Why I Will Never Speed Again Essay Example for Free

Why I Will Never Speed Again Essay The most significant experience of my life would be what I am going through right now. I had gotten a car for Christmas from my parents that was 15 years old but is a very sporty little car that has a lot of life left in it. About a month after I got it, I had just been to see my girlfriend for a few minutes after work late one Friday night and was on my way home. While I was driving home, I was all alone in my car and there was not another car to be seen on the open highway and I wanted so bad to see how fast my car would go. So, not using my brain, I floored my car and took off flying! It felt absolutely amazing at that moment when I hit 100 miles per hour and kept right on going. It was so fantastic and such a rush until I got the scare of my life. All of a sudden I saw blue lights in my rear view mirror and went from elation to immediate fright. I was scared to death and knew I was caught. I was so nervous with butterflies in my stomach and thought I might even mess my pants! I knew then that all I could do now was to be as respectful as I could when the officer walked up to me. I was literally shaking, I was so scared. The officer was very nice about the whole thing, but he in fact clocked me at 112 in a 55 mile per hour zone. He informed me that he could very well arrest me and take me to jail right there on the spot. I was so thankful that he chose to call my parents instead. He did however issue me 2 misdemeanors and a date for court. My dad has a good friend that works for our local sheriffs office and my parents had my butt in his office first thing that following Monday morning and I got an awakening on what it is like to be locked up and got a really long lecture and lessons about how an automobile at that speed can be worse than any weapon. I never really thought before that a car can truly be a weapon, but when they got through with me, I completely understood how I could of not only put my own life in grave danger, but that I put other lives in danger as well. This could of cost me greatly, I could very well have gone to jail if not of even cost my own life or the life of an innocent person on the road that night. I could of lost my license completely and not been able to drive again for a long time, and the money for court and attorneys fees will no doubt cost my parents a great deal (which I have no doubt they will make me pay back). But in the meantime, I decided to make some of my own punishments and am working at least 10 or more hours per week doing voluntary community service at my local fire station. I have been working my tail off washing fire trucks, sweeping floors, washing garage doors, mopping, painting and on and on. I dont know yet what the true consequences will be out of all this, because I havent gone to court yet and faced the judge. But I do know that the second scariest thing, after seeing those blue lights behind me that night, will be facing that judge. I am truly scared and ashamed to face my actions. I can only hope that all the voluntary community service I am doing before that time comes will help the judge understand how bad I feel. I am sharing this story because I need others to realize that any automobile can easily be used as a weapon and has the potential to harm people. I want everyone to know, as I do now that the speed limits are there to protect lives and not just to keep us from having fun with our cars. And as for me, I have learned my lesson well and will not be speeding again.

Analyzing Suzie Essay -- Health and Wellness

Aspirin binds to COX-2, a protein that makes prostaglandins, inhibiting it from its function. Prostaglandins are normally released by the damaged tissues at Dave’s sprained ankle site, stimulating nerve endings to produce the sensation of pain (Martini, p. 46). Aspirin is also known as an anticoagulant because it inhibits the production of prostaglandins that also form platelets, used for blood clotting. This is why people who tend to have heart attacks take aspirin, to reduce the chance of blood clots. (Hoffman, 2011) B. Fainting 1. Why did Suzie faint when she got up from the table? Explain the specific changes in her CVS that to caused her to faint. There are few reasons that contributed to Suzie’s fainting spell. Skeletal muscle helps propel the blood in veins back to the heart. Suzie has low blood