Project management week5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Project management week5 - Essay Example Strategies specially tailored should be used by the manager. Technology contribution to project communication- different companies uses different communication in terms of technology. Technology should be chosen appropriately to effectively manage the project communication (Taylor, 2013, p. 27). Effective meetings- this is in terms of establishing rules, using communication models, media appropriation and relevant presentation methods. These are important factors for successful information of communication. Project audiences- the audiences for project meetings are the project team, the stakeholders, employees and vendors. The vendors are external audiences who are contacts of the team providing valuable information on merchandise prices. The project team is made of relevant people who are assigned to work on the project, obtaining necessary information from relevant sources like the management, employees, clients, shareholders who need the project to satisfy certain qualities for it to satisfy the essence of a good project. The management plays an important role in information flow between the project development team and the management itself, which communicates the important factors to be incorporated into the project plan. Project information-Approved information is the only thing that can be shared with the audiences. This information is inclusive of budget requests, project deliveries, change requests and relevant documents. Project status- this includes factors like completed milestones, summaries drafted, major accomplishments attributed to the project, current performances of the budget, that have been scheduled and any factors that pose risks. Project team- these are the individuals allocated to draft the project; they need to know every single detail pertaining to the project. They still have to be provided with procedures that direct them in the expenses, escalating issues and time off. They also need to

Philosophy of mind (Cognition) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Philosophy of mind (Cognition) - Essay Example oduction of the mind/body problem, philosophers have resorted to changing entire metaphysical schemes in order to fit the newest levels of discourse relating to mind and consciousness. What the discourse has left philosophers in the current times are a variety of possibilities—each inherently saddled with inadequacies and pitfalls, and supported by arguments and logic. Even though, as is often the case, philosophy has not provided a solution to the mind/body problem, looking outside the philosophy of mind to the realm of the neurosciences has not provided anyone with a sufficient answer either. Thus, the very thing which makes the philosophy of mind unattractive makes it irresistible: the very paradoxical nature of the mind/body problem, even while it repels people with irreducible and irresolvable intricacy, remains a completely necessary component of the entire philosophical enterprise. The solution to the problem will solidify any and all work in metaphysics and epistemolog y, and grant theorists of different fields an opportunity to proceed. But to find this solution, one first needs a survey of the field in order to grasp the context of its potential existence. To understand the philosophy of mind, one needs a firm grasp of the problem upon which the entire discipline was constructed. The mind/body problem is often presented actually as a series of problems—some of which are epistemological, some metaphysical, some linguistic, and some pragmatic in nature (Goody, 1962, p. 362). In certain respects, this characterization is favorable insofar as it recognizes the very complex nature of the problem; attempts to reduce the problem to matters of causes, or matters of ontologies, or matters of concepts, are fundamentally mistaken. What one can abstract from these various puzzles, however, is one recurring theme: how does a non-physical something relate to a material something? This question involves many separate sub-inquiries into the natures of mental states,

Because i could not stop for death&quot Essay Example for Free

Because i could not stop for deathquot Essay Emily Dickinson frequently explores death through her poetry, using her eponomous em dashes to communicate the confusion created by an intelligent and exploratory approach to the afterlife in a mind indoctrinated in Puritan dogma. Death is initially presented in this poem as a very different character from its usual personification as a malign, scythe wielding spirit. Here, as the poem begins, he takes the form of a charming suitor who kindly stops, and maintains his civility throughout their journey. As we progress through the poem, however, the reader becomes increasingly suspicious that the apparently benevolent Death has not, in fact, got Dickinsons best intrests at heart. The fourth stanza marks the change in tone that reveals this; the onset of ominous chill as the carriage passes into darkness highlights how unprepared Death has left her, providing no warning of what is to come. The nervous tone that the poem adopts in this stanza is created both by the breakdown of the previously iambic rythmn and the language of cold shivers that the poet uses; both of which emphasise the quivering nervousness of the unprepared. Dickinsons physical lack of preparation for the afterlife in the poem, her donning of gossamer and tulle for a journey into the night, reflects her lack of spiritual certainty in the real world; something reflected in several of her poems. Despite an upbringing filled with much gesture from the pulpit, doubt, not absolute faith, is the subject of much of her work. She remains steadfast only in her belief that This World is not Conclusion, as while she is confident in the existence of something more, the nature of the afterlife baffles her. This poem is also an exploration of an unusual view of death, as Dickinson inverts the normal metaphor of Death as the end of a journey into Death as a journeys beginning. Life, in this poem, is extrodinarily transient, compressed into the third stanza where childhood, the ripening Grain of middle age and the setting sun of old ages decline are ploughed through in four lines. The poet makes this already short liftime seem even less substantial by the anaphoric use of We passed, which increases the pace of the poem and gives the passage of time an inevitable feel. Where the poems journey of death concludes is unclear, but we do know that there is a pause, perhaps a terminal pause, at a house in the ground. Dickinsons use of imagery here is ingenious, as the readers initial confusion mimics the narrators, until we too surmise that this abode, this swelling in the ground is a grave, thought of only by the deceased as a house. The repetition and ryhme of ground at the end of two lines in this stanza gives it a pounding finality; suggesting perhaps that this, and not the expected Immortality, is to be Dickinsons final resting place. This unexpected turn causes the confusion that the image of the house parallels, and explains the last stanza, in which Dickinsons fear of perpetual existence in a grave has centuries feeling shorter than the day / I first surmised the Horses Heads / Were toward Eternity. The poem is, in fact, unclear, but I would suggest that the grave is to be Dickinsons final resting place; that the carriage paused not because it intended to go on but instead because the narrator has not yet realised her fate. The final dash of the poem, therefore, represents not continuing doubt as it does in This World is not Conclusion. but serves to remind the reader of the unending nature of Dickinsons internment. In light of this, the first stanzas Immortality may seem out of place, but its rhyme with me perhaps reveals its origins, as the narrator is consequently so strongly linked with its presence that we may imagine it is only Dickinson, and not Death, that welcomes immortality to the carriage, and that it is, in fact, only there as a result of her preconceptions. Because I could not stop for Death – is perhaps, as a result, quite a cynical poem, making no promises of salvation or a Christian heaven. It, in some senses, continues a trend set by This world is not Conlcusion. and Behind me – dips Eternity –; a trend of diminishing confidence: Dickinsons once absolute faith in a world beyond our own develops into a confused fear at the nature of the afterlife; it may be a Maelstrom in the sky, surrounded by Midnight, or perhaps just a house in the ground. All this confusion is the product of Dickinsons upbringing; the Tooth that nibbles at the soul is a doubt that was to Puritans damning, and once she admits to herself its existence her future is uncertain and heaven perhaps inachievable. Despite its bleak outlook however, the poem still stands a facinating exploration of the nature of the next world.

