Study this short case and then answer the following questions:
Differing Perceptions at Clarkston Industries1
Susan Harrington continued to drum her fingers on her desk. She had a real problem and wasnât sure what to do next. She had a lot of confidence in Jack Reed, but she suspected she was about the last person in the office who did. Perhaps if she ran through the entire story again in her mind she would see the solution.
Susan had been distribution manager for Clarkston Industries for almost twenty years. An early brush with the law and a short stay in prison had made her realize the importance of honesty and hard work. Henry Clarkston had given her a chance despite her record, and Susan had made the most of it. She now was one of the most respected managers in the company. Few people knew her background.
Susan had hired Jack Reed fresh out of prison six months ago. Susan understood how Jack felt when Jack tried to explain his past and asked for another chance. Susan decided to give him that chance just as Henry Clarkston had given her one. Jack eagerly accepted a job on the loading docks and could soon load a truck as fast as anyone in the crew.
Things had gone well at first. Everyone seemed to like Jack, and he made several new friends. Susan had been vaguely disturbed about two months ago, however, when another dock worker reported his wallet missing. She confronted Jack about this and was reassured when Jack understood her concern and earnestly but calmly asserted his innocence. Susan was especially relieved when the wallet was found a few days later.
The events of last week, however, had caused serious trouble. First, a new personnel clerk had come across records about Jackâs past while updating employee files. Assuming that the information was common knowledge, the clerk had mentioned to several employees what a good thing it was to give ex-convicts like Jack a chance. The next day, someone in bookkeeping discovered some money missing from petty cash. Another worker claimed to have seen Jack in the area around the office strongbox, which was open during working hours, earlier that same day.
Most people assumed Jack was the thief. Even the worker whose wallet had been misplaced suggested that perhaps Jack had indeed stolen it but had returned it when questioned. Several employees had approached Susan and requested that Jack be fired. Meanwhile, when Susan had discussed the problem with Jack, Jack had been defensive and sullen and said little about the petty-cash situation other than to deny stealing the money.
To her dismay, Susan found that rethinking the story did little to solve his problem. Should she fire Jack? The evidence, of course, was purely circumstantial, yet everybody else seemed to see things quite clearly. Susan feared that if she did not fire Jack, she would lose everyoneâs trust and that some people might even begin to question her own motives.
Q1: Explain the events in this case in terms of learning, perception, and attribution (18 marks, 3 marks for each point)?
Q2: If you were to decide about this case, would you fire Jack or give him another chance? Why?
Q3: Does personality play a role in this case?
Guidelines - Do not rewrite the questions in your answers. - When answering, refer to each question by its symbol (e.g. Q1) - Answer in a new Word file
In: Operations Management
1. â(Please refer to the attached exhibits and sample articleâ ). Which paragraph would be best for a target audience of people familiar with economics in general and the workings of the Fed inâ particular? (choose 1 exhibit?)
2. (Please refer to the attached exhibits and sample articleâ ). Which paragraph would be best for a target audience of people unfamiliar withâ economics? (choose 1 exhibit?)
3. â(Please refer to the attached exhibits and sample articleâ ). Which exhibits are the most âaccurate?
4. If the FOMC orders the open market desk to purchase governmentâ
securities,
A. the money supply will increase and the the interest rate will increase.
B. the money supply will increaseâ, and the interest rate will decrease
C. the money supply will decrease and interest rate will increase
D. the money supply will decrease, and the interest rate will decrease
Article:
Jobs and the Fed
Whatever happened to the central bank's Evans Rule?
Updated March 9, 2014 7:34 p.m. ET
The Labor Department's January jobs report on Friday had something for optimists and pessimists: The economy created only 113,000 net new jobs in the month, a second straight month of weak job growth. But the jobless rate fell to 6.6%, the labor force expanded by some 499,000 jobs, and the labor-force participation rate rose from its lowest level since 1978. So continues the slow-growth pattern of this expansion.
More interesting is that at 6.6% the jobless rate is now a mere tic away from meeting the Federal Reserve's Evans Rule target of 6.5%. That's the standard , named for Chicago Fed President Charles Evans, that the central bank said in December 2012 would be its guide for when it would consider raising interest rates. Even with mediocre job growth, the Evans Rule jobless rate target will be reached in the next few months and maybe as early as next month.
So will the Fed now look to raise the fed-funds rate from near-zero, where it has been for an extraordinary 62 months? Don't count on it. The Fed is still tapering its bond purchases at a rate of $10 billion a month, with several more months to go, and to minimize any market ructions former Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke was at pains to say rates would stay low as far as investors could see.
Perhaps soon the Fed will revise its Evans Rule downward to a jobless rate of 6%, or even 5.5%. But then that wouldn't say much for the credibility of Fed rules. The central bank unveiled the Evans Rule to substantial fanfare in 2012 as part of its campaign to be more transparent about policy and offer forward guidance to markets. Yet what we've learned about the Fed's guidance is that it doesn't mean very much. Perhaps the Open Market Committee should have called it the Evans Suggestion.
The Fed is still making up monetary policy on the fly, trying to see how low it can get unemployment before it has to test its political nerve and raise rams . The mistake was telling markets there was a fixed rule when the only sure thing at the Fed is more improvisation.
EXHEBITS:
Exhibit 1
The Wall Street Journal article âJobs and the Fedâ is a criticism of the supposed efforts of the Fed to be more transparent. In 2012, the Fed announced, to much fanfare, that it was going to follow the âEvans Ruleâ; specifically, when the unemployment rate dropped to 6.5% it would begin tightening (or at least lower the degree of easing) of open market operations in an effort to guard against a rapid increase in inflation. However, the recent spate of positive economic news and the drop of the jobless rate to 6.6% doesnât seem to be affecting monetary policy at all. Granted, the target of 6.5% unemployment has not yet been met, but it seems only a matter of time before that point is reached and Ben Bernanke has already taken great pains to announce that the Fed Funds rate is going to remain near zero for the foreseeable future. So, in Pooleâs view at least, it seems that the Fed has lost all credibility and is going to continue to keep the public in the dark about the guidelines it follows in conducting monetary policy.