pressure primarily because she is starving herself. Without nutrients from the small intestine, the body is forced to use to stored fats and proteins. The cold environment in the kitchen decreased her blood pressure even more. As a homeostatic mechanism, blood vessels constrict to keep Suzie and the vital organs warm. The lack of oxygen being delivered to the brain caused Suzie to faint and lose consciousness temporarily (Martini, p. 722). Another reason Suzie fainted is because of her prolonged QT interval, detailing the ventricular depolarization/ repolarization time of her heart by the Purkinje fibers. Thirdly, Suzie’s development of anemia contributed to her fainting because there were probably was not enough healthy red blood cells to deliver oxygen to her brain. When Suzie collapsed, she laid in a horizontal position increasing deliverance of blood and oxygen to the brain. (Martini, p. 722) C. Ectopic Hear... ...als.org/content/94/6/2129.full  · Hoffman, Lucas, MD, PhD. â€Å"Aspirin 101† 2011. http://health.howstuffworks.com/medicine/medication/aspirin3.htm  · Lacroix, Pierre. An Overview of QT Interval Assessment in Safety Pharmacology. Figure 10.7.1. Current Protocols in pharmacology. July, 2006  · Martini, Frederic C. Fundamentals of Anatomy & Physiology. 7th Ed. Pearson.  · National Heart Lung & Blood Institute. â€Å"Explore Long QT Sydrome†. September 2011. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/qt/  · Pritts, Sarah D., MD. University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Diagnosis of Eating Disorders in Primary Care. January 15, 2003. http://www.aafp.org/afp/2003/0115/p297.html  · Yanowitz, Frank G., MD. The Alan E. Lindsay Center ECG Learning Center. The University of Utah School of Medicine. 2006 http://library.med.utah.edu/kw/ecg/ecg_outline/Lesson12/index.html

A Paper About Justice, Dignity, Torture, Headscarves: Can Durkheim’s Socioligy Clarify Legal Values?/ Roger Cotterrell

Task: Could you write a one to two page summary of what Cotterrell says can be learned from a sociological approach in thinking what to do about the famous problem of whether Muslim women should be allowed to dress in all -covering veil. Restrictions on the wearing of the Islamic head scarf and body covering gown – A legal-moral issue In his article – Justice, Dignity, Torture, Headscarves: Can Durkheim's Socioligy Clarify Legal Values? Roger Cotterrell attempts to find out what Emile Durkheim would say regarding two issues that stand out in present days – the acceptability of torture in defense of national security; and restrictions on the wearing of the Islamic headscarf. Cotterrell takes Derkheim's approach regarding the sociology of morality in order to examine moral and legal evaluation of contemporary legal studies – Cotterrell examines Durkheim's ‘Moral individualism' idea (‘the cult of the individual’ or ‘cult of the human person’) concerning those two issues. I would focus on the second issue and would try to summarize Cotterrell's arguments on what the Durkheimian approach would say regarding the famous problem of whether Muslim women should be allowed to dress in all-covering veil. Firstly, I will explain what â€Å"Moral individualism† is and Durkheim's justifications for it. Then, I will display Cotterrell's justifications to why this approach is relevant nowadays. Thirdly, I will examine the dilemma in hand in a sociological way and try and understand what Cotterrell and Durkheim would say on the matter. Moral Individualism': According to Cotterrell, the essential idea that stands on the basis of the ‘Moral Individualism' principle is â€Å"universal respect for the equal human dignity and autonomy of every member of society, whatever differences there may be in the outlook, position, life conditions or roles of society’s members†. Durkheim feels strongly about ensuring that societies will integrate, or rat her – will be able to integrate, and will be able to be cohesive. I. e. if individuals in a certain society grant equal and ultimate respect to other individuals and their autonomy – that society will be able to better integrate and be cohesive and will ultimately work better as a group/society. Current relevancy: Cotterrell argues that the ‘Moral individualism' idea provides an alternative to familiar current ideas about the subject of human dignity. Durkheim's ideas â€Å"on solidarity and the body suggests that prohibiting certain