limited sales and marketing effort in place for BreadTalk leading to low brand awareness and no loyal customer base. Allocating 20% adaptation to local food culture may not be sufficient for the Thailand. Opportunities Increase in tourism business boost the growth of FB sector and Thailand being ranked no. 13 out of 133 countries who are like foreign visitors, is adjusting to accommodate the foreign visitors’ likes and dislikes (Blanke Chiesa, 2009).