Strategy And Operations Management At Dell

Strategy And Operations Management At Dell Dell Computer Corporation was started in 1984 by Michael Dell, who had the simplistic view that personal computers could be built and sold directly to customers (Suite 101, 2009) alongside this ideology that Dell, could best understand consumer needs and efficiently provide the most effective computing solution to tailor those needs (Information Systems Management, unknown date). So Dells mission is to be The most successful computer company in the world at delivering the best customer experience in markets we serve (Dell, 2010(a)).In doing so, Dell aim to meet customer expectations of: So, Dell, since the last 26 years, has become a mass producer of standardised products and has evolved dramatically since they were first formed in 1984. The company, at first, merely took orders on the phone to help fulfil their policy of building custom built personal computers (PCs) (Dell,2010, (b)).However, the company then gained first-mover advantage in the mid 1990s, when it became one of the first companies to offer PCs online (Chaffey, 2007, p.239).In 2008, Dell was one of the market leaders in the worldwide PC market with sales around US$41 billion (lynch, 2009, p.789) and since their evolution, Dell, have diversified their product range and scope from small desktop computers to large server computers-to individuals, businesses and other organisations (Schneider, 2006, p.108). In 2009 in they owned a global market share of 12.4% in the number of PCs shipped worldwide, with only Hewlett Packard (21%)and Acer (13.4%) preceding them during this period (Bloomberg, 2010). Notably, this was the first time Dell had fell behind Acer in the second spot as the worlds largest computer-maker and this was primarily due to Acer producing low-cost net books and other inexpensive home computers at a reduced operating margin (Bloomberg, 2010).However, recently, in 2010,they did move back into second place in the global PC manufacturing market ahead of Acer but only slightly as they had a 12.8% market share compared to Acers 12.4% (Afterdawn, 2010).So this level of competition has been intense since 2006 as companies such as HP and Acer were vastly reducing the cost of their global network suppliers, which forced Dell to enter into new global markets such as in China ( George and Jones, 2009,p.195). However, Dell, see their strengths in the commercial and corporate market ( Techeye, 2010), as this is still their dominant market, even though home consumers are an ever growing element of their strategy. So, Dells competitors now include both, domestic manufacturers of PCs such as Apple and HP as well as, overseas competitors such as Sony, Acer and Lenovo in Asia (Jones George, 2009, p.195). This essay will therefore explore Dells generic hybrid strategy and the activities which constitute this strategy. This will then lead to a value chain analysis of the company, which can be used as a tool to emphasise the linkage between the primary and support activities which are used to create value within Dell. This will then pave show how these added values create a distinctive competence within Dell, which, overall, have lead to competitive advantage since the company began to aggressively cut its costs and prices to increase their global market share in the 2000s (Jones and George, 2009,p.195). Dells Generic Strategy Michael Porters Generic Strategy Model (1980) was created to specify how companies use generic business strategies, to gain a competitive advantage over their competitors. This encompasses how companies use cost reduction and/or differentiation within their product and services to appeal to a particular broad or narrow segment of the market, in order to gain this competitive advantage. Overall Dell, operate a hybrid broad focus strategy and this can derived be from Porters Generic Strategy Model obtained from the Mind Tools website (2010): In order to understand Dells generic strategy we must explain the different segments of this model Firstly, cost leadership occurs when a company achieves lower costs than its rivals and competes across a broad range of segment (Ogden and Wersun, 2007, p.282). On the other hand, differentiation is when a company has a range of clearly differentiated products which appeal to different segments of the market (Ogden and Wersun, 2007, p.282). However, Dell, appear to operate on a hybrid strategy, similarly to the car manufacturing industry, which incorporates both the cost leadership and differentiation elements of Porters model. A hybrid strategy, overall, seeks simultaneously to achieve differentiation and a price lower than that of competitors (Johnson et al, 2008, p.230). So, Dell, use both of these aspects, but in a broad focus since they offer their products on a wide scale, as explained earlier, as they offer both corporate and commercial solutions to small, medium and large sized enterprises but also satisfy the needs of users within different spectrums such as within the public sector right down to the home user. This is explained by on their homepage when they state: For more than 26 years, Dell has empowered countries, communities, customers and people everywhere to use technology to realize their dreams. Customers trust us to deliver technology solutions that help them do and achieve more, whether theyre at home, work, school or anywhere in their world (Dell, 2010(c)). So the focus is very much broad, but Dell has this direct business model which involves gathering customer needs and tailoring that solution to meet their requirements For instance, Premier Dell.com offers technological solutions to businesses which helps them manage all phases of computer ownership such as purchasing, asset management and product support(Chaffey, 2007, p.97) So their broad direct focus helps simultaneously create both cost leadership and differentiation strategies and helps explain why, perhaps they have been one of the most successful PC manufacturing corporations in the world. So how does Dell use both of these strategic elements of Porters model? Firstly, with cost leadership, Dells direct business model involves purchasing standardised components which ultimately minimises the need for expensive research and development and sales are then made direct over the Internet to customers (Ogden Wersun, 2007) thus eliminating retailers that add necessary time and cost, or/who can diminish Dells understanding of customer expectations. (Information Systems Management, unknown date). So this results in low costs and is a very aggressive pricing policy which helps gain market share from any competitor whom has taken their eye of the ball and has let their costs increase (Ogden Wersun, 2007, p.60). Consequently, Dell have lower manufacturing and distribution costs than most of their competitors, thus they have achieved a cost leadership strategy over their rivals. However, another school of though can equally argue that within Dells generic strategy lies a differentiation strategy. This also exists within their direct business model as consumers can design their own computers which tailor their own unique needs and specifications. This is differentiation as Dell not only offers differentiated products to specific users, but also to specific