forms of this, but not others, contravenes values of human dignity†. For example, if society does not respect the choice of Muslim women to dress in a certain way – society, de facto, does not respect these women's right for human dignity. Durkheim does not claim that following an investigation according to the ‘Moral Individualism' principle will result in a global time-less conclusion, but a specific conclusion of practices needed in order to ensure stable, cohesive society. Another justification Cotterrell finds is in the demand law makes from citizens nowadays. Today, more than ever – law should be examined as an expression of morality as appose to an expression of power, not philosophically but in a way of finding the compatible terms and â€Å"conditions of co-existence of individuals and groups in a certain time and place†. Regulation of female Islamic dress: Cotterrell depicts what Durkheim sees as the problematic character of sexuality viewed in the light of the socio-logical necessity of ‘Moral Individualism': sexual relations, in Durkheim's view, causes a sacrifice of the dignity and autonomy of both sexes in this action, and women in particular. This sacrifice leads to an exception in a society where the values of dignity and autonomy are fundamental and necessary. This exception, which is part of â€Å"islands of exceptions† that can be found in Durkheim's idea, leads to an ambiguity in practicing rights protecting dignity and autonomy especially for women. Following this line of thought, Cotterrel argues that the practice of Muslim women wearing the headscarves or the body-covering gown is fitting to Durkheim's ‘Moral Individualism' principle. This argues that in order to protect this idea, which is fundamental, â€Å"we conceal our body as well as our inner life from prying eyes†. This concealment is possibly in order to desexualize public social space, to terminate that ‘island of exception'. Meaning, the women that are wearing these covering garments actually makes it easier to help the society be more cohesive and to be more of the same. In my opinion, this method of achieving ‘Moral Individualism' is not appropriate, because it takes away from the individual the ability to reveal her face, her facial expressions and it is probably very uncomfortable at certain times. I should add that ‘Moral Individualism' is supposed to celebrate diversity and individualism, but it does not in this example of the headscarf issue. Cotterrell argues the same notion but in a cultural integration way. He claims that these women are taken away from the public space because of the cultural differences these garments impose on non-Muslim society. To summarize, Durkheim offers a different approach to the discussion about â€Å"Islamic headscarves† and even bypasses much pre-existing debate on the matter as Cotterrell argues. Moral Individualism' justifies the wearing of all-covering garments since it helps avoiding sexual connotations when integrating within a multi-cultural society. However, this approach also suggests that women's choices of clothes should be connected to ‘Moral Individualism'. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Note that these women's relig ion is not the issue here, they could have believed in a Judaism or Buddhism, and the principle would have remained the same.

Profile of Rae Carruth

Isobars - A Weather Guide Definition

Isobars are lines of equal atmospheric pressure drawn on a meteorological map. Each line passes through a pressure of a given value, provided certain rules are followed. Isobar Rules The rules for drawing isobars are: Isobar lines may never cross or touch.Isobar lines may only pass through pressures of 1000 or - 4. In other words, allowable lines are 992, 996, 1000, 1004, 1008, and so on.The atmospheric pressure is given in millibars (mb). One millibar 0.02953 inches of mercury.Pressure lines are usually corrected for sea level so any differences in pressure due to altitude are ignored. The picture shows an advanced weather map with isobar lines drawn on it. Notice that it is easy to locate high- and low-pressure zones as a result of the lines on the maps. Also remember that winds flow from high to low areas, so this gives meteorologists a chance to predict local wind patterns as well. Try drawing your own weather maps at Jetstream - The Online Meteorology School.

Sport Psychology Analysis of Psychological Skills...

