Strategic Resort Hotel Management

Strategic Resort Hotel Management Corporate Social Responsibility McWilliams et.al. (2006, pg. 4) defined CSR as situations where the firm goes beyond compliance and engages in actions that appear to further some social good, beyond the interests of the firm and that which is required by law and state that CSR should be used as an element of corporate strategy. According to Fombrun and Shanley (1990) socially responsible behaviour can lead to improve firms image and reputation and therefore increase visitors number. However, Friedman (1970) argued that the motivation is to serve the bottom line and as Trexler (2008) stated ethics and moral values have no place in the business world; considering that CSR and green programmes can be strategic responses to market realities, such as the rising of fossil fuel. Nevertheless, this does not change the fact that some activities that are motivated by the bottom line may have social benefits. Sani green programme has 3 main objectives with a well-defined plan and measurable targets; Sustainable hotel operation, protection and enhancement of local biodiversity, local community support and human capital development. The green programme so far has excellent outcomes in all 3 objectives (Resort,2016) and as aforementioned promoting and demonstrating CSR results can be very beneficial for the image and reputation of the resort. CSR can be advertised through numerous channels; such as internet, sustainability reports and media (Danuta de Grosbois,2011). Despite image, measuring the economic benefits of this objectives is crucial for resorts financial sustainability. Energy and water consumptions can be easily measured and so calculate the ROI. McWilliams and Siegel (2001) suggested a model based on RBV to address optimal investment in CSR and stated that managers can determine the appropriate level of investment in CSR by conducting cost benefit analysis in the same way that th ey analyse other investments. In terms of CSR towards the employees, benefits or loyal bonuses can mitigate the effect of staff turnover, lowering the expenses for training new staff and provide a standardised customer service. Sani is already affiliated with some NGOs (Appendix) but it would be advisable to increase their number. In summary, Sani resort must set achievable goals for CSR and display them to the public in order to boost its reputation and attract more green costumers. The financial measurement of the outcomes in all CSR programmes must be calculated and measured. Life cycle Understanding the life cycle of a product,here sani resort, is an important principle in order to make more profit and stay in business (Day, 1981). It can also be applied in forecasting and developing appropriate marketing strategies, depending on what stage the product is. In order to identify the stage of a product in the life cycle Day (1981) suggested feutures and patterns at each stage. Identifyingfeatures Stages Introduction Growth Maturity Decline Sales Low High High Low Investment cost Very high High (lower than intro stage) Low Low Competition Low or no competition High Very high Very High Profit Low High High Low Table.1 According to the balance shits ( Appendix ) profit had a step increase in 2015 reaching almost 26mil (up from 5mil in 2011) and the total revenue reached 131,69mil (up from 2011 89,42mil). The competition is still on high levels and the resort keep investing money on their facilities. From these facts, an assumption that the resort is on the growth stage can be made (Product Life Cycle Stages, n.d.). Box (1983) claimed that there are 2 courses of action to extend the lifetime of a product; the technological which implies usage of modern technology to improve the product and consumer-orientated option, which lies in motivating the consumer for further usage of the product. Adjusting Boxs theory in the resort, it is recommended further usage of modern technology to address problems such as the restaurant booking app (look at TOWS), and eco technology to improve and make more efficient the CSR programme of the resort. In terms of the consumer-orientation actions, sani resort continuously invests money to its facilities, both new and existing ones, creating new features and adding value. Since the revenues are increasing and the costs are dropping it would be wise if not reduce the price of rooms to keep it steady to be more competitive. Furthermore, keep the same marketing strategy for the niche markets, i.e. Russia and green market, but further advertising in the regional market an d in social media would be suggested. According to MarketLines (2016) report for tourism in Greece, tourism shown an increase of 1.8% in 2015 to reach a value of 33.4 billion (table.1) and by 2020 is expected to be 37.1billion (11.4% up from 2015)(table.2). Â   Â   table.1 table.2 Accomodation providers accounting 38.8% of the total revenue generated by tourism (table.3). Table.3 According to sani resorts balance shits (appendix), sani increased its total revenues from almost 90mil in 2011to 131mil (47%) and its profits more than 