Introduction
The increasing number of sophisticated cases before courts makes expert evidence an integral part of today’s legal systems. Expert evidence can be defined as any evidence that calls for an expert opinion to be helpful to the court. A person that renders that opinion is referred to as an expert witness. These witnesses play a critical role in helping courts administer justice to parties by expressing themselves on issues beyond the general knowledge of judicial officers. However, until the early 18th century, expert evidence was alien to the legal system in England and Wales. It was first used in the celebrated case of Folkes v Chadd, [1]where the court allowed a famous scientist, Mr Smeaton, to give his opinion on specific facts of the case.[2] Admitting the expert evidence, Lord Mansfield stated thus, ‘an expert opinion after receiving the knowledge of facts is admissible in the court of law if the witness has substantial knowledge and vast experience in that particular field related to the case.'[3] Critical in his judgement were the terms ‘after receiving the knowledge of the facts.’ The phrase implies that merely having expertise and experience in a field did not make one a competent expert witness under common law. One needed to demonstrate adequate knowledge of facts relevant to the matter in question. A similar position was held in the case of R v Turner, where the court stated that consideration or reference to irrelevant facts about a case renders an expert’s opinion irrelevant and inadmissible.[4] Since then, courts have played a critical role in setting and defining the jurisprudence of expert evidence in England and Wales. They have created the principles of reliability, expertise, and assistance of expert witnesses in court processes.[5] Therefore, the initial approach to legal regulation of expert evidence in England and Wales was mainly laissez-faire, with reliance on judicial precedents. As characteristic of judicial precedents, the approach faced challenges, primarily resulting from the uncertain rules of testing the admissibility of the expert evidence.[6] The challenges threatened the parties’ right to access justice, and a remedy was needed. As will be seen later in this discussion, the current approach has remedied several challenges of the earlier approaches. Presently, courts of England and Wales draw their guidance on expert evidence from both statutory and common law principles.
The Present Approach to Legal Regulation of Expert Evidence
For about 150 years, expert evidence remained in the purview of the courts. During that time, precedents shaped courts’ approaches to determining expert witnesses’ qualifications, experience, obligations, and admissibility of their opinions. The approach was marred with uncertainties and inconsistencies as judges and juries interpreted precedents differently.[7].
Various groups, including commissions and committees, raised concerns about how courts handled expert evidence. They highlighted the need for a harmonized and well-regulated approach to admitting expert evidence.[8] For instance, the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee of 2005 averred that courts admitted expert opinions more readily without sufficient scrutiny.[9] The Law Commission echoed a similar position in their 2009 consultation paper, The Admissibility of Expert Evidence in Criminal Proceedings in England and Wales.[10] The commission later published a report in 2011, which recommended the adoption of a new statutory framework to govern the admissibility of expert evidence in proceedings before courts.[11] The regime was to set a straightforward statutory reliability test and codify and refine the common law principles touching on expert witnesses’ impartiality, expertise, and assistance in criminal proceedings.[12] The immediate result of the above developments was the Criminal Practice Directions 19A (CrimPD 19A) and later part 19 of Criminal Procedure Rule 2020. Presently, the admissibility of expert evidence is governed by both common law principles and statutory guidelines.
The Place of Common Law Principles
England and Wales operate under a common law legal system. In such a system, case laws form a critical part of their legal proceedings, and the decisions and principles of higher courts bind lower courts.[13] The place of common law in handling expert evidence is recognized under CrimPD 19A. In common law, the admissibility of expert evidence depends on factors such as the possible assistance of the evidence to the court, the expert’s expertise, and the reliability of their evidence. Perhaps more explicit guidance was given by Thomas LJ in the case of R v Reed & Reed [2009].[14] The learned judge addressed himself thus;
‘First, expert evidence of a scientific nature is not admissible where the scientific basis on which it is advanced is insufficiently reliable for it to be put before the jury… Second, even if the scientific basis is sufficiently reliable, the evidence is not admissible unless it is within the scope of evidence an expert can properly give… Third, unless the admissibility is challenged, the judge will admit that evidence.’[15]
For expert opinion to be admissible in criminal proceedings, it must be of assistance to the court. Lord Mansfield first noted the help of experts in criminal proceedings in Folkes v Chadd (supra). The judge explained that some forms of evidence are better given by experts. For instance, experts help judicial officers understand complex issues, such as scientific principles. Nonetheless, expert evidence is inadmissible unless it offers necessary assistance to the court. In R v Turner (supra), the court dismissed evidence of a psychiatrist who attempted to describe how a normal person would behave before the court.[16] The above was seen to offer no assistance to the court as it was a matter of judicial notice. Whether a piece of evidence is of assistance to the court is a matter of fact and must be determined on a case-to-case basis.[17] The test of assistance is arguably the first that must be satisfied.
An expert witness must have relevant expertise in a given field for their evidence to be admissible. A person is said to have expertise in an area if they can demonstrate that through study or experience, they have adequate knowledge of the field.[18] Arguably, the courts set this threshold to ensure that only qualified persons get the opportunity to contribute to the proceedings. Importantly, assessing the expertise ensures that experts refrain from giving an opinion on matters outside their knowledge and expertise.[19] The above was the case in R v Clarke Morabir[20], where the court dismissed evidence of an expert in bones who had attempted to explain the cause of a victim’s death. This approach to admitting expert evidence in court is often challenging, especially concerning experts who gain knowledge through experience or informal methods.[21] For instance, courts took different stances on two similar cases. In the case of R v Hodges (2003), the courts admitted the evidence of a police officer on a supply of heroin based on the fact that the officer had had several years investigating drug offences.[22] However, in R v Ely Magistrates’ Court [2008][23], the court dismissed evidence of a defence witness, arguing that the witness lacked the necessary expertise to testify on the matter because he had not taken any of the approved schools on speed detection devices.[24] As noted above, common law principles can be confusing in some cases.