The ultimate quest for sport psychologists is to establish what psychological factors produce the winning formula or to try to establish a profile of the successful athlete. Within the psychological framework attempts, to determine the ideal athletic personality have only been marginally successful (Morgan 1980, in White, 1993). One of the categories observed in order to understand and move towards the ideal athletic personality is that of Psychological Skills Training (PST), It is contended that mental skills training is a significant part of sport psychology and is of particular importance to athletes and coaches (Rushall, 1995, p0.3). Programs have been developed to help athletes develop their psychological skills. Many†¦show more content†¦They were also more focused on their individual performances than that of their team and were in general highly motivated to do well in sport. Coaches and Sport Psychologists would therefore want to provide the pre-elite athletes the knowledge and exposure to these psychological skills so that the latter would exhibit a more elite profile and increase their chances of success. (Mahoney et al 1987 in White, 1993). Waldron and McCann state that elite athletes have the following characteristics: mentally relaxed, physically relaxed, confident, focused on the present, highly energized, extraordinary awareness, in control and in the cocoon. Beginners should aspire and aim to gain these characteristics through mental skills training. Phase four Conceptualization is where the consultant interprets the results from phase three and considers it relative to phase five, the consultant must determine which skills and attributes are most needed based on the information provided and what the best techniques are to further develop those skills and attributes (Hardy et al, 2000). Phase five Psychological Skills Training, closely linked with the work of Vealey (1988), illustrates the skills and attributes that the athlete or teams might want to improve. A division is made within this phase between skills/attributes (e.g. self awareness, arousalShow MoreRelatedProject Mgmt296381 Words   |  1186 PagesCross Reference of Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) Concepts to Text Topics Chapter 1 Modern Project Management Chapter 8 Scheduling resources and cost 1.2 Project defined 1.3 Project management defined 1.4 Projects and programs (.2) 2.1 The project life cycle (.2.3) App. G.1 The project manager App. G.7 Political and social environments F.1 Integration of project management processes [3.1] 6.5.2 Setting a schedule baseline [8.1.4] 6.5.3.1 Setting a resource schedule 6.5.2.4 Resource

Sas Institute Term Paper Essay Example For Students

Sas Institute Term Paper Essay Executive Summary: SAS is a recognized company that creates business analyst software for all types of businesses. The acronym SAS stands for â€Å"statistical analysis system. † It was created at North Carolina State University as a project to analyze agricultural research. SAS’s founder decided to transform this research project into a viable company of its own, where he could provide business consulting services to large and small businesses alike. Shortly after becoming a company they were able to run software applications across all platforms of the business by using multivendor architecture for which it is known today for. SAS’s internal culture has remained the same since it first started, which has made them successful enough to spread their products and services across the globe in just a few years. SAS’s mission and vision statement run parallel to each other. Their mission is to deliver proven solutions that drive innovation and improve performance. The company’s vision is to transform the way the world works, by giving people THE POWER TO KNOW. Like any other company created, they have values that are incorporated in all company relationships, from long-standing engagements to the strong and focused employee community. Those values include being approachable, customer-driven, swift and agile, innovative, and trustworthy. The values, mission, and vision statement, create a positive internal corporate culture across the firm. SAS believes in a healthy workplace environment along with a healthy work-life balance. By providing such a workplace, focusing on people and relationships has led SAS to be more productive, have highly satisfied customers, and more dedicated employees. Also along with SAS’s corporate culture, they are committed to Corporate Social Responsibility which is embedded into their environment. SAS is successful because they provide their employees with great benefits which keep them motivated to provide great work for their customers. Reasons for this are: one, they are an innovative company, and two, they care about their employees. By keeping your employees motivated and happy, they stay innovative and they work harder to achieve what their customers are looking for in business analyst software. However, though SAS’s employees play a large part in its prosperity, their success is not due to only their employees. We propose that SAS is successful because of a perfect balance between employees, economic value added applications available to their customers, and a strong sense of corporate culture among stakeholders. These combined are the reason they are as successful as they are. SAS has a strong competitive advantage over its rivals. First, SAS is a private corporation, meaning that it can guard itself to a certain