5 times (5mil in 2011 26mil in 2015). Furthermore, the average daily price increased by 3%. Statistics from tripadvisor.com All 4 hotels of Sani resort are rated with 5 stars(table.4). The majority of comments are good and based on the staff willingness to help while providing excellent service, the location of the hotel; beautiful beaches, sun and close to nature, and the amenities provided; spas, activities and relaxation (Appendix) Name of hotel Total reviews 1* 2* 3* 4* 5* #1 Sani asterias 513 0 7 9 34 463 #2 Porto Sani 771 1 4 10 77 571 #3 Sani Club 1306 2 10 26 105 885 #4 Sani Beach 2625 8 16 74 315 2212 Sum 5215 11 37 119 531 4517 Table.4 Bad reviews were based on the prices, which they claimed the hotel rooms restaurants were too expensive (table.5), lack of privacy, noise by the children and not heated pools. Some of the customers were also unhappy with the smoking policy and the speed of their transportation, which in Greece this is considered as normal behaviour. (Appendix) Name of hotel Rooms total Lowest price room Highest price room Sani Beach 361 104 454 Sani Club 212 110 392 Sani Dunes 136 164 342 Porto Sani 109 148 520 Sani Asterias 57 234 867 Sum 825 (According to the month prices may change)Table.5 SPA Sani Beach MySpa Porto Sani The Spa Suite Sani Club The Club Spa Sani Asterias Spa Retreat Sani Dunes D-Spa In the early 1980s some resorts added spa facilities in order to attract more visitors (Monteson P.A., Singer J., 2004). Initially spas used as support facilities and if they didnt cause revenue loss, their ability to attract costumers was enough to justify their existence (Anderson, 2001). However, nowadays spas are considered profit centers and they are autonomous departments of hotels (Madanoglu M., Brezina S., 2008). In sani resort every hotel is equipped with its own spa, which is open for all guest. All spas include hairsallons, gyms, saunas, pools and the basic spa treatments. What differentiate them from other spas is that their special treatments where design by Anne Semonin, a French firm specialised in creating bespoke skincare treatments using natural ingredients. Even though some of the basic treatments are the same in all of them Anne also designed signature treatments for each one of these 5 spas. Furthermore, what also differs in each spa is the area of their specialism. MySpa is specialized in facial treatments, while the Spa Suite offers a wide range of massages. The Club Spa, which is the biggest of all, is inspired by thermal Roman baths and its equipped with Turkish Hammam, Bio sauna, plunge pool and heated recliners. Spa retreat is designed for couples and the modern D-Spa, which will open in July, is characterised as a state-of-art spa, supplied with Technogym, Hammam and new-a ge spa facilities. Sanis spas can offer more than 40 different treatments in each spa and their prices differ depending the duration of them and the ingredients used, providing genuine and life-enriching experiences (Zimmer R, Clarke A., 2006).They start from as little as 50 and they can reach to 255, which are normal prices for such treatments. Spa reservation is an option and they offer many discounts such as couples discounts, early booking discounts and multi treatment packages in which a customer can select many treatments and get a discount for them. Furthermore, many packages related to spa trends are available (Spafinder, 2016), like the junior spa, where children over 12 years old can enjoy their spa treatments and their parents can also enjoy a relaxing treatment without worrying about them, or the enjoy with mum spa. As in CSR, here measuring the outcomes is also of the utmost importance in order to evaluate and design next years strategies. As Madanoglu (2008) stated, spa benefits to resorts revenue can be classified as direct, revenue generating, and indirect, as a marketing tool. Direct benefits can be measured using the spa revenue per occupied room (SPOR) or the per available room (SPAR) figures. Moreover, keeping records of the results of dividing SPAR with RevPAR for a long time can be very useful tool to examine whether spa revenue is on the same level with the room revenue (Madanoglu M., Brezina S., 2008). In conclusion, sani should promote more the Greek culture in spa using treatments such as the thalassotherapy, which is also a trend (Greece spa guide, n.d.), and offer more packages utilizing the surrounding environment (The adrenaline Spa, n.d.). Emphasise on the pre-arrival process and separate spa reservations can also be a useful tool to increase profits (Madanoglu M., Brezina S., 2008), and it should be taken under consideration. Finally focusing more on the experience customers get, can increase their satisfaction and so the revenues (Singer, 2000). Generic strategies STRATEGIES Current Position Suggestions Marketing strategy based on the 4Ps Prise Product Place Promotion Focus Strategy Niche market (Russia) green market Expanding Strategies Affiliated with IKOS resorts (Oaktree Capital) Goldman Sachs Asset Management fund and Hermes GPE Cost Leadership Strategy Increase profits by increasing prices and lowering