Exhibit 2
The Wall Street Journal article âJobs and the Fedâ is a criticism of the Federal Reserve (which implements the nationâs monetary policy). The point it makes is that the Fed, as itâs known, has in the past promised to follow certain rules in deciding what kind of policies to pursue but that it is now going back on its word. Specifically, in 2012, the Fed announced that it was going to be more transparent in its actions and was going to follow the so-called âEvans Ruleâ (named after the President of the Chicago Fed). That rule dictated that when the nationâs unemployment rate fell to 6.5% the Fed would pay more attention to preventing potential inflation, rather than continuing to try to reduce the unemployment rate. However, the author points out, even though the unemployment rate is expected to fall to that target level in the near future, the Fed shows no signs of changing its policy, which up to now has been targeted at increasing economic growth and reducing unemployment. Many economists believe that it is important that the Fed make clear to the public how it decides on monetary policy and to stick to its promises and are now upset that it appears the promises made in 2012 wonât be kept.
Exhibit 3
The Wall Street Journal article âJobs and the Fedâ is a criticism of the supposed efforts of the Fed to be more transparent. In 2012, the Fed announced, to much fanfare, that it was going to follow the âEvans Ruleâ; specifically, when inflation rose to 2%, the upper limit of the Fedâs target range, it would begin tightening (or at least lower the degree of easing) of open market operations in an effort to guard against a further, rapid increase in inflation. However, the recent spate of positive economic news and the drop of the unemployment rate to 6.6% doesnât seem to be affecting monetary policy at all.
Granted, the target of 2% inflation has not yet been met, but it seems only a matter of time before that point is reached. Ben Bernanke has already taken great pains to announce that the Fed Funds rate is going to remain near zero for the foreseeable future and that inflation is not the Fedâs primary concern. So it seems that the Fed has lost all credibility and is going to continue to keep the public in the dark about the guidelines it follows in conducting monetary policy.
Exhibit 4
The Wall Street Journal article âJobs and the Fedâ is a criticism of the Federal Reserve (which implements the nationâs monetary policy). The point it makes is that the Fed, as itâs known, has in the past promised to follow certain rules in deciding what kind of policies to pursue but that it is now going back on its word. Specifically, in 2012, the Fed announced that it was going to be more transparent in its actions and was going to follow the so-called âEvans Ruleâ (named after the President of the Chicago Fed). That rule dictated that whenever inflation rose above 2% the Fed would pay more attention to preventing prices from increasing, rather than continuing to try to reduce the unemployment rate.
However, the author points out, even though the unemployment rate is expected to fall and inflation expected to increase to above 2% in the near future, the Fed shows no signs of changing its policy, which up to now has been targeted at increasing economic growth and reducing unemployment. Many economists believe that it is important that the Fed be aware of the dangers of inflation and always err on the side of keeping that under control, even if it is at the expense of economic growth.
In: Economics
HIMT 345
Homework 05: Functions
Overview: Examine PyCharmâs âIntroduction to Pythonâ
samples for Functions. Use PyCharm to work along with exercises
from Chapter 4. Modify the grade assignment program of Hwk 04 to
utilize a function by copying the Hwk04 project and creating the
Hwk05 project.
Prior Task Completion:
1. Read Chapter 04
2. View Chapter 04âs video notes.
3. As you view the video, work along with each code sample in
PyCharm. The examples used in the video are available for you to
experiment with if you downloaded the complete Severance source
files for Chapters 3-10.
a) With PyCharm open, locate the .zip file entitled Ch 4
Functions PPT Code Samples.zip.
b) Open each of the project files for that chapter in PyCharm.
Note: The code samples are numbered in the order they are covered
in the video.
c) Start the video and follow along.
4. Complete Exercises 4.1 â 4.5 (not handed in).
Specifics: PyCharmâs âIntroduction to Pythonâ project contains
multiple examples giving the basics of conditional expressions (see
list at right). Follow the instructions to complete them. (Not
handed in.)
Use PyCharm to work along with the video solution for Exercise 4.6
from the textbook. Try to make the same mistakes (and fixes) made
by the author. (Not handed in.)
Create a copy of your Hwk04 project file, calling it
Hwk05.
1. Highlight the Hwk04 project, select
Refactor/Copy.
Important: Do not skip the process of following along with
the videos. It is a very important part of the learning
process!
2. Give it a New name: of Hwk05 and leave the To directory:
in its default state.
Leave the âOpen copy in editorâ box checked.
3. After clicking OK, if the project fails to open, just open it
manually as you would
any project (File | Open | Hwk05 project).
You may immediately delete Hwk04b as it is not needed in this
assignment. You may
need to Refactor | Rename both the project name and the existing
Hwk04a.py file, as
only the directory was renamed by PyCharm in creating the
copy.
Having renamed Hwk04a to Hwk05_YourLastName.py, your task is to
determine the
letter grade using a function.
Here is some pseudocode* to guide the process:
(NOTE: The assign_grade function must be declared at the top of the
Python file.)
Prompt for the test score, using try-except to verify it is
valid
Invoke (call) the function, supplying it the test score and it
returning the appropriate
letter grade;
e.g. letter_grade = assign_grade(test_score)
Display the test score and appropriate letter grade.
What to hand in:
Take screen shots of the console window verifying correct
handling of bad input as well
as letter grades for one test score in each grade range. Copy the
screen shots into a
Word document (filename Hwk05_YourLastName_Screenshots.doc) with
your name and
date in the upper right hand corner. Upload the Word doc and the
Python program file
(Hwk05_YourLastName.py) to the appropriate assignment in the
LMS.
NOTE: As was described in the previous assignment, each Python file
you create should
be documented with (minimally) the following three lines at
the top of each file:
# Filename: Hwk03.py
# Author:
# Date Created: 2016/09/05
# Purpose:
(*) pseudocode: a notation resembling a simplified programming
language, used in
program design.
