Panera Bread Case Essay Example for Free

Panera Bread Case Essay The Au Bon Pain Bakery was first opened in 1976 to fulfill the concept of a fast casual restaurant. Following a period of debt; the Cookie Jar Bakery owned by Ronald Shaich and Aub Bon Pain Bakery owned by Louis Kane merged to become Au Bon Pain Co. Inc. in 1981. In 1985 after noticing customers buying bread and adding their own sandwich meat, the company decided to add fresh made sandwiches to their menu to capitalize on the profit. After going public in 1991, Shaich decided that in order to expand the purchase of the St. Louis Bread Company was paramount. Au Bon Pain or â€Å"where good bread is† would eventually become Panera Bread Company in 1999(Thomas L. Wheelen and J). Panera Bread Company would become the leader in fast casual dining; combining the ease of fast food with the quality of the restaurant experience and a coffee shop atmosphere. Noticing the needs of businessmen for having a place to meet and dine simultaneously; Panera developed its business to meet five different â€Å"meals†; breakfast, lunch, daytime â€Å"chillout†, lunch in the evening, and take-home bread(Thomas L.  Wheelen and J). As a result of Panera’s ingenuity; it became the leader in a bakery-cafe style restaurant providing fresh-baked goods, made-to-order sandwiches, soups, salads, and coffee (Thomas L. Wheelen and J). Panera Bread Company’s growth and success was the direct result of the standards set by Au Bon Pain in its identification as the pioneer in the fast casual restaurant category. Having met four criteria including: a limited service or self service style, pricing that fell between fast food and casual dining, made-to-order food with complex flavors, and upscale decor much like that of a neighborhood bistro; Panera quickly grew and gained profit and continues to flourish today. Panera enjoyed total revenues in 2011 of $1,822,032,000 as reported to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and net income of $135, 952,000. First and foremost I feel that Panera’s effort to sponsor charities is quite commendable, there truly is no better way to gain recognition or compete with similar businesses than to give to charity. This year a local restaurant in Oak Harbor hosted a pig roast as a means for collecting donations to charities in the area. The amount collected and distributed to local charities by the owner of the local restaurant was published in our local paper. As a result of his efforts, he has gained recognition and people are honored to eat in his restaurant. An ever developing menu is also a good way to gain recognition, however I feel that this method could possibly pose issues like the ones seen with fast food chains when they discontinue a favorite sandwich or drink. Many times a fast food joint has a special new drink or sandwich and after a month do away with it. This is frustrating to the customers because they enjoyed the new item and wish to continue purchasing. If proper research is not done to decide whether or not to keep a menu item, business could suffer. An identifiable image is definitely a good way to promote a business, yet I don’t feel that it would be the right move considering the style of business Panera is trying to continue. Most images such as McDonald’s golden arches, and Applebees’ flaming apple tend to scream fast food. While Applebees may not be considered by many as fast food, it tends to fall further down the list in quality than many of our local restaurants. Here in Oak Harbor we have restaurants that are well-known in the community such as Frasier’s and Flyers which do not have specific signage to identify them. Instead these businesses are advertised through word of mouth, and advertising on the actual store front. 2) Schaich would often do the opposite of his competition during periods of economic downturn. While many of his competitors slashed prices and offered extensive discounts, Panera doubled its prices on bagels and soups. This strategy was fundamental to the success of Panera. What would increasing prices during recession be a strategy that worked for Panera? What other strategies might be helpful in maintaining the competitive edge during a recession? I believe the reason Panera was most successful by increasing prices instead of lowering them during recession is the fact that they offered high quality product. Another reason I believe this strategy worked is because it offered consumers an outlet for the stress associated with recession. Had Panera lowered its prices while still offering high quality, it would have been a reminder of the worsening economic condition and perceived as not at all favorable to Panera’s high-end consumers. It is my belief that another strategy that could be beneficial to Panera during recession is acquisition. If Panera were to acquire another company that produces bakery products comparable to Panera, it might broaden its consumer base and possibly expand to more locations. This strategy would reduce competition by consuming the other company’s customer base. The other company would most likely jump at the chance to sell given the economic downturn. Overall this strategy would be helpful in eliminating competition as well as expanding Panera’s locations. 