costs Examine occupancy ratios to decide whether further increase in price should be wise Marketing strategies: Based on the VRIN and TOWS frameworks it is possible to create and implement a successful marketing strategy utilizing McCarthys (1964) marketing mix. 4Ps framework refers to 4 broad concepts of marketing decision; i.e. price, product, place and promotion. The suggestions in each field, except place in which sani invest a lot by renovations and building new attractions ( Sani Dunes) and we strongly suggest to keep the existing strategy, are the following: PRICE: Introduce new offer packages, such as early booking discounts to increase occupancy, offers for offseason stays and conventions to mitigate the effects of seasonality and special offers for special occasion events; i.e. valentines day and womans day Reduce or keep current prices (3% up from 2015) to increase costumers satisfaction, decrease bad reviews in sites (tripadvisor.com, booking.com) and be more competitive PRODUCT: Escaping from the routine and leisure are the 2 main reasons for a visitor to go to resort (Faizan Alia, Kashif Hussainb, Neethiahnanthan Ari Ragavanb , 2014). All hotels provide the same basic products the difference is how they provide it and with what quality (Bouncken, 2002). Product is the field that can differentiate sani resort from its competitors. According to Dunning (1981) there are 3 sectors to differ the product supplied; the on premises services which is the services received upon staying, the provision sector which is before the arrival stage and the deliver on the ground sector. Sani does an excellent job in their provision and delivering on the ground strategy and suggestion can be only made for the on premises services. For buildings and surrounding areas, since sani continuously invest in them (new hotel Sani Dunes) the suggestion is renovations where needed, so the resort will look more appealing Create more eco-activities to attract new customers Providing benefits, training and enhancing employees knowledge about customers preferences can offset the effects of staff turnover and lead to better and standardized service quality (Bouncken, 2002). PROMOTION: Promote sani resort more in the local community as a weekend escape option. Use social media to promote special events and offers ( facebook, twiter, Instagram) Promote sanis CSR and green programme even more Respond to criticisms in booking sites Focus Strategy: As Mr Andreadis, chief executive of the Sani, stated in FT they turn into the Russian market after the economic crisis in Greece and the worries that international tourism will decrease, as it did (Apendice) (Hope, 2015). The recommendation is to keep this strategy but also expand in the green (look at CSR) and purple (Appendice) market also. Expanding strategies: In 2016 Sani and Ikos resorts announced a merge, aiming in an investment plan worth 200mil(Akrivou, 2016);for buying new properties. Furthermore, funds from Oaktree Capital Management L.P., Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Hermes GPE, will also be involved it this investment plan (Kousounis, 2016). Cost Leadership Strategies: Since the costs are decreasing examine if a further increase in prices should be wise. Furthermore, investment in eco programmes can lead to an additional cost reduction and empower CSR programme. TOWS MATRIX A TOWS matrix is used by organisations in order to develop and implement their strategic plans, by matching its internal strengths and external opportunities (SO); to find its competitive advantages, as well as to identify and convert threats and weaknesses into opportunities and strengths (oxford college of marketing, 2016). SANI RESORT TOWS ANALYSIS External Opportunities External Threats Increase in tourism numbers in Greece Russian niche market Lack of competition in the area The green movement Experience over material trend technology and social medias takeover Economic crisis in Greece and unstable taxation model Instability in Turkey and refugee issue New competition in other municipalities in Greece Internal Strengths SO ST Excellent but transparent service Numerous amenities and activities Good reputation in social media and tourism websites Excellent environmental development and protection performance Location and geographic advantages Good relationship with local community and strong partnerships High tech convention facilities New hotel, Sani Dunes overflow budget Combine natural and cultural aspects with activities at the resort Use resorts good reputation to advertise sani in social media Due to eco-friendly image of resort, sani can promote it and attract more concern for environment visitors and introduce more eco-activities Considering the lack of competition in the area and the niche market, sani can promote its location advantages; sunny hot beaches, marina and walking trails, to attract more visitors Providing a peaceful and luxurious environment can mitigate the bad impression of Greece to visitors Promote the location of the resort to make it more competitive over other places in Greece Internal Weaknesses WO