Disruptive Innovation

1 Introduction This assignment provides the study on Disruptive Innovation using Clayton Christensen’s framework. Apart from this, this assignment also tells how the companies should react to the upcoming technologies and what should be the course of action for the same. 1. 1 Innovation There is no specific definition for innovation as such. But, according to me, innovation is creating something new or changing the old to achieve the competitive advantage and meet the increasing customer demands.This is achieved either by introducing new products, new ideas, and processes or just by changing the design of the product or the processes as per the customer demands. Innovating and creating new products and services has become very important topic of concern for all the organizations in today’s rapidly changing world. If you are not innovative, you may never know when your products become obsolete. 1. 2 Types of Innovation There are three main types of Innovations: Sustainin g innovation: This type of innovation needs to be developed to ensure that the customers are satisfied with the products and services and to stay in the game.For example upgrading the processor from dual core to Intel core i3 to i5 and enhancing the performance of computers. Breakthrough Innovations: These innovations upgrade the level of existing category of products or services. For example I phone was a breakthrough innovation in the world of mobile market. It changed the perspective of the customers and eventually other companies started following the trend. Disruptive Innovation: In this type of innovation a new product or a sevice is introduced that creates a new market or massively alters an old one so that old players cannot compete.They are called disruptive because they disrupt the current behavior of the market. For example Introduction of computers was a disruptive innovation for companies who manufactured typewriters. According to Clayton Christensen Disruptive innovati on offers lower performance initially as per the current market demand. But, at the same time it provides some new attributes which prosper in some different market. After conquering different markets, it eventually displaces the former market. Here we will talk about the hydrogen fuel Cell vehicle a disruptive innovation.How the introduction of hydrogen fuel cell vehicle will disrupt the market for oil industry, current internal combustion engine manufacturers and many others. At the same time we shall talk about how the companies are responding to this upcoming technology and how are they coping up with the new technology. Before going into the statistic part let us know in brief how the hydrogen fuel cell works, how it is different from internal combustion engine and what the benefits of hydrogen fuel cell are. 2 Hydrogen Fuel Cell a disruptive InnovationA fuel cell is an electrochemical device which converts chemical energy into electrical energy. It uses hydrogen and oxygen fro m air to produce electricity. Since no combustion is involved, it does not emit harmful gases and the efficiency of such device is much higher than an internal combustion engine. Apart from this it does not involve any moving part hence making it more silent and reliable source of energy. 2. 1 Working Hydrogen fuel cell consists of two catalysts anode and cathode, and an electrolyte. Hydrogen is fed to anode and oxygen from air is fed to cathode.At anode, catalyst causes hydrogen to split into positively charged ions protons and negatively charged ions electrons. The electrolyte, that is polymer electrolyte membrane allows only positive ion to flow through it. So the protons pass through membrane towards cathode and electrons pass through the external circuit towards the cathode. The flow of electron from the external circuit causes the current and eventually it goes to cathode and combines with positive ion and oxygen to emit water or water vapor. Hydrogen is is a fuel of great pot ential.Thought it is not an energy source, but it is an energy carrier. Hydrogen can be manufactured using renewable energy resources such as wind, solar etc. the research is still on on how to produce hydrogen on a larger scale. Following Figure show the working of a hydrogen Fuel Cell. Figure 1: Working of a Hydrogen Fuel Cell 2. 2 Benefits of a Hydrogen Fuel Cell Following are the benefits of a hydrogen fuel cell Zero green house gas Emissions: As water is the byproduct of the fuel cell, the emissions of harmful gases such as carbon dioxide, sulphur monoxide, etc is not there.Hence, it is a zero emission product. Though some amount of carbon dioxide is produced during manufacturing hydrogen, but research is on to manufacture hydrogen using renewable energy resources. Reduced Air Pollution: As there are no harmful gases emission involved in fuel cell, air pollution will be reduced considerably. Improved efficiency: Fuel cells are more efficient than internal combustion engine. A c onventional combustion egine generates efficiency up to 40% whereas a fuel cell generates efficiency more than 50% and has the potential to reach 85%.Other Benefits: the transportation will be oil independent, since there are no moving part, it is more reliable. 2. 3 Applications Fuel cells have wide range of applications. Following are the applications of a fuel cell: Transportation system: currently oil industry and internal combustion engine dominates the transportation system. But keeping environment and diminishing resources of fuel in mind it is predicted that by 2025 – 2030, hydrogen fuel cell will dominate the transportation sector. Power Generation: Fuel cell can also be used to generate power.It can be stationary power or a portable power. 2. 4 Challenges Following are the challenges that a fuel cell faces today: Cost: Cost of a fuel cell is a major concern right now. Due to expensive materials like platinum is used as a catalyst, the cost of fuel cell shoots up. bu t the research is on and it is most likely that the cost of a fuel cell will come down to $30 – $50/KW for transportation and $1500/KW for stationery power. Storage: Storage of hydrogen is again another concern especially for the transportation system since it has very low density in terms of volume.Research in this area is also going on to store the hydrogen fuel at high pressure. Infrastructure: Again to develop infrastructure for hydrogen is a big challenge cost wise. To develop infrastructure a collaboration will be required between automotive and energy companies. Other challenges include the safety issues to carry hydrogen, Durability of the fuel cell and public acceptance. But research I going on in all the areas and there will definitely be a solution to all the challenges. 3 Clayton Christensen’s Theory of disruptive technologyChristensen developed a framework that could be applied to any market at any point of time so long as the attributes to be measured qua lify for the characteristics presented in his framework. According to Christensen, companies fail because of the following reasons: Companies depend on customers and investors for resources: if the company doesn’t satisfy the customers or the shareholders, it will be difficult for the company to survive Small market cannot provide the growth needed by large companies: Large companies concentrate their efforts where the returns are high and often concentrate where the cost of sales is high.Technology supply exceeds the demand: Rapidly developing technology may often outpace the customer’s needs. When such thing happens opportunity for new entrants develop to enter into the market and come with a new product. Companies with best technology tend to improve the existing product often incrementally. And while focusing on the top end customers, a lower end market remains unserved until a new entrant comes with a potentially disruptive technology. And eventually new market be gins to grow. And once this new market starts gaining the footage, it causes the existing technology to become obsolete.Following graph will help us understand Christensens framework more clearly. Figure 2: Clayton Christensen’s Framework of Disruptive Technology The market is always divided into tiers the higher end market that represents the main customers who buy the product and the lower end market represents the customers who are least to buy the products. And performance is the main criteria by which customers buy the product. Sustaining innovation: As explained earlier, it could be incremental or radical that improves product performance for the main customers.The focus is mainly on improving the performance of the existing products and satisfying the main customers. Disruptive Innovation: It enters in the lower tier of the market with lower cost and attractive value for the lower market customers. Following are the charecteristics of a disruptive technology. * Offers low performance * Targets small market * It is tied with uncertainties * It introduces a new performance criteria in a new dimension * Generally non market leaders introduce such new products in a lower tier market with attributes to benefit lower end market.Moving back to the graph on Christensen’s framework for disruptive innovation, disruptive technology with an innovation enters at point ‘a’ with a lower rate for lower end market. At the same time market leaders are improvising their product using sustaining technologies and satisfying the mainline customers. And when the sustaining technology reaches point ‘b’, it is the peak time for the sustaining technology and after that the market gets saturated. This is the time when the market leaders need to innovate something new and create the new market. After point ‘b’, supply crosses demand.On the other hand, disruptive innovation enters at point ‘a’ satisfies the lower end customers and after improvising it reaches point ‘c’ the main stream customers. At point ‘c’ now, it is very late for sustaining technology to develop a new product for the main stream customers. Here it is very important to distinguish between different types of innovation. Incremental innovation occurs when small improvements are made to products/services. These, basically strengthens the market position of the firm and entrenches the industry. Radical Innovation occurs when major improvements are made to the products/services.These changes require new marketing channels and often put other firms out of competition and at the same time make old technologies obsolete. Transformational innovation occurs when the innovation is of such a nature that it destroys whole industry and changes the nature of the market. So if we have to summarize Christensen’s framework it would be, as the sustaining technology improves along the mainstream customer, disrupt ive technology enters at the lower end market, improvises along the existing dimensions and enters the main stream market.It eventually changes the basis of the competition from functionality to reliability and from reliability to convenience and eventually to price. Now, let’s apply this Christensen’s framework to today’s automotive world that is internal combustion engine as the sustaining technology and the hydrogen fuel cell as the disruptive technology. 3. 1 Comparison of Hydrogen Fuel Cell technology with the Christensen’s Framework of Disruptive Technology Let us compare the performance of fuel economy and green house gas emissions of internal combustion engine and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.From the graph, we can agree that internal combustion engine is a sustaining technology incrementally improving its performance. Initially let’s say in 1980’s the fuel economy of a vehicle was around 4-6 km/l of gasoline and now it is around 12-1 5 km/l. green house gas emissions have also reduced by introducing hybrid option. But it is predicted that internal combustion engine will reach the point ‘b’ somewhere by 2015. That is it will reach the saturation level of innovation. Further development in internal combustion engine will result in more of supply than demand.This is the time when people will anticipate the change, and the change of disruptive technology in our case it is hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Initially it keeps emerging and improves the performance in new dimension and tries to attract the main market stream. During the time emergence hydrogen fuel cell through experimentation seeks commercialization. And it is predicted by 2020 it will seek commercialization. Meanwhile, the internal combustion engine will steadily grow beyond the customer demand and will start losing its hold in the main market.In 2020, at point ‘c’, the market is ready to accept high performance vehicle, in terms o f fuel economy. And beyond this point, the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle keeps on improving rapidly. This will eventually bring the phase out of an internal combustion engine and forcing it out of the market by 2030 – 2040 completely and hydrogen fuel cell vehicle becoming the base technology. Beyond this it will improve incrementally until the new disruptive comes and phase out the hydrogen fuel cell technology. Green House Gas EmissionGlobal warming is one of the prime reasons fro shifting the paradigm from internal combustion engine to hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Following graph shows the global warming potential of gasoline, flex fuels and hydrogen fuel cell in various stages from manufacturing to the end of life of a vehicle. Figure 3: Global Warming potential comparison of 3 different types of Engine. It is clear from the graph global warming potential that is emission of harmful gases from a fuel cell vehicle is less than a gasoline and the flex fuel vehicle.From the grap h, it is seen that only while production for the fuel of hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, the emission of harmful gases is high, but it is very less compared to the gasoline and flex fuels. Apart from that, research is also going on for producing hydrogen using renewably resources such as wind, solar and nuclear. 3. 2 Conclusion It is evident that hydrogen fuel cell vehicle is a disruptive technology and will cause a phase out for the internal combustion engine. But when we compare it to the Christensen’s framework, it slightly contradicts.Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in literal sense are not targeting the lower market initially. The cost of the product is not low. But all other parameters remain the same. It is focusing on the new dimension and at the same time it is threat to the internal combustion engine world. Apart from this slight difference, hydrogen fuel cell vehicle is definitely a disruptive innovation, and will definitely lead to transformation of technologies and will change the basis of competition from fuel economy to green house gas reductions with the environmental pressure. 