markets(small, medium, large-sized, public sector, businesses, etc), thus reinstating this concept of the company having a broad focus. Hence, Dells direct sales model has allowed it to differentiate its PC products by allowing customers to design their own computer system and offering complementary services such as online customer support, three-year-on-site warranty, web hosting, installation and configuration of customers hardware and software (Grant, R.M, 2005, p272).Furthermore, Timmers (1999, p.227) stated how Dell, on their website, dont merely offer the best PC offer of the month approach but rather an approach which offers discounts for large purchases which are tailored to that particular individual or company, as well as having support which is customised to users needs (Dell, 2010 (c)). However this whole concept could be challenged as many people would be reluctant to buy a Dell PC without testing it in store first, however this argument becomes less relevant as more and more of us know people who have bought a Dell computer, since we can inspect theirs (Ogden Wersun, 2007, p.61). Notably, Schneider (2005,p.305) also argued that because Dell made most of their sales online, they often unintentionally left themselves exposed to the laws and ethics of the banking industry and in this case, in1999, they had offered monthly payment setups to customers without disclosing the full details of the lease plan associated with this payment scheme. So, this pinpoints how despite Dell having a successful online strategy, they could be left vulnerable to changes in the legal environment, which could clash with their online customisation policy. Nevertheless, Dells hybrid strategy was a clever one; not only did it conjunctively produce cost effective manufacturing policies and customised products, but it also overcame the barrier of having access to new suppliers or distributers which can be arduous for companies gaining and sustaining success within an online market. This factor can be analysed in more depth from the companys value chain activities. The Value Chain of Dell Overall, the following value chain model by Michael Porter helps analyse the type of activities within Dells value chain and how they interlink with one another, to fulfil their generic strategy. Dells customisation policy of tailoring technological solutions to satisfy individual or company needs, has provided the company with the two main advantages of being able to reduce marketing and sales costs by eliminating their intermediaries and building to order which, overall, reduces inventory costs (suite 101, 2009). This originally led to soaring profits, as the internet has, ultimately, allowed Dell to extend the scope of their sales at a reasonably low marginal cost This following diagram allows a more definitive insight into how Dells value chain operates: (Dedrick and Kraemer, 2001) Dell, unlike their competitors, actually eliminates the need for distributors and retailers to sell their product, which as mentioned earlier creates cost leadership. Hence, this direct PC value chain, works around this built to order (BTO) strategy. The BTO process begins with the customer placing an order through the internet, phone or email and then it takes approximately one day to process the order (Turban et al, 2006, p.506). This then corresponds to this concept of just-in-time management as here Dell, only purchase the necessary parts which are needed for that particular order with the result being that inventories are kept to a minimum. Michael Dell emphasised this whole idea when he stated: We tell our suppliers exactly what our daily production requirements are. So its not, well every two week deliver 5,000 to this warehouse and well put them on the shelf, and then well take them off the shelf. Its tomorrow morning we need 8.562 and deliver them to door number seven by 7am. (Mhhe,1997). So, in the Dell manufacturing process, parts come into their factory to fulfil actual customer orders hence no PCs are made for stock, so there is no cost of hiding stock (Lynch, 2009, p.789). This also has the advantage that if a supplier such as Intel, launches a new computer chip, then Dell is not caught with high stocks of the old chip (Lynch, 2009, p.789), allowing the company to efficiently keep up with changes in technology. Therefore Dells procurement support activities i.e. purchasing of stock, play a pivotal role in executing these strategies of BTO and JIT, both, before and after the product has been sold. So what are the exact support and primary activities that Dell has used, in conjunction with one another, which has lead to them adding value to their activities? A traditional firm usually incorporates a make-to-forecast strategy in which products are produced from long-term demands of consumers. Hence, when considering Porters value chain activities, here the primary activities of the value chain move from inbound logistics to operations to outbound logistics and then to marketing and sales (Turban et al, 2006, p.506). However, since Dell manufactures the product only after an order has been given, then the marketing and sales support activity is moved to the front of the value chain (Turban et al, 2006, p506). Notably the inbound logistics element is important since the correct parts have to be delivered but since the holding of stock isnt necessary with Dell due to their JIT system, then it becomes less meaningful. Therefore the operations segment which transfers the supplies into the finished customised product and the service segment which Dell exemplifies to help the end-user(s) maintain their products i.e. the PCs value after the PC ha s been delivered, are the key primary elements of Porters Value Chain in which Dell uses. However, without the marketing and sales aspect these primary activities couldnt be executed since customised orders wouldnt be known and this has a direct link to the support activities of technology and procurement, as technology i.e. the internet allows Dell to sell their products to their customers and without it, it would be arduous to establish their hybrid strategy and procurement mechanisms are pivotal in maintaining their BTO and JIT policies since this deals with the acquisition of supplies in the more efficient way. There are though some criticisms of Dells value chain activities. Such as, the BTO strategy is sensitive to short term changes in demand. For example if a particular computer component suddenly becomes wildly popular or temporary unavailable, the standard supply in inventory may diminish fast, and customer orders will not be completed on time (Turban et al, 2006, p.507). Also, in terms of their service function. Orman (2007) argued that despite Dell providing one of the most effective support systems to its customers the company, fails to provide comparisons to the products of other vendors such as HP and also fails to compare products from one class to another such as desktops in relation to notebooks., Nevertheless though, Turban et al (2006, p.507) highlighted that by using key value chain activities such as operations and technology, Dell showed the world that when these are used effectively and efficiently, they can be used to gain a competitive advantage creates a distinctive c ompetence and therefore leads to competitive advantage.

