The Experience Economy Essay Example for Free

The Experience Economy Essay Examples of winery mission statements We believe that great wines begin in the vineyard. For us, winegrowing is a collaboration with nature a balance between our passion for excellence and our trust in the natural expression of soil, climate and vine. As stewards of the land, it is our responsibility to farm it carefully, harvest the fruit gently and guide our wines with as little intervention as possible through a natural winemaking process. Examples of winery mission statements Creativity and perfection in all realms of living is what we strive for. We dont stop when we put the brush down, but continue throughout our lives, in winemaking, cooking, in friendships. It creates a mystical essence. Thats what we are about. Examples of winery mission statements The long term goal being to craft the finest classic cool climate varietal wines of Pinot Noir, Riesling, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay. Examples of winery mission statements Work at the castle is aimed towards the production of high quality wines. The cultivation system aims rigorously at respecting the environment. The wine has the title DOCG which is the most important acknowledgement of quality that the Italian state attributes to wine. Examples of winery mission statements Needless to say, our spirit reflects, above all, a certain joie de vivre created by a spontaneous champagne which brings something extra to those memorable moments shared with friends. Who could put it better than Laurence Mercier-Bardin, great, great granddaughter of the founder: â€Å"A taste for our wine is a taste for the pleasure of sharing a convivial, uncomplicated atmosphere.

