Internal Risk Assessment †Home Depot Essay

Former president and chief executive officer of the online auction site eBay stated, â€Å"A business leader has to keep their organization focused on the mission. That sounds easy, but it can be tremendously challenging in today’s competitive and ever-changing business environment. A leader also has to motivate potential partners to join† (Whitman, n. d. ). These wise words expressed from a wise and highly successful business leader speak soundly in relation to motivating employees and a sustaining a competitive business advantage. Along with a competitive advantage arises the need to assess the firm’s internal risk. Departmental strengths and weaknesses, strategic endurance, and financial foundation all substantiate the level of allowable tolerance for internal risks. A publicly traded global firm, The Home Depot, Incorporated leads the world in retail building supplies and home improvement goods. According to the 2009 Form 10-K reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company maintains 2,244 retail sites â€Å"Located throughout the United States including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the territories of the U. S. Virgin Islands and Guam (â€Å"U. S. †), Canada, China and Mexico† (The Home Depot: Annual Report, 2009). The Home Depot wisely forecasts and assesses its risks while maintaining flexibility to assume increased or decreased influences affecting internal operations. According to the annual report for 2009, The Home Depot’s returns declined as compared with its 2008 earnings, as did stock prices. The company forecasted for this decline with the closure of several underperforming stores in 2008. Cutting the ties of projected threats made capital resources available to concentrate on heightening strengths and improving upon weaknesses. Company growth does not solely equate to the gain of more real property. Growth produces many internal facets through improving and enhancing capabilities to overcome weaknesses within the organization. The company’s fiscal 2009 operating strategy maintains a centralized focal point in their core retail business. In this strenuous economy, they also realize that â€Å"Success depends upon our ability to attract, train and retain highly qualified associates while also controlling our labor costs† (The Home Depot: Annual Report, 2009). Lean production with educated employees becomes essential while awaiting the economy’s upward trend. Customer loyalty and return business starts at the frontline through customer service. The operating strategy gears its strategic decisions toward raising improving capital allocation, controlling expenses to generate long-term value for its shareholders, the bottom line. To further the company’s 2009 internal strategic stability, in 2008 it opted to exercise valuable capabilities whereby counteracting short-term and long-term threats with the closure of several underperforming stores, shelving new store construction projects, and parting with business contracts loosening hindering obligations. The reevaluation of the strategic business plan provided a means to target emerging opportunities that supported the restructuring planned objectives for 2009. Success of reducing threats evidenced opportunity to position the company for future growth in projecting a strengthened economy in forthcoming years. The Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations reveals 13 store openings with a concentration toward the â€Å"Core retail business, investing in our associates and stores and improving our customer service† (The Home Depot: Annual Report, 2009). The report also ascertains that â€Å"The slowdown in the global economy and weakness in the U. S. residential construction, housing and home improvement markets negatively impacted our Net Sales for fiscal 2009† resulting in a 7. 2% declined Net Sales (The Home Depot: Annual Report, 2009). The company maintains the decrease in sales as a direct correlation to the underperforming store closures. Asserting that the weakened sales figures correlate to the competition, The Home Depot estimates a 21% market share in the United States. Reduced pricing drove an operations increase evidenced with the gross profit margin for fiscal 2009. Compared to last year, the operating income as a percent of net sales rose 1% for $4 million over 2008 figures. A substantial savings exhibited with a decline in Operating Expenses in that expenditures shrank 10. 