Impressions Of Television :: essays research papers fc

Impressions of Television SOME AMERICANS COMPLAIN THAT THERE IS TOO MUCH VIOLENCE IN TELEVISION, PARTICULARLY IN AN ACTION SERIES OR CARTOONS. THEY ARE AFRAID THAT PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY CHILDREN, WILL SEE THESE SHOWS AND THINK THAT THE ONLY WAY TO RESOLVE PROBLEMS IS THROUGH VIOLENT ACTS. I THINK THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF FACTORS OTHER THAN TELEVISION THAT EFFECTS PEOPLE. HAVE YOU EVER TRIED SOMETHING JUST BECAUSE YOU SAW IT ON TELEVISION? I'M SURE THAT ALL OF US HAVE DONE THAT AT ONE TIME OR ANOTHER. TELEVISION SHOWS THAT ARE VIOLENT CAN HAVE NEGATIVE EFFECTS ON THE WAY THAT CHILDREN ACT. TELEVISION HAS EMBEDDED ITSELF WITHIN THE LIFE OF THE TYPICAL AMERICAN PERSON. ACCORDING TO THE ENCARTA 96 CD ROM ENCYCLOPEDIA THEY CLAIM THAT, "BETWEEN THE AGES OF 2 AND 65 THE AVERAGE AMERICAN WILL WATCH 72,000 HOURS OF TELEVISION—AT 24 HOURS A DAY, A TOTAL OF 8 FULL YEARS. THE DAILY AVERAGE IS ABOUT 4 HOURS. THE HEAVIEST VIEWERS ARE HOUSEWIVES AND SENIOR CITIZENS. CHILDREN WATCH THE SAME AMOUNT OF TELEVISION AS DO ADULTS; TEENAGERS WATCH ABOUT AN HOUR LESS PER DAY." "EARLY EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCHERS COMPARED THE PLAY OF CHILDREN WHO HAD SEEN AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR ON TELEVISION WITH THE PLAY OF A CONTROL GROUP OF CHILDREN WHO HAD WATCHED NONVIOLENT PROGRAMS. CONCERN WAS INTENSIFIED BY FINDINGS THAT INDICATED A HIGHER LEVEL OF AGGRESSIVE PLAY IN THE VIOLENT- TELEVISION GROUP"(ENCARTA). ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS SURF SATURDAY MORNING CARTOONS TO SEE THE VIOLENCE. THE NINJA TURTLES ARE A PHENOMENON THAT HAS CAPTURED THE IMAGINATIONS OF MOVIE, COMIC, AND EVEN CARTOON FANS ACROSS SEVERAL GENERATIONS. A GROUP OF YOUNG, TEENAGE TURTLES WHO USE KUNG-FU AGAINST A GROUP OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF CREATURES. THIS SHOW ANIMATES EXPLICITLY HOW THEY BATTLE THESE CREATURES TO FIGHT FOR JUSTICE AND THE AMERICAN WAY. THEY LIVE IN THE SEWERS WITH THEIR TEACHER WHO IS A RAT, USING AN ASSORTMENT OF WEAPONS SUCH AS THE SWORD, NUMCHUCKS, NINJA FORKS, AND A NINJA STICK TO FIGHT FOES. IT SEEMS TO ME WHEN I LOOK OUTSIDE TO SEE THE CHILDREN PLAYING, THEY MIMIC THE NINJA TURTLES, PRETENDING THAT THEY ARE KILLING KRANG OR SHREDDER. IT NEVER FAILS IT ALWAYS SEEMS THAT THERE IS ONE CHILD THAT COMES IN CRYING BECAUSE ANOTHER KID (WHO THOUGHT HE WAS DONATELLO) WAS HITTING HIM WITH A STICK THAT HE USED FOR A SWORD. ALARMINGLY THIS PROBLEM SOMETIMES ESCALATES WHEN THE CHILD GETS OLDER AND THE CHILD IS SUBJECT TO MORE IDEAS BROUGHT ACROSS ON TELEVISION. NOT TOO FAR AWAY IN THE CHANNELS OF THE TELEVISION YOU HAVE MTV. IT IS A MUSIC BASED CHANNEL THAT PLAYS ALL TYPES OF MUSIC VIDEOS AND AN OCCASIONAL

Comparing Shakespeare Julius Caesar, Ibsens A Dolls House, and Millers Death of a Salesman :: comparison compare contrast essays

Tragedy's Problem From Shakespeare' Julius Caesar to Henrik Ibsen's A Dolls House, problem plays have taken form in character, plot, and even setting.   It is not necessary for a problem play to be considered a problem play just because it was not written in the time period of when problem plays were formed.   Arthur Miller disproves this theory and successfully wrote a problem play in the modern time period; his play was Death of a Salesman.  Ã‚   The timely struggles that characters such as Willy Loman face, eventually lead to a major personal problem that, in this case, leads to death.   Problem plays deal directly with social and professional issues.   Death of a Salesman is a prime example of a character struggling with social and professional problems. Problem Plays Problem plays were first invented at the time of William Shakespeare.   His plays, including All's Well, Measure for Measure, and Hamlet, are under the category of "problem plays" (Schanzer, ix).   Many authors have written of Shakespeare and his "problem play."   F.S. Boas was one of these men.   He once wrote, "All these dramas introduce us into highly artificial societies, whose civilization is ripe unto rottenness...Thus throughout these plays we move along dim untrodden paths, and at the close our feeling is neither of simply joy nor pain" (Schanzer, 1).   An artificial society is exactly what is created in Miller's Death of a Salesman.   Problem plays suggest major personal, social, political or professional issues in which each problem is timely, realistic and a character experiences these situations in real places and the problems have real outcomes.   The idea of "real-ness" opens the door to problem plays.  Ã‚   Eager Unhappiness Miller deals with more than the simplicity of Willy Loman's eager unhappiness.   It deals ultimately with the so-called American Dream.   The extreme power of mankind to create an image of freedom and self-equality sets this play in motion.   One critic of the play, Craig Garrison, stated in an essay "The play makes, finally, no judgment on America, although Miller seems always on the verge of one, of telling us that America is a nightmare, a cause of and a home for tragedy" (Garrison, "The System").   Making America the nightmare that is the home for tragedy ultimately puts the American Dream to shame and makes the lives of people like Willy Loman a dream in itself.   Willy continually fantasizes about the farm in the west.

