Information System Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Information System Strategy - Essay Example Wal-Mart, today has more than 9,600 retail stores in over 30 countries, employing some 2 million employees with 1.3 million in the US alone and annual revenues of approximately $430.349 billion as of 2012. Wal-Mart is an unavoidable and irresistible retail force that, as of the present, has not met any immovable objects. Larger than Tesco, AG, Metro, and Carrefour combined, Wal-Mart is the world’s top retail store (Roberts & Berg, 2012: p26). It ranked first in the Fortune 500 list of the largest organizations by revenues. Its main competitors were Carrefour in Europe that has annual revenues of approximately $121.27 billion, Target Corporations with annual revenues of $68.44 billion, Costco Corporations that has annual revenues of approximately $88.92 billion, as well as variety and discount stores, which have annual revenues of approximately $6.24 billion (Roberts & Berg, 2012: p28). An organizational structure refers to the typically hierarchical framework through which organizations arrange their communication and authority lines, as well as allocate duties and rights, determining the extent and manner to which the roles, responsibilities, and power are coordinated, delegated, and controlled and how the information moves between the various management levels. The structure of an organization is dependent entirely on the strategy and objectives that the organization chooses. In centralized structures, the power of decision-making is concentrated within the management’s top layer and tight control they exercise over divisions and departments that are evident in Wal-Mart’s organizational structure. Since all paths of decision making at Wal-Mart begin from the CEO to the executive and on to the branches, Wal-Mart uses a centralized structure (Roberts & Berg, 2012: p34). The top of their structure is Mike Dune, the CEO, who oversees the executive comm ittee that includes the CFO, CIO, and Executive Vice Presidents. The Board of Directors puts in place the

How to Learn Meditation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

How to Learn Meditation - Essay Example There are different types of meditation depending on school and country, but it is possible to learn the basic skills which are common. Like any technique, meditation requires knowledge of theory and regular practice. So first it is necessary to choose a comfortable place for meditation. It has to be friendly and familiar location; there is no need to go outside if you are planning to meditate for the first time. Through meditation on the beach seems like a wonderful idea, it is better to do it later being more adept. Your own room where everything is familiar and where you won`t be bothered is a perfect place. It is possible to sit on the floor or on a special carpet or on the chair.  The second step is choosing a right posture. Two main conditions of a good posture and effective meditation are straight spine and comfort. If you feel relaxed sitting on a floor with your legs crossed then it`s a perfect posture. It `s also possible to take a cushion as it will make sitting less dif ficult. Someone will rather sit on a chair. Your spine must resemble a straight line from the top of the head down to the floor. Yet the posture must not be too comfortable to the point that it will make you fall asleep and you must be able to hold your body weight yourself. Step number four is finding the right music. It is much more comfortable to meditate with appropriate audio when you are doing it for the first time. Calm Indian melodies, binaural rhythms, mantras are those tested sounds which are easy to find on the Internet now. These sounds help to reduce any mental chatter that is going on in your head. Choose the audio that will last for about 10-15 minutes and will not end abruptly. Focusing on your breath is a next and one of the most important steps on your way to becoming a master of meditation. Breathing is the key to concentration and relaxation so you need to be attentive and not neglect to learn to breathe however awkward it may sound.