Another critical principle under common law that helps courts regulate expert evidence is reliability. Before a witness or his evidence is allowed in a criminal proceeding, the parties must demonstrate that the evidence has a sufficiently reliable scientific basis.[25] Unfortunately, there are a limited number of case laws examining what level of reliability is sufficient. As a result, confusions arise as judges and judicial officers continue to give conflicting and varying holdings to this effect. For instance, the decision in the case of R v T (2010)[26] has been criticized for having ignored critical pieces of evidence in employing what it defined as the likelihood ratio approach.[27] The above uncertainties resulted in the concept of ‘potentially safely reliable,’ where judicial officers look no further than the fact that an expert’s opinion that can safely be held reliable is admissible.[28] In determining the reliability of an expert opinion, the court will also look at the technique used by the expert in arriving at the opinion.[29] However, the courts are invited to look beyond the fact that a scientific process was involved. They must examine whether the scientific approaches adopted are reliable in making relevant inferences. In the case of Re NL (Appeal: Interim Care Order: Facts and Reasons) [2014],[30] the court raised concerns with the evidence of Dr Van Rooyen. In this case, the doctor conducted an incomplete procedure in his analysis, and Pauffley J dismissed his evidence for being unreliable.[31] The courts must also disallow manipulated pieces of evidence. Such was the case in Re F [2016] EWHC 2149, where Hayden J. ruled that any evidence compromising the fairness of a hearing process must be held unreliable and hence inadmissible in the common law.[32]
New case laws are emerging, with judges and judicial officers seeking to refine the various principles regarding the admissibility of expert evidence. However, it must be appreciated that the amendments to the Criminal Procedure Rules and Criminal Practice Directions that began in 2015 have eased the process.
The place of statutory provisions
Statutory regulation of expert witnesses took a sharp shift after the debates resulting from the Law Commission’s report, which proposed numerous regulatory changes to using expert evidence in courts. As already indicated, pre-2015 legislation offered little guidance to courts as to the admissibility of expert witness evidence. Nonetheless, it must be acknowledged that the place of expert witness evidence in courts was protected under section 30 of the Criminal Justice Act of 1988. Even as such, the regulation of expert witnesses was in the ambit of courts as guided by case laws.[33] Therefore, the introduction of Criminal Practice Direction 19A in 2015 marked a significant step towards a solemnized regulatory approach to expert evidence in England and Wales.[34] In addition to appreciating the place of common law principles, the directions lay clear guidelines upon which courts can rely in handling expert evidence.
The introduction of Criminal Practice Directives 19A sought to remedy the challenge of inconsistencies that arose in common law with regard to assessing the admissibility of expert witnesses and their evidence. To that effect, the directions contained several rules that governed the use of expert evidence in court. They also implored judicial officers to astutely identify potential flaws in expert opinions, such as overreliance on hypothesis, unjustified assumptions, and use of flawed data.[35] The directions also allowed the jury to weigh and decide on the opposing views regarding expert evidence. The above is often regarded as an approach that ensures the court is not deprived of the grasp of evidence that would otherwise be useful.[36] The directives of 2015 laid the necessary foundation for the adoption of part 19 of Criminal Procedure Rules 2020[37], which provided a clearer approach to the duties and obligations of expert witnesses in criminal proceedings. The consolidation of rules relating to expert evidence is a positive step towards ensuring convenience in criminal proceedings.
Part 19 of the Criminal Procedure Rules 2020 provides an extensive overview of the approaches courts can adopt in admitting and assessing the admissibility of expert evidence. The part applies when a party seeks to introduce expert evidence in court.[38] Rule 19.2 outlines the various duties that such experts owe courts. Some of these include the duty to help the court achieve its overriding objectives by giving unbiased evidence inspired by expertise.[39] The rule also expects the witness to comply with court orders and communicate clearly where necessary. Such communications may include indicating to the court any delay that may ensue when preparing and presenting the evidence. The above rule seems to have a rooting in the 2014 case of R v Reynolds, R v Rosser[40]where the Court of Appeal highlighted the need for a more explicit guideline on the time within which an expert can prepare evidence.
According to Rule 19.3, expert evidence can be introduced either as a fact or an opinion. Arguably, the rule can be said to be a positive response to the second and third recommendations of the Law Commission’s 2011 report. These rules set specific guidelines for the admissibility of such facts and opinions. Rule 19.4, for instance, specifies that an expert report introduced as an opinion must highlight the expert’s qualifications, relevant experience, and accreditation.[41] The above provision is a departure from the common law principle that expected these to be explained during the proceedings. The report must also depict the expert’s reliability and expertise by showing the basis of their opinions. Interestingly, rule 19.9 allows experts to withhold some information from other parties. However, the application can only be made in the public interest and according to privacy and confidentiality regulations.