4 Current ScenarioIf we talk about hydrogen fuel cell in today’s world, it is still an emerging technology which looks solid and promising in terms of fuel economy and reduction in green house gas emission. Research in this particular area is going on all around the world since the global warming level is increasing and the environmental pressure is acting on all the governments. In this scenario, the companies who are already into research in this area will survive and the companies that are still not doing any kind of research or innovation and still trying to improve the sustaining technology might just phase out of the competition.Further we will see cases and findings of various companies in this area including oil industry, automotive industry and the industries related to this huge sector of industries. 4. 1 Oil Industry: Today, the energy sector is run majo rly by oil industry. And majorly oil after refining is consumed by transportation industry. Around 90%of the oil is consumed by the transportation industry, and out of that around 50% of the industry consumes gasoline and the rest is diesel, LPG, Naphtha etc. Major players in this oil industry today are Saudi aramco, shell, BP, Exxon Mobil and chevron.Saudi Aramco (Saudi Arabia)is the major producer of the oil today and has the maximum exports all over the world, then it is followed by other companies. Apart from green house gas emissions and environmental pressure, the increasing rate of oil so frequently gives us an idea that even the oil reserves are diminishing day by day. Now increasing research and development in this area poses threat on oil industry as well. Even the oil industries have started doing research in this area. Basically these companies are doing research on how to produce hydrogen using the existing technologies in large scale.Following are some of the findings of the oil companies in this area. 4. 1. 1 Saudi Aramco (Source: http://www. keei. re. kr/keei/download/seminar/101117/II101118_b02. pdf, www. saudiaramco. com, www. mbifoundation. com/media/18961/final%20bpr. pdf) Following are some of the conclusion made by research and development department of Saudi Aramco. : * H2 production using existing petroleum infrastructure will be a potential economical option compared to other technologies. * Need to integrate the carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies along with hydrogen production for efficient carbon management. Alternate hydrogen production technologies, such as electrolysis and renewable sources, have significant technical and economical challenges (energy intensive and high capital). * Significant progress made in the demonstration of liquid hydrocarbons to hydrogen. Apart from this, Saudi Aramco has also filed a patent in US office for the naphtha based fuels which can also be used for vehicular purpose. 4. 1. 2 Shell ( So urce: http://www. shell. com/home/content/environment_society/environment/climate_change/biofuels_alternative_energies_transport/hydrogen/, http://articles. atimes. com and http://www. thelivingmoon. com/41pegasus/02files/Alternate_Fuel_Shell_Oil_Hydrogen. html) Shell had started its research on this topic since 1999 and had anticipated the change in the world of automotive industry and power sector long back. Shell has joined hands with the leading car making companies and power companies and working on this project. Shell is already working in collaboration with Siemens, Toyota, Daimler Chrysler and has reached a long way in this area. It has also opened various hydrogen fuel stations in United States of America, Europe and Asia.And it is offering free fillips at various fueling station just to promote the upcoming technology. Following picture is one of the fueling station in United States of America where hydrogen fueling is provided. Figure 4: Hydrogen fuel Station by Shell 4. 1. 3 BP: (Source: http://www. bp. com) Like Shell, BP is also one of the world's largest energy enterprises, BP has been extensively involved in hydrogen energy demonstration projects around the world to explore feasible solutions to hydrogen economy.In China, BP and PRC Ministry of Science ; Technology have been co-working on a hydrogen energy project to set up China's first hydrogen fueling station in Beijing. As one of the world's largest energy enterprises, BP has been extensively involved in hydrogen energy demonstration projects around the world to explore feasible solutions to hydrogen economy. In China, BP and PRC Ministry of Science ; Technology have been co-working on a hydrogen energy project to set up China's first hydrogen fueling station in Beijing.Apart from this BP has joined hands with the leading companies like Daimler Chrysler, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Solarex and working on various projects like fuel efficiency, CO2 management, Hydrogen Fuel Cell. Apar t from the companies all these companies also join their hands with various Universities who help the in doing their research. 4. 1. 4 Exxon Mobil: (Source: http://www. exxonmobil. com, http://www. dutchdailynews. com/air-products-and-exxonmobil-start-up-new-world-scale-hydrogen-production-plant-in-rotterdam/) Exxon Mobil again is not left ehind in the research of hydrogen fuel cell and the production of hydrogen on a large scale. Following are some of the research that Exxon Mobil is working on * It is conducting breakthrough research on Hydrogen Production Technology * It is also trying to improve its existing technology at the same time by continuously improving the efficiency of internal combustion engine and reducing the emission of harmful gases. * On 10th Feb 2012 Air products and Exxon Mobil started a large scale Hydrogen Production Plant in Rotterdam. Apart from this, ExxonMobil is also developing an innovative on-board hydrogen-powered fuel cell system that converts conven tional hydrocarbon fuels such as gasoline or diesel into hydrogen for a fuel cell right under a vehicle’s hood. Apart from this there are various other small industries that are into this hydrogen fuel cell research for example Reliance from India is also doing its bit in this area. 4. 2 Automotive Industry We have seen the response and reaction of oil Industry so far, Now let us see the response of automotive industry worldwide.We shall go country wise in this case to know the response of various industries and development in various countries in this specific area. 4. 2. 1 United States Of America: United States of America is spending millions of dollars every year in the research of hydrogen fuel Cell. They have demonstrations with many private companies. Daimler Chrysler Company developed its first fuel cell truck in 2000. The main aim of USA is to make Fuel Cell Vehicle available at an affordable cost. General Motors: General motors one of the oldest companies of USA is planning to get 1000 fuel cell vehicles on road by 2013-2015.Ford Motor Company: Ford is also planning to launch its commercial hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in 2015. 4. 2. 2 Japan: One can say Japan is the very first to start the research in this area and it is since 1981. It was in Japan in Tokyo electric Company, Toshiba and an American based company fuel cell company manufactured and installed an 11 MW power plant (Source: www. platinummetalsreview. com/pdf/pmr-v33-i1-010-012. pdf). Apart from this the major Japanese automotive companies look promising in terms of Hydrogen uel cell vehicle compared to other companies in the world. Toyota: Toyota has promised in its recent Autocar show that it will start selling the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in USA specifically in California, since by 2015 it is predicted that there will be 68 hydrogen fueling stations in California. (Source: http://content. usatoday. com/communities/driveon/post/2012/08/toyota-to-start-selling-hydrogen-fuel-cell-c ar-in-2015/1#. UHFOcE3Mj38) Honda: CEO Takanobu Ito just announced that Honda will launch a new fuel-cell electric car in the U.S. and Europe starting in 2015. It will â€Å"showcase further technological advancement and significant cost reduction. † Honda has already been letting consumers test its fleet of FCX Clarity hydrogen fuel-cell cars for a couple of years (Source: http://www. firstcoastnews. com/news/article/276774/11/Automakers-take-fresh-look-at-hydrogen-fuel-cells) Nissan: Nissan has also announced its interest in hydrogen fuel cell vehicle and has declared that it is ready to mass produce hydrogen fuel cell cars by 2015 (Source: http://www. irstcoastnews. com/news/article/276774/11/Automakers-take-fresh-look-at-hydrogen-fuel-cells) 4. 2. 3 Europe: Europe is not left behind in this research. All the major brands BMW, Mercedes Volkswagen etc have shown interest in hydrogen fuel cell, but at the same time have said hydrogen fuel cell will take at least 10 more year s to commercialize. 4. 2. 4 India: India is the place where we can say Christensen’s framework is applicable perfectly. Here the auto rickshaw for the lower end market has been made using hydrogen fuel cell. t was displayed at pragati maidan in January 2012 and is expected to hit the road by 2015. Source: http://www. nytimes. com/2012/10/02/business/energy-environment/hydrogen-fuels-autorickshaws-and-dreams-of-cleaner-air. html? pagewanted=all&_r=0) Apart from this biggies like TATA Motors and Mahindra and Mahindra have shown interest in this area. Tata Motors have manufactured the bus based on hydrogen fuel cell technology known as starbus. Following figure shows the Auto Rickshaw and the Hydrogen fuel cell BusFigure 5: Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in india Following are some of the comments from various high profile executives from various companies: * Executives from Ford, General Motors, Chrysler and Volkswagen see fuel-cell vehicles as being further out, and most have not said when they'll have vehicles on the market. * â€Å"We don't see it as early as Toyota does,† said Oliver Schmidt, general manager of engineering with the VW Group. â€Å"We see it in the 2020 time frame. * Joe Bakaj, Ford vice president of powertrain engineering, said, â€Å"The question is when (will) fuel-cell vehicles become affordable to customers,† specifically when the fuel-cell stack competes with the battery pack on cost. * â€Å"Within 10 years, I think they will be as affordable as full battery vehicles, and the fuel cell will have a big advantage in range,† Bakaj said. â€Å"We think it will happen in the next 10 years. † * Gary Smyth, GM executive director working on global research and development, said he sees little commitment in the U. S. to the necessary infrastructure by 2015. Source: http://content. usatoday. com/communities/driveon/post/2012/08/toyota-to-start-selling-hydrogen-fuel-cell-car-in-2015/1#. UHFOcE3Mj38) Part from all this various other countries and companies have shown immense amount of interest in hydrogen fuel cell Recently Korea and Korean company Hyundai has also announced an hydrogen fuel cell vehicle launch by 2015. So the major companies all around the world and the allied companies are responding really well to the upcoming technology of hydrogen fuel cell and all of them are doing their bit to save the environment. 5 Conclusion:It is very clear from the above assignment that hydrogen fuel cell is the future of the world. It is definitely one of the biggest disruptive technologies of all time. Biggest because, once the technology is commercialized, many big players all around the world will have to change their base of technology. Technology innovation and upcoming technologies are posing threat on the current industry and are eventually forcing companies out of business. New technologies are exerting power to shape the market and change the basis of the competition. Hence, it is import ant for the companies to continuously assess the technologies and capabilities. Disruptive Innovation In order to remain afloat in this ever changing market, companies must have a sound proof strategy. According to Thompson, Peteraf, Gamble and Strickland, a company’s strategy is its action plan for outperforming its competitors and achieving superior profitability. (Thompson, Peteraf, Gamble and Strickland p. 4) One well known strategy or theory of many companies is a term called disruptive innovation. Disruptive innovation was coined by Clayton Christensen.It explains the process of a product or service preliminary application initiating from the bottom of the market that replaces an already established product or service. This theory has created a significant impact on management practices in all types of industries. It has created debates of how â€Å"executives and managers are in need of research that will elevate the pursuit of successful innovations from a gut-level, intuition-driven art to something more closely resembling a science based on repeatable processes with predictable results.† (Raynor, p. 27)In doing so, it has also created a sense of conflict between entrants, incumbents and disrupters to see which organization will remain the top supplier. Innovation is always on the top mind for all CEOs. Understanding how to identify disruptive innovations before they become mainstream and take advantage of the ‘†white space† is a skill to cultivate. Disruptive Innovation patterns are always changing and sometimes are very difficult to see because of it’s rapid growth. Similarities; Raynor:Disruption theory can be used to shape existing innovation ideas in ways consistent with the theory's prescriptions. As of now the disruption theory of innovation is the only one with evidence to support the assertion that it can improve predictive accuracy. 