9% from last year. Employing new merchandising tools aid the company in realizing lean production measures with its supply chain. Forecasting capabilities substantiated through â€Å"The combined efforts of our supply chain, merchandising, operations and finance teams, we reduced inventory by almost half a billion dollars in 2009, while at the same time improving our in-stock position† (Datamonitor 360, 2010). The organization’s strengths illustrate an emphasis in positive marketing, as brand awareness continues to retain The Home Depot as the largest home improvement retailer in the world, boosting its negotiating influence concerning capital financing. Competitive positioning emanates as a strength through the human resources department as the charge to maintain employee training geared toward the customer elevates as a long-term objective. The sales team continues to revolutionize efficient processes in bettering supply chain management to continue efficient production. Additional strengths, as found with its customer satisfaction measure through a store performance survey called, Voice of the Customer, is a marketing and research effort to sustain market share strengths. A new education program, Customer First, launched in 2009 afforded each employee training, by the end of that fiscal year, aimed at placing the customer first. This measure supports management’s long-term commitment toward putting the customer first and gaining feedback to achieve peak customer service. Supplying the customer with exclusive and well-known brands is also a priority to distinguish public visibility and improve traffic flow. Top manufacturers carried exclusively at the retailer include Behr Premium Plus, Husky, Ryobi, Pegasus, and Glacier Bay. The Home Depot’s chief executive officer stated in the annual report that â€Å"While our supply chain team is proceeding with the rollout of these new RDC facilities, we are also restructuring and improving other parts of our supply chain. We have closed legacy distribution centers, optimized distribution center operations and enhanced our transportation management systems, driving further supply chain efficiency in addition to the RDC rollout. Creating exclusivity and optimal vendor relations develops a stronghold on the supply chain, along with securing customer loyalty. A weakness that The Home Depot notes in their Annual Report reveals that â€Å"Sustained uncertainty regarding current economic conditions and other factors beyond our control could adversely affect demand for our products and services, our costs of doing business and our financial performance† (The Home Depot: Annual Report, 2009). The decline in new residential housing construction displays a historic low of 43. 5%, according to the census report, and as compared with 2008 data (U.  S. Census Bureau, 2009). This figure reveals strategic business planning to maintain company stability, at a minimum, although ideally growth is the target. Competition is noted as another weakness as it negatively affects pricing, causing an upset in sales figures should a competitor win over the organization’s market share. A decline in product demand and services provided to customers also decreases the company’s market share, lessening sales, company profits, and shareholder wealth. The store’s mindfulness of the competition remains at the forefront of planning. Failure to maintain attractive stores and to timely identify or effectively respond to changing consumer tastes, preferences, expectations as to service levels, spending patterns and home improvement needs could adversely affect our relationship with customers, the demand for our products and services and our market share† (The Home Depot: Annual Report, 2009). The risks associated with large companies are endless. Some of the identified risks with this company include changes or a failure with information technology systems, alterations in regulations and laws or accounting standards, and third party vendor relations. This snapshot list of risks, or weaknesses, create potential financial repercussions with the way the company conducts its business plan. Cognizance of each area should be taken into account when preparing the SWOT Analysis, along with the strategic business plan. Overlooking an item may prove a detriment in company earnings. The Home Depot continues its strategic business plan to include forecasting for internal changes and developing capabilities that positively affect profitability as evidenced in revenues, operating profit, and net profit. Recorded 2010 revenues of over $66 million, showed a decrease of 7. 2% over 2009, the operating profit was $4,803 million, for an increase of 10. 2% over the same period. The annual report indicated a net profit of $2,661 million, which was an increase of 17. 7% over the previous year (The Home Depot: Annual Report, 2009). Strategically assessing internal factors and employ its resources pertaining to the company’s strengths and weaknesses position its stronghold, enduring as the largest home improvement retailer in the world.