HERE IS HOMEWORK4
# main function
def main():
test_score = int(input('Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: '))
# for incorrect input
if test_score<0 or test_score>100:
print('Sorry, Your Input Score is not in the given Range!!! Try another time!!!')
else:
# find grade
if test_score>=90:
print("Your Grade:", 'A')
elif test_score>=80:
print("Your Grade:", 'B')
elif test_score>=70:
print("Your Grade:", 'C')
elif test_score>=60:
print("Your Grade:", 'D')
else:
print("Your Grade:", 'F')
# execution of program starts from here
if __name__ == '__main__':
main()
OUTPUT
(base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg100.py Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: -8 Sorry, Your Input Score is not in the given Range!!! Try another time!!! (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg100.py Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: 105 Sorry, Your Input Score is not in the given Range!!! Try another time!!! (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg100.py Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: 54 Your Grade: F (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg100.py Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: 64 Your Grade: D (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg100.py Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: 75 Your Grade: C (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg100.py Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: 85 Your Grade: B (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg100.py Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: 95 Your Grade: A (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg100.py Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: 100 Your Grade: A (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg100.py Enter Your Test Score in the range (0-100) inclusively: 0 Your Grade: F (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$
# main() function
def main():
# prompt first name
first_name = input('First name : ')
try:
# prompt current age
cur_age = int(input("Current Age (in years) : "))
except:
print("Sorry you didn't inputted correct current age value!!! Try another time")
return
try:
# prompt expected life span
life_span = int(input("Expected life span (in years) : "))
except:
print("Sorry you didn't inputted correct expected life span value!!! Try another time")
return
# calculate age in days
age_days = cur_age * 365
# calculate days left to live
days_left = (life_span * 365) - age_days
# print final message
print(first_name + " you are " + str(age_days) + " days old. You have " + str(days_left) + " days left to live.")
# execution of program starts from here
if __name__ == '__main__':
main()
OUTPUT
(base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg101.py First name : Chegg Expert Current Age (in years) : Fifty-Five Sorry you didn't inputted correct current age value!!! Try another time (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg101.py First name : Chegg Expert Current Age (in years) : 26 Expected life span (in years) : Fifty-Five Sorry you didn't inputted correct expected life span value!!! Try another time (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$ python chegg101.py First name : Chegg Expert Current Age (in years) : 26 Expected life span (in years) : 75 Chegg Expert you are 9490 days old. You have 17885 days left to live. (base) avianjjai@avianjjai-Vostro-3578:~/Desktop/Chegg$
In: Computer Science
INTODUCTION TO MARKETING
Based on the information provided in the case study, create an integrated marketing communication (IMC) for NOBU Hotels. Please include at least 4 promotional mix tools and describe the promotion/activity with sufficient details for each.
Traveling in Nobu Style: Converting Restaurant Patrons to Hotel Guests
The name âNobuâ is synonymous with an exceptional Japanese dining experience, perfected by chef Nobu Matsuhisa over a more than 30-year career. Matsuhisa, together with actor Robert De Niro and restaurateur Drew Nieporent, opened the first Nobu restaurant in 1994 and to date, there are now 38 Nobu restaurants worldwide.
But if you talk to Trevor Horwell, the CEO of Nobu Hospitality, Nobu represents much more than just a restaurant experience. Itâs a true lifestyle brand that also encompasses a relatively small, but growing portfolio of luxury hotels, too â eight of which are open now, and eight more are in the pipeline.
Horwellâs primary focus as CEO is to continue to grow the Nobu Hotels brand and as he opens up dinersâ eyes to the fact that cannot only eat at a Nobu but stay at one, too, he hasnât forgotten the brandâs origins in the process.
âWe donât normally do a hotel unless we think that a Nobu Restaurant can do well in that location,â said Horwell. âThatâs very important because what we want to do first and foremost is to make sure there is a draw for locals, and that really comes down to the Nobu Restaurant.â Horwell said the majority of his Nobu hotel restaurant diners â 80 percent on average â are local residents, not hotel guests. âItâs not like a tourist restaurant. We like to attract the locals. We want that built-in customer.â
âWe are defined by the restaurant, in a way,â he said. âWe play to our strengths. If you look at the hotel business today, the majority of hotels are suffering because they donât lead with food and beverage. donât have strong food-and-beverage concepts, and a lot of hotels are losing money. Today, we play to our strengths because that is one area that we do very, very well, and we bring in locals.â
The idea to launch Nobu Hotels, he said, came from the fact that when Nobu Restaurants were located inside of a hotel, they âwere the draw for the hotel and we were bringing in customers.â
âIf I only convert 5 percent of my customers in Nobu Restaurant to stay in our hotels, then at the end of the day, weâre filling out hotels. Itâs not a tall order to do that, and you can do that very well and very quickly if you offer the right product.â
Nobu Hotels has the advantage of having built its brand over a 24-year period with its restaurants first, followed by the first Nobu hotel that opened within Caesars Palace Las Vegas in 2013.
âThe first focus for us, really, is to expose the brand to our restaurant customers,â Horwell said. âWe touch all types of Nobu customers. And we also provide instant identity. If you put âNobu Hotelâ on a hotel, the word âNobuâ says something and it attracts a certain type of customer.â Horwell said that, for example, when the first Nobu opened, the hotel had âmore than one billion media impressions.â
So, whatâs next for the brand, and how does Horwell plan to grow Nobu Hotels? He explained, âWeâre not driven by reservations systems because weâre small. It isnât as if we need a huge reservations system to fill a 400-room hotel. Thatâs why a lot of these corporations do well, because they have the reservations platform to fill the big hotels.â Nobu Hotels, by comparison, average anywhere from 100 to 150 rooms generally.
âThe reason why those young lifestyle brands have emerged is because theyâre like us. They are entrepreneurial, theyâre unique because itâs a concept thatâs come from the heart, from whoever is the original founder. But when itâs absorbed by a corporation, the whole thing changes. At the end of the day, the specialness is lost because then the corporationâs running it, and then, I think you lose what your original concept was all about. I think thatâs the biggest issue.â
Horwell also doesnât necessarily think of Nobu Hotels as occupying a place in luxury hospitality, instead referring to the brand as âspecial.â
âI look at our hotels not as luxury,â he said. âI look at them as special. I like us to be special, in each location weâre in. âLuxuryâ is a word thatâs used too much in terms of âeverything is luxury today.â For us, weâre âspecial.'â
âThatâs why Iâm saying, from a company perspective, weâre very entrepreneurial.
Todayâs evolving luxury traveler is seeking âyouthfulnessâ no matter what age they are, and they are âvery curious and very adventurous. Because of that, itâs important for hospitality brands, Nobu included, to not just say theyâre unique but to really offer unique experiences. He pointed to Nobu Ryokan Malibu in California as an example. The 16-room retreat overlooks the beach and is right by the ocean, and right next door to the Nobu Restaurant in Malibu. It becomes a destination, and thatâs something Nobu wants to offer.