1. Used to shape existing innovation ideas in ways consistent with the theory’s prescriptions 2. a particular perspective on innovation – is based on its superi or explanatory and predictive power 3. entrants attacked successful incumbents by adopting the incumbents' models and technological solutions – what he called a â€Å"sustaining† strategy-they tended to fail.However, driven by their desire to grow, the upstart entrants were strongly motivated to improve their initial offerings in ways that would allow them to compete effectively for the larger, more lucrative mainstream markets. This was the entrants' â€Å"upmarket march,† and entrants that marched upmarket successfully eventually captured the customers that had been the incumbents' mainstay. Differences: Whatever ambiguities might remain in making the relevant categorizations (incumbent vs. entrant; sustaining vs. disruptive) the data reveal that overall; disruption theory makes better prediction possible.In contrast, entrants tended to succeed by combining a business model tailored to the needs of a relatively less attractive market – the entrants' foo thold – with an ability to improve their original solutions in ways that allowed them to provide superior performance that incumbents were unable to replicate – the upmarket march In contrast, I make a more limited and modest claim: disruption theory can deliver statistically significant and practically material improvement in the ability to innovate successfully.Christensen and Overdorf 1. ? Difference – Managers lack thinking about their organizations capapbilities as they think about individual peoples capabilities. Pg 68 2. Our research suggests that three factors affect what an organization can and cannot do; its resources, its processes and its values pg 68 3. Differences;or similarities . As companies become large, they lose the ability to enter small emerging markets. Cause by an evolution of values. Pg 70 4.Disruptive innovation can create an entirely new market through the introduction of a new kind of product or service, one that is actually worst. Pg 72 5. Differences: Sustaining innovation are nearly always developed and introduced by established industry leaders. But do not cope well with disruptive innovations. Pg 72 6. Similarity: DI occurs so intermittently that no company has a routine process for handling them. Inconsistent with the company’s value. Disruptive Innovation (1) Catalytic innovation involves the process wherein companies and industries take actions within a particular society to create and enhance social changes on certain issues. It is said that â€Å"catalytic innovations can surpass the status quo by providing good enough solutions to inadequately address social problems. † (Christensen et. al. , 2006, p. 96) (2) One important difference and distinction between disruptive innovation and catalytic innovation is its scope.It has been mentioned that catalytic innovation mainly focuses on the issue of creating societal change. On the other hand, disruptive innovation caters to the creation of alternatives of goods and services. The two are similar due to its efforts to create changes in the status quo and market. â€Å"Catalytic innovations are a subset of disruptive innovations, distinguished by their primary focus on social change, often on a national scale. † (Christensen et. al. , 2006, p. 96)(3)There had been efforts in the health care sector to improve the services they give to ordinary people. This has been manifested by the creation of cutting-edge care facilities, insurance and walk-in clinics that offer cheaper and convenient opportunities for sick individuals. The success has been described by the article in the overall satisfaction gained by such walk-in clinics and the other two facets. One vital component of such success is the degree of patronage by the locals on such ideas.Patronage is one clear indicator of preference and satisfaction compared to the original practices. (4) Microlending involves the process of giving capital to small and medium enterprises to start up their own businesses. Since the creation of microlending facilities, it has spurred growth and development among members of the middle strata of several societies. â€Å"In turn, microlending helps sustain borrowers who are paying back loans and creates an economic environment that attracts other lenders looking to start a new business.† (Christensen et. al. , 2006, p. 96)Such benefits have paved the way for the development of social and economic status. (5) Microlending had a positive impact on KickStart because the initiative provided means and capital for small African farmers to acquire technological innovation and create better lives. By providing capital to these farmers, KickStart products somehow alleviated the way labor and work is done in the farms.In addition, due to microlending mechanisms, KickStart was able to expand its market and continued to target small scale farmers with the pursuit of improving their harvests. (6) Analyzing the article, it can be argued that catalytic innovations fall under the bottom of the technology S-curve due to its capability to create changes in society and alter the status quo. Seeing this, it can be surmised they also have the possibility and potential of ‘segment-zero’ products due to its relative ease and capability to access a mark et not envisioned by the normal competitors. References Christensen, C.M., Bauman, H., Ruggles, R. and Sadtler, T.M. (December 2006) Disruptive Innovation for Social Change in Harvard Business Review. pp. 94 – 101. Disruptive Innovation 1 Introduction This assignment provides the study on Disruptive Innovation using Clayton Christensen’s framework. Apart from this, this assignment also tells how the companies should react to the upcoming technologies and what should be the course of action for the same. 1. 1 Innovation There is no specific definition for innovation as such. But, according to me, innovation is creating something new or changing the old to achieve the competitive advantage and meet the increasing customer demands.This is achieved either by introducing new products, new ideas, and processes or just by changing the design of the product or the processes as per the customer demands. Innovating and creating new products and services has become very important topic of concern for all the organizations in today’s rapidly changing world. If you are not innovative, you may never know when your products become obsolete. 1. 2 Types of Innovation There are three main types of Innovations: Sustainin g innovation: This type of innovation needs to be developed to ensure that the customers are satisfied with the products and services and to stay in the game.For example upgrading the processor from dual core to Intel core i3 to i5 and enhancing the performance of computers. Breakthrough Innovations: These innovations upgrade the level of existing category of products or services. For example I phone was a breakthrough innovation in the world of mobile market. It changed the perspective of the customers and eventually other companies started following the trend. Disruptive Innovation: In this type of innovation a new product or a sevice is introduced that creates a new market or massively alters an old one so that old players cannot compete.They are called disruptive because they disrupt the current behavior of the market. For example Introduction of computers was a disruptive innovation for companies who manufactured typewriters. According to Clayton Christensen Disruptive innovati on offers lower performance initially as per the current market demand. But, at the same time it provides some new attributes which prosper in some different market. After conquering different markets, it eventually displaces the former market. Here we will talk about the hydrogen fuel Cell vehicle a disruptive innovation.How the introduction of hydrogen fuel cell vehicle will disrupt the market for oil industry, current internal combustion engine manufacturers and many others. At the same time we shall talk about how the companies are responding to this upcoming technology and how are they coping up with the new technology. Before going into the statistic part let us know in brief how the hydrogen fuel cell works, how it is different from internal combustion engine and what the benefits of hydrogen fuel cell are. 2 Hydrogen Fuel Cell a disruptive InnovationA fuel cell is an electrochemical device which converts chemical energy into electrical energy. It uses hydrogen and oxygen fro m air to produce electricity. Since no combustion is involved, it does not emit harmful gases and the efficiency of such device is much higher than an internal combustion engine. Apart from this it does not involve any moving part hence making it more silent and reliable source of energy. 2. 1 Working Hydrogen fuel cell consists of two catalysts anode and cathode, and an electrolyte. Hydrogen is fed to anode and oxygen from air is fed to cathode.At anode, catalyst causes hydrogen to split into positively charged ions protons and negatively charged ions electrons. The electrolyte, that is polymer electrolyte membrane allows only positive ion to flow through it. So the protons pass through membrane towards cathode and electrons pass through the external circuit towards the cathode. The flow of electron from the external circuit causes the current and eventually it goes to cathode and combines with positive ion and oxygen to emit water or water vapor. Hydrogen is is a fuel of great pot ential.Thought it is not an energy source, but it is an energy carrier. Hydrogen can be manufactured using renewable energy resources such as wind, solar etc. the research is still on on how to produce hydrogen on a larger scale. Following Figure show the working of a hydrogen Fuel Cell. Figure 1: Working of a Hydrogen Fuel Cell 2. 2 Benefits of a Hydrogen Fuel Cell Following are the benefits of a hydrogen fuel cell Zero green house gas Emissions: As water is the byproduct of the fuel cell, the emissions of harmful gases such as carbon dioxide, sulphur monoxide, etc is not there.Hence, it is a zero emission product. Though some amount of carbon dioxide is produced during manufacturing hydrogen, but research is on to manufacture hydrogen using renewable energy resources. Reduced Air Pollution: As there are no harmful gases emission involved in fuel cell, air pollution will be reduced considerably. Improved efficiency: Fuel cells are more efficient than internal combustion engine. A c onventional combustion egine generates efficiency up to 40% whereas a fuel cell generates efficiency more than 50% and has the potential to reach 85%.Other Benefits: the transportation will be oil independent, since there are no moving part, it is more reliable. 2. 3 Applications Fuel cells have wide range of applications. Following are the applications of a fuel cell: Transportation system: currently oil industry and internal combustion engine dominates the transportation system. But keeping environment and diminishing resources of fuel in mind it is predicted that by 2025 – 2030, hydrogen fuel cell will dominate the transportation sector. Power Generation: Fuel cell can also be used to generate power.It can be stationary power or a portable power. 2. 4 Challenges Following are the challenges that a fuel cell faces today: Cost: Cost of a fuel cell is a major concern right now. Due to expensive materials like platinum is used as a catalyst, the cost of fuel cell shoots up. bu t the research is on and it is most likely that the cost of a fuel cell will come down to $30 – $50/KW for transportation and $1500/KW for stationery power. Storage: Storage of hydrogen is again another concern especially for the transportation system since it has very low density in terms of volume.Research in this area is also going on to store the hydrogen fuel at high pressure. Infrastructure: Again to develop infrastructure for hydrogen is a big challenge cost wise. To develop infrastructure a collaboration will be required between automotive and energy companies. Other challenges include the safety issues to carry hydrogen, Durability of the fuel cell and public acceptance. But research I going on in all the areas and there will definitely be a solution to all the challenges. 3 Clayton Christensen’s Theory of disruptive technologyChristensen developed a framework that could be applied to any market at any point of time so long as the attributes to be measured qua lify for the characteristics presented in his framework. According to Christensen, companies fail because of the following reasons: Companies depend on customers and investors for resources: if the company doesn’t satisfy the customers or the shareholders, it will be difficult for the company to survive Small market cannot provide the growth needed by large companies: Large companies concentrate their efforts where the returns are high and often concentrate where the cost of sales is high.Technology supply exceeds the demand: Rapidly developing technology may often outpace the customer’s needs. When such thing happens opportunity for new entrants develop to enter into the market and come with a new product. Companies with best technology tend to improve the existing product often incrementally. And while focusing on the top end customers, a lower end market remains unserved until a new entrant comes with a potentially disruptive technology. And eventually new market be gins to grow. And once this new market starts gaining the footage, it causes the existing technology to become obsolete.Following graph will help us understand Christensens framework more clearly. Figure 2: Clayton Christensen’s Framework of Disruptive Technology The market is always divided into tiers the higher end market that represents the main customers who buy the product and the lower end market represents the customers who are least to buy the products. And performance is the main criteria by which customers buy the product. Sustaining innovation: As explained earlier, it could be incremental or radical that improves product performance for the main customers.The focus is mainly on improving the performance of the existing products and satisfying the main customers. Disruptive Innovation: It enters in the lower tier of the market with lower cost and attractive value for the lower market customers. Following are the charecteristics of a disruptive technology. * Offers low performance * Targets small market * It is tied with uncertainties * It introduces a new performance criteria in a new dimension * Generally non market leaders introduce such new products in a lower tier market with attributes to benefit lower end market.Moving back to the graph on Christensen’s framework for disruptive innovation, disruptive technology with an innovation enters at point ‘a’ with a lower rate for lower end market. At the same time market leaders are improvising their product using sustaining technologies and satisfying the mainline customers. And when the sustaining technology reaches point ‘b’, it is the peak time for the sustaining technology and after that the market gets saturated. This is the time when the market leaders need to innovate something new and create the new market. After point ‘b’, supply crosses demand.On the other hand, disruptive innovation enters at point ‘a’ satisfies the lower end customers and after improvising it reaches point ‘c’ the main stream customers. At point ‘c’ now, it is very late for sustaining technology to develop a new product for the main stream customers. Here it is very important to distinguish between different types of innovation. Incremental innovation occurs when small improvements are made to products/services. These, basically strengthens the market position of the firm and entrenches the industry. Radical Innovation occurs when major improvements are made to the products/services.These changes require new marketing channels and often put other firms out of competition and at the same time make old technologies obsolete. Transformational innovation occurs when the innovation is of such a nature that it destroys whole industry and changes the nature of the market. So if we have to summarize Christensen’s framework it would be, as the sustaining technology improves along the mainstream customer, disrupt ive technology enters at the lower end market, improvises along the existing dimensions and enters the main stream market.It eventually changes the basis of the competition from functionality to reliability and from reliability to convenience and eventually to price. Now, let’s apply this Christensen’s framework to today’s automotive world that is internal combustion engine as the sustaining technology and the hydrogen fuel cell as the disruptive technology. 3. 