Life on Earth Worksheet Essay

Taxa to explore – Elephants. 1. Review terms (write definitions for these terms) Extant Species, families, or groups still in existence Extinct Species, families, or groups no longer in existence, end or died out Genotype Genetic make-up of an organism Phenotype Physical attributes of an organism, observable or measurable traits Synapomorphy Shared characteristic that are inherited from most recent common ancestor Background: There are three extant species of elephant: Elaphas maximus (Asian elephants), Loxodonta africana (African elephants), and Loxodonta cyclotis (African forest elephants). Their taxonomic hierarchy is as follows: Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Proboscidea Family: Elephantidae Genus: Elaphas Species: maximus Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Proboscidea Family: Elephantidae Genus: Loxodonta Species: africana Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Proboscidea Family: Elephantidae Genus: Loxodonta Species: cyclotis 2. Collect an image of each species. You will submit these as a part of your assignment. (see full assignment instructions) 3. Looking at these pictures, can you think of any EXTINCT animal or animals that might be a close relative of modern elephants? List it/them below. If you know the scientific name (genus and species) then you can put that. If you aren’t quite sure, just give the common name. Mammoth 4. Now think about EXTANT taxa. Identify 2 animals that you might expect to be the closest LIVING relative to the elephants. List it/them below. If you know the scientific name (genus and species) then you can put that. If you aren’t quite sure, just give the common name. Possible Relative A Possible Relative B Rock Hyrax Manatees 5. For the closest EXTANT relatives, what characteristic(s) of that animal or its habitat led you choose it as â€Å"probable closest relative†? (consider geographic location, size, anatomy, behavior etc). Be specific. Characteristics of Animal A Characteristics of Animal B -found across Africa and the Middle East -typically live in groups -has a prominent pair of long, pointed tusk-like upper incisors -In males, the testes are permanently abdominal -thick, wrinkled skin -Females have two teats, one under each flipper -teeth growing at the rear are continuously replaced throughout life Now to the science – Follow the link below to read about some of the extinct relatives of elephants http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/Palaeofiles/Elephants/firstelephants.html 6. How were the phenotypes of ancient proboscideans different from those of extant elephants? The ancient proboscideans differ from those of extant elephants because they have multiple pairs of molars and premolars, they do not possess tusks, and they retain canines on the upper jaw. 7. Based on the information in the web-site, where did the early proboscideans evolve? The early proboscideans evolved from Africa. More derived proboscideans (not ancient, but not extant either) also had a very different geographic distribution than elephants today: http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/Palaeofiles/Elephants/extinct_taxa.html http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/Palaeofiles/Elephants/mammoths.html 8. Which localities seem most surprising and why? North and South America because these locations were once abundant with these animals, such as mastodons, while having most of the animals originate from  the other side of the world. 9. Identify 4 synapomorphies that are shared between ALL of these extinct and extant taxa. 1. Tusks 2. Incisors and molar teeth 3. Trunk 4. Four column-like legs Molecular phylogeny In extant species, relationships can also be reconstructed based on DNA Think back to your best guesses of the closest EXTANT relatives of the modern elephants. Look at the .pdf named â€Å"Afrotheria†. The phylogeny described in this paper is based on molecular data (similarities in DNA sequences) 10. Based on that phylogeny, write in the sister taxon (taxon A) to Proboscidea. Give the formal name. Taxon A or Sirenia Proboscidea 11. Write in the taxon (taxon B) that is sister to the clade composed of (Proboscidea + Taxon A). Give formal name Taxon B or Taxon A Proboscidea Hyracoidea 12. Perform an internet search for these two taxa and find out their common names. What are their common names? Describe each.  The common name for Sirenia is Sea Cow. Sea cows are fully aquatic, herbivorous mammals that appear fat. They have forelimbs used for steering and a tail used for paddling. The common name for Hyracoidea are hyraxes. Hyraxes are well-furred animals with short tails and have poor internal temperature regulation. What was your thought/reaction upon discovering what these creatures are? My thought reaction was how can animals that look nothing alike be similar to an elephant if they visually look different. Believe it or not, there are morphological (phenotypic) similarities as well as dietary and behavioral similarities between all of these taxa. BEFORE molecular data was available, scientists already suspected that these groups were closely related. The DNA evidence only helped to confirm the relationships. We’ll do more on that in a moment. 13. Search the web to find at least two non-molecular synapomorphies between each of your modern taxa and the elephants: (be specific!) Animal #1 name Rock Hyraxes Rock Hyraxes are furry and have the soles of the feet with large, soft pads that are kept moist. Manatees have paddle like flippers and a snout. Animal #2 name Manatees 14. Which of the features you listed are more likely to survive in the fossil record? Explain why. Most likely to survive in the fossil record is the snout because it consists of the bones of the jaw which are very good for becoming fossils. 15. Which are less likely? Explain why. Less likely are the fur, soft pads at the feet, and the paddle-like flippers because all are more prone to decay rapidly because of being soft structures. The flippers are also more prone to not preserving quickly therefore eaten or broken down by aerobic microbes. Now for molecules: To see the actual molecular data used to create the phylogeny you saw, select the .pdf named â€Å"mammoth and sea cow†. 16. Go to page 409. Dots mean the base pair (A, C, T or G) is the same as is listed in the taxon that’s at the top (this saves ink!). Now compare the sequences for the African elephant and the Asian elephant in just the top row of page 409. How many molecular differences do you see in the sequence shown? There are 8 molecular difference in the sequence. How many molecular differences do you count between the African elephant and the hyrax? There are 11 molecular differences between the African elephant and the hyrax. 17. Based on anatomy alone (without the molecular evidence), would you have guessed that the animals in photos above represented the closest living relatives of elephants? Why or why not? Honestly, based on the anatomy alone, I would not have guessed that the animals represent close relatives of the elephants because of the physical anatomical characteristic they have. Most animals can have similar anatomy with slight differences that contribute to their survival in an environment. Initially, I thought that the animals had similar characteristics only because of natural selection and adaptation of their environment not because  of their common ancestor. This shows how molecular evidence can really help in seeing what animals belong in what lineages.