Tui Mkt301 Module 1 Case

TUI University MKT 301 Winter 2012 Module 1, Case Assignment High Involvement: Infinity FX35; Low Involvement:  Starbucks Coffee Explain why the first product you chose was a High Involvement purchase and why the second was a Low Involvement purchase. Describe in detail the process you went through in buying each product. Bear in mind that the purpose of the assignment is to demonstrate the depth of your understanding of the teaching materials. Identify and discuss the differences between the ways you went through the purchase decision processes for the two products.Explain how you might use your understanding of the Model of Consumer Buying Behavior for the two products. High Involvement vs Low Involvement Purchases The purchase of anything is based on the consumer background, lifestyle, and comfort in which is a routine action or something that requires attention. This is generally tied to currency and risk. High Involvement: My recent high involvement purchase was an Infinity FX 35. This purchase was a $57000 automobile that required effort and thought to purchase.This vehicle also represents an impact to my debt to income ratio and required a nominal loan that would influence my monthly cash flow over a period of time. High involvement purchase here is linked to high cost, my expression of status and ego. This was also an emotional purchase as I chose to purchase a product that fit my culture, my personal expectations of status and the immediate purchasing power that this represents. I know that a new car would represent a 40% loss of equity within a three year period but this represents a decision that was based on an acceptable level of risk.Recognizing the need for a new car that fit my wants, doing research and test driving multiple vehicles in this class, buying and evaluating post purchase are all solid steps in the purchase decision process (PDP). Actual branding of a luxury sport crossover played the most significant role in classifying this as a h igh involvement product. Low Involvement: Starbucks Coffee is what I would consider a low involvement product or service. There is not much thought put into this type of purchase and skips many of the PDP stages.This product or service is more about segmentation, habits, and brand loyalty. A low involvement purchase has little to no risk or monetary impact based on the individuals involvement. Starbucks Coffee represents a routine action that provides me with a fragmented conversation, a sense of satisfaction, and need to appease routine habits that is driven by the daily urge for caffeine and social interaction. A cup of coffee requires no evaluation process. The individual purchase decision process was night and day for these two products.The Infinity FX35 was influenced by more than one aspect of my decision making process. I followed more of the Do – Learn – Feel process with this purchase as it ended up representing a form of self-satisfaction to me versus and inf ormed decision. I followed fragmented parts of the PDP. I knew that I needed a vehicle within the next year as I was giving my current car to my daughter. Based on a series of events I moved my purchase timeline to the current week. I knew I needed a car in a condensed timeframe and had the resources to buy anything that I would come across.While driving down a street I pulled into the infinity dealer, was captivated by the vehicle sitting in the center of the show room floor and told the sales person to ring it up. There was no information search or evaluation of alternatives as this was a vehicle that grasped at the superficial aspects of environmental influences and individual differences within me. I knew that Infinity was an upper-scaled Nissan vehicle and that I wanted to buy a vehicle that represented a separate class of society as well a sense of accomplishment for myself.The regular purchase of a Starbucks coffee on a daily basis is habit that is perpetuated with a potentia l need to feel accepted by myself for some reason. I routinely drive by the corner store and pass up an inexpensive cup of coffee daily as the big green Starbucks sign draws a reaction of wants out of me. I go in every morning to a small and friendly environment that has warm pastries, friendly employees, and regular customers that are typically all from the same class of society. I do not even attempt to order anything outside of a WhiteChocolate Moca and a walnut muffin while managing to maintain a happy filler conversation with the cheerful staff and routine customers. I do not ever maintain a receipt nor do I care about the impact of such a small routine purchase. In contrast to the vehicle purchase the lack of risk mitigates decision steps. The idea to market an Infinity FX35 is based more on customer driven segmentation. This vehicle is in the same class as the BMW X5, Porsche Cheyanne, and Audi Q7. It is generally out of financial reach and comfort of consumer risk from gener al population.The targeted approach to dealership placement is in large suburban areas that are user related and focus on the buyer’s characteristics. This class of vehicle additionally targets a very diverse size of the potential market by branding and pricing in-between the middle class and upper class. The available or targeted market is based on life style and snob appeal. Most people that are in this target group are fairly well educated and are in a higher income bracket or place more value on self-worth.The motivation for this purchase is based on a high level of thought that focuses on the informative aspects of the product while actually skipping many sub elements in the information search aspect of the PDP. The buying behavior for an Infinity FX35 tends to key in on the influences that lead to a purchase. Environmental influences are culture, social class, and personal while individual differences focus on attitude, personality, and life style. For these reasons, th e PDP has the potential to skip information search and evaluation of alternatives steps based on the buyers fit into the mixed marketing environment and strategy.Infinity its self is marketed as the highest class, lowest priced of Japanese luxury vehicles. This gives them the ability to reach a more diverse segment of the middle class population based on a lower price and class branding. Infinity’s competitive advantage is based on value to the customer over its class of competitors. Starbucks coffee is based more on customer driven segmentation on a much broader scale. This produce is no different from many other similar products but is focused on social and habit forming elements.It is not generally out of financial reach and comfort of consumer risk while maintaining status quo as a high end coffee franchise. The targeted approach to Starbucks franchise placement is in a broad spectrum of suburban and rural areas based on a global footprint. The areas that are user related and focus on the buyer’s habits and culture. This brand of coffee additionally targets a very diverse size and global aspect of the potential market by branding and pricing with upper echelon of lower class and the middle class.There is an age value placed on the target audience from 19-36+ and has a socio-economic, demographic and attitudinal impacts on the consumer break down. Even though Starbucks is at the higher end of price for coffee, the available or targeted market is based on value, life style, and snob appeal. Consumers in this target group are seem to have satisfaction out of feeling as if Starbucks branding and association with a fictions lifestyle could appease individual value on self-worth and group acceptance.The motivation for this purchase is based on a low level of thought that focuses on the affective, habit forming, and self-satisfaction aspects of the product while actually skipping most all aspect of the PDP. Marketing stimulus plays a key role in sub dividing these customers in a similar way and have similar needs. The buying behavior for Starbucks branded coffee tends to rely on word of mouth and influences that lead to a purchase. This is not about problem recognition, information search, and skips evaluation of alternatives.This is a direct purchase of a consumer good based on â€Å"FEEL† regardless of satisfaction or dissatisfaction. Environmental influences are culture, social class, and personal â€Å"loyalty branding† while individual differences focus on attitude, personality, and life style. For these reasons, the PDP is affected by the product, price, promotion, and place (4Ps). The target market skips different steps based on the category of consumer and how the consumer fits into the mixed marketing environment or strategy.Starbucks survives thru diversity among segment of the middle class population based on a lower price and branding. Starbucks competitive advantage is based on branding and social acc eptance to the customer over its class of competitors. In conclusion, these two products have widely different levels of involvement by the consumer, but the target markets are very similar in nature. These products are associated with a enhanced image of a brand that influences the customer. The PDP and 4Ps may vary, but the target market will always be willing to spend more spend more to maintain self-worth.

