The Employment Relationships Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Employment Relationships - Essay Example Employee relations ensure that a certain professional relationship is maintained between the employers and the employees and this helps to achieve adequate productivity and creation of morale and motivation among workers. Gennard and judge (2005) say that employee relations involve collective bargaining by both parties about grievances and appeals that arise in the course of employment. This paper will address the factors influencing the change in employee’s relations and give recommendations. Since employees relations is an ongoing process, changes are bound to occur. Such changes include: change in the choice of communication method that the management chooses to use e.g. use of memos, briefing and so on. Change may also occur in the choice of payment method. It could be done in a performance-oriented way. Training and development employees could also change. Those are just some of the few changes that may occur. A change in the schedule of working hours is among the major factors that influence working relations. Employees agree to work for several hours that are spread over a given period of time. This allows workers to perform their duties as expected and also have time to do their own personal things like care for their families, take holidays and so on. An organization that has a favorable working schedule for its employees has increased staff retention, absenteeism is reduced and there is also increased productivity. On the other hand, if an organization has a too tight working schedule it will be strenuous to the employees and this will lead to a conflict between them and the employer because they will not perform their duties as expected due to fatigue leading to a decrease in productivity.  

Term Paper, Project Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Term Paper, Project Management - Assignment Example 2. Usage - Mostly done as a preliminary method of finding out information with regards to the interaction between the environmental stressors or risk agents and the target population, communities, or sites (US EPA, 2012a). 3. How it is conducted - The EPA uses a four-step method which consists of the following: data collection and evaluation; exposure assessment; toxicity assessment; and risk characterization (US EPA, 2012a). Data collection and evaluation aims to gather as much information from the site as possible, such as collecting samples and identifying the presence of stressors such as chemicals in the surroundings. After sufficient data has been gathered and analyzed, exposure and toxicity assessments are done next. Exposure assessment is done in order to analyze the contaminants released, to identify the populations exposed and how these stressors reached them, as well as estimating both the concentrations and intakes using various pathways by which the stressors were able t o reach the studied target areas or populations. The toxicity assessment deals with further quantitative and qualitative studies on the stressors such as performing tests that determine the toxicity levels of contaminants. Lastly, risk characterizations list the sum total possible effects of these contaminants to both the environment and the people such as the potentiality to cause chronic or acute diseases. Also, the probabilities and uncertainties of how these contaminants can reach people are summarized in order to aid future risk assessments to be done in later areas (US EPA, 2012a). 4. Comparison to other kinds of assessments – Baseline risk assessment is the most basic but generalized method of analyzing the current condition of target locations and populations. While it shares many characteristics such as the use of scientific methods in the conduct of other kinds of assessments, it is also the foundation for other kinds of analyses to be conducted in the future, espec ially with the larger areas of study and necessary information. There is also a greater need to incorporate as much information from the areas or sites as possible since these are the levels by which future prediction models will be based on, and will be constantly relied on in succeeding area or population analyses. Thus, in order to create accurate models and risk assessments for each site, the baseline risk assessment must be carefully and thoroughly conducted to prevent future miscalculations and assure that there is appropriate risk-management in these areas (US EPA, 2012a). Comparative Risk Assessment 1. Definition – It is a kind of assessment method wherein the ranking of various effects in importance or relevance are established into a scale which, while not exactly designed to work on a single measuring unit or scale, is quite functional in approximating the effects or consequences of such stressors based on location and population (US EPA, 2006). 2. Usage - The EPA use comparative risk assessments in a way that various risks or important points are referred to and then compared to the approximated scale so as to assist risk assessors in weighing the appropriate measures in accordance to the presence or identity of the risks involved (US EPA, 2006). Such

Self Interest Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Self Interest - Coursework Example Ethics is a moral conduct that is good, fair, just, and admirable in the society. It brings out a clean air of behaviour and aims at showing ones dignity while interacting with fellow human beings. Morality always triumphs over selfishness, without morality social life would be nearly impossible. Naturally, people would be brutal, unjust, and selfish. Religion contributes to morality, because about 60% of individuals believe in a certain religion (MacKinnon and Fiala, 2015). Theologically, people care of what will happen in their afterlife. For many religions, an afterlife involves a person been rewarded or punished for what they have done. â€Å"Do to others what you would have them do to unto you† is a golden rule with a religious birth, which has been cemented in most people’s minds since childhood. Religion exists as a factor of unity in the society. Confucius in the ancient china was vocal in establishing a â€Å"gentleman’s code† to avoid social diso rder in China. The comfort or wrath of after life is based on the moral conduct of people’s behaviour while on earth. This regulates the conduct of people and motivates them to help others. Arguably, it is much better for people to follow rules. In the state of nature, according to social contract theory by Hobbes, it was brutal, lawless, unjust and short. The absence of rules was the cause. Inherently, man desires law and security. The need for self-preservation and protection of property prompts man to surrender their rights voluntarily.