Analysis of environment, industry and SWOT analysis

The Australian food retailing industry is characterized by a high level of competitiveness. The intense competitiveness has led to an environment in which emphasis on cost efficiency has become the critical success factor. In the general environment, the key to maintaining competitiveness has become ensuring cost efficiency through efficient supply chain management.This efficiency can be promoted technologically. Economic factors are also important in the environment. These factors manifest themselves in high levels of household debt, a low national rate of saving, falling house prices, falling oil prices and increases in unemployment and interest rates. In Aldi’s case, these environmental factors are likely to exercise a negative influence on consumer spending.The threat of new entrants is high in this industry. For example, Aldi faces the threat of its main European rival Lidl entering the Australian market. Therefore the threat of substitute products is also high. This thre at is underscored by the fact that most competitors are carrying house brands which are enabling them to offer high quality at a low price. This has resulted in a high level of competitive rivalry.The main competitors currently are Woolworths and Coles-Myer. These are the two major national chains. There are also smaller regional players such Action, IGA and Franklins. These companies are focusing on cost efficiencies and therefore sustainability of competitive advantage has become difficult to maintain. Bargaining power of customers in the FMCG industry is also high. However the bargaining power of suppliers is not that high. Costs in this case have been streamlined through building long term relations.Aldi’s main strength is the process of decentralization empowering managers. There is a high degree of delegation in the company. The company’s weakness is in its lack of investment in marketing. Currently this is not a problem but in the future, as new entrants stake o ut a claim in the industry, the company might have to invest in aggressive promotional strategies (cited in Hill, 2008).However the company is not structured to shift focus accordingly. Lack of market research might also become a problem in case of increased competitiveness. The opportunity for the company is to move into other Australian states and territories.In the immediate time frame, the company should focus on South Australia because of its proximity to its current locations. The threat is the rising level of competition not only from the existing players but also from new entrants. The competitive threat is being created in terms of cost improvements and product diversifications (cited in Aaker, 2004).Key resources and capabilitiesThe source of Aldi’s competitive advantage is cost leadership. Implementation of this strategy has been facilitated by maintaining good relations with channel members and ensuring employee satisfaction.Channel members include the suppliers a nd the customers. Aldi’s strategic focus is to ensure maximum customer satisfaction by maintaining a product range that is in alignment with customer tastes and preferences. The company also maintains good relations with the suppliers by maintaining a shared information network.Its cultural orientation is also unique in terms of facilitating the highest degree of decentralization and delegation. This gives the managers a sense of ownership over their processes and as a result they are committed to the continuous improvement process. This is a critical success factor for the company in the highly competitive environment in which it operates and these resources ensure a sustainable competitive advantage.What gives Aldi a sustainable competitive advantage is its limited product range that consists of house brands. The advantage of maintaining this orientation is that strategies against the threat of product differentiation can be implemented.This is particularly relevant in Aldi ’s case because it faces intense competition from Woolworths and Coles-Meyer which are major national chains and draw their competitive advantage from maintaining a widely diversified product portfolio.Therefore Aldi has to position itself as a low cost provider of products of comparable quality. This is facilitated through cutting costs in areas such as not providing free shopping bags, surcharges on credit card payments and motivating customers to manage their own shopping trolleys.These strategies enable the company to cut down the size of its manpower and therefore reduce costs. Being cost conscious is the first part of its guiding philosophy. The second and third parts of the philosophy are related to ensuring satisfaction with customers and suppliers.

PERSONNEL PLANNING AND RECRUITMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