degree. For example, private corporations are not required to publish an earnings report to shareholders, because there are no shareholders. All of the company’s financial information is internal. Secondly, SAS has incredible resource capital for design and development of additional products. That combined with innovative employees is a significant competitive advantage. We will briefly discuss the elements of Porter’s 5 forces, and then go into further detail of each force later on. SAS’s threat of new entrants into their industry is moderate, and rivalry can be considered moderate as well. Substitute products/services are also moderate because firms using SAS’s software have options other than computer software to aid business decision making. Bargaining of power of buyers is low and bargaining power of buyers we consider high. Next we will consider factors of the resource based model. This model incorporates both tangible and intangible resources, and the capacity the firm has to implement these capabilities. The resources SAS has acquired give them a significant advantage over competing rivals, and their capability to implement these resources to grow the firm is significant as well. The use of cross-functional teams is something SAS is capable of using to capitalize on the use of their resources, as well as the ability to hold seminars for customers on how to better utilize their products. Furthermore, SAS has a specialized team of consultants that their customers use to enable them to be fully trained on the use of their products. SAS concentrates on a focus differentiation business level strategy. The company concentrates its efforts on creating value for other firms by improving the profitability of their customers. At the same time, SAS receives a premium for their products and services because of the huge economic added value that it provides to its customers. This allows SAS to succeed using a differentiation strategy. We will focus on this business level strategy later on. Porter’s 5 Forces At its core, Porter’s 5 forces describes a firms overall ability to compete in a market. We discuss our analysis of the 5 forces and how they affect SAS Corporation and its stakeholders. Please examine Figure 1. 1 to view a diagram that depicts the 5 forces. The model is based on the research findings of Michael E. Porter, a Harvard Business School Professor. The model was recently updated in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s to depict what it is today. As you can see from the diagram, the dominating factor that the forces are based upon is the rivalry faced again existing competitors. When competition is high amongst competitors, the forces that revolve around the competition tend to intensify. Porter’s 5 Forces Model Threat of Substitute Products and Services Low for SAS Bargaining Power of Suppliers High for SAS Bargaining Power of Buyer Low to Moderate for SAS Threat of New Entrants Moderate for SAS Rivalry Among Existing Competitors Moderate for SAS Figure 1. 1 First we will discuss the center force that drives competition: Rivalry Among Existing Competitors. In any industry (except for a monopoly), there is competition. If there’s not, investment will flow towards that industry until the market equalizes. SAS along with its competing firms are rivals in a monopolistically competitive market. The characteristics of a monopolistically competitive market include: profits in the short run, many firms competing, market power utilization, and zero profits in the long run. Though there are many competing firms in the market, SAS has differentiated itself from its rivals using product differentiation. This allows SAS to obtain a premium for their software applications, because customers are willing to pay the extra money for such a product that creates value for their organization. Next we will discuss the threat of substitutes and how they come into play with SAS’s product mix. The following could be considered substitutes for business analyst software: consultants, internal management controls, and internet resources. However, SAS’s customers probably do not utilize these substitutes because they find more cost savings in SAS’s software applications. This is why we have labeled SAS’s threat of substitutes low. The next force we will discuss is the bargaining power of suppliers. Most of SAS’s supply is generated internally from the knowledge and expertise of their employees. The only suppliers they rely on are boxing materials for their products, and the physical compact disks used to hold the software programs. Because these suppliers have little negotiating power, and SAS is regarded highly in its industry, the suppliers are probably the ones bargaining with SAS for their business. This allows SAS to leverage itself in regards to its suppliers, giving themselves the upper hand. For these reasons, we describe SAS’s bargaining power with its suppliers as being high. A key to a firm’s volatility of sales numbers depends greatly on the bargaining power of buyers. Buyers are a key stakeholder group that keeps firms afloat; they are the lifeline of the organization. The elasticity of a product has much to do with bargaining power. The demands for SAS’s products are not extremely sensible to price increases, meaning that they are inelastic for the most part. This gives their customers little bargaining power. This relates to the principle we mentioned regarding the value-added benefit SAS’s customers receive from their