Investment in single company shares and gilts Coursework

Investment in single company shares and gilts - Coursework Example From the point of view of economics, the act of investment is related to saving or deferring consumption today for the purpose of a better or higher return tomorrow. Interest is the price paid to the investor for waiting or deferring consumption. As consumers, we may invest for a number of reasons. We may invest in a house because we want the comfort of a shelter and a place to hold our belongings, a car to drive us to work, or a beach house to spend the holidays. Investments are also made in financial instruments that have value such as shares, bonds and pension plans. The idea is that the investment should bring us a better level of return in the future. Investments may also be made by corporations of monies kept for the purpose of buying future assets or replacement of machinery etc. The investment made in different types of financial instruments will yield a rate of interest and may increase or decrease in value due to demand and supply or various other factors. Thus investment w ill give one more than one types of return- interest earned and capital gains. The Investment Climate in the UK The UK has a very active financial environment, as London has been one of the most important financial centers of the world for some time now. The main reasons for this are the availability of infrastructure in the shape of the equity and bond markets and money market for local and foreign currencies. The main offices of the Bank of England, the UK’s central bank and many other local and international banks are housed here too, much like Wall Street in New York, USA (Kindleberger, 17). There are thousands of trades done daily on the floors of these banks and exchanges. These trades are directly or indirectly related to trade and commerce and the flow of goods, services and money from one bank or country to another (Ross, 12). The activities in the equity and bond markets may be of primary or secondary nature. Primary activity means the issue of new shares or bonds, and secondary activity means the trading or reinvestment of previously issued shares or bonds. Under the corporate form of ownership, a company can raise capital from the general public by issuing a Prospectus in the newspaper stating the nature of its intended business, and viability and profitability of the same. It is left up to the general public to judge and decide for themselves whether or not to invest in the shares or ownership rights of the business. This is called an Initial Public Offering or IPO if the company is inviting the public to purchase its shares for the very first time. The same activity may be carried out in the bond market which is the market for the issue and trading of debt securities. Bonds signify the debt of a company, and the owners of bonds are called the creditors of the company. Previously issue bonds can also be re-bought or resold at the rates prevailing in the market. Bond and equity markets always travel in the opposite directions. If the equity market is up, the bond market would be down and vice versa (Thau, 3). While the owners of bonds, debentures or debt securities are assured an interest payment at a defined rate of interest, and the price of the market value of their bonds at any time they decide to liquidate their holdings, the owners of equity shares will get a dividend payment based upon the number and value of shares they hold at that point in time. This is usually declared by the Board of Directors based upon the profits made by the company in a particular year. They are under no obligation to declare a dividend and may alternatively decide to plough back the profits into the company, to reinvest in

Chemical Warfare in World War 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Chemical Warfare in World War 1 - Essay Example World War I saw the development of weapons, which were deadlier to a degree than had never before been expected. Among the deadliest weapons that had never been used before were the 420 mm guns, which the Germans used to bombard France from Liege, Belgium. This led the countries to look for developing deadlier weapons with the help of their intellectuals, as it was clear that weapons would greatly determine the countries that won the war. (Hilmas, Smart & Hill 14). Therefore, as expected, deadlier weapons were developed by the countries. However, the deadliest and most inhumane of all the weapons developed was the poisonous gas, which was made by the German genius and Nobel laureate Fritz Haber (Bosco, Bosco & Bowman 38). Poisonous gas Prior to the World War I, several European countries including Germany, France and Britain had signed a treaty known as the Hague Convention on war on land in 1907 which forbid the use of poisonous gas in war. However, this did not deter the use of poi sonous gases in World War I (Stoltzenberg 151). Germany first used chemical weapons on British and Indian troops in 1914. Berlin was triggered to use chemical weapons after France had used on them. The chemical weapon used by the Germans was dianisidine chlorosulphonate, a chemical that causes irritation to the mucus membrane (Hilmas, Smart & Hill 14). However, the use of chemical weapons, which lead to widespread outcry by the rest of the world, was by Fritz Haber. (Hilmas, Smart & Hill 14).