3) In 2003 Panera Bread Company initiated for unit general managers and multi-unit managers to own a majority interest in their business (Thomas L. Wheelen and J). This practice was designed to assist in enrichment of the consumer experience because the people working the bakery-cafes were experienced as well as motivated. In what other ways might Panera motivate its employees and franchise owners? Should Panera better their part-time employee benefits? I believe giving managers a share is a good step in the right direction, it gives them a reason to do their very best for the business. I agree with Panera’s idea of having experienced and knowledgeable employees at the forefront of the business. A competent business is more likely to prosper and draw consumers than a company that employs people with no knowledge of their product. As for additional forms of motivation, I would have to say that first and foremost an employee discount would be a great incentive for employees. This form of motivation would be valuable to employees who truly believed in Panera and its quality. Another great motivator for employees would be charity donation matching. If Panera were to offer its employee of the month the opportunity to have Panera match any and all of his/her donations to charity either in product or funds; this may also motivate employees that are in line with Panera’s values to do their very best. There is a sense of pride in belonging to a company that takes CSR seriously, by voicing this value Panera is more likely to find employees that share in their spirit. Far too often employee burnout becomes a real issue in service related businesses. I think that Panera should offer sabbaticals to employees who wish to work on community service projects. Not only with a break from everyday routine aid in preventing burnout, extra community service will get the brand name out there, and employees will feel that they did something positive and in line with Panera’s values. I believe Panera should have definitely looked at increasing part-time employees’ benefits. Their part-time employees are stated to be at around 13,200, which is significantly higher than their full-time employees. These part-time employees therefore have a significant impact on the success of the business. Keeping in line with Panera’s idea of investing in the business to benefit the consumer, offering better benefits to part-time employees would ensure that employees felt valued and in turn would provide better service.

We Are Media :: essays research papers

â€Å"We are media†, media is us, and we are one.† In this simple statement I site my definition of media ecology. If we would all take a look at our lives we are just a jumble of representations. From the moment we are born to the day that we die we are media. We are born a certain sex boy or girl. That represents something. Boys wear blue girls wear pink. This is a signifier to everyone of what we are. We don’t know we are boys or girls until someone tells different things. You have set and defined expectations for your life and ways that you will act. From that day forward we learn our media from our lives, our families, friends, literally everything we come in contact with. Everything we do and everything we see leaves some trace of an impression on us and represents something to each of us. That’s why I feel that media is us. Media is everything. We are just representations. Is there a reality? Do we exist to just consume reality? Are we realities of a representation? These are questions that I asked myself while writing this paper.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  While thinking through I came up with a thought of despair, almost panic. It makes you very frustrated to think seriously about this. It makes you question everything that you were socialized to believe as a member of society. It makes you question countless things in our lives. It made me think about life in general. Who are we to define reality? What is reality? How do we tackle these questions? Truthfully, I don’t know if there is a way but I think we all need to examine our lives in general and the everyday lives that we live and question them. Everything we do or say has a representation so therefore is media. It is all around us. It is everywhere. Most places we don’t even know that it is going on.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In my inspection of my life and the media that surrounds me I have found media to be all encompassing. It is everywhere. I wake up to a clock radio that I turn off to only seconds later turn on the TV which is on until I leave my apartment. But even with the TV or radio off my apartment is still crawling with media sources. Almost everything I own has labels on it from clothes to food. We Are Media :: essays research papers â€Å"We are media†, media is us, and we are one.† In this simple statement I site my definition of media ecology. If we would all take a look at our lives we are just a jumble of representations. From the moment we are born to the day that we die we are media. We are born a certain sex boy or girl. That represents something. Boys wear blue girls wear pink. This is a signifier to everyone of what we are. We don’t know we are boys or girls until someone tells different things. You have set and defined expectations for your life and ways that you will act. From that day forward we learn our media from our lives, our families, friends, literally everything we come in contact with. Everything we do and everything we see leaves some trace of an impression on us and represents something to each of us. That’s why I feel that media is us. Media is everything. We are just representations. Is there a reality? Do we exist to just consume reality? Are we realities of a representation? These are questions that I asked myself while writing this paper.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  While thinking through I came up with a thought of despair, almost panic. It makes you very frustrated to think seriously about this. It makes you question everything that you were socialized to believe as a member of society. It makes you question countless things in our lives. It made me think about life in general. Who are we to define reality? What is reality? How do we tackle these questions? Truthfully, I don’t know if there is a way but I think we all need to examine our lives in general and the everyday lives that we live and question them. Everything we do or say has a representation so therefore is media. It is all around us. It is everywhere. Most places we don’t even know that it is going on.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In my inspection of my life and the media that surrounds me I have found media to be all encompassing. It is everywhere. I wake up to a clock radio that I turn off to only seconds later turn on the TV which is on until I leave my apartment. But even with the TV or radio off my apartment is still crawling with media sources. Almost everything I own has labels on it from clothes to food.