Despite marking significant improvements to the legal regulation of expert evidence in England and Wales, the statutory provisions failed to resolve some issues. Positively, they harmonized the laws relating to expert evidence and increased convenience. However, they failed to address some historical challenges of uncertainty. For instance, there still needs to be a clear definition of what amounts to sufficiently reliable evidence. Even courts in many common law jurisdictions still need help dealing with this challenge.[42] The need to remedy this challenge came out strongly in the Law Commission’s report and subsequent Draft Bill of 2011, but the Department of Justice failed to address it.[43] Instead, it responded negatively by citing the high cost of fully implementing the recommendation.[44] The legal system should learn from the experiences of the United States, which solved this problem by adopting the Federal Rules of Evidence early in the 1990s after the celebrated case of Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc.[45] In the above case, the United States Supreme Court set the basic rules for admitting expert evidence in courts. Congress acted fast to incorporate the guidelines with more clarity in their legislation.There is a need for such an approach in the country.
Conclusion
The upshot of this discussion is that legal regulation of Expert witnesses in England and Wales is governed primarily by principles of common laws and specific statutory regulations. The common law principles stemmed from the celebrated case of Folkes v Chadd (supra) and have developed over time. For expert evidence to be admissible in common law, it must be reliable, useful to the court, and given by a person with relevant expertise in the field. The blanket application of the above principles raised concerns, with litigants citing inconsistencies and injustices. The above was also captured in Law Commission studies conducted between 2009 and 2011. The commission’s recommendations shaped the course of amendments to the criminal procedures and directions. Currently, the Criminal Procedure Rules of 2020 are the courts’ primary point of reference in handling expert evidence. However, the regulation, as it stands, does not handle the test of the reliability of expert evidence. This paper finds the need for an amendment to provide a clear framework for assessing the reliability of expert witness evidence. That way, courts in England and Wales will find it easy to render justice.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Cases
Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc., 509 U.S. 579 (1993)
Folkes v Chadd (1782) 3 Doug KB 157
R (Doughty) v Ely Magistrates’ Court[2008] EWHC 522
R v Clarke Morabir [2013]EWCA Crim. 162
R v Hodges [2003] EWCA Crim. 290
R v Reed & Reed [2009] EWCA Crim. 2698
R v Reynolds, R v Rosser [2014] EWCA Crim 2205
R v T [2010] EWCA Crim 2439
R v Turner (1975) 1 All ER 70
R v Riat [2012] EWCA Crim 1509, [2013] 1 WLR 2592 33
Re NL (Appeal: Interim Care Order: Facts and Reasons) [2014] 1 FLR 1384
Statutory Rules
Criminal Justice Act 1988 c 33
Criminal Practice Directions, 2015
Criminal Procedure Rules, 2020 No. 759 (L. 19)
Reports
Forensic Science on Trial, Seventh Report (2004–2005) HC 96-1
Law Commission Consultation Paper No. 190 (2009)
Law Commission, ‘Expert evidence in criminal proceedings in England and Wales,’ (21 March 2011), Law Com No 325
Journal Articles
Dainow J, ‘The Civil Law and the Common Law: Some Points of Comparison’ (1966) 15:3 The American Journal of Comparative Law 419–35
Das S, ‘A Look into the Treatment of Expert Witness Evidence in English Law in the Light of the 21st Century.’ (2021) IPleaders
Elton J, ‘Expert Evidence, Juries and the Search for Truth: A Case Study Analysis.’ (DPhil Dissertation, De Montfort University 2019)
Fisher BAJ, ‘A new challenge for expert witnesses relying on subjective information.’ (2017) Forensic Sci Res. 2(3):113-114
Freckleton I, Goodman J, Horan J and McKimmie B, ‘Expert Evidence and Criminal Jury Trials’ (Oxford University Press New York, 2016) 1.09
Makanje GD, ‘The Admissibility of Expert Evidence in Criminal Proceedings in Malawi: A Call for Reliability Safeguards’ (2023) 67 Journal of African Law 117
Martire, KA and Edmond G, ‘Rethinking Expert Opinion Evidence’ (2017) 40 Melbourne University Law Review 967
Michael S and Jackson A, ‘Expert Evidence in Criminal Proceedings.’ (2016) The Journal of Criminal Law
Milroy CM, ‘A Brief History of the Expert Witness.’ (2017) 7 Academic Forensic Pathol. 3 516-526
Morrison GS, ‘The Likelihood-Ratio Framework and Forensic Evidence in Court: A Response to R v T’ (2012) 16 International Journal of Evidence and Proof 1
Segal S, ‘When Expert Evidence Goes Wrong: Lessons from Case Laws’ (2018) Experts in the Family Justice System (EFJS) Committee
Ward T, ‘‘A new and more rigorous approach’ to expert evidence in England and Wales?’ (2015) The International Journal of Evidence & Proof
Ward T, ‘Expert evidence and the Law Commission: implementation without legislation?’ (2018)
Ward T, ‘Explaining and trusting expert evidence: What is a ‘sufficiently reliable scientific basis’?’ (2020) The International Journal of Evidence & Proof
[1]Folkes v Chadd (1782) 3 Doug KB 157.
[2] Christopher M Milroy, ‘A Brief History of the Expert Witness.’ (2017) Academic Forensic Pathol. 7(4), 516-526.
[3]Folkes (n1).
[4]R v Turner (1975) 1 All ER 70.
[5] Stockdale, Michael, and Adam Jackson. ‘Expert Evidence in Criminal Proceedings.’ (2016) The Journal of Criminal Law. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022018316668448.
[6] Swetalika Das, ‘A Look into the Treatment of Expert Witness Evidence in English Law in the Light of the 21st Century.’ (2021) IPleaders https://blog.ipleaders.in/a-look-into-the-treatment-of-expert-witness-evidence-in-english-law-in-light-of-the-21st-century/.