Internal Functions and External Relationships - NWTB Essay Example for Free

Internal Functions and External Relationships NWTB Essay The ICT department is concerned with supporting the other functions of the organisation and the clients externally of the organisation. Its job is to ensure that ICT is being used as a support to help the other functions to operate as effectively as possible. Mr Povey has been involved in the implementation of standard kit throughout the NWTB as well as the organisations with whom they have a relationship externally. He has also been responsible for helping the clients (e.g. hotels, tourist attractions) to use ICT to effectively promote themselves and in turn the Northwest as a tourist destination. The NWTB is aiming for competitive advantage, e.g. they want tourists to visit the Northwest more than any other region in the UK. ICT can act as a tool to aid in the process of competitive advantage. The ICT departments role is to ensure that whilst ICT investment comes at a huge initial cost to the organisation, it is worthwhile, will provide value for money and is necessary in the long run to ensure stability and survival for the business in the future. Whether or not the ICT systems provide value for money will depend on how effective the systems are that are implemented and how well the user uses them. The ICT department are responsible for evaluating the systems in place and updating them as necessary to ensure they continue to support as opposed to hinder the operation of the organisations. The ICT department is split into 2 areas. The area responsible for maintenance of the current system and providing a service to the users within the organisation of the NWTB. This involves daily troubleshooting tasks like fixing broken machines and printers as well as maintenance of the network. It also involves the identification of training needs of those who use ICT within the NWTB as well as provision of training for those users. Secondly, the responsibility that Mr Povey has of promoting the effective use of ICT to destinations across the Northwest ensuring they can compete and provide tourists with excellent service e.g. by booking rooms or tickets on the internet or over the phone. This aspect of ICT falls mainly under the Operations function of the NWTB because it is this aspect of ICT that covers the providing of a service. The NWTB provides a service to its members e.g. the local hotels and tourist destinations, helping them to employ effective ICT systems, they in turn can provide a better, more competitive service to tourists. Mr Poveys role does not involve in any way the maintenance of the systems used by members, he simply acts as an advisor to members and can inform them of any funding they may apply for to help with purchasing ICT equipment. He does also help to identify training needs of members and organise training events. Some of the benefits of using ICT within the NWTB * Improved accuracy from basic typing of letters to automation of financial spreadsheets * Faster processing leading to faster responses e.g. e-mail communication between departments, purchase orders being completed using computers etc. * Information available for management that previously wouldnt have been available in time or may not have been in enough detail or as concise * Tighter control as a result of easily accessible financial information * Reduced costs as staff can be more productive with the support of ICT e.g. use of mail merge reduces the time and effort required for typing and sending a standard letter to a number of clients. * New sources of information to allow for improved marketing * Faster, more effective communication with regional and sub regional partners * Some of the benefits of using ICT to the NWTB members * Promotion can advertise to a wider audience not previously reached because of distance from the location, via Internet. * Sales improved marketing information results in increased sales. Ability to sell tickets and accept on-line booking improves sales as the business becomes available to a wider audience * Management information increased advanced ticket sales and bookings enables management to plan better and so be better prepared for requirements in terms of stock levels, number of staff needed, car parking issues etc. * Access to competitor information using the Internet management can research into what competitors are doing e.g. special offers and can compete with their own promotion ideas. * Production of promotional materials management can use their own systems to produce their own leaflets and flyers so saving money on printing costs * Financial Information management can store details in an automated spreadsheet making financial monitoring and planning quick and easy. * Data Storage management can store information about clients on a database which requires littler physical space and can be searched more quickly as opposed to sifting through a large paper based directory or file to find customer details. * Faster, more effective customer services customers can be dealt with quickly and efficiently if business data is stored on an easy to use system e.g. hotel booking systems. On some hotels customers can run up a bill using the bar, restaurant, leisure facilities etc if the business has a centralised computer based facility. Customers can see their billing information for a stay in the hotel on one printed sheet as opposed