WT Seasonality High maintenance costs Staff turnover Restaurant bookings Utilize green programs to reduce maintenance cost and increase revenue Continuous development of programs and apps can contribute a lot in online booking and increasing revenues Aim in new markets for conventions to offset the effects of seasonality Provide training for staff and bonuses can mitigate staff turnover and hence improved service will increase relieving and decrease the worries of customers about political or social situations. SO Strategies: It is the desire of every firm to exploit the potential market opportunities by utilizing its resources. Sani should focus in 2 niche markets. The first one is the Russian market, worth mentioning that is a very rich market, which in the last 2 years Greece has become more popular as a destination for them. Sani has already turned to this market by opening a Branch office in Moscow and added Russian as an optional language in their site. Affiliations with big Russian tourism offices, creating packages especially for this market and hiring staff able to speak Russian are suggestions to be considered. The second is the green market, which consist of visitors who in order to choose their next destination they have the CSR programme of the firm as a criterion. Sani can use its surplus to create new eco-activities, develop and promote the Sani Green programme and invest in eco-tourism WÃŽÅ ¸ Strategies: When an organisation try to overcome its weaknesses, utilizing the external opportunities can become a very useful tool (Business Study Notes, 2016). Conventions from new markets can offset the effects of seasonality and by utilizing the sani green programme the maintenance costs can be reduced. ST Strategies: The unstable economy in Greece and the immigration problem have created a negative image of Greece to the visitors. Sani can overcome this issue by promoting its blessed location and its peaceful and relaxing environment by itself or take common action with the Greek National Tourism Organisation (visitGreece) to mitigate the effects of this image and promote a beautiful and attracting Greece. WT Strategies: This strategys goal is to remove sanis weaknesses which will overcome the external threats (Business Study Notes, 2016). By providing benefits and training to staff members the staff turnover can be mitigated and hence the service quality will be standardized and improved. As a result, customers can enjoy better service of pleased staff in a pleasant ambience away from Greek financial and political troubles. VRIN FRAMEWORK According to Barney (1991), in a business environment that the resources are heterogeneous in nature and not perfectly mobile, a resource can be characterised as sustainable competitive advantage if it fulfills the following 4 attributes: It must be valuable, in the sense that it can exploit opportunities It must be rare among firms current and potential competition It must be imperfectly imitable And it cannot be substituted The core competitive advantages for Sani resort, as mentioned and explained in the presentation, are the following. Sani Resort Valuable Rare Inimitable Non- Substitutable Size YES YES YES YES Marina YES YES YES YES SANI Festival YES YES YES YES Pase Dr. Blythe (2016,6th ed, pn.250), USP is the one feature of the product that most stands out as different from the competition, and is usually a feature that conveys unique benefits to the consumer. Even though the size and the marina are hard for competitive firms to imitate due to lack of resources in the area, SANI Festival is inimitable and therefore it can be characterised as a Unique Selling Point (USP) for the following reasons. For 25 years now SANI festival is connecting people from different cultures through music and art, attracting many international visitor and locals; providing high quality entertainment to its attenders and generates significant revenue for the resort. It is characterised as a USP for sani resort not only because of these 25 years of perfect organise, implementation and innovation, but also because there is no other art festival with the similar size, variety, glamour and reputation as SANI festival in Greece; which are the factors that makes it i nimitable, and not the cost of creating such an event. It is sure that there is room for more advertising in the social media, but since it is promoted and recognised as a refined art festival, there is a fine line between being an art festival and being a faceless attraction for many more visitors. Â  

Le Morte Darthur: The Seven Deadly Sins Essay -- essays research paper

