Monday, December 30, 2019

Cause And Effect Of Natural Disasters - 2005 Words

The unexpected is something that can not be prevented. Natural disasters destroy everything in their way. With the help of technology and how fast it is growing, communities know a natural disaster is happening within hours or days of its starting. The people that live in that area often know what there is to come before it actually arrives. They often are encouraged to evacuate as soon as possible. But how could someone leave behind all their belongings, memories and cherishable items to be swept away in a storm just like trash? People are too stubborn to listen to the news or weather reports because they are skeptical. They sometimes may be right however, most of the time they are in the wrong. These are the types of people who normally†¦show more content†¦Yearly costs make countries go into deep financial debt due to their inability to recover what they lost. They never recover financially because once they are done recovering from one disaster another one hits and it be comes a never ending cycle of trying to help one another recover. In the same article, Tudor points out that, â€Å"One of the major negative effects is that there is a reduction of tourism† (Tudor). People are too frightened to visit because they are constantly in fear that another natural disaster may hit. Many countries rely on tourism to help their economy because of the money they spend in hotels and food and etc. Tourism also helps to bring in other people into the country to thus help the national government and the population as a whole. Without tourism the future generations are afflicted down to a personal level with which the people already living there are going to most likely stay there, keeping the gross domestic product at a progressively decreasing rate. â€Å"After the Thai floods, there was a significant shortage of computer hard drives that sent consumer prices skyrocketing until factories were able to come back online† (â€Å"The Impact of Natural Disasters on the Global Economy†). The damage from the disaster is not only local countries from a far feel the effects of the disaster as well. Plenty of supplies and stuff is foreign and imported to different countries, they as well feel the effects of the disaster. TheyShow MoreRelatedDisaster : The Causes And Effects Of Natural Disasters1012 Words   |  5 PagesWhat are natural disasters? Natural disasters are defined as any disastrous event caused by nature or the natural movements of the earth, itself. How severe a disaster is is determined by how bad a loss the economy has suffered, how many lives were lost, and whether or not it will be possible to rebuild the city/town and population effected. If one of these natural disasters were to happen in an area of the world that is not populated, for example, a wildfire on some island that nobody has ever livedRead MoreHow Natural Disasters Affect the Environment996 Words   |  4 PagesHow Natural Disasters Affect the Envi ronment Authors name Authors institutional affiliation Authors note How Natural Disasters Affect the Environment A natural hazard is a geophysical, atmospheric or hydrological event (e.g., earthquake, landslide, tsunami, windstorm, flood or drought) that has the potential to cause harm or loss, while a natural disaster is the occurrence of an extreme hazardous event that impacts on communities causing damage, disruption and casualties, and leaving theRead MoreMonitoring Our Home Planet1407 Words   |  6 PagesThis paper is being submitted in details the effect that natural disaster has on the planet Earth. Analyzing the impact of potential natural disasters on: geography, resources, politics, economics, and disaster preparedness and how to monitor the future natural disasters. Monitoring Our Home Planet Natural Disaster has a major impact on the inhabitants that live on the planet Earth. A natural disaster is a major adverse event resulting from natural processes of the Earth; examples includeRead MoreThe Effects Of Global Warming On Our Planet s Ecosystem1173 Words   |  5 Pagesand warms the Earth. This is what we call the greenhouse effect which is the main reason we have global warming. Despite claims by opponents that humans are not the cause of global warming, evidence linked to climate change, weather patterns, and the destruction of our limited rainforests suggests that mankind causes unendurable harm to our planet’s ecosystem. Opponents believe that weather patterns happen naturally and humans are not the cause. They claim climate change is not directly related to theRead MoreNatural Disaster and Horrifying Weather Essay617 Words   |  3 Pagesjust to name a few natural disasters which can strike any country without a warning or it just pops out of thin air. Natural Disasters could cause many different effects to developing countries or developed countries. The Economic status of developing countries is gravely affected by natural disaster as these countries are ravished by debt, poverty in many communities and a collapsing social services system. If any type of natural disaster strikes a developing country the side effects can be severe orRead MoreAnalysis Of The Article Super Disasters Of The 21st Century By Sebastian Junger979 Words   |  4 Pagestext structures that are being used in the text or writing piece. Few examples are statistics, main ideas and details, cause and effects,etc. In the arti cle of ‘ Super Disasters of the 21st century , by Jacqueline Adams and Ken Kostel and the excerpt of,‘ The Perfect Storm’’, by Sebastian Junger, the author’s use text structures to describe the cause and effect of the disasters, by using the source of the types of text structures. So our question now is, what are some of those text structuresRead MoreThe Effects of Global Warming on the Earth990 Words   |  4 PagesGlobal Warming Earth’s temperature is a vital aspect to Earth and its surroundings. The atmospheric temperature along with natural gases is the significant reasons why Earth inhabits all of its life. When there are changes that alter the natural affects of Earth’s environment there are factors that places the environment at risk. Increase warming of global temperatures account as a major concern of Earth’s surroundings. Global warming is a prominent source to consider how and why the environmentRead MoreWhat is a Disaster?888 Words   |  3 PagesThe word disaster derives its literal meaning from the French word â€Å"Desastre†, a combination of two words ‘des’ meaning bad and ‘aster’ meaning star, thus the term refers to ‘Bad or Evil star . However, it has also been defined as â€Å"any disruption of normal social and economic activity due to natural or other causes that results in widespread or severe damage, injury and/or loss of li fe or property† . Disasters are also defined as â€Å"a crisis situation causing wide spread damage which far exceed ourRead MoreNatural Disasters : A Natural Disaster1254 Words   |  6 PagesNatural disasters have a colossal effect on the inhabitants that live on Earth. A natural disaster is a major event resulting from natural processes of the Earth; for example: tsunamis, floods, earthquakes, and etc. That impact in an isolated area can causes the inhabitants of this planet to converge and avail provide resources to avail the instauration process. That is just a minute effect that a natural disaster has on the inhabitants of Earth. There are natural disasters that have warning signsRead MoreEssay on The Effects Which a Natural Disaster can have on a Country1162 Words   |  5 PagesA natural disaster is an event caused by natural destructive factors, which can be further divided into either climatic disasters such as floods and tornados, or geological disasters such as earthquakes, which consequently lead to great physical damage or life loss (Bankoff, 2004, 56). When defining ‘natural’ literally, it may seem that natural disasters are independent from human activities, however, with the process of civilization, man-made factors are having an increasingly greater influence