to keeping hold of a number of receipts. The customer is not required to pay for services individually as they pay for everything at the end. This can enhance the customers experience of staying in a hotel. Happy customers will usually spread the word and recommend a hotel to friends and relations as well as planning a return visit themselves. This all helps the businesses in their pursuit of competitive advantage. * More effective communication the businesses will be able to communicate with clients, suppliers, service providers etc via e-mail. How does ICT help NWTB to operate effectively? Suppose that there was a huge tourist event being organised in Southport. Then there are a number of jobs to be done within the NWTB to ensure the promotion and success of this event. The marketing department will carry out some research to establish the make-up of the target audience for the event and will then decide on the best methods of promotion for the event. For example, texting a large group of people, producing and displaying posters throughout the region, distributing flyers, sending leaflets directly to peoples houses, radio and TV advertising etc. ICT may be used to design a questionnaire to establish the target audience and those interested in attending the event. ICT may be used to input and analyse information about the potential audience The marketing department will have a large database with the details of people who have been to events in the past and will also have access to information about the make-up of households in the area. ICT may be used to access databases with peoples contact details and mail merge this with a standard letter to be sent to the households of the target audience. Marketing will need to speak to finance about the available budget for promotion and advertising. A spreadsheet may be used to calculate the amount of money available from the NWTB budget. A further spreadsheet may be created by the marketing department to allow them to keep track of all financial transactions that take place in relation to this particular event. This may also help them to make important decisions about how much to spend on aspects of the promotion. Information will be sent to local hotels and guesthouses about the event to inform them that there may be business to be gained from the event in that people who attend from outside the region will need somewhere to stay. This may be done using e-mail and attachments. Marketing will need to send copies of invoices and bills for the production of leaflets, posters etc. to the finance department so that the finance department can pay the bills. Administration will be responsible for word processing and sending the standard letter to households promoting the event. After the event the marketing department will need to evaluate the success of the event and its impact on the region. Was the event worthwhile to the region? They will need to collect and analyse information from a variety of sources to assess its impact. ICT will be useful at all stages in this complex evaluation process. What are the external relationships that NWTB has? Department for Culture, Media and Sport National Level DCMS champions good quality and service for tourists, from the UK and overseas. We encourage and help the tourism industry to improve what it has to offer for all our visitors and to promote a positive image abroad. Tourism Policy DCMS Ministers are very keen to modernise and reform the tourism industry, working more closely than before with the industry, and current tourism policy is focusing on improving structures, marketing, data, quality and skills, as follows: * The industry has formed a new body, the Tourism Alliance, to represent its views better to Government and catalyse actions to help delivery of policy objectives * VisitBritain was set up on 1 April 2003, bringing together the English Tourism Council (ETC) and the British Tourist Authority (BTA) * The relaunched body has a new and significant marketing role for England, including the development of e-tourism * Funding which previously went to Regional Tourist Boards via the ETC will now be channelled via the Regional Development Agencies * Major reviews on quality and data have been initiated, consulting the industry and others as appropriate * Industry and Government are working in close partnership on the skills agenda, and the Government is strongly supporting the establishment of a Sector Skills Council for Tourism Current policy as described above builds upon Tomorrows Tourism, the Governments 1999 strategy for the development of tourism in England. Good progress has already been made in delivering Tomorrows Tourism, which has also brought together a number of Government departments who are working closely with DCMS and the tourism industry to implement the strategy. Important areas not mentioned explicitly above, such as sustainable development of tourism and increasing access to tourism, are now considered as a matter of course in policy development and delivery. Support Structures In April 2003 the strengths and resources of the British Tourist Authority and the English Tourism Council were combined in one organisation, renamed VisitBritain. VisitBritain is responsible for promoting Britain overseas and England to the domestic market. Its key roles are to boost Britains income from tourism through professional and effective marketing, and to provide a framework