The Success of US Economy in 2004-2007 Essay Example for Free

The Success of US Economy in 2004-2007 Essay Economics and professionals economists have felt the heed of a series of books economic subjects which is not filled by usual textbooks or by the highly technical treatise.   This present series are published under the general title ‘The Economics handbook series with the interest of informing any reader in general. They are short volumes that give essentials of the subject matter within the hundreds of few pages within a short span of period. The American Economy has undergone a considerable remodeling during the recent past. First the most important issue is the single factor, which is the new factor that has never been experienced in the History of America. America has never had a major depression far nearly two decades. WE have had virtually full employment and booming prospect. Although past experience has been quite different throughout out history every eight or nine years we have experience serious depression and widespread unemployment. Indeed over a century our economy was the most violently fluctuating economy in the world. The recent election history, particularly 2000 presidential contest and 2002 congressional elections, suggests a decisive victory for the incumbent republican president.   Since then the American economy had enjoyed unprecedented economic growth. The budget was balance and with the cold war over and America as the only hegemony left standing, the world was mere peaceful than ever (Acemoglu, 2004) Operating under pressure the American Economy had performed a miracle. The output response to adequate aggregate demand has surprised everyone, and what is many still more surprising, it has not led to any such destructive inflation as was feared. Clearly we are not out of words in this matter, but the experience of recent years is reassuring. One thing is certain; our economy is equipped with three powerful safeguards against peace time inflation: 1. Our prodigious capacity to increase production when under pressure. 2. Our capacity both corporate and individual, to save at high income levels; 3. Our demonstrated capacity at responsible fiscal and monetary management. However the problem of wages and collective bargaining still remain. There can be no doubt that this requires statesman like action. In all events it is therefore fair to say that experience thus far indicates that the alarmists may well have beaten the drums a little too loudly and it will be happy to note recently a little softer note in the discussion of this very important problem. A high degree of stability in the value of money must be an important consideration of public policy. Yet there is in considerable danger of making a fetish of rigid price stability. This fetish could easily become a serious obstacle to optimize. (Karol Panis, 2004) The record of post man central Bank history in the United States points to the conclusion that monetary policy has become only one of many instruments controlling the rate of aggregate spending. And fiscal policy has played the dominant role, with monetary policy and selective controls serving as important supporting measures. The long term interest rates still need to be coming down, especially since they climbed back recently short term rates could go down another percentage point to help. In addition the Federal Reserve should conduct some of its open market purchases in the long-term markets, and the Treasury should stop selling new bonds in the long term markets. Both measures would lighten the supply of bonds in the long maturities, give an upward push on their prices and bring down long tern interest rates. In 1960, on the Kennedy Council, the council was trying to persuade the Whitehouse, the congress and the public that the beginning of recovery is only the begging of recovery. At that point, the full employment growths push. By simply changing the direction of the economy from negative to positive does not automatically trigger an inflation problem. This will indicate that just because the economy has turned around and is going up rather than down is going up rather   than down for a month or two or a quarter or two does not mean the business cycle problem is solved. A lot of unemployment excess capacity and slack demand still persists at and after the typical cyclical turning point (Barrel, 1992) The government offers job training and job training is a pervasive aspect of the life of Americans, Wages and salaried employment is the single largest source of aggregate personal income in the United States. Every person holding a job has benefited from the training. Most job training in the United States is undertaken by private employers in their normal course of doing business, but each year, many Americans in precarious economic conditions use publicly funded job training as a path to employment. Training comes in many shapes that are not the same and in different forms. There is an important distinction between general and firm specific training. The general training provides the trainee with skills that apply to many employers in the labor market while specific training mainly offers skills that have value within a given firm or for a given employer. The government finances more of the former whole employers support more of the later since they are its principal beneficiaries. Both public and private intermediaries have played important role as service providers throughout during the publicly funded employment and training programs. The work forces investment act (WIA) has expanded the role of intermediaries participating in the workforce investment system by establishing new one stop operator roles and excluding local work force investment boards from being direct service providers, unless waivers have been removed.   