Classifications of Restaurants

Restaurant Classification Restaurants are found throughout the United States as well as other countries. Restaurants are found in many different places such as street corners in mobile businesses, buffets found in mid-sized towns and cities, as well as upscale restaurants that are most always found in larger and more populated areas. All of these places serve one purpose in common; to aide to the desired food cravings of countless people. A person might say that there are no noticeable differences of each type of restaurant, but hidden beneath their common goals are various differences that set each apart. Mobile food businesses have become very popular in middle class areas and serve people of all kinds. Although the food may seem delicious, mobile food businesses such as taco wagons spend their time constantly traveling to different places for business. Their trucks can be unclean as it is a hassle to clean out a truck of grease and fallen food. Most people cannot see the inside of a taco truck because they are too high off the ground to see and each wagon has windows that are hard to see inside of. As a result, many people do not see the harm or realize these things and therefore do not care. There is also an inconvenience to customers as there is no formal seating are for dining, and if there is, it is found outdoors. Many people do not want to spend their time eating next to a busy street where everyone passing by can see them, while others may like to simply enjoy the outdoors. Mobile food businesses like these also have very few workers which may lead to food that is delayed in delivery. People that come to food trucks like their food to be delivered in a fast and timely manner so they can get to wherever they are going on time instead of having to wait in a line for their food to be done cooking. Aside from its downsides, there are also positives about mobile food businesses. If there were not any, they would not be in business and be as popular as they are. Many people chose these types of businesses because they are a cheap alternative to fast food places such as McDonald’s. Given the choice of a two pound burrito or a small burger and fries for the same price, most people would choose the burrito. Places such as taco wagons and others provide people with authentic food that may or may not be a part of their culture. Some of these places use ingredients that they would use in their own part of the world. This provides customers with a variety and a little taste of home. Being able to live in a place that provides anyone with a taste of home will bring good money, especially when a town’s population has a lot of diversity. A second type of restaurant that is found in many towns and cities is buffets. Some people see buffets as unsanitary places because of the fact that the food is left out in the open for others to touch or spread more germs. When someone is eating they do not want to think of themselves as in taking germs with every bite that they take, but rather eating food that is delicious and safe to eat. Buffets may also have long lines of people. Because there is no limited amount of food a person can get, hungry people come to these restaurants and go through lines multiple times to get numerous amounts of food. These types of restaurants could play a role in the obesity rate of families today and future families to come. Although eating a lot of food sounds amazing, it is unhealthy and bad for the body. The food that is sold in buffets made seem homemade, and not like a fast food restaurant, but that does not mean that it is healthy and good for the body. Eating mass amounts of food like this can lead to damage to the body over a long period of time. In the worst case scenario, it could lead to more than just obesity. People choose buffets because of their low flat rates. Seizing the opportunity to engulf unlimited amounts of entrees and desserts for about ten dollars is the best deal in the food industry. No other food place can beat a buffet’s deal. Buffets must know this because they would not be in business if they did not. Along with their low costs, buffets are very convenient to their customers. Buffets allow their customers to choose any kind of food they choose to consume, compared to other restaurants that have you choose a certain group of things. The cost from other restaurants includes only the entree. Anything else that someone wishes to choose would be an additional charge to the customer. With a buffet, the cost that it takes to eat there includes the beverage, entree, and dessert. People can mix and match their favorite foods until they are fully satisfied with their meal. The third type of restaurant is the upscale restaurants. These types of restaurants are found mainly in big cities where they can charge people hundreds of dollars for their meals. The meals may be smaller in size, but superior in quality. These places have a fancy and elegant feel to them. Their customers wear formal clothing and eat their meals by candlelight. The food is made of better quality ingredients so it is not unusual for food to take much longer to be prepared and finally arrive at the customers table. Most of the upscale restaurants are not family welcoming. Children of young ages are frowned upon as to not disturb the dining experiences of others. Children seem to not sit still and be noisy. They are also very messy. In high class restaurants it is not usual to see a child, although it is not a standalone rule, it is just a rule that is thought to be in place. These restaurants are more sophisticated and seem as though only a certain type of financially able people should dine there. It is unlikely that a person with little or no money would pay a hundred dollars for a steak and a potato. A person of wealth, on the other hand, would pay a large quantity of money for a simple, yet elegant meal. Although upscale restaurants may have standards, these restaurants have very friendly and inviting staff. It is only an expectation that if customers are willing to pay top dollar for their food, then they shall receive top dollar service. Waiters are usually always there to make sure that your glass is always full and you are happy with how your meal turned out. Along with their friendly and inviting service, most of these restaurants serve only the best and the freshest food available. These items are made fresh right when ordered as opposed to fast food restaurant’s food which is premade and heated to serve to customers. The food that is prepared at upscale restaurants is made to please its customers in the best way possible. Anyone can count on reliable food, service, and cleanliness from upscale restaurants. The goods must outweigh the bad in every area for this type of restaurant to still be popular and serving people to this day. Americans all over the world enjoy different types of restaurants. Mobile food businesses, buffets, and upscale restaurants mark just a few classifications of the restaurant businesses that are found throughout the country. Even with the obvious differences that they possess, the share one common goal; to serve the people who desire and yearn for their food. Although these places may leave drawbacks, they each possess a certain advantage that draws customers back time and time again.