within which the tourism industry can work in closer partnership. With its network of overseas offices, VisitBritain helps the over 120,000 tourism businesses in Britain reach overseas customers cost-effectively. For England, VisitBritain provides a central coordination role to make the most of the collective effort of all sectors promoting tourism in England to a domestic audience. A greater role in tourism for Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) in England is a major strand of the Governments programme of tourism reform. Since 1 April 2003, the RDAs are playing a stronger part in the strategic leadership of tourism, working both individually and together with each other within the new national framework for tourism strategy and marketing. The Regional Tourist Boards are the RDAs natural partners and will be funded by the RDAs, for the next three years at least, at a level equivalent to the project funding they received in 2002-03 from the former English Tourism Council. This amounts to à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½3.6 million per year. This arrangement excludes London, for which there are separate arrangements with the Greater London Authority. Regional Partners Other regions of the UK who all work together to help implememtn the strategy for the whole of the UK Sub Regional Partners regions that make up the Northwest. They share good practise and work together to promote the region as a whole. Lancashire Tourist Board Cheshire County Council North West Development Agency The Mersey Partnership Marketing Manchester Cumbria Tourist Board The NWTB also has a relationship with a number of smaller businesses within the sub regioanl partners e.g. small hotels, tourist attractions etc. The NWTB also has a relationship with all the organisations listed below as a business cannot function independently of these. The Inland Revenue, Customs and Excise, Insurers, ISPs, Data service providers, Computer and communications equipment suppliers, Courier Services, Utilities, Local authority departments, Advertising Agencies, Printer Firms. How is information used in the NWTB? Operations: * Purchasing * Work Scheduling- The NWTB will use this daily as they need to gain up to date information from all organisations. They will need to know where employees are in case another job comes up that is more important. * Delivery- The NWTB would need to make sure its customers where kept up to date with the latest technology, however, it is then up to the organisation as to whether they would like to utilise the technology. With small businesses the NWTB often spearheads the idea for the introduction of ICT into the business for more effective and efficient productivity. This means they may often have to supply their clients with computers in order to give them the best deal on, often, a small budget. Marketing: * Market Trends- Systems for studying market trends need to record and present data as defined by the current user, whether it be number of tourists visiting one attraction, or what attractions are open at that present time. Price and performance trends are also covered. * Analysis of competitive activity- The NWTB will be trying to make the northwest the best tourist destination in order to improve its reputation. They are constantly in competition with the other regions in the country. Within the NWTB you can sub-section the industry into different attractions, e.g. Hotels in one category and entertainment complexes in another. These sub- categories are in each have their own levels of competition in the northwest. * Planning and analysis of promotional campaigns- This is vital to the efficient running of the NWTB, they target not only small businesses in the promotions, but also the larger more established organisations that have more power to bring more tourists. Sales: * Receiving and logging of customer orders * Invoice production * Customer details * Recording all sales visits and other sales activity The ICT department have an important role in designing, introducing, and developing e-commerce systems. E-commerce is one of many ways a client of the NWTB can become a much more successful firm without the need of expansion. It allows small firms to broaden horizons, they do however take a number of months to become profitable and implementing them often takes a lot of time and effort, however, in the market today it is very easy to provide e-commerce safely and securely. The sales department would also keep a list of customers and clients on record. They will use these to keep details like address, e-mail address, buying history, current sale status, and sales person dealt with in the transaction. Research and Design: * Product design- The design process would be carried out using CAD, this allows the design department to produce lots of designs very quickly, it also allows the drawings to be much more accurate. This process also allows designs to be inter-compatible. * Engineering design- Due to CAD the design process becomes much quicker, in the production of advertisements it becomes much easier to edit motion clips on a computer very quickly. On a static poster you can retouch the elements present within it. * Analysis of new developments Finance: * Sales, purchase and nominal ledgers * Credit control * Payroll * Payments in and out, including EFT * Budgets, projections and accounts * Historical financial records Finance has to be