The seven deadly sins are spoken of often and frequently in every day life for that is what they are affected with. All of these sins can intertwine to form a domino effect of actions and reactions that link to all of the sins. Once one is committed, it becomes easier to fall into the others for they are all interlinked. This is prevalent in Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur as proven by the acts committed by the various characters throughout the book.When looked at as separate words, the definition of the phrase, the "seven deadly sins", becomes clearer. Starting with "seven", being the chosen number of dealings, following with "deadly", meaning fatal, proceeding to die, or to become deceased and finally "sins", wrongful doings according to religiosity. So from the breakdown of the specific words it can be said that the expression, the seven deadly sins, means that there are seven, not two, not four, but seven wrongful doings that upon execution bec ome fatal.Now that the phrase has been fully explained and hopefully understood, it is time to move on to the actual seven sins that are deadly. The first of the seven sins is greed, being the insatiate longing for or the keenly intense desire for something being of material value or not, that is usually not thought of to be achieved in an moral way. The second sin is gluttony, meaning the overindulgence in anything, great appetite for anything, such as food for example. The third sin is wrath, meaning extreme anger or feeling of vengeance. The forth sin is sloth, being severe laziness or lack of enthusiasm to do anything. The fifth sin is envy, meaning the coveting of anything that is not rightfully owned by the coveter, grudging contemplation of more fortunate people and of their advantages. The sixth sin is lechery, being sexual lust or lust for anything, to live in gluttony. The seventh, and last of the sins is pride, being the overweening opinion of one's own qualities, merits, often personified as arrogant. All of these are classified as sins because they are morally wrong and can make a person unpure.Le Morte D'Arthur is a tale of many knights and endless battles. In this legend, many of the seven deadly sins surpassed and this is what will be looked at. With the first of the sins being greed, it is evident that many of the knights committed this sin. These knights wer... ...me; fortunately Tintagil is only ten miles from here.' Merlin helps Pendragon fool Igraine into sleeping with him. He has sexual lust for her as defined in sin number six, lechery.The seventh and final sin is pride which can been seen when Gwynevere casted Launcelot out because of her foolish pride.Good Sir Launcelot, do not be discouraged! Remember that you are the greatest knight living and that many important matters at this court lie in your hands. It is well known that women are inherently changeable, and often repent of their anger. Therefore I suggest that you ride no farther than the hermitage at Wyndesore, where the good hermit Sir Brastius will care for you, and wait there until we have better tidings for you. Because of Gwynevere's foolish pride, she cannot forgive Launcelot for having to be with other women to avert the attention from his relationship with her.The seven deadly sins can ruin one's life, as it did many characters in Le Morte D'Arthur. The sins are in place to warn people of their outcome, and yet still they commit them. The seven deadly sins may not lead to immediate death, but have definite malevolent products that should be taken into account by all.

Political Discourse Essay

Political incivility has been around for a very long time. According to the article â€Å"The Rise and Fall of Nasty Politics in America†, a number of studies have been conducted to prove that politics has always been â€Å"a bit rough†. Many people in and out of the political world are agreeing that politics these days have turned in to a horrible cycle. Politics today involves nasty language about fellow members families, angry protests and violent outbursts. Sometimes racial slurs and discrimination is also involved in bringing down your opponent. Furthermore, political incivility has caused a variety of problems in American politics throughout the years. Knowing this, what are some of the things that can be done to help increase political civility? Political incivility has caused a variety of problems in the political process. Politics today is often biased based off of the partisan media and views of opposing sides of various parties. According to the article â€Å"What Is Civil Engagement Argument and Why Does Aspiring to It Matter? † the partisan media only shares those facts that are inconvenient to their opponents, engage emotion, and replace argument with ridicule causing many of the listeners or viewers to have angry views of the policies on the opposing side. Allowing the partisan media to be broadcasted for Americans to see causes outrage and incivility in the world around us. This brings me to my next point where the violence in the political world is getting out of control. The violence that occurs includes both physical and emotional attacks by the opposing parties. For example, the district office of a Georgia representative was defaced with a swastika, and the lawmaker, who happens to be African American, has been the recipient of racist hate mail (Shea and Sproveri, 417). There have also been many other instances where racial violence was used including during the final health-care reform meetings. A lot of the protesters yelled out racial slurs at the African American members of Congress. Also