Itâs also a different concept from what the other Nobu Hotels have. While Nobu Hotels are places where thereâs an emphasis on bringing in the locals, the Ryokans are meant to be more private.
âThe Ryokan is actually a place where people donât want to necessarily be seen,â Horwell explained. âItâs a hideaway, a retreat. You can only book through a general manager and itâs a special place.â He added, âWe will do more Ryokans, definitely, in locations that we think is right.â
A major focus for Nobu Hotels is to grow the company and the brand with the right talent and partners, as well as make sure that the Nobu Hotels brand is reaching the right consumers.
âThe most important thing, from our perspective, is to build a relationship with our existing customers,â he said. âItâs about, first and foremost, on digital, working our databases. We like to do that through email, through a lot of channels. We just brought on a new head of digital. Capturing data is very, very important now, and thatâs something that is a main focus and her team.â
âI think the main thing for us is the customer relationship management (CRM) because you can do so much with it,â he said. âYou can know your customer. Itâs one part of the business that we are heavily focused in in and we can extract a lot of information from that.â
In addition to beefing up its customer relationship management system, Nobu is also testing out a loyalty partnership, of sorts. The Nobu London Shoreditch joined Design Hotels last year, giving the property access to distribution on Design Hotelsâ site, as well as a connection to the Starwood Preferred Guest loyalty program. Three Nobu hotels are also members of Leading Hotels of the World. âA lot of our customers arenât driven by points,â he said. âWhen I travel, I donât go for points. I want to stay in a hotel where I enjoy the staff, the food and beverage, the products â all of that â and I will pay a premium for it.â
Appendix A
Additional Information about NOBU
Nobu Hotels
"A Place to go and be seen"
By âwrappingâ the concept of a luxurious boutique hotel around energized public spaces, Nobu Hotels creates powerful stages for shared experiences of excitement and escapism. Featuring the best of everything with imaginative new restaurants, high- energy bars, relaxing rejuvenation, distinctive service, remarkable retail and an air of celebrity, Nobu Hotels will afford guests and privileged owners the most exclusive entry into unparalleled experiences that lay at the crossroads of innovation and imagination.
Source:
Excerpted from âNobu Hotels CEO on a Restaurant-First Approach to Hospitalityâ by D. Ting. Skift â March 22, 2018. +Experts and image from Nobu restaurant and hotel website
In: Operations Management
Question: Identify TWO target segments for the NOBU brand and briefly describe each using the relevant concepts covered in this course
Traveling in Nobu Style: Converting Restaurant Patrons to Hotel Guests
The name âNobuâ is synonymous with an exceptional Japanese dining experience, perfected by chef Nobu Matsuhisa over a more than 30-year career. Matsuhisa, together with actor Robert De Niro and restaurateur Drew Nieporent, opened the first Nobu restaurant in 1994 and to date, there are now 38 Nobu restaurants worldwide.
But if you talk to Trevor Horwell, the CEO of Nobu Hospitality, Nobu represents much more than just a restaurant experience. Itâs a true lifestyle brand that also encompasses a relatively small, but growing portfolio of luxury hotels, too â eight of which are open now, and eight more are in the pipeline.
Horwellâs primary focus as CEO is to continue to grow the Nobu Hotels brand and as he opens up dinersâ eyes to the fact that cannot only eat at a Nobu but stay at one, too, he hasnât forgotten the brandâs origins in the process.
âWe donât normally do a hotel unless we think that a Nobu Restaurant can do well in that location,â said Horwell. âThatâs very important because what we want to do first and foremost is to make sure there is a draw for locals, and that really comes down to the Nobu Restaurant.â Horwell said the majority of his Nobu hotel restaurant diners â 80 percent on average â are local residents, not hotel guests. âItâs not like a tourist restaurant. We like to attract the locals. We want that built-in customer.â
âWe are defined by the restaurant, in a way,â he said. âWe play to our strengths. If you look at the hotel business today, the majority of hotels are suffering because they donât lead with food and beverage. donât have strong food-and-beverage concepts, and a lot of hotels are losing money. Today, we play to our strengths because that is one area that we do very, very well, and we bring in locals.â
The idea to launch Nobu Hotels, he said, came from the fact that when Nobu Restaurants were located inside of a hotel, they âwere the draw for the hotel and we were bringing in customers.â
âIf I only convert 5 percent of my customers in Nobu Restaurant to stay in our hotels, then at the end of the day, weâre filling out hotels. Itâs not a tall order to do that, and you can do that very well and very quickly if you offer the right product.â
Nobu Hotels has the advantage of having built its brand over a 24-year period with its restaurants first, followed by the first Nobu hotel that opened within Caesars Palace Las Vegas in 2013.
âThe first focus for us, really, is to expose the brand to our restaurant customers,â Horwell said. âWe touch all types of Nobu customers. And we also provide instant identity. If you put âNobu Hotelâ on a hotel, the word âNobuâ says something and it attracts a certain type of customer.â Horwell said that, for example, when the first Nobu opened, the hotel had âmore than one billion media impressions.â
So, whatâs next for the brand, and how does Horwell plan to grow Nobu Hotels? He explained, âWeâre not driven by reservations systems because weâre small. It isnât as if we need a huge reservations system to fill a 400-room hotel. Thatâs why a lot of these corporations do well, because they have the reservations platform to fill the big hotels.â Nobu Hotels, by comparison, average anywhere from 100 to 150 rooms generally.
âThe reason why those young lifestyle brands have emerged is because theyâre like us. They are entrepreneurial, theyâre unique because itâs a concept thatâs come from the heart, from whoever is the original founder. But when itâs absorbed by a corporation, the whole thing changes. At the end of the day, the specialness is lost because then the corporationâs running it, and then, I think you lose what your original concept was all about. I think thatâs the biggest issue.â
Horwell also doesnât necessarily think of Nobu Hotels as occupying a place in luxury hospitality, instead referring to the brand as âspecial.â
âI look at our hotels not as luxury,â he said. âI look at them as special. I like us to be special, in each location weâre in. âLuxuryâ is a word thatâs used too much in terms of âeverything is luxury today.â For us, weâre âspecial.'â
âThatâs why Iâm saying, from a company perspective, weâre very entrepreneurial.