Addressing Employee Motivation Essay

Executive Summary Tom was seen to have a loss of motivation at work which was investigated. An analysis showed the main cause to be a lack of communication from his manager, a need for role definition, and a lack of publicity for the success of his project initiative. Recommendation is for Tom’s manager to be informed so they are hopefully able to address these issues and retain and develop Tom’s skills. A problematic work situation relating to a HRM concept in Book 2 1.1 A description of the work problem Tom has a well paid job as a project manager. He created an idea and initiated a project to design and implement a website. After setting up the design and defining the stakeholders, without discussion, another person was brought in to chair the project meetings and keep track of actions for the software team. He felt a lack of clarity in his role and without clear guidance and credit did not feel motivated to push the project as hard as before. Weekly work hours fell back to a normal 40 hours from 50 or 60, and his other ideas were not pushed to management with the same enthusiasm. Motivation was clearly falling. This example relates to motivation and Session 1 of Book 2 can be used to analyse what motivates Tom to go to work. See more:  First Poem for You Essay 1.2 Analysis of my experience using my chosen concepts To understand Tom’s motivation level’s I have analysed his situation using Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs (1954) from session 1 (The Open University, B120 Book 2). According to Maslow, â€Å"a satisfied need is not a motivator†. Matching which needs are met on the pyramid of five categories will give an indication of which unmet need should be a motivator. Figure [ 1 ] Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs pyramid, and summary of Tom’s status within it. Figure 1 Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs pyramid, and summary of Tom’s status within it. According to Maslow’s theory, Tom has reached the 3rd level, but the lack of communication and feedback has stopped him achieving ‘Esteem’. Maslow states that â€Å"Not meeting these needs has a negative effect on our mental health† and this could explain the low motivation that Tom’s behaviour indicates. Tom was also under the impression that his idea and the quick success of the project would be publicised by his manager and would open up opportunities to be involved in other senior projects within the business. This did not materialise, and the senior management was not made aware of any plans to utilise Tom’s skills. In fact Tom’s manager was based in another country and was often not reachable for consultation either by phone or email. This expectation and its failure to materialise also causes low motivation, as explained in the concept of a ‘psychological contract’ from The Open University (2012). By applying this concept, we can understand that Tom had reason to believe that a successful project would lead to acknowledgement and higher esteem within the company, and even though this was not part of a formal employment contract. When this did not occur Tom felt his psychological contract had been violated, and that his hard work was inconsequential, leading to his low motivation to keep working hard. 1.3 Proposed solutions to the problem The analysis above has identified possible causes of Tom’s low motivation. With this understanding of these reasons, each can be addressed with the right actions. . * Problem : Low motivation, * caused by : Perceived low likelihood of achieving Esteem (on Maslow’s hierarchy) * caused by : lack of communication about tasks. * Classified as : Broken psychological contract If we can determine the cause for the broken contract, we may be able to restore Tom’s motivation to work hard. Also relevant is the Job Characteristic Model from Hackman and Oldham cited by The Open University (2012) which lists five core job characteristics that contribute to satisfying work. If Tom’s work is missing any of the core characteristics his attitude to his job could be affected. Figure [ 2 ]. Hackman & Oldham JCM The lack of regular communication between Tom and his manager suggests that there is insufficient â€Å"Feedback from the Job†. B120, Book 2, Study session 4, highlights the importance of â€Å"Constructive feedback†, which â€Å"involves praising strengths and achievements†. Arranging another person to chair project meetings could also mean that â€Å"Task Identity† was not clear. To solve these items, Tom’s manager should take the following actions: * clarify Tom’s role and tasks within the project * Provide regular opportunities for feedback and communication, including praise of achievements when applicable. * Publicise Tom’s contributions to raise his profile in the senior management team and allow development of his career. Relevant Web sites http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/tesco/motivational-theory-in-practice-at-tesco/maslow-and-herzberg.html (accessed 28-Nov-2012) This shows how a successful company has used Maslow’s hierarchy and Herzbergs two factor theory to try to keep employee motivation high. Herzberg could be summarised as â€Å"If you want people to do a good job for you, then you must give them a good job to do.† The Times is a reputable publisher which lends credence to this site, but this is a case study utilising the theories in this report, and not and original source. http://gmx.xmu.edu.cn/ews/business/management/chapter16.htm#what (accessed 28-Nov-2012) This site was chosen because it contains some interesting definitions of motivation factors, and summarises a collection of different theories on analysing motivation in employees. The information is not verified but some theories corroborate with other sources. References The Open University (2012) B120 An introduction to business studies, Book 2 ‘An introduction to human resource management in business’, Milton Keynes. Web source 1: http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/tesco/motivational-theory-in-practice-at-tesco/maslow-and-herzberg.html dated unknown (accessed 28-Nov-2012) Web source 2: http://gmx.xmu.edu.cn/ews/business/management/chapter16.htm#what dated unknown (accessed 28-Nov-2012)