[7] Martire, Kristy A, and Gary Edmond. ‘Rethinking Expert Opinion Evidence.’ (2017) Melbourne University Law Review 40:967. Accessed from https://law.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/2494286/07-Martire-and-Edmond.pdf
[8] Stockdale (n5).
[9] Forensic Science on Trial, Seventh Report (2004–2005) HC 96-1.
[10] Law Commission Consultation Paper No. 190 (2009).
[11] Law Commission, ‘Expert evidence in criminal proceedings in England and Wales,’ (21 March 2011), Law Com No 325
[12] Stockdale (n5).
[13]Dainow, Joseph. ‘The Civil Law and the Common Law: Some Points of Comparison.’ (1966) The American Journal of Comparative Law 15:3 419–35. https://doi.org/10.2307/838275.
[14]R v Reed & Reed [2009] EWCA Crim. 2698.
[15] ibid.
[16]R v Turner (n4).
[17] Sharon Segal ‘When Expert Evidence Goes Wrong: Lessons from Case Laws.’ (2018) Experts in the Family Justice System (EFJS) Committee Accessed from https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Sharon-Segal-When-expert-evidence-goes-wrong.pdf.
[18] Stockdale (n5).
[19]R v Clarke Morabir [2013]EWCA Crim. 162.
[20] ibid.
[21] Fisher Retired BAJ, ‘A new challenge for expert witnesses relying on subjective information.’ (2017) Forensic Sci Res. 2(3):113-114.
[22]R v Hodges [2003] EWCA Crim. 290.
[23]R (Doughty) v Ely Magistrates’ Court [2008] EWHC 522.
[24] ibid.
[25] Tony Ward, ‘Explaining and trusting expert evidence: What is a ‘sufficiently reliable scientific basis’?’ (2020) The International Journal of Evidence & Proof, Accessed April 8, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1177/1365712720927622.
[26]R v T [2010] EWCA Crim 2439.
[27] GS Morrison ‘The Likelihood-Ratio Framework and Forensic Evidence in Court: A Response to R v T’ (2012) 16 International Journal of Evidence and Proof 1.
[28]R v Riat [2012] EWCA Crim 1509, [2013] 1 WLR 2592 [33].
[29] Tony (n25).
[30]Re NL (Appeal: Interim Care Order: Facts and Reasons) [2014] 1 FLR 1384.
[31] ibid.
[32] Sharon (n19).
[33] Tony Ward. ‘‘A new and more rigorous approach’ to expert evidence in England and Wales?’ (2015) The International Journal of Evidence & Proof). Accessed April 9, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1177/1365712715591471.
[34] I Freckleton, J Goodman, J Horan and B McKimmie Expert Evidence and Criminal Jury Trials (Oxford University Press New York, 2016) 1.09.
[35] Criminal Practice Directives, 2015 19A(6).
[36] Jacqueline Elton, ‘Expert Evidence, Juries and the Search for Truth: A Case Study Analysis.’ (DPhil Dissertation, De Montfort University 2019).
[37] Criminal Procedure Rules, 2020 No. 759 (L. 19).
[38] ibid.
[39] ibid, Rule 19(2).
[40]R v Reynolds, R v Rosser[2014] EWCA Crim 2205.
[41] Criminal Procedure Rules (n36) Rule 19.4 (a).
[42] Makanje GD, ‘The Admissibility of Expert Evidence in Criminal Proceedings in Malawi: A Call for Reliability Safeguards’ (2023) 67 Journal of African Law 117.
[43] Tony Ward, ‘Expert evidence and the Law Commission: implementation without legislation?’ (2018) accessed from https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/OutputFile/469916.
[44] ibid.
[45]Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc., 509 U.S. 579 (1993).
Strategic Services Marketing & Corporate Responsibility And Sustainability Sample Essay
Introduction
Sustainability has become an essential aspect of an organization’s agenda, and therefore it is being incorporated into the strategic planning processes of an organization. Organization management, therefore, has been forced to adopt regulation strategies so as to protect its brand and ensure a stable supply of goods and services, as well as enhance its performance through sustainability (Han et al., 2019). Coming up with sustainability goals in long-term organization engagements is a way of ensuring long-term value and building public trust for different organizations. Sustainability is often understood as the provision of current needs without compromising the ability of the future generation to meet their own needs. One of the key pillars of sustainability is economic, environmental, and social sustainability. Considering that today’s world resources are being over-exploited, having a sustainability strategy in place allows for long-term investments by the company. Therefore, it is important for corporate leaders to become aware of the need for corporate responsibility and exploit the huge opportunities for growth and success (Abbas et al., 2019). In order to understand the importance of corporate responsibility and sustainability, this analysis evaluates Venice, Italy, as a tourist destination in terms of marketing innovation, sustainability issues facing Venice, and strategies being adopted to preserve Venice as a tourist destination.
Customer Experience Management
The customer experience (CX) is an important component of modern marketing and sales, as many businesses today focus on meeting consumer demands and improving the value to their consumers. As a result, having a CX approach in place and adopting it in the branding processes is critical for marketers (Rahimian et al., 2020). This allows them to differentiate their products and services from those of the competitors and work on making sure that they have a long-term relationship with customers. The customer experience approach uses a wide range of interactions and engagements between the customer and the brand (Homburg et al., 2017). For many organizations, a customer experience can include different issues, such as pre-sale interactions and post-sale interactions. As a result, seeking to ensure that marketers have a customer experience approach in place calls for effective strategies for their marketing and branding to differentiate their service offerings (Witell et al., 2020). There are several areas that these marketers need to focus on in order to ensure that CX is a key approach to branding and marketing.