1 Comparison of Hydrogen Fuel Cell technology with the Christensen’s Framework of Disruptive Technology Let us compare the performance of fuel economy and green house gas emissions of internal combustion engine and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.From the graph, we can agree that internal combustion engine is a sustaining technology incrementally improving its performance. Initially let’s say in 1980’s the fuel economy of a vehicle was around 4-6 km/l of gasoline and now it is around 12-1 5 km/l. green house gas emissions have also reduced by introducing hybrid option. But it is predicted that internal combustion engine will reach the point ‘b’ somewhere by 2015. That is it will reach the saturation level of innovation. Further development in internal combustion engine will result in more of supply than demand.This is the time when people will anticipate the change, and the change of disruptive technology in our case it is hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Initially it keeps emerging and improves the performance in new dimension and tries to attract the main market stream. During the time emergence hydrogen fuel cell through experimentation seeks commercialization. And it is predicted by 2020 it will seek commercialization. Meanwhile, the internal combustion engine will steadily grow beyond the customer demand and will start losing its hold in the main market.In 2020, at point ‘c’, the market is ready to accept high performance vehicle, in terms o f fuel economy. And beyond this point, the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle keeps on improving rapidly. This will eventually bring the phase out of an internal combustion engine and forcing it out of the market by 2030 – 2040 completely and hydrogen fuel cell vehicle becoming the base technology. Beyond this it will improve incrementally until the new disruptive comes and phase out the hydrogen fuel cell technology. Green House Gas EmissionGlobal warming is one of the prime reasons fro shifting the paradigm from internal combustion engine to hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Following graph shows the global warming potential of gasoline, flex fuels and hydrogen fuel cell in various stages from manufacturing to the end of life of a vehicle. Figure 3: Global Warming potential comparison of 3 different types of Engine. It is clear from the graph global warming potential that is emission of harmful gases from a fuel cell vehicle is less than a gasoline and the flex fuel vehicle.From the grap h, it is seen that only while production for the fuel of hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, the emission of harmful gases is high, but it is very less compared to the gasoline and flex fuels. Apart from that, research is also going on for producing hydrogen using renewably resources such as wind, solar and nuclear. 3. 2 Conclusion It is evident that hydrogen fuel cell vehicle is a disruptive technology and will cause a phase out for the internal combustion engine. But when we compare it to the Christensen’s framework, it slightly contradicts.Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in literal sense are not targeting the lower market initially. The cost of the product is not low. But all other parameters remain the same. It is focusing on the new dimension and at the same time it is threat to the internal combustion engine world. Apart from this slight difference, hydrogen fuel cell vehicle is definitely a disruptive innovation, and will definitely lead to transformation of technologies and will change the basis of competition from fuel economy to green house gas reductions with the environmental pressure. 4 Current ScenarioIf we talk about hydrogen fuel cell in today’s world, it is still an emerging technology which looks solid and promising in terms of fuel economy and reduction in green house gas emission. Research in this particular area is going on all around the world since the global warming level is increasing and the environmental pressure is acting on all the governments. In this scenario, the companies who are already into research in this area will survive and the companies that are still not doing any kind of research or innovation and still trying to improve the sustaining technology might just phase out of the competition.Further we will see cases and findings of various companies in this area including oil industry, automotive industry and the industries related to this huge sector of industries. 4. 1 Oil Industry: Today, the energy sector is run majo rly by oil industry. And majorly oil after refining is consumed by transportation industry. Around 90%of the oil is consumed by the transportation industry, and out of that around 50% of the industry consumes gasoline and the rest is diesel, LPG, Naphtha etc. Major players in this oil industry today are Saudi aramco, shell, BP, Exxon Mobil and chevron.Saudi Aramco (Saudi Arabia)is the major producer of the oil today and has the maximum exports all over the world, then it is followed by other companies. Apart from green house gas emissions and environmental pressure, the increasing rate of oil so frequently gives us an idea that even the oil reserves are diminishing day by day. Now increasing research and development in this area poses threat on oil industry as well. Even the oil industries have started doing research in this area. Basically these companies are doing research on how to produce hydrogen using the existing technologies in large scale.Following are some of the findings of the oil companies in this area. 4. 1. 1 Saudi Aramco (Source: http://www. keei. re. kr/keei/download/seminar/101117/II101118_b02. pdf, www. saudiaramco. com, www. mbifoundation. com/media/18961/final%20bpr. pdf) Following are some of the conclusion made by research and development department of Saudi Aramco. : * H2 production using existing petroleum infrastructure will be a potential economical option compared to other technologies. * Need to integrate the carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies along with hydrogen production for efficient carbon management. Alternate hydrogen production technologies, such as electrolysis and renewable sources, have significant technical and economical challenges (energy intensive and high capital). * Significant progress made in the demonstration of liquid hydrocarbons to hydrogen. Apart from this, Saudi Aramco has also filed a patent in US office for the naphtha based fuels which can also be used for vehicular purpose. 4. 1. 2 Shell ( So urce: http://www. shell. com/home/content/environment_society/environment/climate_change/biofuels_alternative_energies_transport/hydrogen/, http://articles. atimes. com and http://www. thelivingmoon. com/41pegasus/02files/Alternate_Fuel_Shell_Oil_Hydrogen. html) Shell had started its research on this topic since 1999 and had anticipated the change in the world of automotive industry and power sector long back. Shell has joined hands with the leading car making companies and power companies and working on this project. Shell is already working in collaboration with Siemens, Toyota, Daimler Chrysler and has reached a long way in this area. It has also opened various hydrogen fuel stations in United States of America, Europe and Asia.And it is offering free fillips at various fueling station just to promote the upcoming technology. Following picture is one of the fueling station in United States of America where hydrogen fueling is provided. Figure 4: Hydrogen fuel Station by Shell 4. 1. 3 BP: (Source: http://www. bp. com) Like Shell, BP is also one of the world's largest energy enterprises, BP has been extensively involved in hydrogen energy demonstration projects around the world to explore feasible solutions to hydrogen economy.In China, BP and PRC Ministry of Science ; Technology have been co-working on a hydrogen energy project to set up China's first hydrogen fueling station in Beijing. As one of the world's largest energy enterprises, BP has been extensively involved in hydrogen energy demonstration projects around the world to explore feasible solutions to hydrogen economy. In China, BP and PRC Ministry of Science ; Technology have been co-working on a hydrogen energy project to set up China's first hydrogen fueling station in Beijing.Apart from this BP has joined hands with the leading companies like Daimler Chrysler, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Solarex and working on various projects like fuel efficiency, CO2 management, Hydrogen Fuel Cell. Apar t from the companies all these companies also join their hands with various Universities who help the in doing their research. 4. 1. 4 Exxon Mobil: (Source: http://www. exxonmobil. com, http://www. dutchdailynews. com/air-products-and-exxonmobil-start-up-new-world-scale-hydrogen-production-plant-in-rotterdam/) Exxon Mobil again is not left ehind in the research of hydrogen fuel cell and the production of hydrogen on a large scale. Following are some of the research that Exxon Mobil is working on * It is conducting breakthrough research on Hydrogen Production Technology * It is also trying to improve its existing technology at the same time by continuously improving the efficiency of internal combustion engine and reducing the emission of harmful gases. * On 10th Feb 2012 Air products and Exxon Mobil started a large scale Hydrogen Production Plant in Rotterdam. Apart from this, ExxonMobil is also developing an innovative on-board hydrogen-powered fuel cell system that converts conven tional hydrocarbon fuels such as gasoline or diesel into hydrogen for a fuel cell right under a vehicle’s hood. Apart from this there are various other small industries that are into this hydrogen fuel cell research for example Reliance from India is also doing its bit in this area. 4. 2 Automotive Industry We have seen the response and reaction of oil Industry so far, Now let us see the response of automotive industry worldwide.We shall go country wise in this case to know the response of various industries and development in various countries in this specific area. 4. 2. 1 United States Of America: United States of America is spending millions of dollars every year in the research of hydrogen fuel Cell. They have demonstrations with many private companies. Daimler Chrysler Company developed its first fuel cell truck in 2000. The main aim of USA is to make Fuel Cell Vehicle available at an affordable cost. General Motors: General motors one of the oldest companies of USA is planning to get 1000 fuel cell vehicles on road by 2013-2015.Ford Motor Company: Ford is also planning to launch its commercial hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in 2015. 4. 2. 2 Japan: One can say Japan is the very first to start the research in this area and it is since 1981. It was in Japan in Tokyo electric Company, Toshiba and an American based company fuel cell company manufactured and installed an 11 MW power plant (Source: www. platinummetalsreview. com/pdf/pmr-v33-i1-010-012. pdf). Apart from this the major Japanese automotive companies look promising in terms of Hydrogen uel cell vehicle compared to other companies in the world. Toyota: Toyota has promised in its recent Autocar show that it will start selling the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in USA specifically in California, since by 2015 it is predicted that there will be 68 hydrogen fueling stations in California. (Source: http://content. usatoday. com/communities/driveon/post/2012/08/toyota-to-start-selling-hydrogen-fuel-cell-c ar-in-2015/1#. UHFOcE3Mj38) Honda: CEO Takanobu Ito just announced that Honda will launch a new fuel-cell electric car in the U.S. and Europe starting in 2015. It will â€Å"showcase further technological advancement and significant cost reduction. † Honda has already been letting consumers test its fleet of FCX Clarity hydrogen fuel-cell cars for a couple of years (Source: http://www. firstcoastnews. com/news/article/276774/11/Automakers-take-fresh-look-at-hydrogen-fuel-cells) Nissan: Nissan has also announced its interest in hydrogen fuel cell vehicle and has declared that it is ready to mass produce hydrogen fuel cell cars by 2015 (Source: http://www. irstcoastnews. com/news/article/276774/11/Automakers-take-fresh-look-at-hydrogen-fuel-cells) 4. 2. 3 Europe: Europe is not left behind in this research. All the major brands BMW, Mercedes Volkswagen etc have shown interest in hydrogen fuel cell, but at the same time have said hydrogen fuel cell will take at least 10 more year s to commercialize. 4. 2. 4 India: India is the place where we can say Christensen’s framework is applicable perfectly. Here the auto rickshaw for the lower end market has been made using hydrogen fuel cell. t was displayed at pragati maidan in January 2012 and is expected to hit the road by 2015. Source: http://www. nytimes. com/2012/10/02/business/energy-environment/hydrogen-fuels-autorickshaws-and-dreams-of-cleaner-air. html? pagewanted=all&_r=0) Apart from this biggies like TATA Motors and Mahindra and Mahindra have shown interest in this area. Tata Motors have manufactured the bus based on hydrogen fuel cell technology known as starbus. Following figure shows the Auto Rickshaw and the Hydrogen fuel cell BusFigure 5: Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in india Following are some of the comments from various high profile executives from various companies: * Executives from Ford, General Motors, Chrysler and Volkswagen see fuel-cell vehicles as being further out, and most have not said when they'll have vehicles on the market. * â€Å"We don't see it as early as Toyota does,† said Oliver Schmidt, general manager of engineering with the VW Group. â€Å"We see it in the 2020 time frame. * Joe Bakaj, Ford vice president of powertrain engineering, said, â€Å"The question is when (will) fuel-cell vehicles become affordable to customers,† specifically when the fuel-cell stack competes with the battery pack on cost. * â€Å"Within 10 years, I think they will be as affordable as full battery vehicles, and the fuel cell will have a big advantage in range,† Bakaj said. â€Å"We think it will happen in the next 10 years. † * Gary Smyth, GM executive director working on global research and development, said he sees little commitment in the U. S. to the necessary infrastructure by 2015. Source: http://content. usatoday. com/communities/driveon/post/2012/08/toyota-to-start-selling-hydrogen-fuel-cell-car-in-2015/1#. UHFOcE3Mj38) Part from all this various other countries and companies have shown immense amount of interest in hydrogen fuel cell Recently Korea and Korean company Hyundai has also announced an hydrogen fuel cell vehicle launch by 2015. So the major companies all around the world and the allied companies are responding really well to the upcoming technology of hydrogen fuel cell and all of them are doing their bit to save the environment. 5 Conclusion:It is very clear from the above assignment that hydrogen fuel cell is the future of the world. It is definitely one of the biggest disruptive technologies of all time. Biggest because, once the technology is commercialized, many big players all around the world will have to change their base of technology. Technology innovation and upcoming technologies are posing threat on the current industry and are eventually forcing companies out of business. New technologies are exerting power to shape the market and change the basis of the competition. Hence, it is import ant for the companies to continuously assess the technologies and capabilities.