Todayâs evolving luxury traveler is seeking âyouthfulnessâ no matter what age they are, and they are âvery curious and very adventurous. Because of that, itâs important for hospitality brands, Nobu included, to not just say theyâre unique but to really offer unique experiences. He pointed to Nobu Ryokan Malibu in California as an example. The 16-room retreat overlooks the beach and is right by the ocean, and right next door to the Nobu Restaurant in Malibu. It becomes a destination, and thatâs something Nobu wants to offer.
Itâs also a different concept from what the other Nobu Hotels have. While Nobu Hotels are places where thereâs an emphasis on bringing in the locals, the Ryokans are meant to be more private.
âThe Ryokan is actually a place where people donât want to necessarily be seen,â Horwell explained. âItâs a hideaway, a retreat. You can only book through a general manager and itâs a special place.â He added, âWe will do more Ryokans, definitely, in locations that we think is right.â
A major focus for Nobu Hotels is to grow the company and the brand with the right talent and partners, as well as make sure that the Nobu Hotels brand is reaching the right consumers.
âThe most important thing, from our perspective, is to build a relationship with our existing customers,â he said. âItâs about, first and foremost, on digital, working our databases. We like to do that through email, through a lot of channels. We just brought on a new head of digital. Capturing data is very, very important now, and thatâs something that is a main focus and her team.â
âI think the main thing for us is the customer relationship management (CRM) because you can do so much with it,â he said. âYou can know your customer. Itâs one part of the business that we are heavily focused in in and we can extract a lot of information from that.â
In addition to beefing up its customer relationship management system, Nobu is also testing out a loyalty partnership, of sorts. The Nobu London Shoreditch joined Design Hotels last year, giving the property access to distribution on Design Hotelsâ site, as well as a connection to the Starwood Preferred Guest loyalty program. Three Nobu hotels are also members of Leading Hotels of the World. âA lot of our customers arenât driven by points,â he said. âWhen I travel, I donât go for points. I want to stay in a hotel where I enjoy the staff, the food and beverage, the products â all of that â and I will pay a premium for it.â
Appendix A
Additional Information about NOBU
Nobu Hotels
"A Place to go and be seen"
By âwrappingâ the concept of a luxurious boutique hotel around energized public spaces, Nobu Hotels creates powerful stages for shared experiences of excitement and escapism. Featuring the best of everything with imaginative new restaurants, high- energy bars, relaxing rejuvenation, distinctive service, remarkable retail and an air of celebrity, Nobu Hotels will afford guests and privileged owners the most exclusive entry into unparalleled experiences that lay at the crossroads of innovation and imagination.
Source:
Excerpted from âNobu Hotels CEO on a Restaurant-First Approach to Hospitalityâ by D. Ting. Skift â March 22, 2018. +Experts and image from Nobu restaurant and hotel website
In: Operations Management
In February 2016, Rahul Sajnani, owner of Moshi, a fusion restaurant in the Al Barsha area of Dubai, was pondering ways to make people more aware of his restaurant and its unique menu. A hands-on entrepreneur in his twenties, Rahul was not only involved in the day-to-day running of his restaurant, but he personally trained his staff and had developed the menu from scratch. The only problem with this level of involvement was that it left Rahul with little time to take care of marketing and branding. It was imperative for a new restaurant to become known in the market, but being a unique restaurant in Al Barsha was a challenge. Rahulâs discussions from the previous night with Khushboo, Moshiâs head of marketing and social media, had brought several issues to the fore. While Moshiâs menu was unique, with options such as cheesy chips Oman maki rolls, prawn tempura maki rolls, and pero pero mushroom momos, these items had no precedent in the market, which meant that the patrons had no idea what was good and what was not. How could Moshi grow in the industry with offerings that were so unique? Would the restaurantâs innovative nature be an asset or a liability? What sort of marketing strategy should Rahul adopt? Thus far, Rahul had relied on word-of-mouth publicity, but he wondered whether this practice would be adequate, going forward. As the owner of a start- up, he did not want to invest in advertising, so what were his alternative options? Because Rahul and Khushboo planned to open another restaurant in Dubaiâs Oud Mehta locality, the first question they asked themselves was whether it was time to create a chain of Moshi restaurants or whether they should give the new location a completely different feel and target a specific customer segment. Khushboo pointed out that Moshi did not have a clear positioning in terms of its menu (see Exhibit 1), which consisted of Rahulâs fusion of Nepalese and Japanese cuisines. The next question pertained to increasing the product range. On the one hand, Rahul was happy that his dream of opening a restaurant with a unique cuisine had turned into a reality and that his start-up was getting a good response from customers. On the other hand, he faced some critical questions with respect to fostering th growth of his restaurant within a highly competitive industry. The Inception Rahul Sajnani started Moshi in Dubaiâs Al Barsha locality in July 2015. The story behind the name of the restaurant was as interesting as the one behind its origin. That the restaurant specialized in fusion was evident from its name, Moshi, a portmanteau of âmomoâ and âsushi.â The distinctness of this restaurant lay in its dishes, which were noticeably different from the ones found in conventional restaurants. The restaurant abided by all the rules of the municipality. From the SAP-certified equipment for quality and safety to putting expiry dates on food contents, Rahul ensured that there were no lapses. He paid strict attention to the guidelines related to such things as specifications on the ratio of dining versus kitchen space and regulations about chefs changing their food-handling gloves every four hours. As in any other metro city, eating out was popular in Dubai. In one of his conversations, Rahul mentioned that, when eating out, people invariably ended up choosing fast food. This observation led to four distinct seeds of thought that became the basis on which Moshi was founded: (1) Why could eating out not be healthy? (2) Why did items like sushi have to be available only in a fine-dining setup? (3) When it came to sushi, why were there fewer options for vegetarians? (4) Why should eating out be expensive? Born and raised in Dubai, Rahul had gone on to finish his higher education in London, England. From then until now, there had always been one constant in Rahulâs lifeâhis love for food, not just eating but also feeding others. Always happy to share his love of good cuisine, Rahul recalled how, during his student years, the responsibility of finding out where to eat and what to eat invariably fell on his shoulders whenever he spent time with friends. This love for finding new cuisines, new tastes, and feeding others had given Rahulâs passion a new dimension. Rahulâs family was vegetarian, and whenever he proposed eating sushi, his family had a difficult time finding a place that could accommodate their needs. Vegetarians had