Joni Mitchell Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Joni Mitchell - Essay Example Her songs communicate her emotions powerfully, and she connects with her listeners directly and honestly. The album Blue consist of songs that are confessional in nature, where Joni Mitchell reveals her anguish of self discovery concerning her past actions based on selfishness and dogmatic beliefs, which led to her losing important relationships. The artiste is commended by her listeners and critics for her lack of subterfuge or self-justification (Bego 2005). Thesis Statement: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the music of Joni Mitchell and her album Blue released in 1971; to determine whether there is a relationship between popular music and wider social, cultural and political issues; to examine the album Blue’s genre, and its lyrical and music creativity. Further, the album’s impact on popular music and on wider culture as a whole will be determined. The Relationship Between Popular Music and Social, Cultural and Political Issues Joni Mitchell’s son gs in the album Blue are acknowledged to be poetic and forthright, with a complexity of emotions depicting raw feelings, the beauty of love, the sadness of loss, and the singer’s confession of her own part in creating her failed relationships. Thus, Blue is considered to be the â€Å"quintessential confessional singer/ songwriter album† (Bego 2005: 100). Generally, popular music goes through changing genres and styles, and forms one aspect of popular culture, along with advertising, films, and other parameters of public interest. During the last few decades of the twentieth century, popular culture in the west became established through its music as a â€Å"predominant, social, cultural, political and economic force† (Walker 2007: 18). The sales of audio-visual recordings, the performance of live shows, and related processes produce high economic returns. This has created an ostensibly limitless earning capacity for pop megastars, thereby raising them to the ver y heights of socio-political and cultural prominence. The increasing power of popular culture, mostly led by popular music has been evident over the last five decades. Until Rock ‘n’ Roll emerged in the mid-1950s, popular music utilized core elements of music, particularly in melody and harmony. This progressed to the recent historical diatonic traditions of western art music. From well-established rhythm and blues traditions, emerged Rock ‘n’ Roll’s vigorous and powerfully hypnotic rhythm and dance. Diatonic melody and harmony was decreasingly relied upon. In the beginning, after an initial hostility to what many people considered as overtly sexual depictions of the rhythm, the words and the music, rock ‘n’ roll was accepted as an alternative style of popular music, and in the duration of a few decades, it became the preferred cultural mode and norm of music expression. Thus, â€Å"from an interesting 1950s socio-cultural phenomenon to mainstream cultural domination by the 1990s† (Walker 2007: 18), the transformation of popular music appears radical in its magnitude. As a result of the changes, in the 21st century now, the term â€Å"music† has become synonymous for many people with rock and pop music. Musicians and singers frequently express their political protest through their musical performances. Protesting through music became a popular