Intermediaries that provide services under WIA receive funds from local boards to provide direct employment and training services to customers or facilitate work force development in the one-stop environment. In the recent past, concern about the skills of the US work force has emerged as a persistent public policy issue. The current focus on skills and their importance in the working lives of Americans is not new, rather a renewal. The Federal training policy has its roofs. In new deal public workers programs several factors are tied to the renewed public interest in skill development. Globalization, technological change and the reorganization of work have combined to produce dramatic changes in the demand for workers’ skill. Today a ‘good’ job increasing requires a strong base of analytical quantitative and verbal skills. In the United states these skills are produced for the most part by the educational system, followed in sequence by private employers. (O’Leary et al. 2004) While most work force development programs have evolved incorporating lessons learned from previous initiatives, the job corps program, designed to offer disadvantaged youth a one year residential work force development program, has continued virtually unchanged since it was established by the economic opportunity act in 1964. In the next 15 years, work in the United States will be shaped by a number of forces that includes demographic trends, advances in technology and the process of economic globalization. These key factors have already played a role in shaping the world of work in today economy. They have influence the size and composition of labor force, the features of the work place, and the composition structures provided by employers. During the last century the US economy was shifting from one based a production to one based on information. New technology had spawned new products and industries had transformed the way firms in established industries were organized and labor was employed. The phenomenon of globalization can be viewed from a number of perspectives. There is no a single agreed upon definition (world bank 2000) Economic aspects of globalization has seen the flows of goods and services, direct investment and other capital flows, the transfer of knowledge or technology and the movement of people. From this, perspective in the United States, the era of economic globalization affects the size of the markets we produce far the mix of products be consumed and the nature of the competition in the global market place. It also has implications for the labor market, the US workers compete in and the sources of domestic and international labor available to US firms and in addition to the economic dimension of globalization, it also has political social and cultural dimensions such as the balance of power across nations. (Karol Panis, 2004) The secular bent of the shah as well as his oppression and dictatorial ways alienated many Iranian groups allowing radical Islamists to overthrew the dictator and in stall a radical Islamic state in its place. The new regime held Washington acceptable for its years of support of shah, and relations between the two countries deteriorated as groups of Iranians took over American Embassy in Teharan.This is in support of explainging to exposà © the roots of present war on terrorism. (Gareau, 2004). One of the apparent puzzles in the empirical corporate governance literature is the lack of correlation between the presence of independent directors and the firm’s economic performance. Various studies have searched in vain far an economically significant effect on the overall performance of the firm. Theory would predict that firms will select the board structure that enhances the chance for survival and success; it competitive market pressure eliminates out of equilibrium patterns of corporate governance whole some predict that corporate governance in the US is already good and therefore marginal improvements in a particular corporate governance mechanism would expectedly have a small effect. The rise of independent directors in the diffusely held public form is not driven only by the need to address the managerial agency problem at any particular form but on how to govern forms so as to increase social welfare. Fundamental changes in the information environment rewarded th e ratio of the firm’s reliance on private information to its reliance information impounded in the prevailing stock market prices. In conclusion over the period between 2004 and 2004, the central planning capabilities of the large public firm became suspect. The richer public information environment changed the role of directors and special access to private information became less important. Thus the fidelity shareholder value as to the utility of stock market signals found unit in the reliance on stock price maximization as the measure of managerial success. (Gordon, 2007) The US economy slowed sharply in the fourth quarter of 2005 growing of its slowest rate since early 2003. This is because private consumption was weak largely due to a sharp drop in auto sales as buyer incentive programs ended and gasoline process surged in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, corporate fixed investment was subdued and net experts exerted a substantial drag and growth. Mainly indicators suggest that the weakness was concentrated on the early part of the quarter and the economy had subsequently bounced back.   Industrial production has strengthened capital goods orders are firm non fair payrolls increased and consumer confidence has rebounded from its Past Katrina slump. Consequently real GDP growth issues expected to rebound in the first quarter 7 2006 and average at 3.4 percent for the year as a whole. Strong corporate profits and comfortable financing conditions imply a positive outlook for business investment. Consumption growth, however is expected to slow in 2006 by about  ¾ percent point as a cooling housing market and elevated energy prices more than offset any acceleration in disposable incomes from employment and wage growth with corporate profits expanding robustly and balance sheets in good shape, business investments and employment growth could be stronger than expected, but overall risks to the outlook are slanted to the down side. The large current account deficit 6.4 percent of GDP in 2005 makes the United States vulnerable to a swing in investors’ sentiment that could put downward pressure on, the dickens and see a spike in long-run interest rates. However a weaker housing market could trigger a more abrupt withdrawal of consumer demand than anticipated. House prices have grown strongly in recent years providing a boost to economic activity through their effect on consumption, residential investment and employment. (World Economic Outlook, 2006)