fewer choices, and the few they did have often mandated eating with chopsticks, which many found uncomfortable. Rahul wanted to do away with these hindrances. Rahulâs ponderings and the limitations of popular Japanese fare for vegetarians led Rahul to open Moshi in July 2015, over a year since the idea had first come to him in March 2014. After completing his studies in London, Rahul could have opted to join his family business in Dubai or take up another career of his choosing; however, he decided to open his own restaurant and convert his culinary passion into a profession. When the restaurant opened, it was no surprise that sushi formed one of the major items on the menu, including several options for vegetarians. âPending Mealâ Program Moshi opened in July 2015, which coincided with the holy month of Ramadan.1 Rahulâs philanthropic mindset made him collaborate with Dubai resident Sara Rizvi, the woman who had founded the concept of the âpending meal,â2 based on the idea of âpending coffee,â which had been very successful in Italy.3 At Moshi, 5 per cent of the total amount from every sale, including dine-in, take-out, and home delivery, went toward giving a meal to the needy. Rahul aimed to achieve his target of 500 pending meals by September 12, 2015 (see Exhibit 2). He chose local construction workers as his recipients, going to construction sites and distributing free meals to the workers there. Moshi managed to reach 443 patron-funded meals on September 12, 2015, and Rahul rounded up that number to 500 by adding 57 meals on his own. Although news of the âpending mealâ drive was posted on Moshiâs social media platforms, Rahul insisted he had not launched the program for advertising purposes but as a corporate social responsibility initiative. His next pending meal plan, with a target of 1,200 meals by February 2016, was even more ambitious, but Moshi managed to surpass that goal, achieving 1,600 meals by February 14, 2016. The Menu The restaurantâs fusion theme was an accurate reflection of Dubaiâs booming expatriate culture.4 Rahul divided his menu into eight sections, incorporating dishes from various origins such as Arab (cheesy chips Oman maki rolls), Thai (Thai green curry maki rolls), and Indian (chicken tikka maki rolls, paneer and spinach momo5); classics like chicken momo; and falafel sushi6 and other offerings that challenged any attempt at classification. Pricing The chefs made everything fresh after the placement of an order. Rahulâs aim was to debunk the myth that good-quality food had to be expensive, and hence, everything on Moshiâs menu was reasonably priced, providing value for money in terms of service and taste. A meal for two at Moshi cost around AED 80.7 Location Moshi was located in a rented space in the upscale Al Barsha area, a part of new Dubai. Because of the innumerable commercial and residential buildings in the locality, many restaurants had sprung up to cater to the workers and residents of the area. After much thought, Rahul had chosen this particular location for Moshi because of its centrality and accessibility (see Exhibit 3). Ambience Rahul planned the interior of the restaurant with the help of a designer friend. The ambience was one that would appeal to a young adult or a college student but would accommodate and welcome families as well. Rahul liked to describe the restaurantâs setting as âcool, comfortable, and trendy.â At Moshi, people could eat with forks, spoons, or chopsticksâwhatever they felt comfortable with. The trendy atmosphere was preserved through the contemporary furniture and the cutlery. Staff and Service Moshiâs staff strength of 18 included nine chefs, four drivers for home deliveries, two cashiers, one operations manager, one marketing manager, and Rahul himself, the owner. The restaurant focused on diversity to ensure that it would appeal to a variety of ethnicities. Moshi employed people of Kenyan, Ugandan, Ghanaian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Indian, and Filipino descent, as well as others. Rahul provided the required training to his employees, focusing on soft skills to provide superior customer service. For example, the employees were asked to remember the names of regular customers, and they were empowered to be customer-centric while dealing with patrons. The employees received training in hard skills as well, such as learning how to use the cash register and serve food. They were provided with competitive salaries, medical benefits, accommodation, and free food during their shift. The staff was given days off in rotation, which was a common practice in the restaurant industry in Dubai. They were also given incentives, such as movie tickets and gift coupons. The restaurant was small, but the fast turnaround timeâservice in 15 minutesâensured a good management of customer queues; additionally, the staff always engaged with the customers who were waiting outside. For instance, they served tea to customers waiting for a table or took orders so that when each customerâs turn came, their food was ready and they did not have to wait. The average footfall for dine-in traffic on weekdays was around 50 patrons per day, increasing to 90 per day on weekends. Marketing Rahulâs hands-on approach in the restaurant led to a good rapport with all patrons and even one-time-only visitors; he often utilized their feedback to develop new dishes and to tweak dishes to suit his customersâ tastes. Customization was a prime option provided at Moshi. The idea was to use personal selling and interaction to build rapport, in turn encouraging word-of-mouth recommendations. Although the word-of- mouth publicity worked to a considerable extent, Rahul knew it was not enough, so he ensured online visibility through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat, making sure to keep the sites current with regular posts and offers. As an added incentive, Moshi collaborated with a nearby parking lot to provide free parking for visitors to make it convenient for them to come to the restaurant. Competitors Rahul believed that, given the unique nature of its offerings, Moshi had no competition; however, its location pitted it against many other restaurants in the vicinity, not to mention the regions covered by restaurants that offered home delivery. Exhibit 4 lists those restaurants that could be considered Moshiâs major competitors. The Problem Moshi reported a turnover of $170,000 by December 2015, with a net profit of $37,000. Rahul was planning to invest an additional $400,000 to support his expansion and marketing plan. He realized that the menu at Moshi served the palate of many nationalities and was not restricted to just one, and that was how he had intended it to beâcatering to all palates; however, that characteristic also made it difficult to identify where Moshiâs market actually lay. Brand identification became tough because the expatriate community had no understanding of the Moshi brand or menu. While the neighboring competitors had a very clear demarcation of their respective clientele, Moshi had the potential to either steal their clientele or risk being lost in the crowd. As Rahul pondered the possibilities for the new restaurant he wanted to open in Oud Mehta, all these issues posed some concern. Rahul had to think carefully about how to market his uniquely diverse offerings to the multicultural population of Dubai. Was he truly in a monopolistic market, or was that a false notion? Was Moshiâs product range conducive to segmentation and effective marketing? Should Moshi restrict itself to its unique menu, or should it expand the menu to cater to a larger set of customers?