products. This benefit is high, and for that reason, bargaining power from the buyer’s perspective is low. They are willing to pay huge sums of money for products that benefit the sales numbers of their organization. Since SAS has achieved economies of scale in the business they’ve built, the treat of new entrants to the industry are only moderate. Though similar firms with similar products exist, the barriers to entry for new firms are extremely high due to SAS’s competitive advantage it has in its workforce. High barriers of entry suggest that a huge risk is taken on by companies who attempt to come into to play the market. SAS Resource Based Model Theory We can categorize SAS as using the resource-base model by the foundation of how the company assumes each of its individual components create the SAS company. The uniqueness of each in the organization, their resources and capabilities, contributes to the whole. Utilizing each component leads to the firms strategy of striving for above average returns. In order to fully understand this basis of how SAS uses the resource-based model we will discuss in more detail each of the components that creates the process of utilizing the theory. RESOURCES Are Liberal Arts Colleges Worth It? EssayNon-substitutable The CEO and founder, Jim Goodnight supports the informal flat structure. He is closely involved with all hiring and position tracking activities within SAS. Mr. Goodnight wants his employees to run their own areas, and his leadership style supports a decentralized decision-making processes. Mr. Goodnight interferes as little as possible with departmental functions, but his number of direct reports implies otherwise. Moreover, SAS relies heavily on Jim Goodnight’s individual abilities. If the company ever requires a new CEO, its organizational structure would be difficult for someone other than Mr. Goodnight to imitate. Business-Level Strategy: In determining the type of business-level strategy SAS has, it appears they follow a focus differentiation strategy to gained success. They mostly focus on computer market solutions and research for companies that need information to help them develop their competitive advantages, help plan their next year’s sales, or help them figure out if their strategies are working. SAS is also differentiated by the technology they use to produce such results. In determining the relationships with their customers, the reach, richness, and affiliation of what they do will be related upon. SAS’s reach is great. They have many connections with customers to satisfy their needs. SAS transforms the companies’ raw data into essential intelligence needed for them to conduct their business, and they do this by delivering the technical solutions and services the companies need. SAS’s richness is very in-depth with the knowledge of their industry. Their consultants are the best in the field, and their immense knowledge and real world experiences help manage the results of their projects with their clients. SAS’s affiliation with their customers is vast. Their consultants take the time to meet and sit with the client, and listen to what exactly they are looking for and needing to get done. Their consultants take the time to learn about their clients company’s business challenges, and goals to help them establish a strategic advancement for the company. By doing in-depth learning of their client and client’s needs, this enables the consultants to deliver the right SAS technology and tailor their services to solve companies’ unique business requirements. SAS has of course focuses on the computer market solutions. To help them make sure that they are able to reach to everyone, they have split the market into segments. Here is a chart of their segments they have split the computer market solutions into and with a few companies they have categorized to go under those segments. Industry| Companies| Banking| Bank of AmericaViseca Card ServicesVUBAnd more†¦| Capital markets| GE MoneyHua Nan FinancialHolding Company IDS GmbHAnd more†¦| Communications| Telekomunikacja PolskaVerizonVodafone GlobalInformation SystemsAnd more†¦| Education| ACTBryant UniversityKennesaw State UniversityAnd more†¦| Government| Rhode Island Department or RevenueState of Wisconsin Department of RevenueThe HagueAnd more†¦| Health Care| Clinton Health Access InitiativeExcellus BlueCross BlueShieldHorizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New JerseyAnd more†¦| Insurance| EurovidaFCCI Insurance GroupMax New York LifeAnd more†¦| Life Sciences| AstraZencaLillyLivzon Parmeceutical GroupAnd more†¦| Manufacturing| AstraZenecaGE Consumer IndustrialTransitions OpticalAnd more†¦| Retail| Chico’sRedcats USAShopper’s StopAnd more†¦| Services| Dun BradstreetFairmontVenetianAnd more†¦| Utilities| ConocoPhillips NorwayEDF EnergyLubrizolAnd more†¦| In determining what needs to satisfy for their customers, SAS has implemented many solutions for companies to choose from. These solutions help the companies to succeed, change, or even find a new competitive advantage. Here is a chart of solutions they implement and some services they due under them. Solutions| Services| Business Analytics| | Compliance| General, Anti-Money Laundering, Basel II| Corporate| General, DataFlux| Customer Intelligence| General, Credit Scoring, Cross-Sell/Up-Sell, Customer Analytics, Customer Retention, Customer segmentation, Interaction Management, Marketing Automation, Marketing Optimization, Marketing Performance Management| Data-Driven Decision