Postpartum depression: The mother, child and partner involvement Essay

Traditionally, postpartum psychiatric disorders have been divided into three categories depending on increasing degrees of severity: postpartum blues, postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis. Postpartum Depression (PPD) is thought to affect between 4 and 28% of all mothers. Despite its prevalence, it is not well understood.   It is the duration, severity and complexity of the symptoms that distinguishes PPD from the baby blues and postpartum psychosis (Romm, 2002). PPD can affect any woman, no matter what her age, economic status, or cultural background. Symptoms include madness, irritability, apathy, and intense anxiety, crying spells, worthlessness, and inability to make decisions or to concentrate. It can begin anytime during the first few days, weeks, or months after delivery. The specific cause is unknown but fluctuating hormone levels, exhaustion and stress may trigger. PPD, if left untreated could lead to postpartum psychosis characterized by delusions and hallucinations; they may become suicidal or have thoughts of hurting their baby. There are a lot of possible causes of PPD which include: doubt about the pregnancy, lack of support system, breast-feeding problems, sharp drop in estrogen and progesterone levels after childbirth, unresolved issues and any other stressful events. Signs and symptoms that may indicate that postpartum blues are actually PPD include: worsening insomnia, changes in appetite (poor intake), poor interaction with the neonate; views the neonate as a burden or problem, suicidal thoughts or thoughts of harming the neonate, feelings of isolation from social contacts and support systems, inability to care for self or neonate due to lack of energy or desire (Springhouse, 2007). A range of risk factors have been identified with the development of PPD, including a history of depression, difficult infant temperament, marital or partner relationship problems, child care stress, low self-esteem and poor social support. Postpartum depression is very treatable with counseling and/or antidepressant medications that are safe for nursing mothers (Riley, 2006). The child of a PPD mother Researchers have extended examination of PPD to include samples from various cultures and countries around the world. PPD disrupts maternal-infant interactions and children’s cognitive and emotional development. Withdrawn, disengaged, and intrusive maternal behavior patterns may result in fussy, aggressive, less affectionate and less responsive infants. Reduced vocalization and slower neurological growth and motor skills development have been documented among infants of depressed mothers. In response to growing incidence of PPD’s negative effect on infant development, investigators have begun to focus evaluating interventions to promote improved mother-infant relationships. Nurse investigators are also involved in testing better tools for early detection of PPD. The Postpartum Depression Screening Scale (PDSS) is a promising, 35-item self-report instrument to identify women who are at risk for PPD. Given the importance of PPD as a clinical problem, mental health evaluation of all postpartum women should be standard care (Fitzpatrick & Wallace, 2006). This depression often interferes with a woman’s ability to function. One of the major challenges in dealing with PPD has been early recognition. Undiagnosed PPD can result in tragedy, sometimes in a form of maternal suicide or infanticide that makes headlines. Early intervention is essential. In screening, it is important to recognize that women who have experienced a high-risk pregnancy, previous infertility, previous post-partum depression, and stressful labor and birth are at risks of PPD. A non-supportive partner or stress related to family, marriage, occupation, housing, or other events during pregnancy can also contribute to the risk of PPD. Also, women with past history of depression not related to pregnancy are at risk. Screening for PPD begins with prenatally with identification of potential risks. it is important that the woman at risk and/or diagnosed with PPD receive appropriate counseling, treatment, and support (Phillips, 2003). One clinical trial designed to test the efficacy of an interactive coaching approach delivered by trained home visiting nurse produced promising findings. The intervention had a positive effect on maternal-infant responsiveness among mothers. Subsequent research is needed with diverse samples to test additional interventions to reduce negative effects of maternal depression on child development. Inclusion of partners to examine family processes related to maternal depression was also recommended (Fitzpatrick & Wallace, 2006). The treatment   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Treatment is available for people suffering from depression, the most effective for moderate-to-severe cases generally being combination of biological and non-biological therapies. This usually means making use of both medication and psychotherapy. One key factor in the success if antidepressant medication is the willingness of patients to take it as prescribed. Compliance with prescribed medications is also important. Psychotherapy is educational in nature and involves helping patients develop an understanding of various problems, as well as new beliefs and behaviors, which can ultimately lead to more successful adjustments. Psychotherapy may be supportive in nature or crisis-oriented (Ainsworth, 2000). The high rate of depression and anxiety disorders in women of childbearing age should alert the primary care physician to consider PPD in the routine care of young and middle-aged women (Robinson & Yates, 1999). The partner of a PPD mother   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Research suggests that women’s relationships with their male partners are crucial to understanding PPD. According to studies, male partners are the primary sources of support in mother’s lives, and one of the main causes of PPD is seen as a poor relationship in which a woman’s partner fails to be sympathetic, understanding, or supportive in practical or emotional terms (Mauthner, 2002). The partner’s positive response to this problem could result to faster recovery of the mother and the safety of the child as well. References Ainsworth, P. (2000). Understanding Depression: Univ. Press of Mississippi. Fitzpatrick, J. J., & Wallace, M. (2006). Encyclopedia of Nursing Research: Springer Publishing Company. Mauthner, N. S. (2002). The Darkest Days of My Life: Stories of Postpartum Depression: Harvard University Press. Phillips, C. R. (2003). Family-Centered Maternity Care: Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Riley, L. (2006). Pregnancy: The Ultimate Week-By-Week Pregnancy Guide: Meredith Books. Robinson, R. G., & Yates, W. R. (1999). Psychiatric Treatment of the Medically Ill: Informa Health Care. Romm, A. J. (2002). Natural Health After Birth: The Complete Guide to Postpartum Wellness: Inner Traditions / Bear & Company. Springhouse. (2007). Maternal-Neonatal Nursing Made Incredibly Easy! : Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.   

Alaska Coffee Company

Sure Powell was given input by his retail managers, employees and customers, but he wasn’t given any advice from people that new the company inside and out. All the people that offered him advice had no knowledge regarding the financials or other intricate facets of the company. If he had a board of directors he might be able to make more informed decisions that better serve the company as a whole. It is clear he also didn’t have a clear process for managers to go through to implement changes and or suggestions. The chain of command was vague and rarely used except by going directly to or through him. His attitude of â€Å"let it rip† is great because it gives employees freedom to thing outside the box and make them feel like they are a major part of the company but does not give any structure to them. His marketing background is most likely a key contributor to the company’s success in implementing new products and keeping customers coming back but with no real experience in running a company before this he lacked the human resource skills necessary for a company to thrive which is clear in his passive leadership role. External Environmental Analysis Some of the key external forces with company were in the beginning not really having any competition which let the company grow and lock down a loyal customer base. Also with the Alaskan environment suiting coffee drinkers because of the mild to colder weather. Staying confined in one city also helped the brand name grow through word of mouth and helped lock down business opportunities. Having a roaster facility in the city also cut down on expenses and helped keep the coffee fresh which was one of their staple trademarks to serve the freshest coffee possible. Internal Environmental Analysis Some of the key internal forces for ACC were the fact that the company was built on loyal workers who stayed in the company due to chances for promotion and growth. Along with that and Powell’s leadership style it let employees act somewhat freely and have input into a company that strived to stay away from a corporate feel. The quality of the products that they offered also helped them since they were considered to have the top of the line products some of which were considered to be the best in the world. Having a small chain of command is also beneficial to the employees because it allows them to get things done relatively quickly without having to wait for it to go through many different levels of management. With most customers saying that the coffee was addicting and the atmosphere was very pleasant it leads to a happy environment for customers and workers alike allowing for the business to strive. Another problem of the external environment is that the shops were not strategically located. The areas that they were placed in were researched to some extent but not fully like a major company like Starbucks would do to make sure they can get the most out of the market. Not only that but they didn’t own all the building or locations that they were in having leased some of the spaces with only year contracts. SWOT Analysis The opportunities to grow for the ACC seemed to be limitless since they had already successfully competed with local competition and it did not affect their bottom line to a level of concern for them until, world conglomerate Starbucks entered the scene. Once they came on scene it became clear that competition would become a threat and opportunities could and would shrink. This was and is the biggest threat to ACC since Starbucks is already a well known product that strives to give customers the â€Å"Starbucks Experience†. This is where the customer can feel comfortable getting the same service and products at any store in the world compared to ACC’s differently styled shops and styles of running the stores. This is probably of the greatest concern since most of their stores have different layouts and feels you can’t go to one ACC store and then go to another and feel like it is just like the one you already visited. One strength that ACC has is that it is a local company built on staying small and having a non corporate feel. They also strive to employee young workers in a state that is economically stricken and worried about their young adults leaving the state to live elsewhere. One weakness I believe that they have is that their merchandise can be over priced and even though started to compete with lower priced items there were no real studies done on how well the products would do. One of their major weaknesses is their human resources department and their lack of technical support. They switched to new major software with no one that could fix a problem if one occurred. Business-Level Strategy Their strategy was to find a way to keep their customers loyal while offering the best possible choices in specialty coffees and to help contribute to the great state of Alaska’s economy. Their potential for success I believe is still quite good. As long as Powell can overhaul is leadership strategy and his chain of command, I think they could become even more profitable than they already are. He needs to make a lot of changes but he has the right idea and now he just needs to build on it. Even though it may not be the Alaskan way of doing things he needs to come up with written ways and policies to go about key things in his business. The communication chain also must be improved for the business to continue to be successful. Cooperative Strategy ACC has some key alliances in place already with major retailers already selling their products in wholesale as well as, disturbing them as needed. Having an alliance with an already established local produce market has obviously been key to their early success and I would guess that those are the stores that continue to post the most profits. Since they do not have a written agreement in place I would recommend that he do so because if he were to lose those locations to say Starbucks, it could be detrimental to his business. Even though some of the major retailers already offer Starbucks products to the public, it is important that ACC stays on good terms with them so as not to lose their business since they are solely confined to Alaska any lose of a major retailer could have vastly negative effects. It is also key that stay in good relationships with the companies that they do their major business with for the same reasons as above. Options and Recommendation In order for ACC to stay in the specialty coffee market, they will need to do some drastic overhauling. Starting with Powell, he needs to establish a direct chain of command and follow through with it. He already gives managers leeway with projects but he has to help them make more informed decision so that he will not have to cancel projects. He also needs to bring in a financial analyst to help teach his managers how to budget and be more open with the financials of the business. After that he needs to revamp his human resource department and definitely bring in an IT specialist to help deal with any software issues. While he also needs to bring in people to train all the essential employees on how to use the software adequately enough that they will be able to teach new employees. I would say he then needs to have a clear line of vision of where he wants the company to go and how he wants it to get there. In order to do that I believe he needs a committee or a board of directors to help weigh in on decisions and help spark new ways and ideas of innovating and implementing strategies. It is also apparent that he needs to upgrade his facilities so that they can operate at full capacity which will also help get rid of some of the overhead he has. Then he needs to establish one way that all stores will look and future stores will be laid out. The one thing that he may not want to do because it may seem like they are going corporate but there are too many uncertainties from one store to the next. They do not have to be identical but the way things are done internally and as far as customer service goes that should be. Overall I think ACC can last and be the main Specialty Coffee supplier in Alaska he just needs to do a little overhauling.