Importance Of Stakeholders In An Event Launch Tourism Essay

Importance Of Stakeholders In An Event Launch Tourism Essay This report discusses launching of a new tablet launched by apple. This is a brand new model of a tablet that can be used by anybody and it is also suitable and adopted for every user including children with leaning disabilities due to its customizable features. As a consultant working with the companys event planning team for this product launch, this report will be focusing on the process of planning this event. The process of how to get the potential customers and key stakeholders persons informed and invited to the event. And most important is for the planning process to lead to achieving the companys goals of higher sales targets and to promote the new product to the customers. To meet this, the event needs to be planned in such away that the invited guests and all potential customers gets a positive experience that promotes the image of the company and the brand being marketed. INTRODUCTION Event planning is the procedure of handling a project of this kind through arranging such as a conference, a convention, a trade fair, a team building activity, a hospitality gathering or an exhibition. The planning process includes drawing a realistic budget, drawing a timetable of every activity, choosing and reserving the event venues, obtaining permits where necessary and needed. Planning and making arrangements for food and drinks, harmonising transportation of people and items, designing a suitable theme planning for every activity. There is also need to chose and invite keynote speakers and promoters in good time and ensuring that the venue is well facilitated and equipped with a good public address system if planning for big audiences. Risk management needs to be accounted for while having some contingency plans in cases of eventualities. Event Planning consists of coordinating every little detail of planning from the speakers and meeting location to arranging for printed mat erials and advertising the event itself through chosen media. Event planning begins with determining the objective that the sponsoring organization wants to achieve. Planners strategically choose speakers, entertainment teams and activities, content, and arrange the program to present the organizations information in the most effective way. Meeting planners are responsible for selecting meeting venues, likely guests and how to get them to the meeting. (Institute of Event management, 2012) According to Fill(2005), Marketing communications is a management process through which an organisation endeavours to share its product information with its various audiences. Through understanding the audiences communications setting, organisations seek to cultivate and present messages suitable for their identified stakeholders and interest groups before evaluating and acting upon any responses. By conveying messages that are of significant value, audiences are encouraged to offer attitudinal and behavioural positive response. This Tablet being an electronic item has a potential for a very wide market. It is likely to attract attention from various individuals and groups of people who may include students, teachers, parents of children with learning disabilities, educational institutions and just the general public. OBJECTIVES OF AN EVENT PLANNING Every event planning or product launch should have its goals and objectives to form the vision because without them, your event will not have any defined vision. However, an event can have one or many goals and multiple objectives supporting the goals which are necessary to the success of the event. There should be more than one purpose for an event planning, for example this event is about launching a new product by raising sales target and also promoting the brand. The main purpose of this product launch is to put across our communication strategies either by using the push or pull strategy. The main focus strategy which will be more vital with this product is the pull strategy, by focusing more on the direct consumers than business to business consumers which is also referred to as the push strategy. PROCESS OF PLANNING AN EVENT One very essential stage in an event planning is to have a budget to guide your expenditure and it is also your responsibility as the event organiser to stay within the limits of your budget. Similarly, your also need to develop a marketing strategy which includes advertisements either through the media, internet or digital media for example, social networks and focus groups. And to coordinate the communications and promotional activities for your event as the success of your event will ultimately depend on your ability to sell the event to those attending it. (Carter L., 2007) In order to create an event to fulfil your customers objectives and be everything that they hope it will be, it is important to begin with their event vision. This is where you will be able to determine what is most important to them. Event visualization is after event objectives have been set out, should be your first starting point for planning the event. For this product, apple needs to focus on the PULL strategy as this product is most likely to directly to individual consumers. So a good part of the advertising budget for this event should be committed to digital marketing such as internet marketing, use of social websites like face book, tweeter and the like. Internet advertising through search engine optimisations, email marketing using their existing customers database, contacts and referrals would also be suitable strategies for this product. Use of mobile marketing strategies such as text messaging, ringtones, games demonstrating the product and its new and unique features would prove a success for this kind of item. The beauty of these media is that they would even lead word of mouth since the messages are targeted at the consumers directly. Another good strategy would be to target influential stakeholders and customers invitation to a well planned corporate launch event. In order to host an event that will fulfil your companys objectives and yet have appositive impact to the guests, the planners need to have a clear vision. This is where you will be able to determine what is most important and prioritise the process. Choosing a location is also a very important stage in an event planning, and it needs to be booked at a very early stage to avoid any delays or last minute disappointments. The location needs to be convenience for the visitors and there should be enough room for product display and also for visitors to have space to work around the products and demonstrate them as well. Parking should not be a problem as most of the guest will be driving to the event. Team building is very important in an event planning process; you need good staffing and a security plan. Such a plan is the glue that holds the event together. Coordinate the efforts of your staff (paid and volunteer) and vendors with the venue contact person. Include details such as when vendors arrive, where and how they unload their equipment, where they set up, and how they manage all aspects of the event. You should also address how and when they will tear down and load up to avoid costly surprises. Effective communication on-site is critical. All staff should be fluent in how to operate your communications system (such as walkie-talkies and headsets) and how to contact those responsible for emergency support. Every event needs to address security, even if it just includes hiring an off-duty police officer, working with the hotels security team, it will be worth it. Having a list of emergency phone numbers handy is also helpful. (Jodi W., 2010) Also, another essential part of such an event is to provide the guests with food and refreshments. If possible, hire a DJ to provide the visitors with music to make the environment lively and lift the spirits of the visitors. Engage your customers with conversations by contacting them face to face specially the key visitors and stakeholders. If possible equip your team members with good knowledge of the product to engage with the customers and get them to try the Tablets for themselves and not just be told about them. You could go a further step by setting up an offer price for a promotional sale of the tablet just for this launch day. This will encourage customers and stakeholders to attend, have personal experience with the product and afterwards spread word about it. It might also get many people excited to take advantage of the promotional price and boost the sales. Such an approach is deemed likely to produce positive results. According to Duncan and Moriarty (1997), there are some communications that arise from unplanned or unintended experiences and also there are planned marketing communications. IMPORTANCE OF STAKEHOLDERS IN AN EVENT LAUNCH Stakeholders include, suppliers, customers, investors and the media, they are very important in an event planning because they can be affected by the event and the event also can be affected by the type of evaluation received by the stakeholders. In order to realise the success of an event, it is important to have open communication channels among all stake holders. Since events have broader impacts on a wider public, such open communications will bring more feedback to the company. It is also important to remember that stakeholders are people with vested interests in the company and its products. They are therefore potential attendees. Stake holders add value and reputation to the success of the whole event. Moreover getting the right stakeholders to your event can create the prospect of a great evaluation for the future event planning as well. You can find out what the views and thoughts of key people and important stakeholders by engaging in face to face charts with them throughou t the event.(Robinson P. et al 2010). EVENT EVALUATION PROCESS Finally, as soon as the event is over and the guests have all gone home, while you may be eager to put your planning documents and files away and move one, right after the event is the right time to evaluate the success of your event and discuss opportunities for a better improvement in a future event planning. However, a thorough post-event evaluation ensures you will capture the important details your companys needs to improve its fundraising. A successful evaluation is also a good start for the preparations of your next event. You can get feedbacks from your guest in different ways, either by asking them about their view about the whole event or by giving them questionnaires to fill in and hand it back before living. These feedbacks from your visitors can help you evaluate the success factor of the event. Also it is very important to meet with the event committee and all your team members who were involved in the event process. Arrange a meeting with them and make sure you give them enough time for discussion getting their view and gather all vital information from them for an evaluation for a future event plan. Make sure you cover every important aspect of the event, being careful to note which topics hit nerves in a positive or negative way so you can keep the meeting upbeat. (greater giving, 2012) Conclusions In order to attract the attention of all your potential customers, planners needs to implement the best marketing strategies at their disposal and start good planning ahead of the event for success. Whether the company will choose to use the services of a marketing consultant or manage these issues on their own, its up to them provided the aims and objectives are kept in focus. All important aspects of the planning process need to be taken care of. These should include all the fine details of the whole process such as budgeting actions and steps to be implemented by particular individuals on the planning team. Once all these are done with success, it shouldnt be a big problem for the company to succeed by getting the tartgetde ausdeince to its event nadn thefeor achieves their aims and objectives of the marketing process.