Main Causes of the US Automobile Industry Crisis Essay

Recent happenings in the US automobile industry point to an industry that is steeped in a crisis of monumental proportions, one that it has never had the misfortune of staring at since the advent of the automobile as we know it today. Sales at the Big Three motor companies (Ford, GM, and Chrysler) have touched historic lows, not only pushing industry profitability levels down with them, but also triggering off a rare spectacle characterised by all the largest American carmakers bleeding in red ink. Writing for one of the premier automotive media, Krebbs and Visnic (2009) adduce data fresh from the oven that point to as much. According to Krebbs and Visnic (2009), the American industry posted the lowest levels of sales in sixteen years in the year just past. While GM witnessed a drop in sales of 23%, Ford saw its sales revenues shrink by a massive 20%, and Chrysler posted sales that were 30% lower than the previous year. Other automakers in the country such as Hyundai, Toyota, and Nissan did not fare any better. On average, the industry shed off some 3 million units in lost sales, which translates into a contraction of 18%. With such massive declines in sales, the Big Three have become deeply steeped in debt, and are staring bankruptcy right in the face in spite of the massive bailout packages tailored for the industry by the Obama administration. As a matter of fact, GM (which is the largest of the Big Three) and Chrysler have already filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. As the Wall Street Journal (2009, p.A1) points out, GM went under in June under a massive debt of $172 billion (against assets of only $82 billion) in what has been described as the second largest industrial bankruptcy filing in the US. After 84 years, the icon of American industry had its name struck off the Dow Jones, hot in the heels of Chrysler which had filed for bankruptcy just months earlier. It is not just dwindling sales and profitability that have afflicted the three largest American carmakers, they have also been steadily losing market shares and particularly to their more fleet-footed Asian rivals who include Toyota, Nissan Honda, and Hyundai. For example, GM, Chrysler and Ford had market shares of 23.8%, 12.9% and 15.5% respectively in 2007, which fell to 22.6%, 11% and 15.1% respectively in 2008. In contrast, the market shares of Honda, Nissan and Toyota increased from 9.7%, 6.6% and 16.3% respectively to 10.8%, 7.2% and 16.8% respectively over the same period. This is an indication that the US carmakers are losing out to other foreign carmakers (Krebbs and Visnic, 2009). Various factors have been cited as being behind the poor performance of the US automobile industry, but there are three main reasons that stand out. These include the meltdown in the US economy that was largely triggered off by the sub prime mortgage crisis, the failure by American carmakers to respond adaptively to the dictates of the external environment, and a poor business model characterized by factors such as huge legacy costs. Economic meltdown: One of the major causes of the declining fortunes of the US auto industry is the meltdown of the US economy which is mainly attributed to the sub prime mortgage crisis. The sub prime mortgage crisis occurred when banks and other financial institutions made out loans for the purchase of homes to a segment of the market that is considered risky due to its poor credit history and low ability to repay given their low income levels (this segment of the market is what is referred to as the sub prime segment). These loans were made out at the height of the boom in the real estate industry with expectations being that the boom in the industry would continue and that the buyers of the homes given the mortgages would be able to refinance their homes and pay back the loans. With the unexpected and sudden burst of the real estate bubble however, the sub prime borrowers were unable to refinance their homes due to plummeting values of real estate, leading to huge defaults that triggered off massive foreclosures never before witnessed in US history (Zeese, 2008; Rasmus, 2008). This caused banks and financial institutions to write off billions of dollars in bad debts, leading to a huge liquidity crisis and credit crunch that hit the economy and caused the current recessionary conditions being witnessed in the US and in much of the world. It also brought about a sharp and dramatic spike in unemployment rates which have affected demand for cars. The economic crisis has had the effect of drying up credit, which has made many potential car buyers unable to access car loans, a factor that has in turn triggered a massive decline in the demand for cars. Additionally, car makers have been unable to access debt finance for investment and working capital requirements, which has also impacted them negatively (Zeese, 2008; Rasmus, 2008; Borade, 2009). Failure to adapt to the external environment: Firms operate in an external environment in which its operations are affected either positively or negatively by political-legal, economic, socio-cultural, and technological forces. The role of the company therefore is to scan the external environment for opportunities or threats which these forces may present, and to implement strategies that will help the organization to either capitalize on the opportunities or avoid the threats (Saloner, Shepard, and Podolny, 2008). The troubles afflicting the US automobile stem in part on the failure of the US carmakers to assess changes in their external environment and to respond adaptively. Over much of 2008, oil prices soared at one tine time touching all-time highs of $147 per barrel. The rise in oil prices triggered a corresponding rise in gasoline prices (to a high of $4 a gallon), which pushed the commodity out of reach for many Americans, and especially those with large fuel guzzling vehicles such as trucks (e.g. GM’s hugely popular Hummer) (Krebbs and Visnic, 2009; Zeese, 2008). Concomitant with the rise in the price of oil and gasoline has been an increasing consciousness towards the need for environmental protection, which has caused the rising popularity of cars that have higher fuel efficiency. These two factors contributed a great deal in shifting consumers’ tastes and preferences away from large fuel-guzzling cars such as trucks towards smaller more fuel efficient models. Unlike Asian car makers which recognized these trends and moved towards the manufacture of small models and green vehicles, all the Big Three firms continues producing large fuel guzzling cars such as SUV’s (Zeese, 2008). The result of this is that SUV and truck sales plummeted, hitting hard the revenues and bottom lines of the American firms, as consumers shifted their purchases to the smaller models manufactured by the Asian carmakers. Krebbs and Visnic (2009) write that as a result of these trends, car sales surpassed those of trucks in 2008, the first time that has ever happened since 2000. An example of   how hard SUV and large vehicle sales were affected as a result of these trends is given by the case of GM and its Hummer brand, which Hummer, which â€Å"suffered the biggest decline of all GM’s brands with sales plummeting 51 percent — its lowest sales level since 2002† (Krebbs and Visnic, 2009, p.2). Poor business model: The third factor that has contributed to the dramatic decline of the US auto industry’s fortunes is the fact that the industry has a poor business model. The US automobile industry is unique among all car industries worldwide due to the fact that it is saddled with huge and unbearable healthcare costs which produces one of the highest cost structures that makes American made cars uncompetitive against Asian made cars, for example (Zeese, 2008). According to Zeese (2008), failure by successive US administrations to reform the country’s healthcare system has resulted in car manufacturers paying healthcare costs for their employees to the tune of billions of dollars. Zeese (2008, p.1) writes that â€Å"It would not be unfair to describe General Motors as a health insurance provider who happens to make cars. GM spends $5 billion annually on health care for 1.2 million people – only 150,000 of whom work for the company. GM, Ford and Chrysler have a combined unfunded retiree health care obligation of more than $90 billion. Health care adds $1,500 to the cost of each vehicle.† With the American carmakers saddled by such huge costs, it is little wonder that their products are uncompetitive when compared to cars made by foreign manufacturers such as Toyota (which has one of the most admired lean manufacturing systems that keeps costs very low). Conclusion: The US automobile industry is in a big crisis. Other than declining sales and profitability, the industry is losing out to foreign car makers and particularly Asian rivals such as Toyota, Honda and Nissan. This has been brought about by three main reasons, which include the meltdown in the US economy triggered off by the sub prime mortgage crisis, a poor business model adopted by the industry, and failure by the US car industry to respond adaptively to changing environmental conditions. References: Borade, G. 2009. US economic crisis: impact on automobile industry. Retrieved on 11 July 2009 from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/us-economic-crisis-impact-on-automobile-industry.html King, N and Terlep, S. 2009, June 2. â€Å"GM Collapses into Government’s Arms.† Wall Street Journal. Retrieved on 11 July 2009 from   http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124385428627671889.html

