How do these systems improve the operation of the business?

Aim to write around 2000 words.

Read the case below and answer the questions at the end.

 

Vail Ski Resorts Goes High-Tech for High Touch

Vail Ski Resort is the largest single mountain ski resort in the United States, with 5,289 acres of the most diverse and expansive skiing in the world. To its world-class skiing, Vail is also trying to offer world-class customer care—fine dining; spas and ski valets ready to haul, stow, and retrieve your equipment; heated boots; and hand-warming packets. Vail’s season pass is a top value industry-wide; its free PEAKS Rewards membership program further inculcates customer loyalty. Members can the most economical lift tickets online, link the PEAKS card to a credit card, and accumulate points that can be redeemed free lift tickets, ski school lessons, and various discounts.

In 2012, Vail Ski Resort installed the fastest, highest capacity gondola in the United States. Seating ten people per cabin, and with an uphill speed of 1200 feet per minute, the state-of-the-art gondola carries 3600 skiers per hour while decreasing ride time from 9 to 7.5 minutes. Heated seats and Wi-Fi access make it one of the world’s most customer-friendly ski lifts as well.

Long lift lines have always created a big headache for skiers. In the past, the only way to gauge the flow of the crowd was to ask lift operators or check on bulletin boards at the bottom of the lifts. Now Vail skiers are able to obtain accurate up-to-the minute lift line information by using social networking, streaming alerts, and the resort’s own Witter account. Slope congestion can be alleviated by offering special pins or prizes to coax guests to move to a different slope. Guests can be directed to on-mountain dining locations at lunch time.

Vail now uses radio frequency identification (RFID) lift tickets and ski passes. Part of the EpicMix social media program, the tickets and passes are scanned at the base of each lift so that skiers and snowboarders can track how many lifts they ride and the vertical feet ascended each day. The scanned data are automatically transferred to an EpicMix application which can be accessed from either a smartphone or a computer. The basic program is free and confers various pins and virtual awards based on user statistics. For example, you earn the “Connoisseur” pin after 75 lifts and the “Over the Moon” pin when you surpass 350,000 vertical feet skied. After you create your EpicMix account, you can view and share stats by linking to your Facebook and Twitter accounts.

The EpicMix Racing program provides additional fun. At one of six race courses, you can compete against friends and family, all skiers, and even 2010 Olympic women’s downhill gold medalist Lindsey Vonn. At the beginning of each season, the four-time overall World Cup champion establishes a course time for race courses at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, Heavenly and Northstar. Race pros then ski the courses to establish their “seconds behind Lindsey.” ‘lb factor in changing course conditions, every day one of the race pros skis each course and uses his or her “seconds behin Lindsey” to determine a course time for Vonn on that particular day. When you ski a course, your actual time is automatically recorded and then adjusted for gender, age, and discipline. Snowboarders, telemark skiers, and adaptive skiers with disabilities and special needs can also participate. Scores are computed based on each skier’s “seconds behind Lindsey,” and gold, silver, and bronze medals are awarded to the top three daily. Race results and leaderboards are accessed on EpicMix.com or the EpicM mobile app, available for Apple and Android smartphones. Your dashboard tallies your Lindsey Vonn Race Series points, EpicMix Racing medals, total number of resort check-ins, total days on a mountain, vertical feet, pins earned, and number of EpicMix photos taken.

The six race course mountains are staffed by 140 professional photographers. Photos are automatically identified and uploaded by scanning the intelligent chip embedded in the skier’s lift ticket. Photos can be captioned and shared free on Facebook and Twitter, or you can purchase prints at a number of locations, including, of course, the Children’s Ski Schools. You can also purchase a $30.00 season package for unlimited downloads of all images taken at all locations and print them out later. All of these amenities turn a ski vacation into an “experience” that can be shared with family and friends, increasing emotional attachment and promoting customer retention.

Still, to ensure that it is fully leveraging the wealth of customer data it collects, Vail Ski Resorts’ parent company Vail Resorts implemented SAS Customer Intelligence software. Customer data were previously collected and stored in a number of unrelated systems. Now, the data are compiled in a single database that includes all customer points of contact, allowing a complete picture of customer habits and preferences to emerge. Rather than one or two versions of a marketing campaign, Vail Resorts now runs 30 to 50, targeted to specific groups. In the future, the company expects to expand to hundreds or even thousands of personalized, individual communications. SAS predictive analytics will help Vail Resorts to identify guest motivations and anticipate customer desires, while customer segmentation models identify profitable segments to which they might be steered. Vail Resorts plans to further personalize its engagement with its guests and enrich their mountain experiences before they have even begun.

1) List and describe the types of systems described in this case study.

2) How do these systems improve the operation of the business?

3) How do these systems support decision-making? Identify 3 different decisions that can be supported by these systems.