Bio-ethics and Cloning :: Biology Science Genetics Essays

Bio-ethics and Cloning The idea that humans might someday be cloned-created from a single somatic cell without sexual reproduction-moved further away from science fiction and closer to a genuine scientific possibility on February 23, 1997. On that date, The Observer broke the news that Ian Wilmut and his colleagues at the Roslin Institute announced the successful cloning of a sheep by a new technique that had never before been fully successful in mammals. The scientists from Roslin Institute of Edinburgh isolated differentiated somatic cells of Finn Dorset sheep and fused them with unfertilized enucleated eggs. The "fertilized" eggs soon developed into embryos which were in turn transplanted into female sheep, where the lambs are born naturally.1 The resulting birth of the sheep, named Dolly, on July 5, 1996 appears to mark yet another milestone in our ability to control, refine, and amplify the forces of nature. Yet, the fact that Dolly's paper just scrapes into the top 10 scientific papers published in 19972, showed that cloning was not a much credited technology in science. So why was there so much limelight on Dolly? If it were possible to clone a mammal, would the cloning of human's be next? Dolly's arrival opened debate in fields where ethicist dreaded to go. Some scientists - including Ian Wilmut - don't support human cloning. Those in favor see it as another method in the growing pantheon of human reproductive technologies3. One unique prospect, vividly raised by Dolly, is the creation of a new individual genetically identical to an existing (or previously existing) person - a "delayed" genetic twin. This prospect has been the source of the overwhelming public concern about such cloning. People have frequently expressed fears that the widespread practice of somatic cell nuclear transfer cloning would undermine social values by opening the door to a form of eugenics or by tempting to manipulate others as if they were objects instead of persons4. Ethicists and governments have thus far reach a consensus on a ban on all types of cloning of human beings. However, with leading Italian embryologist Severino Antinori researching intensely on human cloning5, and Richard Seed's expansion into Japan with future plans of human cloning6, should we wonder about the inevitable cloning of human beings? At present, companies are set up to embrace this new cloning technology. While "Genetic Savings and Clone" in Texas intends to clone pets and opens its doors for