able to give instant statements on the financial situation in the company to the directors, on request. EFT stands for electronic funds transfer. It refers to any use of computers in making payments to organisations or individuals. It is a rapid way of transferring money, but raises doubts about security. These administrative applications are largely similar between one organisation and another. There is nonetheless an important task for ICT to advise on the particular software products to be obtained. Administration: * Personnel records and pension scheme- personnel records include, for each employee: name, home address and telephone number, NI number, employee number and department, DOB, sex, date of joining company, job history before joining company, job history since joining, training, qualifications and skills. * Legal and statutory matters * Insurance * External authorities and contractors * Board meetings and annual general meetings As with the finance department, many of the systems used are universal throughout many different companies. The advice of ICT is likely to be both helpful to users and able to support the organisations policies on standardisation. The ICT Department: One of the key roles of the ICT department is to explain the advantages that may be available for managers and their departments of making greater use of computer-based systems. The team needs to explain the structure and characteristics of ICT projects. Another important task of ICT is to devise and manage centralised systems in the following areas: * Procurement of computer equipment * Procurement of computing and communications equipment * Use of e-mail and other Internet access procedures * System development, testing and standardisation

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) SWOT Analysis

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) SWOT Analysis Brief Company History Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), was founded on March 31, 2011 when Northrop Grummans Shipbuilding Sector was spun off as an independent company. HII is headquartered in Newport News, Virginia. HII is Americas largest military shipbuilding company and a provider of professional services to partners in government and industry. For more than 130 years, HIIs Newport News and Ingalls Shipbuilding have built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. The Technical Solutions division provides a wide range of professional services through its Fleet Support, Integrated Missions Solutions, Nuclear and Environmental, and Oil and Gas groups. HII is headquartered in Newport News, Virginia, and employs nearly 37,000 people operating both domestically and internationally (Who We Are, 2017). Integrity, safety, honesty, engagement, responsibility and performance are the values that guide Huntington Ingalls Industries. Putting these values into practice creates long-term benefits for employees, customers, shareholders, communities and suppliers (Company Values, 2017). The HII Corporate Governance addresses the relationship of the board of directors, management and stockholders with the objective of promoting the companys long-term success, improving company performance and representing the interests of the stockholders. The board will provide advice on the corporate strategy developed by management, access risk, select a chief executive officer, oversee development and succession plans for senior executives, monitor financial performance and oversee processes that maintain the integrity of the company (Proxy Statement, 2015). Strengths Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) is the largest military shipbuilder in the U.S., HII and also provides support services to nuclear energy and oil and gas industries. With divisions in Virginia and Mississippi, HII has built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. shipbuilder. HII is the sole source supplier of U.S Navy aircraft carriers and is the exclusive supplier of refueling services for nuclear-powered aircraft carriers (Who We Are, 2017). Industry experience is one of HIIs major strengths. For over a century, HII has provided the U.S. military with quality ships (Who We Are, 2017). HII prides itself on a diverse labor force of over 35,000 people working in domestic and foreign locations. HII is the largest industrial employer in the states of Virginia and Mississippi. HII has the ability to build multiple products at the same time (Who We Are, 2017). HII has the skills, the knowledge and the facilities to build multiple products at the same time. There are currently four different classes of military ships being built at the Mississippi location at this time (Who We Are, 2017). HII has the physical capacity for increased production. HII continues to invest heavily in the physical infrastructure of its shipbuilding divisions as well as other divisions. Continued improvements and facility upgrades places HII in a position to increase workload (Annual Report, 2015). HII maintains a strong and independent board of directors. The board follows Corporate Governance Guidelines which promote responsible business practices and good corporate citizenship. The board promotes practices that support the interests of the stockholders, employees, customers and suppliers (Proxy Statement, 2015). In recent years HII has invested heavily in new technology. HII owns a large portfolio of proprietary intellectual property and