The first step is to ensure that, as a market, they understand the customer journey. They need to ensure that they identify the different areas in which the brand interacts with the customer and therefore determine the customer’s motivations as well as understand their needs, pain points, and considerations at each stage of their journey (Kandampully et al., 2018). On the other hand, it is important for marketers to make sure that they are consistent in their development of the brand identity. Marketers need to be consistent when it comes to developing a brand identity, and this is reflected in different areas of their understanding (Becker & Jaakkola, 2020). This is in terms of the visual designs of their products, the websites as well as the interactions with customers during customer service. Further, another critical component of customer experience is personalization which involves using the individual preferences of the customers to tailor their interactions and create an engaging and memorable experience. Marketers need to make sure that they practice empathy where they empathize with their customers and understand their needs and areas where they need to be developed so as to ensure that their specific needs are addressed and that the products and services provide an overall better service (Becker & Jaakkola, 2020). In the long term, it is critical to make sure that marketers monitor and improve their customer experiences. This can be achieved through feedback and changes to the service delivery by adhering to the feedback. At the same time, regular reviews and updates of the customer journey are important in ensuring relevance and effectiveness for the long term.
Innovativeness of Marketers in Venice
Being one of the most popular destinations for tourists, millions of people visit the area every year. Therefore, marketers in these areas have been able to adopt innovative and strategic approaches to ensure effectiveness when attracting and retaining customers. For marketers in Venice, visitors are considered to be gold, and therefore one of their main strategies has been using experiential marketing (Flavián et al., 2021). This involves focusing on a wide range of experiences that immerse the visitors through all their five senses. Therefore, some of the evident experiences that have been created by marketers in Venice include walking tours, food experiences, drinking and wine tasting, as well as gondola rides. As a result, visitors are often seeking to engage in the city in a more meaningful manner and create lifetime memories. Marketers in Venice are based on the belief that businesses should be able to have memorable experiences for their customers such that they are able to differentiate themselves from the competitors and, at the same time, boost customer loyalty (Flavián et al., 2021).
Further, in Venice, their marketers have been able to use destination branding as a way of ensuring that they have a unique brand image and the idea of a cool destination for the customers. In Venice, Marketers have created a strong brand image for their visitors. The image created about Venice to the outside world is that they have a rich cultural history, art, and architecture. This is an image that is reinforced through a wide range of marketing communication and advertisement (Cristiano & Gonella, 2020). These strategies are helpful in making sure that many people are attracted to and seeking to visit Venice. This is an important strategy based on the concept of brand image and identity, where marketers need to create a strong image that is consistent throughout different channels, thus boosting brand recognition. Digital marketing has also been an important part of marketing strategies by marketers in Venice (Pesce et al., 2018). This involves using social media, search engines, emails, and other strategies to promote products and services. Venice marketers have worked on ensuring that they have a strong digital presence through social media, where consumers get rich information about Venice as a destination (Cristiano & Gonella, 2020). This illustrates the level of innovativeness of marketers in Venice in their efforts to create sustainable experiences for their visitors. For marketers, they promote travel and environmental conservation of the areas through sustainability measures, promotion of eco-friendliness, and reduction of waste as well as encouraging responsible behaviors. This strategy is critical, especially considering the corporate social responsibility goals and needs of businesses in the market today.
Sustainability Issues Facing Venice
Being a unique tourist attraction city, Venice faces a wide range of sustainability problems which are mainly a result of the cultural history and location of the place. The three main sustainability issues affecting Venice include rising water levels. Venice is located in an area surrounded by a lagoon, with buildings built on islands and connected using bridges (Pasquinelli et al., 2021). The climate crisis has led to an increase in rising water levels, with experts indicating that a possible rise of 50cm in water levels would see the city vanish beneath the waves. Also, Venice has always been vulnerable to regular flooding, which as a result of increased climate changes, has made the problem even worse (van der Borg, 2022). The city now has more severe and frequent floods are being experienced in the areas. As a result, there is a significant threat to the city’s cultural heritage as well as its economic sustainability in the long term (Kandampully et al., 2018). Reports from Venice in 2019 showed that Venice was undergoing some of the worst floods in history, which caused several damages to buildings and infrastructure and a decline in tourism in the area. At the same time, the flooding was affecting the ecosystems of the area, which means that people that live in Venice would not practice fishing practices, as well as affecting the overall tourist experience of the area (van der Borg, 2022). Further, rising water levels in Venice have caused soil erosion which damages the foundations of the buildings and historical landmarks of the city which are likely to cause collapse. Also, the damage to infrastructure in Venice is unprecedented, where roads, bridges, and houses are being affected, making it hard for people to stay or navigate through the city.
Another major sustainability issue facing Venice is over tourism, where millions of visitors visit Venice, which tends to strain the city in terms of infrastructure and resources. One of the problems of over-tourism in Venice is that it results in overcrowding. For instance, in 2019, Venice received 26.2 million visitors in a city that only has a population of 50,000 people (Visentin & Bertocchi, 2019). This has resulted in concerns about Venice’s ability to manage the influx of people and the impact it has on the environment and the infrastructure of the city. On the other hand, the high number of people visiting Venice contributes to high pollution in the city damaging the landmarks and cultural heritage sites. Also, the resources available in the city are subjected to high amounts of pressure and strain, especially in relation to waste management and sanitation.