Making| | Drug Discovery and Development| | Enrollment Management| | Financial Intelligence| General, Activity-Based Management, Capital Allocation and Management, Financial Reporting/Planning| Fraud Prevention and Detection| General, Claims Fraud| Health and Condition Management| | Human Capital Intelligence| General, Human Capital Management, Predictive Workforce Analytics, talent Scorecard, Workforce Budgeting/Planning| Information Management| | IT Management| General, Charge Management, Resource Management, Service Level Management| Merchandise Intelligence| General, Merchandise Planning, Revenue Optimization| OnDemand Solutions| | Partners| | Performance Management| | Profitability Management| Customer Profitability| Ratemaking| | Risk Management| General, Asset/Liability and management, Credit Risk Management, Firm-wide Risk, Liquidity Management, Operational Risk Management| Service Intelligence| General, Service Parts Optimization, Warranty Analysis| Strategy Management| | Supplier Intelligence| General, Sourcing Data Quality, Spend Analysis| Supply Chain Intelligence| General, Demand Management, Quality Lifecycle Analysis| Sustainability| | Web Analytics| | SAS’s core competencies are what make this company successful. It didn’t take SAS long to figure out what was necessary to satisfy their customer’s needs. As discussed earlier in resource base model, it is plain to see that SAS’s employees are a key ingredient to their overall accomplishments. Without their knowledge and dedication to their job, SAS would not be what it is today. Another key success to the company is their top management. Without them giving their employees the atmosphere they have now, their employees would not have been motivated to do their job, able to come up with the software their clients are expecting. Recommendations: Since its birth in the 1980’s, SAS has been a 100 percent privately owned entity. There are no public shareholders and SAS has no future plans of going public. That statement is assumed, however, as if there would be no benefit to the company to publish this sort of information in the event that there were plans of going public. Being private is a competitive advantage SAS holds against its rivals as most other large software consulting firms are public entities. Staying as a private company is a key to SAS’s continued prosperity, and this is our first recommendation. There are many advantages to being a privately held company; the main one is the benefit of not having to report to shareholders. Though SAS has a Board of Directors, many of its key decisions revolve around the judgment of the CEO, Jim Goodnight. Furthermore, unavailability of company resources are a mystery to the public and competitors alike. Our second recommendation has to do with future succession planning of SAS Corporation. Though Mr. Goodnight probably has this subject under control, there is no public information about his succession plans. We recommend that the company bring in a team of outside consultants, including succession experts and attorneys, who have experience in succession planning. These attorneys and consultants should review Mr. Goodnight’s succession plan to make sure that SAS has a bright future ahead of them in the event of the unexpected death of the CEO. The livelihood of SAS’s stakeholders, including customers, employees, and the community, to name a few, rests in the hands of Mr. Goodnight’s succession plan. Our next recommendation suggests that SAS strive to keep its corporate culture intact. The happiness of their employees has much to do with Mr. Goodnight’s business decisions over the years. In order to sustain their happiness, SAS should continually keep their employees in mind and continue to establish incentives to attract and maintain the highest quality workers. Though it is expensive to implement new amenities and value added incentives for employees, it is vital that SAS continues to be generous to its employees In the beginning we mentioned that SAS’s success is based on how the company’s products add value to deficient markets by allowing customers to potentially increase their profits by up to 67 percent by implementing and utilizing their business enhancement software. With that said, we recommend that SAS continue to set aside up to 20 percent of their profits to the research and development department. This is vital to furthering value added resources available to its customers. SAS is able to receive a premium for their software packages because of the lack of equivalent substitutes available. With the service that comes along with the application purchase, customers feel that the benefits ultimately outweigh the costs in regards to improving their firm’s success. Ceteris Paribus, benefits that outweigh costs, is ultimately all that matters when it comes to customer’s perspectives of a product, not matter what that product may be. Our last recommendation has to do with the following saying: â€Å"Don’t fix it if it aint broke. † This is referring to SAS’s ability to utilize its resources to create acquisitions and mergers. SAS should avoid large acquisitions and mergers at all cost, that is unless the project is more than 90 percent likely to add significant benefit to the company. Going by this rule, the company would reduce its level of risk and â€Å"economy proof† itself. However, the company should continue to advance and enhance their current partnerships, and continue to move forward with new and valuable partnerships.