during this time one of the legislators was spat on while entering the Capitol Building to cast his vote (Shea and Sproveri, 417). This type of violence causes politicians to lack the motivation to run for office. Olympia Snowe, a former Senate member, finds it very frustrating that the atmosphere of polarization and the â€Å"my way or the highway† ideologies has become persuasive in campaigns and in our governing institutions (Maisel, 408). She is resigning from office and decided not to run for her forth term in office. Other politicians are afraid of ridicule about their families and therefore will not be running for office any longer. Another reason that political discourse is harming the American political process is it is influencing the ability of govern. â€Å"Incivility leads to an inability to govern and, therefore, more can be done in other areas† (Maisel, 408). The inability to govern leads the government officials to detach from politics and take interest in other areas. Also, politicians in today’s era have only one thing on their mind and that is to win. They do not care about the common good or the similar believes of the opposing parties. All they want to do is finish on top. This situation is causing the president and other officials to lack the ability to pass laws that may benefit the whole population. â€Å"According to NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll conducted in the fall of 2011, more than four out of five voters felt that the Congress’s decisions on the debt ceiling were decisions made for partisan political advantages† (Maisel, 408). This is problematic because it brings other officials to not want to run for office and for the population to be dissatisfied with the whole system of government. This can lead to outburst and protests by the people of the nation. So, what is the best way to increase civility in American politics? First, we can follow the ways of the people during the World War II period where partisan differences still existed but at the end of the day the government officials went back to their families where their wives and children were interacting with the wives and children of those with whom they had been debating with (Maisel, 409). In those times, the politicians worked together for one cause, which was to be united and progress with the well being of the nation. That is what the politicians in today’s world need to realize. The politicians in that era had certain rules they needed to abide by like they had to treat others involved with respect and civility. They also relied strictly on truth and not on the fact that they need to win no matter what the consequences to the nation are. This seems to be one of the biggest problems that the American politics has today. The US House of Representatives has it’s own set of rules that ensure that there is civility. The Congress has a set of rules that ensure that the disagreements in Congress are purely philosophical but not personal and that their views are legitimate even if they are wrong (Jamieson and Hardy, 412). This is exactly the type of rules that need to be set for regular debates and this will ensure that the members do not over step those boundaries. The House makes sure that the members do not call each other bad names or over step any boundaries that may cause them to lie. They are not even allowed to call their fellow members hypocritical even if they are being hypocritical. Their understanding is that each side needs to be heard and then they will come up with a compromise to make both parties accept it. In conclusion, the political incivility going on today is effecting the government in ways unimaginable. Politicians are not willing to run for office because of their fear of having their families or themselves ridiculed and talked about in an inappropriate manner, there is a big increase in violence during debates and the politicians of today are only focused on winning and not on the benefit of the greater good. There is a lot that needs to be improved before there could be any type of change in the political world. The government needs to set a variety of rules for debates just like the House of Representatives or the Senate has that will set a limit to the type of things the politicians can say to each other. This will minimize the political discourse today and help new politicians accomplish more and help the nation prosper in the future.

Alphabetical French-English False Cognates A Words