Old Guard vs. Avant-Garde Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Old Guard vs. Avant-Garde - Essay Example Well, until today, there has been an increasing number of different versions of descriptions on what music is and what it is not. However, there has not been a single universally acknowledged definition of music as it is a wide realm of art that is hard to limit within a sentence to encapsulate everything that it is. Well, to be able to understand music in its entirety, it is best to revisit its history. First of all, to give you the most general definition of music, it is an artistic form of auditory communication that incorporates instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner. Another great description of music would be that â€Å"it is any pleasing and harmonious sound created by singers or musical instruments† (Espie, n. d.). These descriptions came about during the Medieval Ages where musical notation, such as monophony and polyphony, were developed. Monophony is characterized by a music that only consists of one melodic line without accompaniment and where the beauty of the chant relied on its melody. On the other hand, polyphony is a type of music created by two or more melodic lines which are heard simultaneously ("History of Music", n. d). Music in the Medieval Ages was considered the â€Å"old-guard† music because at that time people were not open to welcoming other ideas and means of creating music outside of these standard definitions stated above. Avant-garde music on the other hand, is basically the merging of all the elements and genres of music, such as the Medieval, Classical, and Romantic etc. It strongly reflects the modernist style of art music where the irregularity of melody or consistent tune and the rejection of tonality are being embraced. John Cage is an artist and composer being well known for this. He promoted the use of almost anything that could produce sound as one of the instruments to create music and at the same time considered the sound of nature and the most random things as part of his music . Two of his popular works are the â€Å"Dream† and â€Å"Souvenir†. John Cage’s â€Å"Dream† for me is a bright illustration of an â€Å"avant-garde† work. This is because of the fact that there is no consistent melody that reflects monophony and polyphony. Another point worth of noting would be the pauses or silence, which is the element that is imminent in the â€Å"Dream† and would never be considered as music per se within the context of â€Å"Old guard† era. Aside from that, one would be able to notice the altering of tonality from high to low and from long stretches of pitches to a sudden halt. Medieval Age music is totally the opposite to that of modern or avant-garde era being distinct by its repetition of melody and tones, which is something you would not be able to hear in the â€Å"Dream†. Every deployed tone is a new phase of music that reflects randomness and an expression of real life (Eidt, n. d.). A lot of peop le regard John Cage’s â€Å"Dream† as something that is composed of merely an expression of random outcome of events, which is an element that is not recognized within the â€Å"old-guard† technique. Mainly the piano was used to create this music and what makes it special is that the notes being hit are not based on a certain standard of tonality instead they are based on the musician’s score. This allows this work of his to uncover a deeper mystery and beauty as it is not repetitious and predictability of the piece is not there. Thus, its element of silence which is distinct feature of the â€Å"Dream† contributes to something new in the music sphere and causes a lot of aspiring musicians to create the same mystery and at the same time producing a story that would reflect the reality of change in everyday life. Although the

Strategic Management in a Global Environment Assignment - 2

Strategic Management in a Global Environment - Assignment Example Other issues that may also arise include the lack of infrastructure which may result to challenges during distribution of the products and supply management. In order to conquer entry barriers, the market has to choose to go it alone, form partnership or employ local players. c) Strategies to build profitable position. After finding entry strategies, the next thing leaders should focus on is ways on creating defensible position that will meet the businesses long term goals (World Bank & International Finance Corporation, 2013). This can be achieved through understanding of their competitors, marking the target customers and finally through configuration of their local operations in order to deliver your capabilities efficiently. BRICS is an acronym that stands for an association of some five emerging global economies. The members of this association hail from developing countries or the newly industrialised countries. The distinguishing factor is that these countries have fast growing economies and they hold great influence on both global and regional affairs (Pant, 2013). Despite the praise the BRICS get from their commentators, they have received criticism as well. For instance, they are said to be defenders as well as promoters of developing states. BRICS is likely to face some issues in the coming decade due to a number of factors. For example, the West is yet to accept that the group is running by itself. With the creation of BRICS development bank, western analysts cited that BRICS states were very different and therefore could never agree. The other issue within the BRICS is the quantity of the stated issues in the Fortaleza Declaration as well as the Action Plan (Stuenkel, 2014). This is because some parts of the document were largely criticised. One scholar Alan Alexandroff wrote that the group was â€Å"almost breathtaking chutzpah† in condemnation of the groups’ unilateral action. He argued that â€Å"no state should