1. DESCRIBE the ways Rahul Sajnani, owner of Moshi, was a hands-on entrepreneur and EXPLAIN the problem that created.
2. IDENTIFY the challenge Moshi faced due to its menu and DESCRIBE how it affected the marketing strategy.
3. EVALUATE two ways Sajnani ensured Moshiâs service and staff became the backbone of the restaurant.
In: Operations Management
8. A âlaissez-faireâ approach to the macroeconomy before the Great Depression influences our government to:
a) See business downturns as a âserious maladyâ in a âhealthyâ system, and therefore take only short-term deficit spending measures to help recovery.
b) See business downturns as a âserious maladyâ to an otherwise âhealthy system,â and therefore wait for recovery to occur naturally.
c) See business downturns as a âserious maladyâ to an otherwise âhealthy system,â and therefore work to redesign the system to avoid such failure in the future.
d) See business downturns as a failure of the type of system Adam Smith envisaged, and thus move toward a modern, more managed economy.
e) See business downturns as a failure of the current system to be the type that Adam Smith envisaged, and thus move toward less government interference in the macro economy
9. Keynes believed that the Great Depression was caused by:
a) Unemployment.
b) Deficit spending by the government.
c) The tax increases put through by President Herbert Hoover.
d) The policies of âdemand-styleâ economies.
e) A fall in aggregate demand.
10. Keynes believed that the best method for ending the Great Depression would be to:
a) Increase the money supply so that individuals would have more to spend.
b) Cut government spending and increase taxes to reduce.
c) Increase government spending and cut taxes so that consumers would spend more.
d) Cut both government spending and taxes so that government would not be such a large part of the economy.
e) Increase both government spending and taxes to increase the role government played in the economy.
11. Keynes was:
a) In favor of a federal budget deficit to cure an inflation.
b) Opposed to a federal budget surplus to cure an inflation.
c) In favor of a federal budget deficit to cure a recession.
d) In favor of a federal budget deficit regardless of the state of the economy.
12. Proponents of monetarism:
a) Feel that fiscal policy of worthless.
b) View government spending as the most important public policy tool.
c) View taxation as the most important public policy tool.
d) Support Keynesian economics.
e) View the money supply as the most important public policy tool.
13. The word âstagflationâ describes a situation in which:
a) Inflation is stagnated.
b) Inflation increases with economic growth.
c) Inflation and unemployment occur at the same time.
d) Inflation is low enough to grow economic growth.
e) Inflation is zero.
14. The main difference between economic change before 1970 and after 1970 is that before 1970:
a) Most macroeconomic instability was caused by simultaneous shifts in aggregate demand and aggregate supply.
b) Most macroeconomic instability was caused by shifts in aggregate supply.
c) Most macroeconomic instability was caused by shifts in aggregate demand.
d) The government assumed no direct responsibility for the level of employment.
e) The government itself was a much less important player in the macroeconomy.
15. The labor force consists of:
a) All the people in the economy.
b) All the people in the economy over 16 years of age.
c) All the adults in the economy able to work.
d) All the adults in the economy who hold jobs or are looking for them.
e) All the adults in the economy qualified to hold a job.
16. Consider an economy with 100 people, 70 of whom hold jobs and 10 of whom are looking. The number of people in the labor force is:
a) 100
b) 30
c) 10
d) 80
e) 70
17. Consider an economy with 100 people, 70 of whom hold jobs and 10 of whom are looking. The rate of unemployment is:
a) 10 percent.
b) 12.5 percent.
c) 14.3 percent.
d) 20 percent.
18. The labor force participation rate for women in the United States has
a) Stayed the same over the last 30 years
b) Increased significantly since the 1950s
c) Been influenced by decreasing real wages since 1960
d) Trended substantially downward since the 1950s
e) Increased only very slightly since the 1950s
In: Economics
Food and Beverages at Northeastern University Football Games
Northeastern University (NEU), a large state college in Stephenville, Texas, 30 miles northeast of the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex, enrolls close to 20,000 students. The school is the dominant force in the small city, with more students during fall and spring than permanent residents.
A longtime football powerhouse, NEU is a member of the Big Eleven conference and is usually in the top 20 in college football rankings. To bolster its chances of reaching the elusive and long-desired number-one ranking, in 2010 NEU hired the legendary Bo Pitterno as its head coach. Although the number one ranking remained out of reach, attendance at the five Saturday home games each year increased. Prior to Pitternoâs arrival, attendance generally averaged 25,000â29,000. Season ticket sales bumped up by 10,000 just with the announcement of the new coachâs arrival. Stephenville and NEU were ready to move to the big time!
With the growth in attendance came more fame, the need for a bigger stadium, and more complaints about seating, parking, long lines, and concession stand prices. Northeastern Universityâs president, Dr. Marty Starr, was concerned not only about the cost of expanding the existing stadium versus building a new stadium but also about the ancillary activities. He wanted to be sure that these various support activities generated revenue adequate to pay for themselves. Consequently, he wanted the parking lots, game programs, and food service to all be handled as profit centers. At a recent meeting discussing the new stadium, Starr told the stadium manager, Hank Maddux, to develop a break-even chart and related data for each of the centers. He instructed Maddux to have the food service area break-even report ready for the next meeting. After discussion with other facility managers and his subordinates, Maddux developed the following table showing the suggested selling prices, and his estimate of variable costs, and the percent revenue by item. It also provides an estimate of the percentage of the total revenues that would be expected for each of the items based on historical sales data.
|
ITEM |
SELLING PRICE/UNIT |
VARIABLE COST/UNIT |
PERCENT REVENUE |
|
Soft Drink |
$1.50 |
$0.75 |
25% |
|
Coffee |
2.00 |
0.50 |
25 |
|
Hot Dogs |
2.00 |
0.80 |
20 |
|
Hamburgers |
2.50 |
1.00 |
20 |
|
Misc. Snacks |
1.00 |
0.40 |
10 |
Madduxâs fixed costs are interesting. He estimated that the prorated portion of the stadium cost would be as follows:
salaries for food services at $100,000 ($20,000 for each of the five home games); 2,400 square feet of stadium space at $2 per square foot per game; and six people per booth in each of the six booths for 5 hours at $7 an hour. These fixed costs will be proportionately allocated to each of the products based on the percentages provided in the table. For example, the revenue from soft drinks would be expected to cover 25% of the total fixed costs.