Costing Methods Essay

Polk Company is in the business of selling custom fishing lures. Recently they decided to introduce a new product. Before they introduce the product they would like to know if variable or absorption costing is the best method for the company. Variable and Absorption Costing Method Absorption costing is when all manufacturing costs are absorbed by the product and shows a higher net income (Kieso, Kimmel, & Weygandt, 2011). Based on the 80,500 lures Polk Company sold in 2012, absorption costing is the preferred method to use because they have a higher net income compared to the variable method. Benefits The benefit of absorption costing for Polk Company is they will show a higher net income of the products in inventory that are not sold immediately. On the contrary, if Polk Company uses variable costing they see any profit or loss almost immediately because all expenses are paid during the current accounting period, even if all the products are not sold. Competition and Bidding Absorption costing is the better costing method for Polk Company to use against a competitor who has submitted a lower bid. As stated previously, absorption costing does not require Polk Company to show any expenses on the products they are offering in the bid because they do not have to show expenses until after the products are sold. Conclusion In conclusion, Polk Company should introduce the new fishing lures by using the absorption costing method, and for submitting product bids. References Kieso, D., Kimmel, P., & Weygandt, J. (2011). Accounting: Tools for Business Decision Making, 4e (4th ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database.

Assess the efficiencies in Municipality budget plan to achieve organizational objectives Essay

Assess the efficiencies in Municipality budget plan to achieve organizational objectives. Background of the study                  In the recent past, UA E has received continued development and prosperity. Municipality is a government sector responsible for infrastructural development across the city. Western region Municipality has several departments that have common objectives of fulfilling the organization’s work process. The accounting department plays a key role in development. Municipality is therefore dependent on the accounting sectors as well as other sectors in meeting its objectives. The UAE department of finance and the Municipality must collaborate in achieving the objectives. The UAE finance department has to avail funds to the Municipality. Funds management is a crucial factor in an organization. The accounts department should plan effectively and forecast the expected expenditures. The research aim is to assess the effectiveness in Municipality budget plan to achieve organizational objectives. Municipality ensures development within towns. Development would entail; construction of roads, bridges and drainage systems just to mention a few. Construction of a bridge in the Western region Municipality was halted. The construction was halted due to the budget constraints Municipality was experiencing. This necessitates a research to find out the constraints and give recommendations to the budget planners. A comprehensive budget will ensure; organizational goals and objectives are attained. Municipality will be in a point of completing projects timely, without budget challenges. The research will also help scholars aware of factors considered when coming up with an effective budget plan. The research will be guided by the financial theory and the budget concept. The financial theory entails the cash flows and budgeting. Budgeting involves the computation of budget statements. Budget statements contain numerical figure that help the business plan ahead. The organization performance is checked against the budgeted figures. The budget concept will be use to help in forecasting future operations that will help in attainment of objectives. The budget concept will be guided by the results obtained from the financial theory. With proper budgeting, UAE department of finance will acquire the forecasted budget from the municipality and accomplish its goals. According to the industry expert, there are three challenges facing the accounting industry; unqualified accountants in the accounting industry, online accounting technology and firm consolidation. Unqualified accountants misguide organizations. Online technologies pose a great threat to the accountancy field. Business owners may now likely question why they need to solicit the services of an accountant when they can do a large number of functions for themselves (Economia.icaew.com, 2014). According to Mitten another challenge of the accounting industry is consolidation of firms. The study will be conducted with an aim of evaluating the effectiveness of the municipality budget plan in a bid to come up with ways of attaining the organization’s objectives. From the discussions with the industry expert, the municipality should; Carryout interviews when enrolling accountants seek financial advices from competent accountants on the budget plan computation, give all their departments specific roles. For instance the accounting department should only deals with accounting. Research plan                  Quantitative research approach will be used where data will be obtained from various accounting departments in the municipality. A survey questionnaire will be issued across the accounting departments in the regions of the municipality. The results obtained from the research will be analyzed and presented in graphs. To come up with comprehensive findings in a research a researcher should; identify the problem, identify the objectives, review literature, design a research methodology, collect data, analyze data, discuss the data, deduce recommendation, give a conclusion then give a final report. The researcher should then present the information. Research timetable Task Name Duration Start Finish Development of the proposal 6 days Tue 2/17/15 Tue 2/24/15 Literature review 7 days Sun 3/1/15 Mon 3/9/15 Data Collection and analysis 5 days Sat 3/14/15 Thu 3/19/15 Discussions, Recommendations and Conclusions 6 days Sun 3/29/15 Fri 4/3/15 Final Report 10 days Sun 4/12/15 Thu /4/23/15 Presentation 2 days Tue 5/19/15 Wed 5/20/15 References Economia.icaew.com,. (2014).  Top three challenges facing accountants today | Economia. Retrieved 24 February 2015, from http://economia.icaew.com/opinion/october-2014/top-three-challenges-facing-accountants-today Source document