Child Pornography an Epidemic Essay

The internet can be a useful tool when used for the right reasons, but what about the wrong reasons, such as child pornography? Child pornography is growing in astounding numbers, it is gaining more popularity every year and there is still not enough legislation to help slow it down. Society has become overly sexually stimulated, simple sexual pleasures are now not enough in many people’s minds, which may lead to harmful, unhealthy sexual desires. Sexual abuse of minors has become a huge social problem in the world today. For a philosopher such as Plato was it normal to live this way? What was and is now considered to be a normal way of living? Pornography comes in different forms such as pictures, film or writing which stimulates sexual arousal. Child pornography is the deliberate abuse of a minor, it not only destroys Childs self-esteem but it later becomes an issue for society to deal with as well. Children are forced to endure both physical and mental harm. A young mind does not have the capability of understanding that what is happening to them is wrong. The young victims are usually lured into watching explicit materials first by the pedophile, in which it is made to seem as though these acts are acceptable and that â€Å"everyone is doing it†. According to Enough. org, Child pornography is one of the fastest growing industries online, it has become a 3 billion dollar industry. Many of the victims blame themselves for what has happened to them because they â€Å"allowed† the abuse to happen or continue. Many of these children suffer from depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, emotional numbing and have trouble sleeping or concentrating. Most pedophiles begin by watching soft porn, and then the addiction escalates which leads them to watch more intense explicit materials. Later, these more hardcore images or film may not satisfy the addiction, this is when they turn there fantasy world into reality becoming sexual predators. As seen by millions on an NBC show called â€Å"How to Catch a Predator† hosted by Chris Hansen, many of these men had no issues meeting an under aged girl or boy for sexual satisfaction. These men ranged from your everyday white collar worker to a Rabbi, Priest, teacher, doctor or even a father who brought his young son along. Perversion in these individuals can be so intense that these are the lengths some of these predators will go to. Who can we trust anymore when most of these individuals are off the radar, meaning they haven’t been caught yet? It’s no wonder so many of our children are more sheltered than ever. When I was growing up rain, snow or sun shine my friends and I were outside playing. Today most of our children are behind a television/ computer screen most of the time. I feel parents should be more vigilant when leaving there child with certain individuals, including child care providers, coaches, even your best friends extended family. People need to rely on their instincts more than ever. According to an article on businessinder. com there are 116,000 searches for child pornography every day. The porn industry as a whole earns $3,000 per second! Americans Account for over half of the world’s porn revenue. I feel that for most of these sexuak predators there is not much that can be done at this time. The two main options available are either jail time or some a form of counseling. I do not believe these sexual desires could ever disappear completely. There is a big difference when taking into account alcohol/drug abuse versus child pornography addiction. An addict can be rehabilitated and in many cases they replace there drug or alcohol addiction with other addictions, usually positive outlets, but how the mental state of a sexual predator could possibly change is a question that is still goes unanswered. If it were possible to rehabilitate a pedophile what would their outlet later be? As further demonstrated by a quote from mentalhealthamerica. net- â€Å"Mental health professionals have difficulty determining which sex offenders are likely to be dangerous if not committed and what if any treatment should be provided. This means that courts, which must rely on professional expertise, will regularly make mistakes in deciding who should be committed or released, with serious consequences for both the public and the offender†. Many pedophiles are classified as having â€Å"Antisocial† personality disorder, because of the taboo nature of this addiction it is no wonder they often isolate themselves. Being that the system has no set way of dealing with these individuals it is difficult to understand what the possible outcome of any type of treatment could be. Enough. org states there are approximately 650,000 registered sex offenders in the United States alone. Of course, not every country agrees that marrying an under aged person is a crime or taboo. We could look at polygamy in the world for example. This is a normal practice for many Muslim and Islamic communities. Many of the leaders in these communities marry young girls and many of them are asked to bear their children at a young age because this is when they are the most fertile. For outsiders this type of behavior is very taboo but for the polygamist community it is very common. The same could be said for cults and tribes around the world, many of the young girls in cults are told that relationships with their spiritual leader will bring them closer to God or whomever they believe in. On the other hand, Plato believed people are evil because of ignorance. Plato held the same belief as Socrates that no one knowingly does what he knows to be bad for his soul. Plato uses the term â€Å"just† when speaking about