Event Management (Event strategy plan) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Event Management (Event strategy plan) - Essay Example People were not happy. This caused severe unrest and people began to revolt. All over the Arab world, including Syria. This revolution has done more damage than good, causing a lot of pain and suffering on the women and children of the country. (Jamoul 2012) This section of society hasn’t even had that much of a role in the uprising. But they have been tortured, abused physically, mentally and sexually, till all hope has been lost. Over 500 children have been killed in a year of the uprising. (United Press International 2012). Women and even young girls have been raped and killed, at the hands of authority – like policemen. (Women under siege Syria 2012) The rest are all miserable and scared, and it is time to do something for them. In an effort to make the lives of the victims of the uprising – especially the women and children, we shall organise a fundraiser on an international scale. An event that will show people just how much the uprising has affected this s ection of society and how badly they are affected. (Peralta 2012) The event will not only be a call for attention but also a cry for action to the privileged so that they can do something for those that have suffered. ... It will have different elements to it such as an auction by international celebrities of their favourite items, followed by live performances. There will be dances, songs, stand up and so on. But the focus of the night will be on the woman and children of Syria who have had to suffer so much. The night will not just be one of fun. It will be emotional. A rollercoaster of a night that will allow people to enjoy their surroundings and a jarring reminder that they have it easy, by showing them what the women and children are going through. We will show them videos and let them see what is happening. These people will be constantly reminded of the sad plight of thousands of innocent women and children who are suffering at the hands of authority. Strategic Aim The whole point of this event is to create awareness among the people of the world, of the plight of the women and children of Syria. That done, we feel it is our duty to aid them in any way we can. They have suffered enough at the hands of authority, and they need to be rescued. By this event, our objectives are threefold. One, to create an international awareness about the plight of the women and children in Syria. Two, to generate funds to aid these victims. And three, to set up trusts that will ensure that the victims are taken care of. All donations will be anonymous. The framework of objectives would need to be broad enough to include the large variety of event genres, but still be lean enough to work with. (Damm 2011). Research Management Events such as these happen all the time. Celebrities and the ‘big shots’ get together to support a cause, have a good time and donate what they wish to a charity of sorts.

Gun Control Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Gun Control - Essay Example â€Å"In 2005, 11,346 persons were killed by firearm violence and 477,040 persons were victims of a crime committed with a firearm. Most murders in the United States are committed with firearms, especially handguns.† (Gun Violence) These statistics are very alarming and it is more of a national issue, the recent statistics are even worse. It is really easy to get weapons and especially guns. It is very important to bring about a change and it should be done soon. It is important to ensure that people do not get their hands on these guns easily, it is sure to bring down the crime rate and especially gun violence. There must be stricter laws in place to ensure that people do not get easy access to arms, this is a certain way of bringing down gun violence. Gun control has always been a very debatable and a complex topic, law-abiding citizens are expected to follow the law but these days law has become a donkey on which the rich people ride. In several Asian countries people get away with gun crimes because of their influence and authority, there have been several cases in the US also wherein the guilty have gotten away with heinous crimes. It is also a fact that firearms can be used for protection and guns can be useful provided they are in the hands of right individuals but it is very difficult to determine who is right and who is not became many a time the so called right people end up doing wrong things. This is exactly why this topic is very debatable and complex. Mental illness is also a very big factor when it comes to gun control, mentally ill people can easily go and purchase guns and run riot in the street, the very same happened in Norway a few months ago, a mentally ill person had easy access to firearms and the same resulted in a massacre. It is extremely important to place restrictions but this is something which is implausible, there are hardly any laws when it comes to purchasing a firearm, yes, one needs a

THE FINANCIAL RATIO ANALYSIS ASSIGNMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

THE FINANCIAL RATIO ANALYSIS ASSIGNMENT - Essay Example The values projected by current ratio of Wiman company postulate that it is able to meet its financial obligations. However, its ability is limited to some percentage; for instance in the year 2012, it was only able to meet 8% of its total debts and obligations The analysis reveals that the company is making loses apart from the year 2011. This could be as a result of more money paid out as dividend and recurrent expenditure. Decisively, the company is not generating sufficient income. Between the financial year 2010 and 2013, the fixed asset turnover ratio has been constantly improving a clear indication that the company is using its internal resources effectively. However, a slight decrease has been recorded in the year 2013. In year 2011, the company paid only 15% of its total income as dividend. However, the percentage has been steadily increasing with up to 131% in the year 2013. While a higher percentage of dividend may look good, it is unsustainable and that is why market prospects my get scared form investing in the

Display design for or a museun, gallery, shop ,church, palace or Essay - 1

Display design for or a museun, gallery, shop ,church, palace or temporary exhibition - Essay Example The display remains steady and usable to date a feature that portrays the appropriateness off the display and subsequent renovations done to the facility that have sustained the position of the display thereby finding the display some relevance among the display and architectural accolades in the contemporary society as the essay below portrays. The portrayal of space comes naturally to the display of the church; the freestanding display has specific features that facilitate free movement of people, lighting, and aeration thereby facilitating its sustainability. The cathedral exemplifies effective consumption of space as it houses numerous offices of the diocese and the parish. From the large church with a naval height of twenty two meters and the numerous compartments throughout the floor that serve as offices to the dioceses, the cathedral is self-sustaining with the displayers ensuring that key features of the cathedral such as lighting, aeration and the management of the temperature remained self-sustained. The numerous compartments that extend to the heights of the towers do not obstruct the doors and windows. The church hall therefore extends to the walls all-round the display thereby perpetuating the free flow of light and air that keeps the church aerated throughout the service. Additionally, the displayers ensured that all the rooms and compartments in the cathedral remained easily accessible depending on their relevance to the main church. Display is a fundamental feature of the display that the displayers considered. The displayers ensured that the display remained elegant to date. Among the elements of display the cathedral exemplify include presentation. The freestanding cathedral enjoys glamorous ambience arising from the large and stylishly displayed laws to the strong tall towers that earns the cathedral its towering attribute in the neighborhood. As explained earlier, aeration, lighting and

Does Science Aim at the Truth Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Does Science Aim at the Truth - Essay Example Other philosophers have also extended Plato’s ideas on knowledge, especially by focusing on how beliefs can be separated from truths. In Discourse, Descartes (1985, p. 131) says that something can only be known if you believe it, if it is truth, and if you have evidence supporting the belief. This is similar to Plato’s approach. The only difference is that Descartes takes a slightly more practical approach and consider how people can justify their belief in something. The answer is that people justify their belief via evidence. If they have evidence that supports their belief, they have a reason to say that their belief is true. This suggests that the scientific approach is based on finding the truth, since it also uses evidence to support beliefs. Another philosopher that provides information on the topic is Lonergan. The focus of Lonergan’s philosophy is how ideas are created and used to create knowledge. In Insight: A Study of Human Understanding (1957, p. 32) Lonergan argues that individuals gain knowledge by questioning the data that is attained from experience. According to Lonergan, facts and knowledge are based in reality. However, people do not automatically have an understanding of facts and knowledge. Instead, people have to gain an understanding by questioning and considering their experience. In some cases, people will make assumptions about the world based on experience. They will then test these assumptions to see if they are correct. In proposing this view, Lonergan is not talking about a scientific approach, but is simply talking about how people learn about the world and acquire knowledge. The interesting thing is that his approach mirrors the scientific method. The scientific metho

Place Branding Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Place Branding - Research Proposal Example As a consumer, one gets to come across several brand names as part of our daily lives. Names such as Microsoft, Coca-cola, Mercedes, and Harvard have all become ingrained in our minds as popular entities in their respective domains. Much of the effort driven towards popularizing these brand names have been successful largely through strategically conceived efforts, which also symbolizes the leadership positions that these brand names occupy at a global level. In the modern day, governments across the world have begun to look at branding and its associated marketing techniques as a means to market and sell their geographical regions to the rest of the world whereby the emphasis is concentrated on enhancing the international profile with an intent to attract more investment from foreign players and make such regions popular as economic powerhouses for commerce, trade, and tourism (Malcolm Allan, 2005). In a similar way, the government of the Republic of Nigeria is in the process of initiating several campaigns that aim to popularize the country and its image to people and companies across the world. part of this effort has been due to the rising awareness amongst a few African nations such as South Africa and Uganda to market themselves across the world (Eugene Jaffe, 2006). In accordance with this policy, the Nigerian government, through its ministry of Information and National Orientation has launched programmes such as the ‘The Heart of Africa’ project, which is based on the concept of Place Branding. The proposed research study will attempt to study the various initiatives undertaken by the Nigerian government along the lines of ‘Place Branding’ and will work towards studying them in the form of a case study. The above discussion clearly divides branding into two classes namely product branding and place branding.  In comparison to the former, the latter is still a burgeoning discipline and most of the literature that describes place branding is still in a loosely embedded format.  