Another sustainability problem that Venice is dealing with is the issue of waste management and energy consumption. With limited space in Venice, the process of waste disposal and energy consumption is a challenge as the city’s narrow streets do not seem to allow the city to transport the waste out (Du Plessis & De Vries, 2016). This has caused significant issues related to illegal dumping and waste management. On the other hand, the reliance on fossil fuels for power in the city has significantly contributed to gas emissions and climate change in the city (Bertocchi & Camatti, 2022). Therefore, there is an important need to work on transitioning the city towards having more sustainable energy and waste management processes throughout the city. These include the use of solar energy and wind power.
Sustainable Strategies to Adopt in Venice
For the local government, it is important to ensure that resources and other strategies are kept in place to ensure that they protect the city through sustainability. One of the most effective sustainable strategies for the local government in Venice is by adopting sustainable infrastructure throughout the city. This is achieved through making investments in renewable energy sources, adopting water treatment strategies, and even investing in treatment plants as well as public transport systems which reduce the carbon footprint of the city as well as protect the natural resource (Mazzarino & Rubini, 2019). By ensuring that sustainable infrastructure is in place, the local government will gain revenue through sustainable tourism, where people are involved in responsible tourism practices that reduce the damage to the environment and that are beneficial to the local communities (Seraphin et al., 2018). Further, investing in infrastructure allows the government to increase green spaces throughout the city and provide parks that boost the quality of air and areas where people can relax and promote ecosystems for biodiversity (Mazzarino & Rubini, 2019). Also, infrastructural investments boost the waste management practices in the town, thus making sure that waste is reduced, people practice recycling, and the government has in place some compost sites for organic materials.
For local businesses, sustainable use of materials and resources is important. This involves using materials that can be recycled for business operations including the use of biodegradable packaging, recycled containers, and adopting the use of energy-efficient lighting (Kryczka, 2019). The businesses can also achieve this by making sure they source their production materials locally, which can be helpful in boosting the economy of the local people as well as reducing the carbon footprints that come along as a result of various logistics. Further, in terms of the use of resources saving water is an important aspect of business engagement. Businesses in Venice need to be committed to reducing the usage of water by either using water-efficient appliances or adopting low-flow toilets and faucets (Grønholdt et al., 2015). One of the problems that increase pollution in Venice is transportation, especially for the local businesses. Therefore, promoting sustainable use of transportation resources is important in allowing the business to boost the reduction of carbon footprint. On the other hand, customers and employees are able to use sustainable resources and transportation options whenever seeking services from local businesses in Venice (Kryczka, 2019). These strategies allow the local businesses to preserve the natural resources in Venice and minimize their carbon footprint, as well as boost the sustainability of the city for the longer term.
Conclusion
In this analysis, we have evaluated the issue of corporate responsibility and sustainability for businesses. Sustainability is an important consideration for businesses in the market today, which makes it an important part of the overall business management process. Therefore, when marketing, it is important to consider it and promote customer experiences so as to meet the demands of customers in terms of sustainability and long-term success. Ensuring customer experiences in marketing requires understanding the customer journey, being consistent with the brand identity, and practicing empathy with the customers. These enable the marketers to understand the needs of the customers and boost their experiences in service delivery. Venice, it is a popular destination for tourists, is being faced with different challenges in terms of sustainability. Despite the innovativeness of marketers in creating experiences and services that meet the demands of the consumers, Venice faces challenges such as rising water levels due to climate change, over-tourism, and energy and waste management challenges. Therefore, it is important to understand some of the sustainable strategies for ensuring successful operations in Venice in the longer term. Local government should invest in sustainable infrastructure while local businesses should adopt sustainable use of resources and materials.
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Tencent Holdings Limited Sample College Essay
Tencent Holdings Limited, frequently branded as Tencent, is a Chinese multinational conglomerate that concentrates on numerous Internet-related services and products. The company was founded in 1998 and has grown into one of the world’s largest and most valuable corporations, with a market capitalization of over $1 trillion as of early 2021 (Ho, 2021). Tencent has numerous value drivers have added to its success over the years, including social networking, gaming, fintech, and cloud computing. One of Tencent’s most substantial value drivers is social networking. The business’s social media platforms, such as WeChat and QQ, are among the most common in China, with over a billion monthly active users (Ho, 2021). These platforms permit the company to amass vast quantities of user data, which the business can leverage for advertising and other determinations (Ho, 2021). In addition to its social media platforms, Tencent possesses numerous other popular social networking products, such as Qzone and Pengyou.
Gaming is another value driver of the company. Tencent is one of the world’s largest gaming companies, with a vast portfolio of widespread games such as PUBG, Fortnite, and League of Legends (Sayibu et al., 2021). The business’s dominance in the gaming industry is a substantial value driver for Tencent, as the gaming market is projected to continue growing in the coming years. In addition to its gaming products, Tencent has substantial investments in other gaming businesses, such as Riot Games and Epic Games. Tencent’s fintech arm, Tencent Financial Technology, is also a substantial value driver for the company as it offers a range of financial products and services comprising mobile payments, wealth management, and insurance (Sayibu et al., 2021). The business’s fintech services are among the most prevalent in China, with over a billion users. Tencent Financial Technology also owns numerous financial services products, such as WeBank and Tencent Credit (Sayibu et al., 2021). Moreover, the company’s cloud computing services are becoming a progressively substantial value driver for the business. It is one of the fastest-growing cloud computing providers in China, providing various services, such as data storage, AI, and IoT. With more companies moving to the cloud, cloud computing services are anticipated to become a progressively substantial part of their business.
