The minor tactics of chess : a treatise on the deployment of the forces in obedience to the strategic principle /

Mode of access: Internet.

Reforming state-level coastal management and development policies: strategic retreat as an innovative, proactive and equitable coastal environmental management strategy

Atlantic and Gulf Coast shorelines include some of the most unique and biologically rich ecosystems in the United States that provide immeasurable aesthetic, habitat and economic benefits. Natural coastal ecosystems, however, are under increasing threat from rampant and irresponsible growth and development. Once a boon to local economies, complex natural forces – enhanced by global climate change and sea level rise - are now considered hazards and eroding the very foundation upon which coastal development is based. For nearly a century, beach restoration and erosion control structures have been used to artificially stabilize shorelines in an effort to protect structures and infrastructure. Beach restoration, the import and emplacement of sand on an eroding beach, is expensive, unpredictable, inefficient and may result in long-term environmental impacts. The detrimental environmental impacts of erosion control structures such as sea walls, groins, bulkheads and revetments include sediment deficits, accelerated erosion and beach loss. These and other traditional responses to coastal erosion and storm impacts- along with archaic federal and state policies, subsidies and development incentives - are costly, encourage risky development, artificially increase property values of high-risk or environmentally sensitive properties, reduce the post-storm resilience of shorelines, damage coastal ecosystems and are becoming increasingly unsustainable. Although communities, coastal managers and property owners face increasingly complex and difficult challenges, there is an emerging public, social and political awareness that, without meaningful policy reforms, coastal ecosystems and economies are in jeopardy. Strategic retreat is a sustainable, interdisciplinary management strategy that supports the proactive, planned removal of vulnerable coastal development; reduces risk; increases shoreline resiliency and ensures long term protection of coastal systems. Public policies and management strategies that can overcome common economic misperceptions and promote the removal of vulnerable development will provide state and local policy makers and coastal managers with an effective management tool that concomitantly addresses the economic, environmental, legal and political issues along developed shorelines. (PDF contains 4 pages)

Reforming state-level coastal management and development policies: strategic retreat as an innovative, proactive and equitable coastal environmental management strategy

Atlantic and Gulf Coast shorelines include some of the most unique and biologically rich ecosystems in the United States that provide immeasurable aesthetic, habitat and economic benefits. Natural coastal ecosystems, however, are under increasing threat from rampant and irresponsible growth and development. Once a boon to local economies, complex natural forces – enhanced by global climate change and sea level rise - are now considered hazards and eroding the very foundation upon which coastal development is based. For nearly a century, beach restoration and erosion control structures have been used to artificially stabilize shorelines in an effort to protect structures and infrastructure. Beach restoration, the import and emplacement of sand on an eroding beach, is expensive, unpredictable, inefficient and may result in long-term environmental impacts. The detrimental environmental impacts of erosion control structures such as sea walls, groins, bulkheads and revetments include sediment deficits, accelerated erosion and beach loss. These and other traditional responses to coastal erosion and storm impacts- along with archaic federal and state policies, subsidies and development incentives - are costly, encourage risky development, artificially increase property values of high-risk or environmentally sensitive properties, reduce the post-storm resilience of shorelines, damage coastal ecosystems and are becoming increasingly unsustainable. Although communities, coastal managers and property owners face increasingly complex and difficult challenges, there is an emerging public, social and political awareness that, without meaningful policy reforms, coastal ecosystems and economies are in jeopardy. Strategic retreat is a sustainable, interdisciplinary management strategy that supports the proactive, planned removal of vulnerable coastal development; reduces risk; increases shoreline resiliency and ensures long term protection of coastal systems. Public policies and management strategies that can overcome common economic misperceptions and promote the removal of vulnerable development will provide state and local policy makers and coastal managers with an effective management tool that concomitantly addresses the economic, environmental, legal and political issues along developed shorelines. (PDF contains 4 pages)

Primera Reservoir Ltd. strategic position analysis

The purpose of this work is to understand the internal and external structure in which the company operates to provide an idea of the strategic actions needed to accomplish their organizational objectives. A strategic software was employed to build up phase one and phase two, phase one involved analysing internal and external factors that influence the company, comprehending their core competences, factors that influence the market and identification of strengths and weaknesses. Phase two consisted on providing an idea of their real competitive position and the suggestion of a development strategy, given the possible limitations in the external factors, the company should carefully analyse some of the opportunities present in the industry overseas to continue to develop their business and increase its profitability. Furthermore, a source of competitive advantage was found in their outbound logistics which could serve a differentiator between their competitors.