Small Organisation Developpment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Small Organisation Developpment - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that contemporary marketing environments are highly dynamic and complex since marketing situations are largely influenced by technology, globalization and fierce competition in the market. Therefore, marketers are required to look at most effective strategies that can help them achieve competitive advantages as well as long-term profitability. As Carpenter and Sanders noted, marketers are always trying to sell their products or services to the targeted customers with a deliberate attempt to gain an advantage over other providers of the same products or services in the same market, and in order to achieve the marketing objectives, he is required to carry out effective planning and decision making. Armstrong and Kotler emphasized that a marketing plan, probably including its mission and vision, is one that identifies and defines the marketing activities of the business in terms of satisfying basic needs of its customers. Satisfying customersà ¢â‚¬â„¢ specific or general wants and needs is at the core of marketing and this itself is the basis of marketing objectives as well. Experts in the field of business found that a successful entrepreneur is one who brings a newer idea, finds opportunities to convert the same to a profitable venture, uses innovation and technology for producing something new and markets the same in a more attractive way. Treffinger, Isaksen, and Stead-Dorval emphasized that creative thinking is also an important characteristic of an entrepreneur and thus he will be able to create a newer marketing opportunity. Acs and Audretsch argued that an entrepreneur is able to create a better marketing order. When it comes to Down at Hele, company’s founder William Knapman’s outstanding entrepreneurial skills helped him uncover the hidden marketing opportunity surrounding hedgerow. He thought about restoring hedgerow for meeting the environmental management needs and for that purpose he tried to t urn traditional farm buildings into productive use. Though this can simply be considered as the unexpected and incongruous happening of an idea, the same can further be developed and converted to a very long-term profitable marketing opportunity if there are an effective plan and appropriate foreseeing of what and how it should be marketed.

Schools of Thought Worksheet Essay Example for Free

Schools of Thought Worksheet Essay General Terms Ecology is the science that studies living beings in relationship with biotic and abiotic environments. (Desjardins) Environmental Justice is being defined as a pursuit to equal justice and equal protection under the law for all statues and regulations without any type of discrimination based on socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and/ or race. (Rajzer, 1997) Environmental Science is a study on the interaction of living and non-living elements in the surrounding environment with emphasis on the impact of humans and these elements. (College) Ethics consists of the general beliefs, values, attitudes, or standards that guide to a responsible behavior. (Desjardins, Environmental Ethics) Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) are plants, animals, and other living things created through genetic engineering. It means they take the DNA from different species, plants, animals and create cross breading that in normal circumstances wouldn’t occur in nature or in traditional cross breeding. (Green America) Renewable Energy is a source of energy that flows from on-going natural processes such as wind, flowing water, geothermal heat flows, biological processes and most common solar energy. (Science Daily) Sustainability basically creates and helps maintain effective habitats in which people and nature can co-exist in a productive, fulfilling and social economic environment for this and future generations. (EPA) Schools of Thought Anthropocentrism is the philosophical belief that human beings are the central most significant creatures in the world. Biocentrism is the thought that every living creature is of equal value in this grand purpose of nature. Ecocentrism is a perspective view that places essential value on all living organisms and their natural habitat, unmindful of their recognized usefulness or importance to humans. Ecophilosophy is a combination of philosophy and ecology. Hedonism is the pursuit or devotion to pleasure, especially those of the senses. Inherent Value also referred to as intrinsic value to be recognized rather then given. Its value is in itself and not for just its uses. Materialism is a tendency to think and feel as if material objects/possessions are more important then spiritual values. Metaphysical Ecology is a philosophical ecology that has been passed from a concrete scientific conception of ecology in a narrow sense to abstract a philosophical conception of ecology using a philosophical sense of thinking. Minimalism is the act of keeping things or interest very simple. Ethical Extensionism is a disagreement in environmental ethics that good standing should be extended to things such as animals, plants, earth and species that normally are not thought of as having moral standings. Pluralism is a theory that states there is more than one basic principal or substance. Naturalism is the deception of the physical environment mainly the landscape or the rural environment. Pragmatism a philosophical movement or system having numerous forms, but usually underlining consequences as constituting the crucial criteria in determining the meaning, truth or value. Relativism a theory holding that criteria of judgment are relative, fluctuating with individuals and their environments. Utilitarianism an ethical doctrine value that virtue is based on utility and that conduct should be directed toward promoting the greatest happiness of the greatest number of people. The local environmental issue I am talking about is renewable energy. The two schools of thought I am going to associate that with is naturalism and materialism. This particular community issue is affecting us in a way our climate changes and how much pollution there is. The rising heat and temperatures we experience here have an affect on our environment. One  article said that our temperature have increased by approximately 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit since the early twentieth century. (Pollution Green Energy) Our sea levels have risen at an accelerating rate of about 3.5 mm/year. (Pollution Green Energy) In order to preserve our natural community I feel we need to start thinking green. Speaking as a minimalist, I am all for going green and help protecting our environment. If we as responsible adults don’t teach our children and grandchildren about pollution and the effects of it how will this world be in another twenty years? I am twenty-seven and I can see how much change m y community has gone through. I remember as a kid walking to my grandmother’s house and looking down seeing nothing but pollution and trash all over the ground. The naturalist are all for keeping a clean and safe environment. Using renewable energy we can go green and start making plants and crops that are better for you and not full of chemicals. They believe that with using energy efficient appliances and even vehicles will in the long run help the community with this major energy problem we have. The materialistic people in my opinion don’t really care about preserving energy and not really care about the gas that pollutes our air. One of the biggest forms of pollution is from non-renewable gasses, which is a major cause for global warming. Ethically speaking the naturalist are trying to help better the community by having state and local leaders imply more sources of renewable energy sources for our use. The materialistic people can and probably will go on what ever is popular at the time. One of the biggest ethical and even materialistic concerns is the amount of money taxpayers, local and state legislatures will have to spend to add more solar paneled farms and streetlights. Ethics has influenced our way of thinking because the pros for renewable energy will do so good for not only our community but for our world as a whole; where as the pros for non-renewable energy benefit the need for having things done in the â€Å"now†. The biggest con for renewable energy is the cost and getting more people to believe that it can and will help our community. At the end of the day sit down and think about which option is better for our community. Should we spend the money to provide more useable renewable energy sources or continue to provide non-renewable energy sources that can harm our community and our future generations to come? (Conserve Energy Future)