One of the great things about learning French or English is that many words have the same roots in the  Romance languages  and  English. However, there are also a great many  faux amis, or false cognates, which look similar but have different meanings.  This is one of the biggest pitfalls for students of French. There are also semi-false cognates, or words that can only sometimes be translated by the similar word in the other language. This alphabetical list includes hundreds of  French-English  semi-false cognates, with explanations of what each word means and how it can be correctly  translated  into the other language. To avoid confusion due to the fact that some of  the words are identical in the two languages, the French word is followed by (F) and the English word is followed by (E). Abandon (F) vs Abandon (E) Abandon  (F) is a noun that means  abandonment,  desertion,  neglect, or  giving up. It can also mean  abandon, especially with a verb: danser avec abandon   to dance with abandon.  Abandonner   to abandon.Abandon  (E)   abandon. Habiletà © (F) vs Ability (E) Habiletà ©Ã‚  (F) refers to a  skill,  cleverness, a  talent, or a  skillful move.Ability  (E) is a similar but weaker term, translatable by une  aptitude, une  capacità ©, or une  compà ©tence. Abus (F) vs Abuse (E) Abus  (F) can mean  abuse,  excess, or  injustice.Abuse  (E)   abus, while verbal abuse is des  injures  or  insultes. Abuser (F) vs Abuse (E) Abuser  (F) means to  exploit,  abuse,  take advantage of,  deceive, or  mislead. Sabuser means  to be mistaken  or  to delude oneself.Abuse  (E) can be translated by  abuser,  injurier,  insulter, or  maltraiter. Accà ©der (F) vs Accede (E) Accà ©der  (F) means to  reach,  attain,  get to,  access.Accede  (E) has three different meanings. (1) to agree/accept:  agrà ©er,  accepter. (2) to take on a new position:  entrer en possession/fonction. (3) to join:  adhà ©rer,  se joindre. Accidentà ©(F) vs Accidental (E) Accidentà ©Ã‚  (F) can be an adjective:  hilly,  undulating, or  damaged;  or a noun:  casualty,  injured person. Accidenter means to  injure  or  damage.Accidental  (E) means  accidentel  (bad) or  fortuit  (good). Achà ¨vement (F) vs Achievement (E) Achà ¨vement  (F) refers to the  completion  or  culmination  of something.Achievement  (E) has a more positive sense of attaining something that was sought after:  exploit,  rà ©ussite,  accomplissement. Achever (F) vs Achieve (E) Achever  (F) usually means to  finish,  end,  complete,  reach. It can also be more figurative:  to finish off,  destroy,  kill.Achieve  (E)   accomplir,  rà ©aliser,  atteindre. Acompte (F) vs Account (E) Acompte  (F) refers to a  deposit,  down payment, or  installment.Account  (E) un  compte. Action (F) vs Action (E) Action  (F) can mean  action  as well as  act  or a  share of stock.Action  (E)   action  or  effet. Actuellement (F) vs Actually (E) Actuellement  (F) means  at the present time, and should be translated as  currently  or  right now. Je travaille actuellement   I am currently working. A related word is actuel, which means  present  or  current: le problà ¨me actuel the  current/present problem.Actually  (E) means in fact and should be translated as  en fait  or  Ãƒ   vrai dire. Actually, I dont know him -  En fait, je ne le connais pas. Actual means real or true, and depending on the context can be translated as  rà ©el,  và ©ritable,  positif, or  concret: The actual value   la  valeur rà ©elle. Adepte (F) vs Adept (E) Adepte  (F) is a noun:  follower  or  enthusiast.Adept  (E) is an adjective:  compà ©tent  or  expert. Addition (F) vs Addition (E) Addition  (F) can refer to  addition, a  sum, or a restaurant  check  or  bill.Addition  (E) une  addition, une  augmentation, or un  surcroà ®t. Ado (F) vs Ado (E) Ado  (F) is an  apocope  of adolescent—teen  or  teenager.Ado  (E) is a somewhat rare word that is equivalent to  agitation  or  bruit  (figuratively) Adresse (F) vs Address (E) Adresse  (F) can refer to a  mailing,  email, or  spoken address  or to  deftness,  skill, or  dexterity.Address  (E) une  adresse  or un  discours. Affaire (F) vs Affair (E) Affaire  (F) can mean  business,  matter,  deal,  transaction, or  scandal.Affair  (E) is the equivalent of affaire only in the sense of an event or concern. A love affair is une  liaison, une  affaire damour, or une  aventure amoureuse. Affluence (F) vs Affluence (E) Affluence  (F) is a  crowd of people: Il y avait une affluence attendant à   la porte   There were crowds waiting at the door.Affluence  (E) indicates a lot of something (usually wealth): Theres an affluence of information here   Il y a une abondance dinformation ici. His affluence is obvious   Sa richesse est à ©vidente. Agenda (F) vs Agenda (E) Agenda  (F) refers to a  datebook.Agenda  (E) means lordre du jour  or le  programme. Agonie (F) vs Agony (E) Agonie  (F) refers to  death pangs  or  mortal agony.Agony  (E) means severe physical or mental pain, but not necessarily just this side of death:  angoisse,  supplice. Agrà ©able (F) vs Agreeable (E) Agrà ©able  (F) means  pleasant  or  nice  when describing a thing, such as the weather or situation. Its not used to describe people other than in the construction  Ãƒ ªtre agrà ©able de  sa  personne   to be pleasant-looking/personable.Agreeable  (E) does not normally mean  agrà ©able, but rather in agreement, which doesnt have an exact equivalent in French. Im agreeable to doing it   Je le ferai volontiers. If thats agreeable/acceptable   Sil ny a pas dinconvà ©nient,  Si cela vous convient. Agrà ©ment (F) vs Agreement (E) Agrà ©ment  (F) refers to  charm,  attractiveness, or  pleasantness.Agreement  (E)   accord  or  harmonie. Aimer (F) vs Aim (E) Aimer  (F) means  to like  or  to love.Aim  (E) can be a noun:  