Sunday, December 22, 2019

Reginald Horsman’s Race and Manifest Destiny Essay

Reginald Horsman’s Race and Manifest Destiny: The Orgins of American Racial Anglo-Saxonism explores the evidence and reasons of racial prejudices in America and discusses one of the most controversial topics in American history. The book also navigates the subjects of white superiority, and the creation of Anglo-Saxonism. Manifest Destiny was the belief that the United States was destined to expand from the Atlantic seaboard to the Pacific Ocean; it has also been used to advocate for or justify other territorial acquisitions.†¦show more content†¦English scholars proudly wrote how these Germanic people introduced the concepts of freedom, natural law, and popular sovereignty to England. Later, scholars classified these Anglo-Saxons as part of the Caucasian race and linguistically linked them to the family of Indo-European languages. In chapter two â€Å"A ryans Follow the Sun,† Horsman explains another myth of greatness, Anglo-Saxons conjured another falsehood that claimed they were descendants of a great Aryan nation who fled across the mountains of Asia and settled in northern Europe (Horsman 25-41). Just as their descendant’s centuries later, the Aryan nation, in its westward trek, also spread its civilization across Europe, and by the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the English laid claim to a superb racial heritage. Chapters three and four deal with British colonists in America that also succumbed to the great myths. Scientists, scholars, historians, philosophers, poets, and writers on both sides of the Atlantic exacerbated these myths of racial greatness. The English proponents of a chosen race revered their institutions as proof of a nation’s greatness and showed how transmitted concepts of liberty, natural rights and popular sovereignty from the woods of Germany served to perpetuate those bastions of liberty. In the process, in both in Britain and America, a transformation occurredShow MoreRelatedEssay on A Noncolor Blind Society1458 Words   |  6 Pagessuperior race, and that only meant certain groups of people. This American paradox connected directly to racism which included prejudice, discrimination, and institutional inequality defined by sociologists Michael Omi and Howard Winant. America is an unequal society destroyed by individual racial discrimination that led to institutional racial discrimination which led to systemic racial discrimination. It all starts with individual racism — one persons opinions or beliefs on someone elses race which