the highest form of life possible. In the city, the shape of a just or good life is one that is specialized. According to Plato, no one but philosophers can achieve a truly good life, because they alone are born with the capacity to recognize the good. He states, â€Å"The pleasure pertaining to the sight of what is cannot be tasted by anyone except the philosopher† (Rep. 82c5). Though, in the Republic, it seems that Plato is trying to give hope to his readers and inspire them to attain what is good and just in their own lives. To him, human limitations can be overcome through instruction. Could this instruction also help the pedophile on his road to reform? I wouldn’t say that individuals with anti-social personality disorder â€Å"live in the dark† per se, I believe the fear of persecution by the public leads them to live in the shadows. The problem is that many of these individuals are educated and very well regarded in their communities. They live among us and are able to function in society as normal citizens of society most of the time, and it is usually behind closed doors where there double life emerges. When thinking of Plato it was evident that he was a homosexual, he was attracted to both men and young boys, therefore I am not sure that he would have much of an issue with the behavior of today’s pedophiles. It seems to have been normal practice in Greece to have relations with young boys, ranging from the ages of 12-17 years of age. Men taught the young boys rules of adulthood, the young boys played the passive role while the older men played the masculine role in the relationship. I do realize that times were much different back then, as knowledgeable as these philosophers where, when thinking about present day, it is very obvious much was left to be learned as far as proper relationships and age limitations are concerned. The concern I had about some of the behaviors towards young men and or women are whether or not these youths had a say in their involvement in these relationships. Where they forced into some of them or did they willingly participate? Did the parents freely give up their children or did they not have a say? Being that I am from today’s generation and society I cannot fathom allowing my 12 year old son to commit to a relationship with another grown man. Did they not believe they were harming these young people? It seems as though they experienced no guilt but only pleasure and satisfaction when gaining a relationship with a young boy. Because the boy’s role was passive submissive, I feel there was a sense of low self-worth associated with that. What did these men do when the boys grew hair on their chests and beards on their faces? Did they simply get rid of them or did they continue the relationship? In some cases I would think they held on to the ones they truly cared for, whatever that meant. What then came of the boys who became adults? Did they also continue the cycle of having relations with young boys? If these boys did not have sexual desires for men, but were constantly being wooed by these prestigious older men then it is obvious that they sometimes gave in to these relationships unwillingly. Much like todays pedophiles it seems as though the boys were lured with promises of a secure and happy friendship/relationship. As with today’s predators they also took their time getting to know the victim before initiating sexual relations. Though intercrural sex was widely practiced, meaning penetration of the penis between the thighs was used very often back then, I still feel the children felt huge sense of belittlement. Therefore in regard to Plato’s idea of a good life, I in contrast believe the good life consists of being happy whether you are educated or not, rich or poor. I grew up poor, my father quit school after the eighth grade, and despite this we had a happy home life. I do feel receiving a traditional education is very helpful, but in some cases it is not necessary. It is human nature to continuously learn new things throughout our lifetime. As we grow older we become so much more knowledgeable about everything around us. I think experiencing things first hand speaks volumes about ones level of maturity. I feel the way we should live to attain happiness is to never have limitations, we should always have the option to keep learning be it through instruction or self-learning. Life should never be left a standstill, people should never feel sorry for themselves or hopeless. If someone wants to be happy and not feel jealous of the way their neighbor is able to live then something can always be done about it. If someone feels unworthy or depressed they can seek out counseling. I do believe that what is good for me is not necessarily what is good for someone else. Culture and personal upbringing obviously have a lot to do with how individuals behave within society. I completely agree with Socrates statement, that the unexamined life is not worth living. Both Socrates and Plato believed that seeking wisdom through examination of life transformed ones soul. By making that choice we moved towards a good life. Lastly, we have yet to learn what a goes through a pedophiles mind and why it is that they can have sexual desires for under aged kids. Though a sad, isolated life for today’s sexual predators, the same could not be said for the days of Plato and the workings of the world back then. I myself feel immense joy and happiness by helping others, not by causing sorrow and pain that is felt by the unfortunate victims involved in these horrific acts. The psychological world has yet to learn the true cause or therapy that will help these individuals, we can only be hopeful that much needed changes come in the near future.