To guarantee that these value drivers remain intact, Tencent operates under normal conditions by capitalizing deeply on research and development, maintaining a strong emphasis on innovation, and continually pursuing to advance its services and products. The company has a large team of researchers and developers working to create new technologies and advance existing ones. In addition, Tencent is recognized for its corporations with other businesses in numerous industries, such as healthcare and education, to develop new products and services. Additionally, Tencent’s strong corporate culture highlights teamwork, communication, and collaboration. This culture aids in guaranteeing that the business’s numerous units work together efficiently to accomplish shared objectives. Tencent’s leadership team is recognized for its emphasis on long-term growth, which permits the business to weather market variations and invests in strategic prospects. This approach has helped Tencent become one of the world’s most effective and valuable businesses. However, the company made gains and faced challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, which required a response, thus influencing the brand.
Impact of COVID-19 Impacts
The COVID-19 pandemic brought severe and profound effects on businesses across the globe, including Tencent, one of China’s largest technology businesses. As a conglomerate, Tencent functions in various industries, including social media, gaming, and online payment systems. The pandemic made it hard for many businesses to perform their activities, control the spread of the virus and introduce stringent measures such as restrictions on movement, which affected the performance of businesses and overall profits of the business (Sayibu et al., 2021). However, the pandemic substantially affected Tencent’s business as it increased demand for its services (Sayibu et al., 2021). As people worldwide have been forced to spend more time at home due to lockdowns and social distancing measures, they relied more heavily on technology to stay connected with friends and family and access news and information. This led to a surge in the usage of Tencent’s social media platforms, such as WeChat, which became a vital tool for communication during the pandemic. In addition, Tencent’s online gaming business saw a substantial demand increase as people sought out habits to stay entertained while stuck at home.
However, the pandemic also presented substantial challenges for Tencent’s business, including major disruptions to its supply chains, as factories and logistics networks worldwide shut down, with others slowing down their activities. This led to interruptions in the production and delivery of Tencent’s hardware products, such as gaming consoles and mobile phones. Additionally, the pandemic led to a downturn in the global economy, which had a ripple effect on Tencent’s business. This is because businesses worldwide were forced to close their doors, and millions of people lost, thus reducing disposable income to purchase leisure activities amenities such as gaming and other entertainment.
Additionally, the pandemic led to the company’s shift to remote work. Like many other businesses, Tencent had to acclimate to remote working arrangements, as employees work from home to prevent the spread of the virus (Wiranota & Wijaya, 2021). While Tencent could continue with its operations with a largely remote workforce, it presented new challenges, such as the requirement to guarantee that personnel have the indispensable technology and infrastructure to work efficiently from home (Sayibu et al., 2021). Additionally, remote work also presents challenges associated with communication and collaboration, which are important for the achievement of any business (Wiranota & Wijaya, 2021). Moreover, the pandemic substantially affected Tencent’s corporate social responsibility efforts. As an accountable corporate citizen, Tencent donated millions of dollars to support the fight against the virus, including funding for medical research, donations of medical equipment, and support for frontline healthcare workers. Furthermore, Tencent has worked to promote public health and safety through its platforms, such as by providing precise facts.
Managing COVID-19 Impacts
Tencent, one of China’s leading technology companies, has continued to actively undertake measures to manage the impact of COVID-19 since the outbreak began (Sayibu et al., 2021). The business has taken numerous methods to guarantee its workers’ safety and continue its operations while preserving its value drivers. The company regularly disinfected public areas daily, offered employees masks weekly, placed hand sanitizers, and ensured the temperature before entering the premises (Wiranota & Wijaya, 2021). Additionally, to understand their employees’ health situation timely and accurate, they built regular check-in surveys to generate a pass that allowed employees to enter the company’s office (Wiranota & Wijaya, 2021). However, the privacy of individuals was carefully considered following applicable local health laws. The company also launched a compulsory course for all staff on Covid-19 policies and guidelines and an internal learning platform and materials.
Additionally, to guarantee the continuity of its operations during the pandemic, Tencent took numerous measures to protect its workers and maintain its business activities. The company applied a remote work policy for its workers and offered them the required tools and infrastructure to work from home. This aided in guaranteeing the safety of its personnel while guaranteeing that its operations were not affected. Tencent also launched several creativities to aid small businesses during the pandemic. The business offered free online resources and tools to aid small businesses in setting up online stores, creating marketing campaigns, and managing their finances. Tencent also waived fees for merchants using its payment services and offered low-cost loans to small businesses affected by the pandemic.
Moreover, Tencent has taken numerous measures to preserve its value drivers during the pandemic. One of the crucial value drivers for Tencent is its gaming business, which has seen a surge in demand during the pandemic as more people stay at home (Sayibu et al., 2021). To exploit this trend, Tencent launched numerous new games and expanded its prevailing portfolio to cater to customers’ changing requirements. Tencent also leveraged its social media platforms, such as WeChat and QQ, to offer users online entertainment and socializing selections during the pandemic. The business launched numerous new structures on these platforms, such as online concerts, virtual reality experiences, and live streaming events, to retain users engaged and interested (Sayibu et al., 2021). In addition to its gaming and social media businesses, Tencent’s online advertising business has also been a key value driver for the company. To preserve this business during the pandemic, Tencent launched numerous new advertising products and services to aid businesses in reaching their target audience online (Wiranota & Wijaya, 2021). The company also offered free advertising credits to small businesses to aid them in promoting their products and services during the pandemic.