Saturday, December 14, 2019

Storey’s Three Comopnent Model Free Essays

Moving on to the second part of the question looking at Storey’s , â€Å"Three Component Model† and how useful it is in identifying the key characteristics of successful growth businesses. Most of the small businesses do not grow beyond their classification as a micro firm, very few of the small firms rise to become a medium-size enterprise, and even fewer rise to become large companies in the future. Storey (1994) has identified three key components in the analysis of the growth of the small firms, they are influenced by the characteristics of the entrepreneur, the characteristics of the organization; and the types of strategy associated. We will write a custom essay sample on Storey’s Three Comopnent Model or any similar topic only for you Order Now Various different characteristics of each component can lead to a different type of growth within the SME. The characteristics of the entrepreneur are widely accepted as the vital ingredient that influences growth. For example, the personal goals of an entrepreneur are likely to influence why a business was started in the first place, as well as the strength of the firm’s growth orientation once it was established. Storey’s places less emphasis on personality per se and more on the personal characteristics which influence access to resources. These include * Motivation: This is likely to be the most indispensable and essential action or a commitment by the entrepreneur which makes a considerable difference in the growth of the enterprise. * Previous management experience: Earlier knowhow of organizing people and processes is important in maintaining growth. * Demographics of the entrepreneur: This is essentially with regard to the personality traits of the entrepreneur viz. Age and Education. These two traits can influence the growth of the firm, Entrepreneurs with higher educational qualifications are more likely to find high-tech and knowledge-based firms which in turn can be linked with higher growth rate of the firm. * Team management over individual management: Access to a wide range of resources, skills, experiences, advice and other resources is important to growth. A group of entrepreneurs are more liable to have the attributes wanted than just one person. Alongside these characteristics are more personal ones. Owners have a need to be independent and want to be their own managers. They believe that they can control and change the environment within which they work, to their benefit. They are often high achievers and are looking for recognition of their success. † (Burns, 2001). The characteristics of the enterprise also have an influence on its growth prospects: Ownership and Legal form: A limited company is more likely to grow than a sole trader or partner ship. Limited companies offer greater goodwill thereby attracting more customers and resources that it needs to accelerate its growth. It is also possible that as the companies develop they acquire a limited liability status so that the legal form is a result of growth. Firms Age: Younger firms tend to grow more and faster than the existing old firms, which reflects the need of the younger firm to attain a significant level of ‘critical mass’ to survive in the marketplace. Firms Size: Small firms find it very hard to grow to level of the bigger firms, as they lack the resources, skills and competitive edge. One of the main reasons being the entrepreneurs with a micro-firm do not wish to grow because of the reasons stated above. â€Å"Management devolution is essential for growth as it becomes impossible for the entrepreneur to manage on their own. Those firms that recruit experienced managers from larger firms are likely to be more successful. † (Storey, 1994). Storey’s review of area where management strategy may influence the growth of small firms includes: Introduction of new products: Companies cannot rely on a smaller product or service range for growth. They continuous innovation in the form of new products and services is a key to growth. This also includes modification of the existing products. Sharing of Equity: Willingness to share equity with external individuals or organizations was identified in small firms that actually achieved high rates of growth. Market position: Adopting defined niche markets is a key ingredient for the growth of the company How to cite Storey’s Three Comopnent Model, Papers