Qualitative research Essay Example for Free

Qualitative research Essay PREPARING A CASE STUDY: A Guide for Designing and Conducting a Case Study for Evaluation Input By Palena Neale, PhD, Senior Evaluation Associate Shyam Thapa, PhD, Senior Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor Carolyn Boyce, MA, Evaluation Associate May 2006 P AT H F I N D E R I N T E R N AT I O N A L T O O L S E R I E S Monitoring and Evaluation – 1 PREPARING A CASE STUDY: A Guide for Designing and Conducting a Case Study for Evaluation Input By Palena Neale, PhD, Senior Evaluation Associate Shyam Thapa, PhD, Senior Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor Carolyn Boyce, MA, Evaluation Associate. May 2006 Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank the following Pathfinder employees and partners for their technical inputs into this document: Emmanuel Boadi (Pathfinder/Ghana), Anne Palmer (Futures Group International), Ugo Daniels (African Youth Alliance (AYA)), Veronique Dupont (Pathfinder/Extending Service Delivery (ESD)), Cathy Solter, Lauren Dunnington, and Shannon Pryor (Pathfinder headquarters). Jenny Wilder and Mary Burket are also thanked for their inputs and assistance in editing and producing this document. 2 PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY. What is a Case Study? A case study is a story about something unique, special, or interesting—stories can be about individuals, organizations, processes, programs, neighborhoods, institutions, and even events. 1 The case study gives the story behind the result by capturing what happened to bring it about, and can be a good opportunity to highlight a project’s success, or to bring attention to a particular challenge or difficulty in a project. Cases2 might be selected because they are highly effective, not effective, representative, typical, or of special interest. A few examples of case study topics are provided below—the case studies would describe what happened when, to whom, and with what consequences in each case. Case Study Examples Shifting Attitudes of Youth-Serving Service Providers Uniqueness/Point of Interest Your program was able to change service providers’ attitudes towards dealing with Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health (ASRH) needs in an environment where provider’s attitudes have been a barrier to young people accessing SRH services. Your program was effective in introducing YFS to the MOH and in institutionalizing an YFS curriculum in a setting where the MOH did not provide YFS. Your program was able to integrate HIV prevention in several FBO service delivery points in an environment that normally does not include or welcome HIV prevention activities. Your program built the leadership capacity of youth to advocate, promote, and participate in decision making around ASRH. This transpired in a setting that did not include ASRH on the agenda nor encourage youth participation in general or in decision making in particular. Integrating Youth-Friendly Services (YFS) in the Ministry of Health (MOH) Integrating HIV Prevention in Faith-Based Organization (FBO) Health Services Delivery. Developing Youth Leadership in Tanzania 1 2 Yin, Robert K. (2003). Case Study Research: Design and Methods. Thousand Oakds: Sage Publications. Case refers to the unit of analysis or topic chosen for study (i. e. , the individual, organization, or program). PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY 3 When is a Case Study Appropriate? Case studies are appropriate when there is a unique or interesting story to be told. Case studies are often used to provide context to other data (such as outcome data), offering a more complete picture of what happened in the program and why. What are the Advantages and Limitations of a Case Study? The primary advantage of a case study is that it provides much more detailed information than what is available through other methods, such as surveys. Case studies also allow one to present data collected from multiple methods (i. e. , surveys, interviews, document review, and observation) to provide the complete story. There are a few limitations and pitfalls however, each of which is described below. Can be lengthy: Because they provide detailed information about the case in narrative form, it may be difficult to hold a reader’s interest if too lengthy. In writing the case study, care should be taken to provide the rich information in a digestible manner. Concern that case studies lack rigor: Case studies have been viewed in the evaluation and research fields as less rigorous than surveys or other methods. Reasons for this include the fact that qualitative research in general is still considered unscientific by some and in many cases, case study researchers have not been systematic in their data collection or have allowed bias in their findings. In conducting and writing case studies, all involved should use care in being systematic in their data collection and take steps to ensure validity3 and reliability4 in the study. Not generalizable: A common complaint about case studies is that it is difficult to generalize from one case to another. But case studies have also been prone to overgeneralization, which comes from selecting a few examples and assuming without evidence that they are typical or representative of the population. Yin, a prominent researcher, advises case study analysts to generalize findings to theories, as a scientist generalizes from experimental results to theories. 5 3 4 Validity refers to the degree to which a study accurately reflects or assesses the specific concept that the researcher is attempting to measure. Reliability is the extent to which an experiment, test, or any measuring procedure yields the same result on repeated trials. 5 Yin, Robert K. (2003). Case Study Research: Design and Methods. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. 4 PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY. What is the Process for Conducting a Case Study? The process for conducting case study research follows the same general process as is followed for other research: plan, collect data, analyze data, and disseminate findings. More detailed steps are given below. 1. Plan †¢ Identify stakeholders who will be involved. †¢ Brainstorm a case study topic, considering types of cases and why they are unique or of interest. †¢ Identify what information is needed and from whom (see â€Å"What are Potential Sources of Information? † and â€Å"What are the Elements of a Case Study? †). †¢ Identify any documents needed for review. †¢ List stakeholders to be interviewed or surveyed (national, facility, and beneficiary levels) and determine sample if necessary. †¢ Ensure research will follow international and national ethical research standards, including review by ethical research committees. For more information, please see the International Ethical Guidelines for Biomedical Research Involving Human Subjects, available at http://www. cioms. ch/frame_guidelines_nov_2002. htm. 2. Develop Instruments †¢ Develop interview/survey protocols—the rules that guide the administration and implementation of the interview/survey. Put simply, these are the instructions that are followed to ensure consistency across interviews/surveys, and thus increase the reliability of the findings. The following instructions for the should be included in the protocol: †¢ What to say to interviewees when setting up the interview/survey; †¢ What to say to interviewees when beginning the interview/survey, including ensuring informed consent of the respondent (see Appendix 1 for an example); †¢ What to say to respondent in concluding the interview; †¢ What to do during the interview (Example: Take notes? Audiotape? Both?); and †¢ What to do following the interview (Example: Fill in notes? Check audiotape for clarity? Summarize key information for each? Submit written findings? ). †¢ Develop an interview guide/survey that lists the questions or issues to be explored and includes an informed consent form. Please note that you will likely need interview guides/surveys for each group of stakeholders, as questions may differ. †¢ Where necessary, translate guides into local languages and test translation. PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY 5 3. Train Data Collectors †¢ Identify and train data collectors (if necessary). (See â€Å"Training Tips for Data Collectors†6. ) Where necessary, use interviewers that speak the local language. Training Tips for Data Collectors Staff, youth program participants, or professional interviewers may be involved in data collection. Regardless of what experience data collectors have, training should include: †¢ An introduction to the evaluation objectives, †¢ A review of data collection techniques, †¢ A thorough review of the data collection items and instruments, †¢ Practice in the use of the instruments, †¢ Skill-building exercises on interviewing and interpersonal communication, and †¢ Discussion of ethical issues. 4. Collect Data †¢ Gather all relevant documents. †¢ Set up interviews/surveys with stakeholders (be sure to explain the purpose, why the stakeholder has been chosen, and the expected duration). †¢ Seek informed consent of each respondent (written or documented oral). Re-explain purpose of interview, why the stakeholder has been chosen, expected duration of, whether and how the information will be kept confidential, and the use of a note taker/tape recorder. †¢ If the respondent has consented, conduct the interview/survey. 5. Analyze Data †¢ Review all relevant documents. †¢ Review all interview/survey data. 6. Disseminate Findings †¢ Write report (see â€Å"What are the Elements of a Case Study? †). †¢ Solicit feedback. †¢ Revise †¢ Disseminate 6 Adamchak, S. , et. al. (2000). A Guide to Monitoring and Evaluating Adolescent Reproductive Health Programs. Available at http://www. pathfind. org/site/PageServer? pagename=Publications_FOCUS_Guides_and_Tools. 6 PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY What are Potential Sources of Information? Case studies typically rely on multiple sources of information and methods to provide as complete a picture as possible. Information sources could include: †¢ Project documents (including meeting minutes) †¢ Project reports, including quarterly reports, midterm reviews †¢ Monitoring visits †¢ Mystery client reports †¢ Facility assessment reports †¢ Interviews †¢ Questionnaire/survey results †¢ Evaluation reports †¢ Observation †¢ Other What are the Elements of a Case Study? Case studies do not have set elements that need to be included; the elements of each will vary depending on the case or story chosen, the data collected, and the purpose (for example, to illustrate a best case versus a typical case). However, case studies typically describe a program or intervention put in place to address a particular problem. Therefore, we provide the following elements and example on which you might draw: 1. The Problem i. Identify the problem ii. Explain why the problem is important iii. How was the problem identified? iv. Was the process for identifying the problem effective? 2. Steps taken to address the problem 3. Results 4. Challenges and how they were met 5. Beyond Results 6. Lessons Learned. PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY 7 1. The Problem: It is essential to identify what the problem was. Specifically: i. Identify the problem. For example, certain FBO leadership was opposed to including HIV prevention activities within their programming. Specifically, they felt that prevention activities would promote sex among youth and thereby increase the incidence of HIV. In addition, the FBO felt that the promotion of condoms as a form of prevention was morally wrong. ii. Explain why the problem is important. Following the same example, to provide a comprehensive response to HIV/AIDS, prevention activities are an important part of HIV programming, in addition to care and support. Addressing moral and religious concerns and objections of FBO leaders in order to incorporate this component greatly expands the prevention effort and offers a greater breadth and depth in HIV programming. iii. How was the problem identified? It is likely that program staff will have an idea of what general problems exist. For example, YFS is not integrated in the MOH, FBOs do not include prevention activities, youth involvement does not occur, etc. What was likely missing and required exploration were the details around this general problem. In the case of working with FBOs, an initial project planning meeting was held to discuss the specifics behind the problem. It was revealed during this process that certain FBOs who conducted care and support activities did not offer prevention activities, specifically condom promotion. The primary reason given was religious objections; another reason identified but not explicitly stated was stigma. iv. Was the process for identifying the problem effective? After additional one-on-one discussions with FBO leaders, it was determined that the leaders had concerns based on moral and religious grounds regarding prevention efforts, particularly promoting condoms. Furthermore, discussions revealed that a number of leaders had limited and/or erroneous information regarding transmission and prevention options. 8 PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY 2. Steps Undertaken to Address the Problem: What was done (activities/ interventions/ inputs), where, by whom, for whom? In the case of integrating prevention in FBOs, an illustrative outline of steps undertaken to address the problem is given below: What was done? Phase 1: Sensitization Sensitization of leadership: activities included reviewing FBO policies and bylaws by program staff in order to demonstrate to leadership that there were no constitutional objections to prevention activities. Project staff engaged liberal FBO leaders to supply quotes from the Bible to build their evidence-based argument to convince other leaders that there was in fact no biblical basis for the preclusion of prevention activities. Sensitization of facility managers: meet with managers to discuss leadership approval and present evidence-based arguments on why integration activities can be included. Sensitization of community: work with groups to explain that these activities have been approved by the FBO leadership and where they can go to receive services. Phase 2: Integration Facility assessments Selected facilities Project Staff, FBO representatives Local Implementing Partners (IPs) Project Staff, Facility Managers Contractor FBOs, Project Staff Facility Staff District/ National Project Staff FBO leaders Where? By Whom? For Whom? Facilities Project Staff Facility Managers Community catchment areas Project Staff Community members Training of service providers Selected facilities Conduct staff orientations Facilities Facility Staff Physical infrastructure improved Phase 3: Outreach Identify peers that you want to work with Training Provide Tools Supervision Phase 4: ME Reassessments Facilities Facility Selected facilities Facilities Facility Staff IPs Project Peer supervisors Beneficiaries Peers Peers Peers Sample of selected facilities Project Staff, Facility Management, Youth Trained mystery clients Project Staff, Peer Supervisors. Facility, Project Staff Mystery client interviews Monitoring visits Facilities Facilities, Peers Facility staff, Project Staff PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY 9 3. Results: What were the results of your intervention, particularly the significant or unique results? For example: your activities resulted in the FBO including HIV prevention activities in their programming, which contributed to an increase in condom distribution. Or, your activities resulted in youth-serving service providers adopting a youth-friendly attitude which contributed to improved services and an increase in youth visits. Church leadership may have made a commitment and modified policies to include ASRH activities, leadership talking about the issues publicly. Facility managers may make financial commitments to refurbishments, training, etc. 4. Challenges and how they were met: This focuses on what challenges or difficulties you encountered and what you did to overcome them. One of the challenges in working with FBOs may have been dealing with Catholic FBOs and your response could have been to negotiate with them to include certain prevention activities like abstinence, and/or providing a referral point to youth who may want to get information about condoms. Another possible challenge is that not all FBOs who you had hoped to work with were willing to come on board and this required additional attention. 5. Beyond Results: Are the results mentioned above sustainable? Why or why not? For example, an integrated approach to programming (which included a strong policy and advocacy component) created an enabling policy environment with strong stakeholder support that can be nurtured and leveraged beyond the project duration. 6. Lessons Learned: What lessons were learned: programmatic, technical, financial, process, etc.? For example, the experience showed that it was imperative for project staff to have a very solid understanding of government policies to speak to these issues with key stakeholders. In addition, it was important to have a good understanding of the various religious beliefs in addition to their respective policies and by-laws for developing and delivering advocacy arguments. How are Case Studies Presented? Case studies are flexible in that they can be presented in a number of ways—there is no specific format to follow. However, like all evaluation results, justification and methodology of the study should be provided, as well as any supporting information (i. e. , copies of instruments and guides used in the study). Case studies may stand alone or be included in a larger evaluation report. If presented as a stand-alone report, the following report outline is suggested: 1. Introduction and Justification 2. Methodology a. How was the process carried out? (Describe the process of selecting the case and data collection sources, as well as how data was collected. ) b. What assumptions are there (if any)? 10 PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. c. Are there any limitations with this method? d. What instruments were used to collect data? (You may want to include some or all in the appendix. ) e. What sample(s) is/are being used? f. Over which period of time was this data collected? The Problem The Steps Taken to Address the Problem The Results The Challenges and How They were Met Beyond Results Lessons Learned Conclusion Appendices Where Can More Information on Case Studies be Found? Information on Case Study Research Adamchak, S. , et. al. (2000). A Guide to Monitoring and Evaluating Adolescent Reproductive Health Programs. Available at http://www. pathfind. org/pf/pubs/focus/guidesandtools/PDF/Part%20II. pdf. Patton, Michael Q. (2002). Qualitative Research Evaluation Methods. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. Stake, Robert E. (1995). The Art of Case Study Research. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. United States General Accounting Office, Program Evaluation and Methodology Division. (1987). Case Study Evaluations. Available at http://161. 203. 16. 4/t2pbat22/132683. pdf. Yin, Robert K. (2003). Case Study Research: Design and Methods. London: Sage Publications. Examples of Case Studies Cornwall, A. and Welbourn, A. (2002). Realizing Rights: Transforming Approaches to Sexual and Reproductive Well-Being. London: Zed Books. Population Council. Quality/Calidad/Qualite series. Available at http://www. popcouncil. org/publications/qcq/default. htm. SRI International. (2001). The Organization of Learning in Community Technology Centers: Learning with Technology in Six Communities. Available at http://www. americaconnects. net/research/SRI_case_study_report. pdf. PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: WRITING A CASE STUDY 11 Appendix 1: Sample Informed Consent Form Key Components: †¢ Thank you †¢ Your name †¢ Purpose †¢ Confidentiality †¢ Duration †¢ How interview will be conducted †¢ Opportunity for questions †¢ Signature of consent I want to thank you for taking the time to meet with me today. My name is ________________________ and I would like to talk to you about your experiences participating in the African Youth Alliance (AYA) project. Specifically, as one of the components of our overall program evaluation we are assessing program effectiveness in order to capture lessons that can be used in future interventions. The interview should take less than an hour. I will be taping the session because I don’t want to miss any of your comments. Although I will be taking some notes during the session, I can’t possibly write fast enough to get it all down. Because we’re on tape, please be sure to speak up so that we don’t miss your comments. All responses will be kept confidential. This means that your interview responses will only be shared with research team members and we will ensure that any information we include in our report does not identify you as the respondent. Remember, you don’t have to talk about anything you don’t want to and you may end the interview at any time. Are there any questions about what I have just explained? Are you willing to participate in this interview? __________________ Interviewee __________________ Witness __________ Date ______________________________________ Legal guardian (if interviewee is under 18) 12 PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL: SAMPLE INFORMED CONSENT FORM Pathfinder International 9 Galen Street, Suite 217 Watertown, MA 02472 USA Tel: 617-924-7200 Email: [emailprotected] org 05/06/500.