PERSONNEL PLANNING AND RECRUITMENT - Essay Example They are a source of motivation and encouragement to the workers. However, they may lead to conflict among the employees seeking for promotion to the vacancies available. External sources on the other hand have to be acquired from outside the organization. One example is placement agencies which are private firms conducting recruitment activities on behalf of organizations at a fee, the advantage of this is it assists organizations to acquire necessary competencies. They however increase the cost of recruitment. Another is press advertisement of vacancies in journals and newspapers. The main advantage of this method is its wide reach. It is however time consuming as well as costly. The jobs ads evaluated were posted on the internet. They all follow the principal of AIDA (Attention, interest, desire, action). The first ads for the position of an AM Restaurant Supervisor start with the question: â€Å"What will it be like to work for this Hilton Worldwide Brand?† This grabs attention from suitable job seekers. The second job ad for the position of a Management Assistant appeals to applicable interest by indicating that the job is available for both new and experienced applicants. The third job add reviewed for the position of an Open Territory Sales Representative produces desire to go after what seems like a good opportunity by stating that the company assists its employees in attaining their goals. This ad also leads to action by offering clear instruction that interested applicant should not apply for the job without waiting. An email address and the company’s website is provided in order to make contact. The job ads evaluated do not appear to be appealing to the minority groups. There is no gendered wording present in most of these ads. The most probable reason for this is that the targeted job applicant would not be better off in the position if came from either gender or a certain group. It is important for companies to use of language

The Economic Impacts within the Oil and Natural Gas Industries Research Paper

The Economic Impacts within the Oil and Natural Gas Industries - Research Paper Example it has employed numerous Americans to participate in the exploration of new oil fields, production, processing, supply, and marketing of the oil and natural gas. It also buys the intermediate raw materials from the U.S. producers. This has led to industrial development, thus, leading to creation of more jobs. America is in the middle of an oil and natural gas revolution, which has the potential of significantly affecting the environment, national security and most importantly the economy. It is now able to tap into enormous stores of oil and natural gas locked in shale deposits around the country, thanks to technology breakthroughs. These include horizontal drilling, hydraulic fracturing also referred to as fracking and seismic imaging. These new possibilities will enable the country to replace coal as a source of energy with cleaner and environmental friendly natural gas (Friedman, 2012). The shale oil and natural gas boom however has been a mixed blessing for the independent oil an d gas firms. While technology breakthroughs have helped to open up new vast areas for exploration and production, the natural gas prices have been on the lower side creating challenges for the production companies. This is because, these companies are trying to justify the cost of production but the lower gas prices are making it harder for them. Current gas prices only provide these companies with marginal profit possibility at best considering the high production costs. While crude oil prices keep rising, standing currently at $93 per barrel, prices for natural gas remain stuck at $2.96 per a thousand cubic feet (Contagion oil & gas, 2010). Economists hope that natural gas will substitute crude oil considering gas is cheaper relative to energy produced. This however, is not likely to happen with production companies seeking to shift from production of natural gas to crude oil to correct the financial imbalance (Contagion oil & gas, 2010). According to an article published in finan cial times, companies may be looking to shift from natural gas to production of oil. Many production companies are looking to sell off their natural gas assets for a chance to participate in the booming shale oil market. While much attention has been paid to large quantities of natural gas shale, companies have realized that with newer technology, they can extract oil too. The article states that by 2010, the number of companies drilling oil in the country had increased from 180 in 2009 to 720 (Contagion oil & gas, 2010). Chesapeake, the second largest gas producer in the country, stated that it was reducing its gas production by 7 percent by the year 2013. This would bring down the company’s record of 23 years in which it has managed to increase to its production every year. The company officials commented that gas production would continue to decline if the prices kept on going down. This is because current prices will not allow companies to make an attractive return on the ir investments particularly in light of the investment costs incurred in developing the new unconventional gas fields that are likely to increase gas production for the next five years (Ridder, 2012). While a reduction in gas production would be considered a negative thing, today it is not. In fact, investors and analysts consider an increase in gas production as negative. Oil and gas companies are looking forward to generate attractive returns from natural gas production. Moreover,