Friday, December 6, 2019

Hospitality - History - Politics and Culture

Question: Discuss about the Hospitality, History, Politics and Culture. Answer: Introduction Marriott International Inc. headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland in the USA has acquired more than 5700 properties in 110 countries with consists of 1.2 million rooms in total (One Mile at a Time 2015). The company consists of the broad portfolio of hotels and lodging facilities (Marriott News Center 2016). Marriott International was founded in the year 1993 when Marriott companies divided its operations into two: Marriott International and Host Marriott Corporation. Marriott was the first company which provides its customers an option to book the rooms online. Marriott was founded in the year 1927 by John William Marriott (Marriott News Center 2016) Marriott brands Marriott internationally operates in 30 brands (Marriott News Center 2016). The names of the brands of the Marriott are: Classic Luxury- It consists of hotel named TheRitz-Carlton, St. Regis, JW Marriott Distinctive Luxury- Consists of hotel named the Luxury Collection, BulgariHotels Resorts, W Hotels, Edition Hotels Classic Premium- Consists of hotel named- Marriott, Sheraton (Marriott News Center 2016) Marriott Vacation Club(MVC)- Consists of Delta Hotels Distinctive Premium- Consists of hotels named Le Mridien, Westin, Autograph Collection, Design Hotels, Renaissance Hotels, Tribute Portfolio, Gaylord Hotels (Marriott News Center 2016) Classic Select- Consists of hotels named Courtyard by Marriott, Four Points, Springhill Suites by Marriott, Protea Hotels by Marriott, Fairfield Inn by Marriott (Marriott News Center 2016). Distinctive Select- The brand contains the hotel named AC Hotels, Aloft Hotels, Moxy Hotels (Marriott News Center 2016). Classic Longer Stays- The brand consists of hotels named Marriott Executive Apartments, Residence Inn by Marriott, TownePlace Suites by Marriott (Marriott News Center 2016). Distinctive Longer Stays- The brand consists of Element by Westin (Marriott News Center 2016) About Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide is located in Stamford and operates in hotel and leisure sector (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). It operates the world largest chain of hotel companies which owns manages and franchises hotels, resorts, spas and vacation ownership properties under the name of its 11 brands (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). Recently the hotel has taken over by Marriott International Inc. on September and act as the subsidiary of the Hotel. The Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide operates in following brands: Westin The Westin Hotels and Resorts is the Starwood most luxury Hotel and resort brand (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). Sheraton Sheraton provides resort rooms and luxurious rooms to its customers (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). Sheraton consists of various sub-brands and some of the sub- brands are as follows: W Hotels, St. Regis, Le Mridien, Aloft, a Vision of W Hotels, Element by Westin, Tribute Portfolio, Design Hotels (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). The Starwood Hotel is recognized as the world's largest chain of hotels and luxuries brand and it comprises of nine luxurious brand Our brands include: St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W, Westin, Le Mridien, Sheraton, Four Pointsby Sheraton, Aloft, and Element (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide is in loss Starwood hotels that operate brands such as St. Regis, Westin, Sheraton and W hotels and which merged with Marriott Internal Inc. in the year 2016 are now facing huge loss in terms of rooms revenue (Times 2015). The revenue per room has been increased by 07% this growth of income will result in the reduction fee in the second quarter results of the year 2016 (Times 2015). The quarter 2 results were not in favor of the hotels and the result reported a loss of $263 million (StamfordAdvocate 2016). On per share basis the company reported a loss of $1.56 (StamfordAdvocate 2016). Since the share price of the Starwood Hotels Resorts worldwide were increasing from the beginning of the year 2016 and the analysts were of the opinion that the earnings from the share price would be increased to 75% but the earnings from investing in the share reduced to 71% (StamfordAdvocate 2016). The stocks have decreased by 6% since last year (StamfordAdvocate 2016). The second Quarter results showed losses on asset dispositions and impairments which was a total of $114 million in the year 2016 and in 2015 the losses were recorded $118 million (Bloomberg.com 2012). The net loss of the hotel for the second quarter was $263 million whereas; the last year the Hotels bear the net loss of $ 136 million (Bloomberg.com 2012). The losses made by the Company in 2016 are almost the double. The companys growth has been lowered in the year 2016 (Bloomberg.com 2012). Starwood Hotels have a total of 1300 hotels that operates worldwide (Chaturvedi 2016). The bottom line of the financials figured out a loss of $228 million from the discontinuing operations this resulted in selling off of the Vistana vacations one of its business to interval leisure group (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). $15 million were related to the cost of the Marriotts International and its merger this also contributed to the loss of the Company (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). Why Starwood Hotels are underperforming The reason why Starwood hotels are underperforming they have a dozen brands operating under it but they lag behind in terms of competition (StamfordAdvocate 2016). The reason behind their underperformance is because they operate