4) What are the benefits of RFID implementation for Vail?

5) Give examples of CRM initiatives that could be performed to increase sales, using the data that the company acquires.

Write an audit program for internal control of cash in Word or Excel.

Overview: Careful planning is a critical part of the success of every audit. However, planning is not simply done at the beginning of the audit but is a continuous and iterative process in which the results of one stage of the audit often necessitate revisions to plans for the next stage.

Prompt: Using your analysis of the business environment of RNS from Milestone One, as well as your textbook reading on planning an audit of cash accounts, write an audit program (plan) that could be used to evaluate RNS’s internal controls for cash. Be sure your program addresses each component of internal control.

Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:

I. Write an audit program for internal control of cash in Word or Excel. The following components must be included: A. Control environment B. Risk assessment C. Control activities D. Information and communication E. Monitoring

What does this link tell you about the geography of Russia?  Why do you think people would live in such a harsh environment?

The coldest city in the world is located in Russia.  Read the article, captions, and flip through the picture on the link below.  What is the name of the coldest city in the world?  Which sub-region according to the audio PowerPoint lecture of Russia is it located in?  What does this link tell you about the geography of Russia?  Why do you think people would live in such a harsh environment?

identify the appropriate criminal code for your state for burglary and larceny

Assignment: In at least one (1) page, for this writing assignment, find the criminal code in your state (or a state of your choosing) for burglary and larceny (theft). Cite the appropriate criminal code(s) in your state and identify the elements of the offenses that as an investigator you would need to prove beyond a reasonable doubt in a court. Discuss the differences between these two types of offenses. Include in your paper the types of investigative skills and techniques that you think you would need to employ to prove those elements.

For your writing assignment:

(1) identify the appropriate criminal code for your state for burglary and larceny (NOTE – There are usually different levels of burglary and larceny – you may pick ONE level of each type for this paper) Be sure to include a citation for your source;

POTENTIAL SOURCE for STATE CRIMINAL CODES: https://www.law.cornell.edu/states/listing (Links to an external site.)

(2) discusses the differences between the elements of these two type of offenses;

(3) identify AT LEAST ONE investigative tool or technique that you think would be critical to solving these types of cases and explain why it is important; and

(4) do you believe burglary and larceny (theft) investigations require more expertise than other types of criminal investigations or can any general investigator conduct a thorough burglary or larceny investigation, support your answer.

Submission Requirements

  • APA Style elements required
  • Separate Title Page with Name, class, date and topic/title
  • At least one (1) page of your writing on this topic that includes using in-text citations
  • 12 point font
  • Times New Roman or Arial
  • Separate Reference Page – List detailed source information for all references
express an opinion as to whether the creation of a specialized investigative unit would be the best response to this type of crime issue and support your position.

Assignment: In the first required reading “Crimes Against Persons, Property, and Society – Fall 2019”, the FBI identifies a broad category of offenses that “represent society’s prohibition against engaging in certain types of activity and are typically victimless crimes.” (FBI, 2019). If you look at the offense groups in the reading, you will see that it lists offenses such as prostitution, gambling,  drug violations, animal cruelty, weapons law violations, and pornography.

For your discussion:

(1) pick ONE (1) of the above listed offense types, find an applicable criminal code for your state (or state of your choice) and discuss some of the penalties associated with that offense. You only need to pick one specific offense from your state – for drug violations, you don’t need to discuss every potential drug violations – pick one particular statute and discuss its elements and penalities;

(2) describe what you believe your biggest challenge as an investigator would be proving all of those elements of the offense;

(3) identify AT LEAST ONE investigative tool or technique that you think would be critical to successfully investigating this type of incident and explain why it is important – is it undercover operations, informants, surveillance, witness interviews, computer evidence, etc.

(4) express an opinion as to whether the creation of a specialized investigative unit would be the best response to this type of crime issue and support your position.

For example, of you pick burglary as your topic, you will need to explain what the general elements of that offense are and then identify an element that you think is the biggest challenge to prove (is it proving the entry was unlawful, that a theft actually occurred, that a felony was committed, etc) then identify an investigative technique or service that will be critical (is it polygraphs, ballistic evidence, interviewing, crime scene management, etc), and finally explain if you believe creation of a specialized investigative unit would be an appropriate response (for example, would creating a crime analysis unit to better track these crimes be a good idea, or would creating a unit that does only those types of investigations, or would creating a community policing unit that raises community awareness be a good response, etc)

Submission Requirements

  • APA Style elements required
  • Separate Title Page with Name, class, date and topic/title
  • At least one (1) page of your writing on this topic that includes using in-text citations
  • 12 point font
  • Times New Roman or Arial
  • Separate Reference Page – List detailed source information for all references

Brown, Thomas. (2019), “Criminal Investigation”. Virginia Wesleyan University. OERCommons. eBook.
Viewed from: https://www.oercommons.org/courses/criminal-investigation/view#

What do you think? Should there be stricter limits on gun ownership and carrying?