Boas 610 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Boas 610 - Essay Example It is not only important, but at times, it is necessary as well, since the proof and evidence at hand is not sufficient enough to draw appropriate conclusions (Boas 610); at such times, it becomes a necessity to make use of the historical or the present forms of the culture in order to solve the puzzle (Boas 610). When dealing with the historical aspect of anthropology, there is often a tussle between the social and economical factors that have helped shape the historical and the present conditions and cultural practices (Boas 611). Sociologists tend to make the field of sociology as the central theme of anthropological discussions (Boas 611), claiming that the human mind and its interactions with its surroundings, as discussed in sociology, is the key component of cultural evolution (Boas 611). Whereas this might be true, it is not the sole player in the game (Boas 611). Sociological factors shape the long term designs of culture (Boas 611); indeed, some cultural practices which for m the core of the society take a long time to change, if at all, and it is only the radical changes that can truly be identified (Boas 610), with the more subtle and gradual changes often hard to recognize or overlooked (Boas 610). Sociology alone can not account for the short term and immediate social decisions which shape the day to day cultural activities of the populace (Boas 611). Such decisions are often strongly dictated by the economic conditions of the place (Boas 611). Economists, likewise, tend to emphasize completely on the economic factors that govern the evolution of a society, neglecting or undermining the psychological and social bearings of the process (Boas 611). Economy is helpful only for studying the short term effects, as pointed out previously; it can not explain the general decisions of the masses which span entire societies and centuries, with such decisions often being static or very slowly changing (Boas 610). This is because economic conditions are dynami c, and do not remain the same over extended periods of time (Boas 611). Therefore, they can only account for periodic changes. Long term practices like religion, art, and language are beyond the parameters of economics to define (Boas 611). Therefore, it follows that sociology and economics are mutually dependent to mold the society and are equally responsible for the growth of the culture the people who practice it (Boas 611). Part I: Q1: Although Frank Boas is not a theorist, he is considered to be am important figure in anthropological thought and study. This is because of his important contributions in the anthropological study of the relation of the individual with the society (Boas 610), and the effects and reactions of individual to the practices of the society and the established culture (Boas 610). In turn, according to Boas, this reaction has some effect on the culture and how it develops and changes (Boas 610). The importance of Boas’ work can only be fully appreci ated if the importance of the topics that he has worked on is recognized. The relation of the society and the individual and their mutual cause and effect (Boas 610) cycle is often overlooked, for the favor of the population mass as a whole (Boas 611). Whereas Boas does admit that the overall functioning of the society is not effected to an appreciable degree by the psychology of an individual (Boas 610), and that society is home to many varied human minds (Boas

North American Agriculture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

North American Agriculture - Essay Example All three originated from the southern Mexico or MesoAmerican area. Squash is named after the Massachuset Indian word askutasquash, meaning "not cooked". Anthropologists think squash may be a major factor in the transition of native people from hunter/gatherers to growers. "The fruits of wild squash were easy to find and offered flesh, nutritious seed, edible flowers and even containersmade from a hard-shell squash known as gourd" (Gilmer, 1). Summer squash is known as Curcurbita pepo, winter squash and pumpkins are C. maxima or C. moschata. All three species are native to the Western Hemisphere. Beans are another of the oldest foods grown in North America and one of the oldest known to man. They have played a significant part in the diet of people for thousands of years. Beans were domesticated about 7000 years ago in both Peru and southern Mexico. Peru developed beans with bright colors and large seeds, while Mexico developed white and black beans with variations of patterns that were small seeded. The tribes in Mexico and Peru traveled across the continent spreading the beans and their techniques for growing these plants. As the New World was being discovered, many varieties of beans were already being successfully grown by the native people. Corn dates back to it's origin as a grass on the Mexican plateau 80,000 years ago. The grass was called teosinte and is believed to have been developed by the native population. The teosinte looked very different from today's corn with small kernels not fused into a husk on an ear like early maize and modern corn. Over time, Native Americans created maize through specialized cultivation. Grass grows in segments and the ears of maize were produced at the joints of the segments. Encouraging the growth of ears on the lower joints and only replanting kernels from those successful plants eventually adapted the crop to a shorter growing season and increased the yield. As the genetics of the plant were changed, its value as a food source increased. Native Americans discovered that maize could be grown, harvested, and dried, then ground into flour. "Surplus maize would be stored in underground storage pits, ingeniously constructed and lined with grasses" (Prindle 2), and used over the winter. Eventually the growing of maize along with beans and squash was adopted into the southwestern and southeastern regions of North America. Native people planted household gardens and larger fields next to their villages. The fields were made of small mounds of tilled earth about one foot high and 20 across, spaced about 4 feet apart and placed in rows or at random. Their method is to plant five to six kernels of corn in a small circle in the middle of the mound. As the corn grew, they would plant seven or eight pole beans in a circle about six inches away from the corn kernels. Several days later they planted seven or eight squash or pumpkin seeds. When the plants began to grow, they would thin out the weak and leave the strongest plants. Author, Tara Prindle wrote, "The corn stalk serves as a pole for the beans, the beans help to add the nitrogen to the soil that the corn needs, and the squash provides a ground cover of shade that helps the soil retain moisture" (2). This is how the Three Sisters work together