but,  visà ©es;  or a verb:  braquer,  pointer,  viser. Allà ©e (F) vs Alley (E) Allà ©e  (F) is a generic term for any sort of road or path:  lane,  path,  avenue,  driveway, etc. It can also refer to an  aisle.Alley  (E) une  ruelle. Allure (F) vs Allure (E) Allure  (F) normally refers to  speed  or  pace:  Rouler  Ãƒ  Ã‚  toute  allure   to drive at full speed. It can also refer to an  appearance  or  look. Allures  refers  to  behavior  or  ways.Allure  (E) indicates  charm  or  attrait. Altà ©rer (F) vs Alter (E) Altà ©rer  (F) can mean  alter, but it nearly always has a negative connotation:  distort,  falsify,  tamper with,  spoil,  debase.Alter  (E)   changer,  modifier,  transformer, etc. Amateur (F) vs Amateur (E) Amateur  (F) is a semi-false cognate. It can mean  amateur  in the sense of non-professional, but it can also mean a  lover  of something: un amateur  dart   an  art lover.Amateur  (E) refers to someone who dabbles in a trade or activity: an amateur photographer: un  amateur de  photographie. Amitià © (F) vs Amity (E) Amitià ©Ã‚  (F) is the generic French word for  friendship.Amity  (E) is used more specifically to mean peaceful relations between nations   concorde  or  bons  rapports. Ancien (F) vs Ancient (E) Ancien  (F) can mean  old  in the sense of not young as well as in the sense of  former: mon  ancien  professeur   my old (former) teacher, mon  professeur  ancien   my old (aged) teacher. Learn more about  adjectives.Ancient  (E) means  antique  or  trà ¨s vieux. Animation(F) vs Animation (E) Animation  (F) is much more general in French than in English. In addition to  animation, life, liveliness, it can also refer to cultural or sports  activities  as well as  leadership.Animation  (E) means  animation  or  vivacità ©. Antique (F) vs Antique (E) Antique  (F) as an adjective  means  antique  or  ancient. As a noun, it refers to  antiquity  or  classical art/style.Antique  (E) means the same an adjective, but as a noun it refers to  une antiquità ©,  un objet dart ancien, or  un meuble ancien. Apologie (F) vs Apology (E) Apologie  (F) has three different meanings. The original meaning of  defense  or  plea  is related to the judiciary meaning of  vindication  or  justification. The current and most common meaning is  praise.Apology  (E) les  excuses. Appareil (F) vs Apparel (E) Appareil  (F) is an  apparatus,  device, or  appliance.Apparel  (E) is an out-dated term for clothing:  habillement. Are (F) vs Are (E) Are  (F) refers to an  area of one hundred square meters.Are  (E) is a conjugation of to be (à ªtre): we are (nous  sommes), you are (vous  Ãƒ ªtes), they are (ils  sont). Argument (F) vs Argument (E) Argument  (F) is a semi-false cognate. It means  argument  in the sense of a mathematical or philosophical argument. Also: argument  massue   sledgehammer blow;  argument  publicitaire   advertising claim; argument de  vente   selling point.Argument  (E) is une  discussion, une  conversation, un  dà ©bat, or une  dispute. Arriver (F) vs Arrive (E) Arriver  (F) can mean to  arrive  or to  happen, while arriver à   verb means to  succeed in  doing or to  manage to  do something.Arrive  (E) is translated by  arriver. Arroser (F) vs Arose (E) Arroser  (F) means to  water  or  spray.Arose  (E) is the past participle of arise:  survenir,  se prà ©senter,  sà ©lever. Assistance (F) vs Assistance (E) Assistance  (F) is a semi-false cognate. Its primary meaning is  audience.Assistance  (E) indicates  help  or  aid. Assister (F) vs Assist (E) Assister  (F) is nearly always followed by  Ãƒ  Ã‚  and means to  attend  something: Jai assistà © à   la confà ©rence I  attended (went to)  the conference.Assist  (E) means to help or aid someone or something: I assisted the woman into the building   Jai  aidà ©Ã‚  la dame à  Ã‚  entrer  dans  limmeuble. Assumer (F) vs Assume (E) Assumer  (F) only means to  assume  in the sense of taking on responsibility or assuming control. It also means to  hold a job  or  fulfill a role.Assume  (E) is a semi-false cognate. In addition to  assumer, it can also mean  supposer  or  prà ©sumer. Assurance (F) vs Assurance (E) Assurance  (F) refers to  self-confidence  or  insurance  in addition to  assurance.Assurance  (E) means  assurance  or  conviction. Attendre (F) vs Attend (E) Attendre  (F) à   means to  wait for: Nous avons attendu pendant deux heures   We waited for two hours.Attend  (E) is translated by  assister  (see above): I attended the conference   Jai assistà © à   la confà ©rence. Audience (F) vs Audience (E) Audience  (F) is a  semi-false cognate. In addition to the meaning of the English word, it can signify: Votre audience, sil vous plaà ®t   Your attention, please. Ce projet a une large audience -  This project has a lot of attention.  Donner audience  Ãƒ   quelquun   To meet with / listen to someone. Une audience publique   A public meeting.Audience  (E) is a group of spectators or listeners. Avertissement (F) vs Advertisement (E) Avertissement  (F) is a  warning  or  caution, from the verb  avertir   to  warn.Advertisement  (E) is une  publicità ©, une  rà ©clame, or un  spot publicitaire.