Strawberries any-time, any-day, any-where : a strategic marketing analysis

While the number of Australian strawberry producers has declined by 40% over the past decade the value of production has increased by 58%. Such changes reflect structural changes occurring within an increasingly competitive industry. This paper discusses a study that was conducted to develop a marketing strategy that was conducted in order to reposition an industry so that it may grow in the face of a maturing product life cycle.

To establish a benchmark position, an industry analysis based on the Five Forces model was first undertaken. This analysis was followed by a consumer analysis which consisted of (a) a series of focus group discussions and (b) a comprehensive consumer marketing research survey. The findings of this survey enabled a series of market segments to be identified and profiled. Based on these results a strategic marketing communication campaign aimed at increasing strawberry consumption was developed and implemented.

Changing perspectives : teaching and learning centres’ strategic contributions to academic development in Australian higher education

This article reports on a study of Australian teaching and learning centres to identify factors that contribute to their effective strategic leadership. These centres remain in a state of flux, with seemingly endless reconfiguration. The drivers for such change appear to lie in decision makers’ search for their centres to add more strategic value to organisational teaching, learning and the student experience. Through a synthesis of findings based on interviews, a survey of directors of centres and focus groups, the article identifies paradigmatic shifts in the ways centres see themselves, relate to their organisations and respond to external environmental forces. From an understanding of paradigm shifts, strategic contributions to academic development in the sector are framed organisationally through key points of leverage. Points of leverage are manageable actions that can be taken to maximise overall institutional impact and effectiveness.

Click clack : examining the strategic and entrepreneurial brand vision of Under Armour

Using non-traditional brand strategy and innovative techniques, Under Armour quickly established a dominant presence in the sport performance apparel market as a newcomer in its product category. It established strong brand equity among consumers through its messaging and authentic relationship with target consumers. Utilising marketing and brand management theories, this study analysed the entrepreneurial strategies implemented by Under Armour in establishing the company's current positioning in the sport performance apparel marketplace. Using Aaker's (2005) strategic market management theory and Porter's (1980) competitive forces model as a framework, this study analysed the different marketing methods utilised to develop, maintain, and sustain the Under Armour brand.

Development of a prototype for measuring plantar forces

Studies on the distribution of plantar pressure between the sole of the foot and the ground were developed before the 19th century. Currently, the most often employed plantar pressure measurement systems are Pedar® and FScan®, which have restrictions such as operational difficulty and high cost. In the present study, a device was constructed from two pressure plates capable of measuring plantar forces in discreet areas of the feet at a low cost, using strain-gages attached to sixteen strategic points of the mechanical elements. Sixteen prismatic beams were soldered to each frame, for which the free extremity of each beam represented a specific point of the foot. Two strain gauges were attached to each beam - one near the upper fixed extremity and the other near the lower fixed extremity. Using a Wheatstone bridge electric circuit, the gauges were used to measure the force acting on the extremity of the beam. Precision and accuracy of the prototype was about 10%. In some measurements, accuracy was 2%. The low precision and accuracy were mainly due to the restrictions of the available equipment, which only permitted four measurements at a time. Thus, it was necessary for participants to stand on the plates four separate times, which signified possible changes in the position of the feet on the pressure plates. Despite some limitations, the aim was achieved. The prototype has been used in some studies and represents a contribution to biomechanics, demonstrating the viability of using strain gauges.