Formation Of False Memories :: essays research papers

Have you ever been an eyewitness at the scene of a crime? If you were, do you think that you would be able to accurately describe, in precise detail, everything that happened and remember distinct features of the suspect? Many people believe that yes they would be able to remember anything from the events that would happen and the different features of the suspect. Some people, in fact, are so sure of themselves after witnessing an event such as this that they are able to testify that what they think they saw was indeed what they saw. However, using an eyewitness as a source of evidence can be risky and is rarely 100% accurate. This can be proven by the theory of the possibility of false memory formation and the question of whether or not a memory can lie.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There have been several experiments done to try to prove that false memories can indeed be formed. One experiment, for example, was tried with a 14-year-old boy. The boy was told four memories, one of which was falsely constructed but similar to that of a true memory. The memories that were suggested took place when the boy was about 10 years younger. As the false memory was retold to him, he was asked to explain in detail what he had remembered from that event. Surprisingly, he claimed to remember the event, even though it was falsely created by the interviewer and his brother, and went on to explain what he remember to have happened, details and all. After collecting everything he had said about the four memories, he was told that one of the suggested memories was made-up and he was asked to guess which one it may have been. When he couldn’t decide which one it was, he was told that it was in fact the memory of getting lost in a store. He was confused and had trouble believing the truth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Similar studies were done to a different set of college students and they tended to have the same results. After giving as much detail about each memory, the students were interviewed about what they may have written done about what they had remembered. During the last part of the experiment, each of the students were debriefed and asked to guess which memory they believed was false.

Mernissi Essay -- English Literature Essays

Mernissi Mernissi makes the claim that "Any man who believes that a Muslim woman who fights for her dignity and right to citizenship excludes herself necessarily from the umma...is a man who misunderstands his own religious heritage, his own cultural identity" (Mernissi viii). She goes about supporting this claim by delving into the very detailed documentation of Islam history. She attributes misogyny in the past and present Muslim culture to the male elite. She gives many examples of how Muhammad and Islam have only supported equality of the sexes and also how the male elite used false hadiths and very narrow interpretations of the Koran and true hadiths for their purpose. She begins by describing how the male elite started running things right from the onset of Muhammad's death. When a successor to Muhammad was picked, it did not involve the people of the community at all or any women. It was done by a small group of followers which were very close to the prophet, a sort of elite group. This sort of leadership in Islam continued in the same manner as only the elite were involved. This helped preserve what they thought was essential and according to the interests of the participants the essentials varied. The fabrication of false hadiths by the male elite was probably the first and most popular way for them to protect their interests. The people governing knew how important it was to "seek legitimacy in and through the sacred text" (Mernissi 43). Mernissi talks about al-Bukhari, who methodically and systematically collected and verified true Hadiths. He was exiled from his native town because he refused to bring the knowledge of the Hadith to the governor of the town and have it corrupted. He knew that the invitation from the governor was made only for him to probably fabricate some Hadith which would benefit the politicians. Many did not follow al-Bukhari's example but allowed themselves to be bought for a price and fabricated Hadiths for the politicians. Even Companions of the Prophet fabricated Hadiths in order to promote their own personal views. In the case of the Hadith which states, "Those who entrust their affairs to a woman will never know prosperity", Mernissi argues that this Hadith was never uttered by the Prophet and probably made up for personal reasons of Abu Bakra, who claimed to have heard the Hadith spoken by the... ... as instructing them not to give any wealth to women, the foolish. This is quite obvious narrow interpretation of the text, which meant not to give your to any foolish person no matter the sex. Mernissi goes on to give other texts which are harder to reject the sexist attitude in them, but goes on to give the example of Muhammad and his life as the ideal Islam or Muslim way of life. She wraps up the book by saying that the Muslim man could not accept the change in the present time back in Muhammad's time and has not been able since then to let go of the past. She also started the book by describing how the Muslim nation has always fled to the past to escape change in the present and future. I agree with Mernissi when she says, "The image of `his women' will change when he feels the pressing need to root his future in a liberating memory" (Mernissi 195). Until Muslim men let go of their past, things will never change, unfortunately, for the women in that society. Mernissi got her point across really well in this book in a way which is simple for anybody to understand and I would like to know how the male elite handled and responded to this book when it came out.