license intellectual property rights to and from other companies (Annual Report, 2015). Weaknesses   Ã‚   Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) suffers from a limited customer base. U.S. defense shipbuilders have only two consistent customers the U.S. government and international partner nations. HII faces a lack of technology knowledgeable workers (Spring 2016 Industry Study, 2016). Many of the employees are unskilled with new technology and workforce training is needed to compete with domestic and foreign competitors. U.S. shipbuilders are considered, on average, to be twenty years behind international shipyards regarding advanced technology (Spring 2016 Industry Study, 2016). Physical infrastructure of shipyards like HII are difficult and expensive to maintain. Facilities include docks, work areas, machine shops, storage areas and shelters, heavy equipment and assembly areas. The facilities must include dock areas and piers with service facilities for fire mains, electrical power, compressed air and fresh water (Shipbuilding and Repair, 2017). HII faces a high rate of labor turnover. Obtaining and retaining a skilled workforce is a problem faced by most shipyards. Employment can be cyclical resulting in hiring during upcycles and layoffs during downturns. Skilled workers leave for higher pay in other industry such as construction (Shipbuilding and Repair, 2017). HII faces a highly competitive market both domestic and foreign. Intense competition relating to programs, resources and funding are characteristics of the defense shipbuilding industry. Work is sometimes shared between multiple companies for major programs (Spring 2016 Industry Study, 2016). Opportunities New markets are opening for Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII). The new LX(R) amphibious ship program was secured by the Ingalls Shipbuilding division. The Stoller Newport News division was developed for nuclear operations and environmental services capabilities. HII provides a wide variety of products and services to the commercial energy industry and other government customers. The HII Universal Solutions Group is positioned to take a role in the unmanned underwater vehicle market. UniversalPegasus International division has 22 offices worldwide providing engineering, project management and field services (Annual Report, 2015). World unrest always creates demand for repairs and maintenance for existing ships and design and build of new ships for the U.S. military. This also provides the opportunity for sales to U.S. allies and partners to promote the strengthening of the global partner network to keep international order in balance (Spring 2016 Industry Study, 2016). HII has the benefit of government assistance to pay for training for new workforce. The U.S. government has several different programs for grants for training the local workforce (Spring 2016 Industry Study, 2016). More than 1,400 apprentices are trained by the shipbuilding units in more than 26 crafts (Annual Report, 2015). New contracts opportunities have recently been secured by HII. The Newport News division has recently received the contract to kick off the advance fabrication of aircraft carrier CVN 80. The Ingalls Shipbuilding division will begin fabrication of the destroyer DDG 123 and will begin the ninth National Security Cutter for the U.S. Coast Guard (News Releases, 2017). Due to the fact that HIIs largest single customer is the U.S. Government, political climate plays a large role in the stability of the company. Most of the companys revenues for 2015 were a direct result of sales to the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard. The current political climate is encouraging for increased military spending and growth (Annual Report, 2015). HIIs recent strategic acquisitions are expected to continue fuel growth. The Stoller Newport News Nuclear (SN3) group is a full-service nuclear operations and environmental services company focused on U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) clients. The Undersea Solutions Group (USG) develops and builds specialized manned and unmanned undersea vehicles for military customers around the world. UniversalPegasus International (UPI) provides world class expertise, efficiency and value in project management, engineering and construction management for the energy industry (Our Capabilities, 2017). The Jones Act (a portion of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920) is a federal statue regulating maritime commerce in U.S. territorial waters and between U.S. ports. Ships must be owned by U.S. citizens, crewed by U.S. citizens or permanent residents, built by U.S. shipyards and operate under U.S. laws. The Jones Act protects domestic shipyards by requiring domestic carriers to utilize U.S. shipyards for new builds maintenance and repair (Spring 2016 Industry Study, 2016). U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships are required to be built in U.S. shipyards. This provides HII and other domestic military shipbuilders with the assurance of obtaining the available contracts (Spring 2016 Industry Study, 2016). The major HII physical locations in Virginia and Mississippi offer the company a benefit of lower cost of living and lower wage scale. The South has few higher-paying jobs and is characterized by low cost-of-living adjusted wages. Issues pushing wages up or down include regional industry concentration, education