Managing COVID-19 Crisis
The company’s extensive reach and resources have permitted it to launch several initiatives to mitigate the pandemic’s effect on communities and businesses. Tencent’s response to the pandemic has been multi-layered. The corporation has donated millions of dollars to relief efforts, including funding the purchase of medical supplies and equipment and offering financial support to vulnerable communities (Wiranota & Wijaya, 2021). Tencent has also sprung several digital initiatives directed at helping businesses and persons navigate the crisis. These comprise a health code system that permits persons to track their health status and travel history, a platform connecting medical workers with patients, and a virtual reality classroom platform to support remote learning (Ho, 2021). Additionally, to manage the crisis, Tencent has been proactive and responsive. The company quickly identified the scale of the challenge posed by the pandemic and took early phases to support relief efforts. Tencent also established flexibility and adaptability in its response, launching new initiatives and partnerships as the condition changed (Wiranota & Wijaya, 2021). Conversely, there have been some criticisms of Tencent’s crisis management. Some have raised apprehensions about the business’s domination in the Chinese tech industry, arguing that Tencent’s resources and sway have permitted it to control the response to the pandemic (Ho, 2021). Questions about the business’s data privacy practices have also been raised, predominantly relative to its health code system.
From my assessment, Tencent has largely managed the COVID-19 crisis. The company’s comprehensive resources and reach have permitted it to launch various initiatives to mitigate the control of the pandemic (Ho, 2021). Tencent’s receptiveness and adaptability have also been commendable, as the business has shown a willingness to launch new initiatives and partnerships to address emerging challenges (Wiranota & Wijaya, 2021). However, there are legitimate apprehensions about the potential monopolization of the Chinese tech industry by Tencent, and the company’s data privacy practices should be closely monitored and evaluated. It can be concluded that the company has played a substantial role in China’s response to the COVID-19 crisis (Wiranota & Wijaya, 2021). The company’s widespread resources and reach have permitted it to launch a wide range of initiatives to mitigate the pandemic’s effect on communities and businesses. While there are legitimate apprehensions about the potential monopolization of the Chinese tech industry and the business’s data privacy practices, Tencent’s general response to the crisis has been proactive, responsive, and largely successful.
Brand Image
During the pandemic, the company’s actions have been subject to varied opinions, with some arguing that its activities have heightened its image. In contrast, others believe that its reputation has been stained. Some believe that Tencent has substantially assisted China’s fight against the virus (Sayibu et al., 2021). The company has given billions of yuan to support medical services and frontline workers, offered technical support to the government, and utilized its digital competencies to offer innovative solutions to aid persons in coping with the pandemic. For instance, the company’s WeChat app has been applied to track the spread of the virus and offer users real-time information (Sayibu et al., 2021).
Additionally, Tencent has collaborated with the Chinese administration to launch a health code system which permits persons to substantiate their health status and travel freely within the nation. These determinations have been extensively praised and have cemented Tencent’s image as an accountable and dependable corporate citizen in China. Moreover, Tencent has also offered financial assistance to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) affected by the pandemic (Sayibu et al., 2021). For instance, in April 2019, Tencent announced about 100 billion yuan ($14.2 billion) investment plan to assist SMEs in China. The funds were distributed to support SMEs in industries harshly compressed by the pandemic, such as transportation, catering, and tourism. Tencent’s support for SMEs was widely cherished, as these businesses are the backbone of China’s economy and have relentlessly been affected by the pandemic.
However, some individuals hold a different opinion as they believe that the company’s handling of censorship and misinformation on its platforms during the pandemic was ill-informed, thus receiving critics (Ho, 2021). Tencent’s WeChat app, which has over a billion users in China, was indicted of censoring content connected to the virus and suppressing information about the outbreak. This led to apprehensions about the corporation’s pledge to free speech and transparency. Additionally, the company was and continues to be accused of being too dependent on artificial intelligence (AI) to regulate content on its platforms leading to censorship of legitimate content (Ho, 2021). Tencent’s censorship practices have been disputed, with some calling for more transparency and answerability in the business’ content moderation practices. Additionally, the company was criticized due to the benefits it accrued in its gaming business, as it saw a surge in demand during the pandemic (Ho, 2021). Individuals believe that the company’s games which are highly addictive, have led to increasing screen time which may have a negative significance for mental health.
Moreover, there are apprehensions that Tencent’s games may inspire excessive spending by users, predominantly children (Sayibu et al., 2021). The company’s gaming business has been subject to regulatory scrutiny for years, and the corporation has been asked to take the necessary measures to address these apprehensions. Thus depending on which one is looking at the company, it may have improved or tarnished its global image.
The company continues to make major strides in advancing the technology and services it offers its clients. The company’s future projections encompass a continued concentration on innovation and investing in emerging technologies. The company has set its sights on becoming a world leader in artificial cloud computing, intelligence, and smart devices. Additionally, the company accentuated its pledge to develop cutting-edge gaming technologies and expand its game portfolio (Ho, 2021). Tencent is also engrossed in expanding its presence in markets outside China, chiefly in Southeast Asia, Europe, and America. The company has also been dynamically seeking partnerships and acquisitions to improve its competencies and reach in various industries. Tencent’s vision for the future also embraces a strong commitment to social responsibility and sustainable development (Ho, 2021). The company has been tangled in numerous initiatives to support education, poverty alleviation, and environmental protection. By concentrating on innovation, global expansion, and social responsibility, Tencent proposes to maintain its position as a leading technology company for many years.
References
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Wiranota, H., & Wijaya, T. T. (2021). The international students’ perception towards online learning using the Tencent meeting during covid-19 outbreak. In Journal of Physics: Conference Series (Vol. 1823, No. 1, p. 012011). IOP Publishing.