Prejudice And Discrimination In Snow Falling On Cedars

How does Guterson present the prejudice and discrimination against the Japanese Americans in chapter 1-15 of Snow Falling on Cedars. This book shows a great difference between cultures on the island of San Piedro. To start with the island is a very cosmopolitan island with its residents all from different backgrounds and countries, Japan, England, Germany, Spain and Denmark to name a few. We can tell this from the long lists of shops and their owners on page three. Chapter one tells us more about San Piedro. It tells us of the great beauty of the island. The solitary fields and vales of alfalfa, careless roads and the animals. It also tells us more about the residents. It says that they are close knit, a lot are deeply religious,†¦show more content†¦To contrast Mrs. Shigemura taught Hatsue that white men were dangerous egomaniacs and that they had fantasises about Japanese girls and that it distorted their sex drives. Hatsue should marry a boy of her own kind whose heart is strong and good.This shows us that all Japanese people dont take the abuse. They practice their views like the white racists. The book carries a lot of detail about the Second World War and has many descriptions and feelings during and after the war. Also in this chapter we learn about Kabuo, his Buddhism and beliefs. These beliefs say that everything has a soul and shouldnt be harmed and so he feels he carries the burden of war. The Americans didnt think about, or take into consideration the fact that the Japanese Americans would be going out to fight their own kind, people from their homeland. Kabuo feels enormous guilt about this and carried it through out his whole life. Carls mother, Etta is asked to give evidence for the prosecution in chapter nine. She is a farmers daughter who was brought up in South Germany and she is very hardworking and proud. From the evidence she presented in court we feel she isnt emotional in any way and that her traditional views make her seem set in her ways. It also becomes apparent that she is extremely racist and feels that the Japanese are below her. She talks about herShow MoreRelated Snow Falling on Cedars Essay1129 Words   |  5 PagesSnow Falling on Cedars Everyone has experienced prejudice sometime in their life. It has been an undeniable force in society ever since history was recorded. Even the most open-minded people and enlightened organizations can be blamed as being prejudice sometime or another. However, prejudice always takes its toll from these people who form opinions beforehand or without any facts. The novel, Snow Falling On Cedars, take place during a time in which Americans are prejudice towards JapaneseRead More David Gutersons Snow Falling on Cedars Essay1068 Words   |  5 PagesDavid Gutersons Snow Falling on Cedars The early 1940’s were tough times for many Japanese living in America. This is all due to the Japanese and American conflict in World War II, after Japan decided to bomb Pearl Harbor. After this incident many Japanese-Americans were discriminated against and were thought of as bad Japanese instead of the Americans they were. A lot of these Japanese-Americans were unfairly sent to internment camps in the United States. This is also true of theRead MoreSnow Falling on Cedars, The Greasy Pole and To Kill a Mockingbird Compared1164 Words   |  5 Pagesare presented, offering responders insight and a deeper understanding of political, social and economic incongruities within society. David Guterson’s courtroom drama, Snow Falling On Cedars (1994) utilises the symbolic setting of the court trial and the island of San Piedro as a microcosm to reflect the embedded racial discrimination within American society. The characterisation of Ishmael, as an embittered ind ividual allows us to see the deleterious effects of cultural divides in society. Alma DeRead MoreTheres No Place Like Home812 Words   |  4 Pagesexperiences of his characters. The interpretation and comprehension of a story is largely dependent on the inclusion of accounts from the author s own life and experiences. In Sue Monk Kidd s The Secret Life of Bees, David Guterson s Snow Falling on Cedars, and Jhumpa Lahiri s Interpreter of Maladies, diaspora makes it difficult for the characters to assimilate to the new customs and moral convictions of each new environment. In her novel, The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd uses her ownRead More Racial Prejudice in David Gutersons Snow Falling on Cedars Essay1791 Words   |  8 PagesRacial Prejudice in David Gutersons Snow Falling on Cedars Its not one ocean, said Hatsue. Its four oceans...Theyre different from each other. Well how are they different? They just are. (Guterson 97). Snow Falling on Cedars, David Gutersons award winning novel, is set on an island in Puget Sound in the early 1950s. It is a story of the racial prejudice that was felt so strongly against Japanese Americans immediately before, during and after WWII. Kabuo Miyamoto,Read MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 PagesBosses† 34 Case Incident 2 Era of the Disposable Worker? 35 vii viii CONTENTS 2 2 The Individual Diversity in Organizations 39 Diversity 40 Demographic Characteristics of the U.S. Workforce 41 †¢ Levels of Diversity 42 †¢ Discrimination 42 Biographical Characteristics 44 Age 44 †¢ Sex 46 †¢ Race and Ethnicity 48 †¢ Disability 48 †¢ Other Biographical Characteristics: Tenure, Religion, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity 50 Ability 52 Intellectual Abilities 52 †¢ Physical Abilities