largely on lifestyle Brand which means they have left apart a huge size of the market is not there target audience (StamfordAdvocate 2016). The profits have shown a downturn for the Starwood Hotels as the demand for the rooms slowed down (Bloomberg.com 2012). The report tells us that the Starwood saw a drop in revenues generated from per room which showed a 9.1% drop in revenue per available of room in all over Europe and Starwood Hotels reflected a drop of 3.3% which was $51.66 in monetary terms (Bloomberg.com 2012). The Hotel is underperforming when compared to other large cap hotels companies i.e. Hilton and Marriott (Bloomberg.com 2012). The Hotel is selling off its brands and assets and the equity and debt is pouring in the Company. Starwood Properties are categorized as luxury and where the investors and bidders are very less in number and striking deals between the two takes a lot of time (Bloomberg.com 2012). Basis on ranking the hotels When the Hotels are underperforming the owner must look for the opportunity for growth (Mail Online 2015). The aggressive discounts on the room are not possible since the Hotels have taken the concept of modifying them because the hotels are rated between one to five stars (Mail Online 2015). These rates are given by the guests of the hotels and these depend on the facilities provided by the hotels, the location of the hotel does play a major role while getting a good rating from the visitor, architecture and designs of the lobby also play an important role and given utmost importance by the visitors (Mail Online 2015). The concept of homes that is linked in with the hotels is now very much new to UK as compared to other countries like Europe, Asia and United States that have already started with such concept (Mail Online 2015). As far as the designing project of the hotel is concerned the main focus of the public lies in the design and architecture of the hotel. The hotel should be fully equipped with prevailing tastes and preferences and designs (Mail Online 2015). The hotel generates revenue by maintaining efficient designs in the hotels and attracting the customers. The role of the architects is to meet the demand of the customers. Firstly, the importance is being given to the lobby. The lobby creates the first impression of the hotel as the visitor first visits the lobby and gets an impression of the hotel (Mail Online 2015). The Starwood Hotels provide the visitors an option to book their rooms online and while doing so the visitors will be provided with extra points and to stay in the hotel the visitors according to the points will be provided with the free nights (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). With the selected hotel the visitors can avail a discount of 10% when using the Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) online (Starwoodhotels.com 2016). Recommendation The Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide are the hotels that serve only one section of the society where the other section of the society is not targeted by the hotels and it includes the large chunk of people (Marriott News Center 2016). The tourists largely dominate the hotel market. The competition for the hotel market is rising and becoming competitive in nature (Costa et al. 2012). The companies must apply certain strategies in order to get the number of footfalls and achieve higher targets. The strategies that the travel and lodging Companies must follow are stated as follows: Targeting key locations: The hotels should have their presence in the key cities and places where the where the lodging companies are growing and can target both domestic and international travellers (White 2016). Targeting key visitors: As the income rises visitors travel more and would like to stay in luxurious hotels various travellers would travel to the city of their interest and would also get an opportunity to stay in a luxurious hotel (White 2016). Market Leadership: The hotels who try to acquire properties and maintaining their presence in all around the world to get hold of the market leadership. This strategy seems to be very complex and requires a huge chunk of investment that has to be made by the company (One Mile at a Time 2015). The Lodging Companies should have a tie up with the travelling agencies where the travelling agency will provide discounts to the visitors who with the help of the agencies will book the rooms online (Marriott News Center 2016). The discounts provided by the Companies should be comparable with the competitor. The Hotel and the Lodging companies whose main target audience includes businessmen can make up a strategy to make a tie-up (Picker 2016). The businesses who sends their employees overseas for training or for client visit in connection to that the Hotels can tie- up with the businesses and provide them with certain discounts, for example, the businessmen can get complementary lunch or dinner during his/her stay (Starwood Hotels #038; Resorts Worldwide et al. 2016). The guests who are visiting the hotel should be given a reason as to how one can differentiate between the two hotels (Thomas 2016). One should not focus on dropping the room rates by a certain percentage rather one should give the visitor an understanding of the basis the hotel is different from the other (Thomas 2016). The Hotel Companies can offer discounts on extra holidays. The member of the Hotel when visits the hotel and pays the entire amount for two days but if in case, the member, tourist or businessmen needs to extend the holidays for a one or couple of days in that case the hotel can provide them with discounts (Thomas 2016). The Hotel can take help of the extra space to host the business gathering, reunions and other social gatherings. Space can be provided for holding a training session in a conference