Aama

American Association of Medical Assistants Jennifer Lingler LIBS 100: Information Literacy Bryant & Stratton April 14, 2010 Introduction As a result of the expanding healthcare industry, technological advances in medicine, and increased number of elderly in the United States, medical assisting is one of the nation’s fastest growing careers. The extensive and unique knowledge of a medical assistant is in demand more than ever. It is imperative that a medical assistant is knowledgeable and current about changes in the healthcare field. It is also important that a medical assistant’s rights to practice are protected on the job. The American Association of Medical Assistants (or AAMA) is an organization that was created to aid and support medical assistants working in the healthcare field (AAMA, 2010). Any individual interested in a career in medical assisting would benefit from becoming a member of this organization. Mission and Purpose The AAMA is the only organization created solely for the medical assisting profession. The mission of the American Association of Medical Assistants is to enable medical assisting professionals to enhance and demonstrate the knowledge, skills and professionalism required by employers and patients; protect medical assistants' right to practice; and promote effective, efficient health care delivery through optimal use of the CMA (AAMA)† (AAMA, 2010). The AAMA was created for medical assistant students, practicing medical assistants, and medical assistant educators (AAMA, 2 010). Local AAMA Chapter The AAMA was created in 1955 and has grown to include over 325 local chapters throughout a total of 43 states (AAMA, 2010). One local Ohio chapter of the AAMA is the Ohio State Society of Medical Assistants. In 1956, four Ohio medical assistants attended an AAMA meeting in Kansas City, Kansas. Although there were three existing Ohio chapters, these women had a desire to form an organization that would be a part of the AAMA. Meetings were held from April seventeenth through April twenty-eighth of nineteen fifty-seven. After two days of deliberations the Ohio State Society of Medical Assistants was created. The OSSMA would then be approved by the AAMA on June eighth of nineteen fifty-eight (OSSMA, 2010). Membership A medical assistant graduate from an accredited school is eligible for membership with the AAMA. The graduate must fill out an application with the AAMA and pay an enrollment fee of one-hundred and twenty-five dollars. According to the AAMA, â€Å"The Certification Department will inform you of your application status within 30 days of the date you mailed your application†¦. After your application has been approved and processed, you will receive a scheduling permit approximately three weeks prior to your testing start date with instructions for making an appointment at a Prometric test center in your area. The exam may be taken throughout the year† (2010). Upon passing the exam, a medical assistant can expect to receive an official certificate and AAMA card (AAMA, 2010) The AAMA requires members to recertify every sixty months. Recertification may be obtained through further education or examination. Recertification will cost an AAMA member two-hundred and fifty dollars (AAMA, 2010) Benefits There are numerous benefits available to AAMA members. The first benefit is a subscription to CMA Today. AAMA member receive this bimonthly publication automatically when they become members. CMA Today â€Å"provides educational articles, current medical news, health policy updates, and association happenings† (AAMA, 2010). AAMA members also receive discounts on AAMA self-study courses and conference workshops which can be useful educational tool throughout their medical assisting career. Low member rates are also available for credit cards, loans, and insurance to AAMA members. The greatest benefit for an AAMA member is the opportunity to communicate, share information, and network with other medical assistants in the health care industry (AAMA, 2010). Conclusion The American Association of Medical Assistants is the only organization created solely for the medical assisting profession. Any individual interested in a medical assisting career would benefit from becoming a member of this organization. The American Association of Medical Assistants official website states it best, â€Å"When you join the AAMA you are investing in your career and your future. And, you are strengthening an association that has your professional interests at heart† (AAMA, 2010). References American Association of Medical Assistants. (2010). AAMA Mission Statement. Retrieved from http://www. aama-ntl. org/about/mission. spx American Association of Medical Assistants. (2010). AAMA Services. Retrieved from http://www. aama-ntl. org/about/services. aspx American Association of Medical Assistants. (2010). How to Become a CMA (AAMA). Retrieved from http://www. aama-ntl. org/becomeCMA/how. aspx American Association of Medical Assistants. (2010). What is a CMA (AAMA)? Retrieved from http://www. aama-ntl. org/about/what_is_a_cma. aspx Ohio State Society of Medical Assistants. (2010). OSSMA History. Retrieved from http://www. ossma. org/historyofOSSMA. html