Motivation Methods Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Motivation Methods Paper - Essay Example This can be done through a needs analysis or even qualitative research such as interviews or questionnaires to determine the real-life attitudes of employees. Motivating employees requires a blend of transformational leadership development, experiential learning, negotiation strategies, and making appeals to psychological needs. Many organizations that operate in dynamic and ever-changing environments must be flexible and adaptable in order to maintain its competitive edge and advantages over other businesses operating in the same industry. For some businesses, marketing and promotion are critical dimensions that differentiate the brand or the product from other companies selling similar products in multiple domestic and international markets. In order to be adaptable, change management becomes critical. According to Grieves (2010, p.8), â€Å"change is a negotiated order†, where internal stakeholders of all varieties attempt to exert persuasive influence on others in order to achieve goals and objectives established by the organization. In order to motivate employees in an environment where there is considerable resistance to change, the manager must consider bargaining tactics in order to negotiate these changes. Employees who often resist change can reduce productivity and complicate the development of special projects that are critical to achieving corporate goals and gaining competitive edge. In many scenarios, such resistance is caused by negative sentiment or attitude about the change and its potential impact on job role and responsibilities. Employees are more willing to accept change activities and principles when they feel they have been given an opportunity to express their concerns about the activities and the potential risks employees feel the change imposes. If employees do not feel they have been given adequate decision-making authority and are being heard by management, they will not feel appreciated within the organizational context. Thu s, the manager should attempt to create a sense of social belonging and also build self-esteem in employees associated with the change. According to Morris & Maisto (2005), these are fundamental human behavioral needs that are critical to achieving a self-actualized, motivated attitude about job role achievement. The most effective methods of establishing motivation in a changing environment are to bargain the change imperatives and ensure that consensus becomes part of the management model. Another method of improving motivation in the organization is the development of the transformational leadership style. According to Fairholm (2009), transformational leadership is a human resources-based management system whereby the manager works as a teacher, mentor and coach to others in order to build their competencies and individual skill-sets. A transformational leader also imparts vision and mission on others in the business, role modeling ethical behaviors to build trust between subord inate and manager. In organizational environments where there are traditional management models that have rigid control systems and reward systems that are contingent on performance in job role, employees are not given opportunities to express their creativity or achieve autonomy in job role. Transactional leadership, as one example, is a management philosophy where goals are

The basic characteristics of literary journalism Essay

The basic characteristics of literary journalism - Essay Example Chronology refers to the arrangement of scenes or events in order in which they take place in a particular eventful situation from the perspective of journalism. Within this context, it can be deduced that this arrangement can be of two types: scenes or observations. In the scenes, there is a particular sequence or arrangement of carefully arranged scenes because this sequence is highly important as it retains a required level and type of structure which is the base of any particular theme involved in the scenes. A sequence of observations can also be used to describe a particular events leading to a meticulous outcome or other effects. Simultaneously, within this context, both types of chorology have different objectives and outcomes as the entire piece of literary journalistic writing is based on the factual or real-life situations in which a particular arrangement of scenes retains a specific type of chronology. As a result of in-built chronology, the piece of journalistic writing becomes able to create an impression of depicting or portraying reality as if it is happening in front of the reader. In the literary journalism, parallel structures are those storylines in which story have more than one causal chain of events and have two different stories are highlighted simultaneously.It can be said that the use of parallelism can increase the level of suspense and adventure in the story in which a particular perspective or use of chronology can be included to make effective.