Avian coronavirus Spike Glycoprotein Ectodomain Shows a Low Codon Adaptation to Gallus gallus with Virus-Exclusive Codons in Strategic Amino Acids Positions

This is a study on the Avian coronavirus IBV and chicken host-relationship from the codon usage point of view based on fifty-nine non-redundant IBV S1 sequences (nt 1-507) from strains detected worldwide and chicken tissue-specific protein genes sequences from IBV-replicating sites. The effective number of codons (ENC) values ranged from 36 to 47.8, indicating a high-to-moderate codon usage bias. The highest IBV codon adaptation index (CAI) value was 0.7, indicating a distant virus versus host synonymous codons usage. The ENC x GC3 % curve indicates that both mutational pressure and natural selection are the driving forces on codon usage pattern in S1. The low CAI values agree with a low S protein expression and considering that S protein is a determinant for attachment and neutralization, this could be a further mechanism besides mRNA transcription attenuation for a low expression of this protein leading to an immune camouflage.

Geen leger, is onbetaalbaar = No Belgian armed forces is unaffordable. Egmont Security Policy Brief No. 61, February 2015

In this Security Policy Brief Jo Coelmont examines the challenges Belgium is facing at present. On the one hand there is the declared political objective to henceforth provide its defence forces with the means of achieving all of its tasks and, furthermore, to develop a new Strategic Plan, while taking decisions on replacing its current fleet of F16 fighter aircraft and determine strategic orientations on the replacement of frigates, mine hunter vessels and other major equipment programmes. On the other hand, the already taken austerity measures impose severe structural cuts on its defence budget for the upcoming five years. In this context the author is proposing some « dos and don’ts«.

Strategic positioning in voluntary and non-profit organizations in the UK : exploring the experiences of British charitable organizations:Exploring the experiences of British Charitable Organizations

This thesis explores the strategic positioning [SP] activities of charitable organizations [COs] within the wider sector of voluntary and non-profit organizations [VNPOs] in the UK. Despite the growing interest in SP for British COs in an increasingly competitive operating environment and changing policy context, there is lack of research in mainstream marketing/strategic management studies on this topic for charities, whilst the specialist literature on VNPOs has neglected the study of SP. The thesis begins with an extended literature review of the concept of positioning in both commercial [for-profit] and charitable organizations. It concludes that the majority of theoretical underpinnings of SP that are prescribed for COs have been derived from the commercial strategy/marketing literature. There is currently a lack of theoretical and conceptual models that can accommodate the particular context of COs and guide strategic positioning practice in them. The research contained in this thesis is intended to fill some of these research gaps. It combines an exploratory postal survey and four cross-sectional case studies to describe the SP activities of a sample of general welfare and social care charities and identifies the key factors that influence their choice of positioning strategies [PSs]. It concludes that charitable organizations have begun to undertake SP to differentiate their organizations from other charities that provide similar services. Their PSs have both generic features, and other characteristics that are unique to them. A combination of external environmental and organizational factors influences their choice of PSs. A theoretical model, which depicts these factors, is developed in this research. It highlights the role of governmental influence, other external environmental forces, the charity’s mission, organizational resources, and influential stakeholders in shaping the charity’s PS. This study concludes by considering the theoretical and managerial implications of the findings on the study of charitable and non-profit organizations.

Strategists' reactions and resistance towards forces of inclusion:soothing the anxiety of marketing (non-) influence

The firm is becoming more and more inclusive in its conception. And yet, marketing studies point to the same overwhelming conclusion that marketing, marketing departments and marketers are being increasingly 'pushed out' - excluded. We argue that where and when inclusion-exclusion intersect in the practice of strategic marketing is important, not least because their powerful boundary-setting and spanning roles have a determinant effect on the places and spaces, within which marketing strategists are (counter-) mobilized. This paper provides new insights relating to the contradictory forces existing around inclusion-exclusion in corporate strategizing. A further aim is to present the position of marketing (non-) influence within this context. The paper provides a unique theoretical contribution by illustrating some of the contradictions, struggles and activities that make the theoretical shift towards strategic inclusivity unstable, partial and by no means inevitable. A further contribution is a linking of this broader strategic debate, with anxieties over the influence of marketing in corporate strategizing. This leads to a discussion of the various ways that marketing research can sooth the anxiety of influence on multiple fronts via: understanding agency and strategic action; shaping marketing curriculum development; and, reconsidering the spatial dimensions of marketing influence. © 2010 Taylor & Francis.