levels and housing costs (Maciag, 2015) Having multiple business segments provides HII with increased areas of business opportunity. The HII shipbuilding divisions have built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. The Technical Solutions division provides a wide range of professional services through its Fleet Support services, Integrated Missions Solutions, Nuclear and Environmental, and Oil and Gas groups (Who We Are, 2017). Threats Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) operates in a heavily regulated environment with many government imposed regulations. HII is routinely audited for compliance with applicable laws, regulations and standards. Improper or illegal activities can result in fines, penalties, repayments or other damages. Certain findings can lead to suspension or debarment from future contracts or the loss of export privileges (Annual Report, 2015). Defense contractors such as HII are always a possible target for acts of terrorism. Operation of facilities may be disrupted and cause the incurrence of higher costs for security or it can shut down operations for a period of time (Annual Report, 2015). HII and other U.S. shipbuilders face foreign competition due to the fact that other countries such as Japan and South Korea provide subsidies or direct cash payments to their shipbuilders. This enables foreign shipyards to sell their vessels at or below the cost of construction (Spring 2016 Industry Study, 2016). HII faces domestic competition from key rival General Dynamics. There is intense competition related to programs, resources and funding. Defense programs, conducted under binding contracts, allows companies that perform well to benefit from program continuity not found in civilian industries (Annual Report, 2015). As a defense contractor, HII is a high-value target for cyber security threats due to the classified nature of information controlled by the HII information technology infrastructure. HII has faced attempts to gain access to classified and other sensitive information. A breach of the information technology infrastructure of physical facilities could cause significant recovery and restoration expenses (Annual Report, 2015). HII has operations located in regions of the U.S. that have been impacted by severe weather such as hurricanes, tornadoes and floods. The damage and disruption can be significant and long-lasting. Natural disasters can disrupt workforce, electrical and computer infrastructure that are critical for normal operations (Annual Report, 2015). Approximately 50% of HIIs employees are covered by eight collective bargaining agreements. Several of these agreements will expire in 2017 and 2018. While HII strives to maintain good working relations with labor unions, it is possible that there may be difficulties in negotiating expiring collective bargaining agreements. In the past there have been work stoppages, strikes and other labor disruptions (Annual Report, 2015).   HII relies on other companies to provide raw materials, major components and sub-systems. Manufacturing costs can increase over the life of the contract. Some U.S. Government contracts require certain materials and components be purchased from approved sources. The inability of the sole-source supplier to provide the product in a timely manner can result in adverse effects on the financial position and cash flows for HII (Annual Report, 2015). HIIs manufacturing operations are subject to federal, state and local laws regarding environmental protection. Estimated costs are accrued to account for future incurred expenses. However, it is difficult to estimate these costs which can cause estimated remediation costs to change. Costs relating to environmental regulations can effect financial position, results of operations and cash flow (Annual Report, 2015). Political climate effects defense spending and therefore effects defense contractors such as HII. Changes in the governments priorities and spending could have an adverse effect on the availability of future contracts (Annual Report, 2015). References Spring 2016 Industry Study Final Report Shipbuilding [Scholarly project]. (2016). In The Eisenhower School. Retrieved from http://es.ndu.edu/Portals/75/Documents/industry-study/reports/2015/es-is-report-shipbuilding-2015.pdf Ship Building and Repairing. (2017). Retrieved January 30, 2017, from https://business.highbeam.com/industry-reports/equipment/ship-building-repairing Who We Are. (n.d.). Retrieved February 01, 2017, from http://www.huntingtoningalls.com/who-we-are/ Company Values. (n.d.). Retrieved February 01, 2017, from http://www.huntingtoningalls.com/who-we-are/company-values/ Maciag, M. (2015, March 13). Where Wages Are Lowest and Highest in America. Retrieved February 01, 2017, from http://www.governing.com/topics/mgmt/gov-metros-where-wages-are-lowest.html Annual Report 2015. (2015, December). Retrieved February 03, 2017, from http://ir.huntingtoningalls.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=243052p=irol-reportsannual News Releases. (n.d.). Retrieved February 04, 2017, from http://newsroom.huntingtoningalls.com/releases Our Capabilities. (n.d.). Retrieved February 04, 2017, from http://www.huntingtoningalls.com/our-businesses/ Proxy Statement 2015. (2015, December). Retrieved February 03, 2017, from http://ir.huntingtoningalls.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=243052p=irol-reportsannual