Maddux wants to be sure that he has a number of things for President Starr:
(1) the total fixed cost that must be covered at each of the games;
(2) the portion of the fixed cost allocated to each of the items;
(3) what his unit sales would be at break-even for each itemâthat is, what sales of soft drinks, coffee, hot dogs, and hamburgers are necessary to cover the portion of the fixed cost allocated to each of these items;
(4) what the dollar sales for each of these would be at these break-even points; and
(5) realistic sales estimates per attendee for attendance of 60,000 and 35,000. (In other words, he wants to know how many dollars each attendee is spending on food at his projected break-even sales at present and if attendance grows to 60,000.) He felt this last piece of information would be helpful to understand how realistic the assumptions of his model are, and this information could be compared with similar figures from previous seasons.
Discussion Question
1. Prepare a brief report with the items noted so it is ready for Dr. Starr at the next meeting.
Note: Answers should be in word version format please
In: Accounting
Why GDP is a Poor Measure of Progress
WOULD a feudal king swap places with a present-day insurance clerk? The king has many palaces and armies of servants. But he is also a martyr to toothache. News reaches him slowly. His food is often stale. And he is bored of his courtiers. He might willingly trade his kingdom for life as an office drone in the 21st-century, with its dentistry, refrigeration, Google and YouTube. The poser underlines the great material advances made in recent centuries. It also shows how tricky it is to compare living standards over time and across societies. Comparisons over recent decades are routinely made using GDP, but they are troublesome. Why is GDP a poor measure of progress?
Gross domestic product is a measure of output, income and spending all at the same time. In post-war Europe and America, the growth in living standards and in GDP were synonymous. GDP growth became a target for politicians and a scorecard by which they were judged by voters. Even so, it has always had critics. Environmentalists have long lamented that GDP treats the plunder of the planet as something that adds to income, rather than being treated as an expense. A repeated charge is that GDP is divorced from notions of spiritual well-being. Robert Kennedy once famously took aim at GDP which, he said, counted cigarette advertising and jails but did not include âthe beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriagesâ. Still, GDP growth was a decent, if rough, guide to material progress. The more output and income was generated (after adjusting for inflation), the better off we were.
That equation worked pretty well when the economy was still mostly farms and factories, producing things of similar quality that could easily be counted. But GDP is less suited to the task of measuring modern, service-led economies that are geared towards the quality of consumer experience, rather than consumption of greater quantities. It is far harder to identify the extent to which changes in price reflect a better service. When medical charges rise, it will generally count as inflation, even if the quality of health care is improving faster than prices are rising. And where consumers pay nothing, as is often now the case with digital services, they do not register in GDP. The consumer benefits from Google and Facebook are thus excluded. Previously paid-for things, such as maps, encyclopedias and music recordings, are now free. So they have dropped out of GDP. Online shopping, banking and travel-arranging is more convenient for consumers. To the extent that all this saves on buildings, it detracts from GDP. For the most part, the trickiness of measuring the output of services leads real GDP to be understated. But mis-measurement works the other way, too. For instance, if an airline squeezes more (and thus cheaper) seats on to a plane, it counts as extra output, even though the quality of service falls. Perversely, the more risks banks take, the more they contribute to GDP, even as the quality of lending falls.
GDP is a creature of the industrial era of mass-produced, homogenous goods. It is a far less useful guide to affluent economies where the quality of services is prized over simply having more stuff. It is badly attuned to digital economies, where activities that were once paid for, such as contacting friends or finding information, no longer attract a charge. GDP is thus increasingly failing to fully capture gains in average living standards. It is tricky to compare the life of a medieval king to that of a modern-day worker. But it is almost as difficult to put a number on how much better is a consumer basket that includes smartphones and music streaming to one filled with fax machines and audio-cassettes.
Discuss why GDP may or may not be a good measure of progress in modern economics using examples from the the above article to support your answer ( word count:250-350 words)
{ Hint : a complete discussion will present both sides of the argument }
In: Economics
Before taking this class, did you think your diet was balanced? What are the strengths and weaknesses of your current diet? Your initial answer should be 500 words minimum. Reference at least two sites you visited on this topic (APA or AMA citation).
Comment and provide feedback to the comments (300 words minimum). PLEASE PROVIDE A SUBSTANTIAL RESPONSES (300 word minimum) FOR THE ABOVE PARAGRAPH.Express ideas and opinions in a clear and concise manner with obvious connection to the topic.
Before answering this discussion question, I had to look up what a balanced diet is because I donât truly know the real definition of what is considered balanced. According to Healthline, âyou should consume the majority of your daily calories in fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, lean proteinsâ. When remembering what I ate the past few weeks, I thought that I sometimes have a balanced diet, but it is inconsistent. There would be days where I would eat cheetos and eat one meal of rice and some type of protein, and that would get me full for a day. Then there are other days where I would create my own smoothies with a good amount of fruits and vegetables, then eat my proteins with a side of steamed vegetables. For the most part, I live a healthy life but I treat myself often with processed foods and desserts. Growing up in an Asian household, our meals are usually focused on rice and then there would be side dishes of protein and vegetables, varying from 2-3 different dishes. So with that, we get a good balance of carbohydrates and proteins. One of my favorite dishes is tofu in a tomato reduced soup. I absolutely hate legumes and any type of bean, so I am glad that I can enjoy tofu, so that I fulfill the consumption of what is considered balanced. My strengths of my current diet is that I try to drink a smoothie every day to get my daily dose of fruits. I enjoy all types of fruit and the only one I would refuse to eat are avocados. I also love tomatoes and I try to cook and incorporate tomatoes into my daily meals. I love eating vegetables as well and because I am used to eating steamed vegetables, it is healthier than using more ingredients and stir frying them to make them taste better. I eat fruits and vegetables almost daily with few exceptions during the week. My weaknesses however, are definitely eating empty calories. According to WebMD, âthere are basically two empty-calorie culprits in our diets: anything with lots of sugar or other sweeteners and anything with lots of fat and oilâ. One of my weaknesses is eating chips and drinking fruit juice such as Minute Maid Fruit Punch. I try to limit my intake on empty calories and the most helpful tip that helped me limit them is by not having them in the house. When I have them in the house however, I usually eat them in one or two sittings, and I would be full for the day. When I go grocery shopping, I try to get just one bag of chips or sweets to help satisfy my craving and focus the rest of my groceries on healthy foods. Another vice I have is eating out, which used to take up a good amount of my diet, as I used to eat out in restaurants once or twice a week. Because of the pandemic happening, I havenât been eating takeout and feel that even after it is over I will limit how often I eat out as I am used to it now.
In: Nursing