A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

That is the full text of the 2nd amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

 

If anyone tells you they KNOW! definitively what it means, they are actually giving you their opinion rather than an objective fact. They can’t possibly know, because it’s inherently ambiguous, as much as some people would like to believe otherwise.

Some people say it means that the government has no constitutional authority to limit a citizen’s right to own semi-automatic handguns or an AR-15, or even a Barrett M82 50 caliber rifle. Others, however, say it means that anyone  in an official “well-regulated” militia, like the National Guard, has the right to bear arms. But, the response to this goes, the “militia” really means everyone, because when the constitution was drafted, everyone was subject to being activated to repel invaders.

Many historians think evidence points to the conclusion that the 2nd Amendment was ratified *not* to guarantee an  individual right to be continually armed, but because there was widespread opposition to a standing army, so state militias were necessary and should not be disarmed. Or, probably more commonly, constitutional historians accept that the right is an individual right, but is conditioned upon the assumption of participation in a militia, and since militias no longer exist, the individual right to keep and bear arms consequently no longer exists.

One example may be found in a  brief submitted to the Supreme Court  (page 36) in 2008:

“…the authors of the Second Amendment would be flabbergasted to learn that in endorsing the republican principle of a well-regulated militia, they were also precluding restrictions on such potentially dangerous property as firearms, which governments had always regulated when there was “real danger of public injury from individuals.”

Other people may have other interpretations of the 2nd amendment. So when your great uncle Norman (I hope no one actually has a great uncle Norman!) tells you the 2nd amendment gives him a constitutionally guaranteed right to have that AR-15, or even a machine gun, the truth is…. maybe, maybe not.

As it happens, the 9th Circuit Federal Court of Appeals held in an  opinion  issued on June 9, 2016, that the Second Amendment does  not  ensure an individual right to bear arms in public. At that link you can download the opinion and also listen to, or even watch video of, the oral argument that led to it.

The Supreme Court held in  District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) that the Constitution protects and individual right to own a handgun in the home for self-protection. In contrast, this 9th Circuit opinion ( Peruta v. County of San Diego ) bears on weapons outside the home. Here is one of many news stories about the  Peruta  decision. And here is the case page for the  Heller  decision .

According to  Peruta, individuals are not constitutionally barred from carrying weapons, but states or other political subdivisions do not violate constitutional rights by requiring individuals to demonstrate a strong need to have a firearm before issuing a license.

That decision was appealed, but the Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal, leaving the decision’s restriction on public carrying of firearms in place.

This is important because it demonstrates that some people’s broad view of the meaning of 2nd Amendment rights isn’t necessarily justified.

 

What do you think? Should there be stricter limits on gun ownership and carrying?

 

Whatever your opinion of gun ownership, carrying and regulation, you should remember that, as documented by the Gun Violence Archive, there were  346 mass shootings  in the US in 2017 and 340 in 2018. There have been  12 so far in 2019 , and 28 children aged 0-11 killed or injured by gun violence as of January 19, 2019.

describe what you believe your biggest challenge as an investigator would be proving all of those elements of the offense

Discussion 13 – Property Crimes

Discussion: In the first required reading “Crime in the United States, 2018 – Property Crime”, the FBI includes four general offense types grouped together as part of its Uniform Crime Report (UCR) Program to collect data that it classified overall as property crime. Also included in the readings are FBI summaries of each of those four offense types that include the general elements of the offense as well as some statistics regarding those offenses.

For your writing assignment:

(1) pick ONE (1) of those four offenses and generally describe the elements of the offense;

(2) describe what you believe your biggest challenge as an investigator would be proving all of those elements of the offense;

(3) identify AT LEAST ONE investigative tool or technique that you think would be critical to solving that case and explain why it is important.

For example, of you pick burglary as your topic, you will need to explain what the general elements of that offense are and then identify an element that you think is the biggest challenge to prove (is it proving the entry was unlawful, that a theft actually occurred, that a felony was committed, etc) then identify an investigative technique or service that will be critical (is it polygraphs, ballistic evidence, interviewing, crime scene management, etc).

Requirements:

  • Your initial post should be a minimum of 250-275 words.
What did the authors of the article say about the deterrent nature of video surveillance?

Read the attached article: Measuring the effectiveness of Video Surveillance in Los Angeles.

  1. What did the authors of the article say about the deterrent nature of video surveillance?
  2. What is the difference between active and passive surveillance?
  3. What types of measures where used to evaluate the effectiveness of the CCTV cameras?
  4. What is your opinion of the use of video surveillance for crime prevention?

Measuring the effects of Video Surveillance on crime in LA.pdf