room the ground can be provided for the wedding purposes as well (White 2016). Employees should be rewarded for providing good suggestions. If an employee of the Company comes up with the idea for generating profit, in that case, the employee/staff will be provided for rewards (White 2016). Conclusion The Hotel Industry is developing and Marriott International Inc. Having the biggest chain of hotels the company is making losses. In order, to make the company profitable the company should take certain measures like tying up with the businesses and providing them with a complementary meal or some discounts attached to the rooms. The company should tie up with the travelling agency and provide discounts in order to meet the competition in the market and make the goodwill. Though Marriott International Inc is forming the greatest chain of hotel and lodging company. The company is going through a huge loss this year. If the company follows the rule of people first, money and then comes to the other things the business built on this logic will become a success in the long run. References Bloomberg.com. (2012).Starwood Hotels Shares Fall on Weakening Demand for Rooms. [online] Available at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-10-25/starwood-hotels-third-quarter-profit-gains-as-room-rates-rise [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Chaturvedi, A. (2016).Marriott International completes Starwood acquisition - The Economic Times. [online] The Economic Times. Available at: https://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2016-09-23/news/54476685_1_marriott-international-completes-starwood-acquisition [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. CNBC. (2016).Marriott buys Starwood, becoming world's largest hotel chain. [online] Available at: https://www.cnbc.com/2016/09/23/marriott-buys-starwood-becoming-worlds-largest-hotel-chain.html [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Costa, C., Bouzas, A., Gokbulut, A. and Mall, A. (2012).Winning Hotel Strategies for Emerging Markets. [online] www.bcgperspectives.com. Available at: https://www.bcgperspectives.com/content/articles/transportation_travel_tourism_go_to_market_strategy_Winning_Hotel_Strategies_for_Emerging_Markets/ [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Mail Online. (2015).What really makes a five-star hotel?. [online] Available at: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3007667/What-REALLY-makes-hotel-five-star-hotel.html [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Marriott News Center. (2016).Marriott International Completes Acquisition of Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Creating World's Largest and Best Hotel Company While Providing Unparalleled Guest Experience - Marriott News Center. [online] Available at: https://news.marriott.com/2016/09/marriotts-acquisition-of-starwood-complete/ [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. One Mile at a Time. (2015).Implications Of Marriott Buying Starwood - One Mile at a Time. [online] Available at: https://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/11/16/marriott-starwood-takeover-implications/ [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Picker, M. (2016).Starwood Bidding War Ends Abruptly, Yielding a Merger and a Puzzle. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/01/business/dealbook/starwood-hotels-chinese-suitor-backs-out-of-bidding.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FMarriott%20International%2C%20Inc. [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Press, A. (2016).Stamford-based Starwood Hotels Reports $263 Million Loss. [online] courant.com. Available at: https://www.courant.com/politics/hc-starwood-earnings-20160726-story.html [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. StamfordAdvocate. (2016).Amid uncertain future, Stamford-based Starwood records loss. [online] Available at: https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/business/article/Stamford-based-Starwood-reports-second-quarter-8421807.php [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Starwood Hotels #038; Resorts Worldwide, I., Starwood Hotels #038; Resorts Worldwide, I., Hilton Worldwide Opens 700, 0., Presence, T. and Predictions, B. (2016).Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc. Reports Q2 Losses. [online] Hotelier Magazine. Available at: https://www.hoteliermagazine.com/12915-2/ [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Starwoodhotels.com. (2016).Starwood Hotels Resorts. [online] Available at: https://www.starwoodhotels.com/preferredguest/whybookhere/index.html?language=en_US [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Starwoodhotels.com. (2016).Starwood Hotels Resorts. [online] Available at: https://www.starwoodhotels.com/corporate/press/history.html?language=en_US [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Thomas, H. (2016).Five-star homes with room service and hotel luxury on tap on the rise. [online] Telegraph.co.uk. Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/property/luxury-homes/12128838/Five-star-homes-with-room-service-and-hotel-luxury-on-tap-on-the-rise.html [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. Times, L. (2015).Marriott's plan to buy Starwood for $12.2 billion could trigger more hotel mergers. [online] latimes.com. Available at: https://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-marriott-starwood-20151116-story.html [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016]. White, M. (2016).Your Local Hotel Is Trying to Impress Guests With a New Amenity: You. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/26/business/why-your-local-hotel-is-trying-to-hook-you.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FMarriott%20International%2C%20Inc._r=0 [Accessed 1 Oct. 2016].