Art in Antiquity essay

Art in Antiquity essay Art in Antiquity essay Art in Antiquity essayIn modern sense, the term â€Å"age of gold† often refers to any period of flourishing, prosperity, and moral purification. In the ancient context, however, it was associated with Greek mythology, in which there was a record of better times. Hesiod (c. 700 B.C.), a Greek poet, fixed the legend in Works and Days to make people know about the Golden Age of Cronus, when people lived like gods, free from grief and misery. Later, the Romans adopted the story about ideal world to their reality. Thus, Ovid (43 B.C. – c. 17 A.D.), a Roman poet, echoed Hesiod in Metamorphoses, but the main difference was in the idea that the era of prosperity was a perspective for the Romans’ future, not a ‘forever-lost-past’. While for the Greek the Golden Age was over because Cronus was defeated and the circumstances were beyond human control, the Roman poets believed that the decline took place because human virtues turned into vices and human, so hu man virtues could bring the Age of Gold back. It was the propaganda of the concept that the Golden Age was again achievable that made the Romans believe in the ideal world and take their own effort to create it. The first Roman emperor Augustus (63 B.C. – 14 A.D.) tried his best to bring about the legendary Golden Age. He paid much attention to the development of sciences and art, which helped his empire develop and flourish and his glory grow in the meantime. Current study is intended to explore how propaganda of the Age of Gold idea contributed to the growth of Roman power along with the development of warfare, politics, and legislation. The study investigates how the longed-for ideal world was fixed in the artwork. In this way, it is expected to provide the evidence that Augustus worked not only for his own ambition, but he did have a clear program to bring peace, security, and glory to his people.The Murals of the Garden Room at Prima PortaIn 1863 archaeologists discovere d a wonderful room at Prima Porta. Due to the documents left by Pliny and Cassius Dio, the location was known for the Villa of Livia, Augustus’ wife. According to the legend, a white hen fell to the lap of Livia just from the clutches of an eagle. In its beak, the hen held a branch of laurel. The crown-bearing couple planted the branch, and the laurel grew into a grove with amazing vigor, thus becoming a symbol of Augustus glory. Today, the place itself (available for the visitors of Museo Nazionale Romano) is famous for the illusionistic murals of partially underground triclinium painted c. 30-20 B.C. The semi-subterranean Garden Room embodied arboreal mythology that became popular in the times of Augustus. The frescoes represent a vista of garden in which different trees and shrubs blossom and fruit at once. The oak, the umbrella pine, the red fir are seen in the foreground. Box trees, cypresses, holm oaks, viburnums, and date palms neighbor pomegranates, oleanders, apple q uinces, strawberry trees, together with ivy, acanthus, laurels and myrtles beyond the marble enclosure. Meanwhile, the variety of flowers includes chamomiles and roses, chrysanthemums and poppies. Violets, irises, and ferns also grow along the footpaths. All the birds enjoy their freedom, except the one put into a gilded cage depicted on the low wall.Order neighboring disorder, woodland and garden displayed together, and wild birds beyond the balustrade all create a utopian landscape to welcome a guest into the realm of harmony. Although it is a celebration of naturalistic technique in blue and green, the view is not the reproduction of nature. Such a combination of flora and fauna representatives, â€Å"as protean and mulitvalent in their structures and meanings as the contemporary poetry of Virgil† (Kleiner 200), is not possible, but it is a cordial invitation to the world specially made for humans, an ideal world more specifically. The artwork rather creates nature than re produces it, and the purpose will be clear if to turn to the idea of the Golden Age.Propagation of the promised Golden Age As for the purpose of the Garden Room, it had both pragmatic and cultural meaning. On the one hand, it was a dining room in the suburbs intended to give shelter for the guests during hot summer days. It goes without saying that the triclinium stayed cool due to its partially underground disposition, so the guests could have rest from heat and enjoy summer banquets in comfort. The emperor had no opportunity to grow real gardens as he did outside, but he found an effective alternative. The pictured gardens were also good at creating the atmosphere of peace and rest due to the ornamental illusion of natural surroundings, so necessary during the scorching summer months.The beneficent world of nature was an allegory for â€Å"fertility and prosperity of the Augustan state† (Henig 192). Each of the trees and plants has its meaning, and most of them come from th e Ovid’s Metamorphoses in which pines, laurel, cypress trees as well as magpies, partridges, and nightingales played a specific role. The state cannot exist without an order, but a natural order of things has to be taken to account to make the state prosper, so the landscape of the Garden Room in which organic order compliments regular structure is obviously a symbol for Augustan powerful empire. The viewer is able to read the message that the close to nature, the pure the morals. What is more, the eye can read the propaganda of peace and stability as well as wealth and abundance through the plentiful motifs of floral character. In this way, the lush fertility of nature celebrates the vitality and renewal of Rome under Augustan peace (Toynbee 442).ConclusionsThe study has shown that in the ancient times art was a rewarding tool for visual expression of political and ideological intentions of a ruler. Augustus made it the cornerstone of his program to reinvigorate Rome and mak e it the most powerful and virtuous state in the world. While social and religious legislation helped him to re-establish moral virtues of the Roman citizens, powerful symbolism in art supported an image of greatness and confidence associated with Augustan renewal.All in all, a garden of imagination painted on the walls of the Villa of Livia is an eloquent example of well-planned propaganda of the idea that under the guidance of Augustus Rome was expected to experience the glorious return of the legendary Golden Age. Out of time and space, with each species fixed in the moment of their own glory, the painting of exotic fecundity deliberately symbolizes the perpetual spring of the Augustus prosperous reign.

Criminal Theories essays

Criminal Theories essays Opportunity Theory: The CEOs of Enron saw the opportunity to easily scam millions of dollars without hurting anyone at the time. Living in a society that is capitalistic and driven by money and greed they saw the opportunity and decided to take it. This was going against the normal way (the legal) of running a business. This theory is explained extremely well by Merton on pages 122-123 in the bottom and top paragraphs. Merton states that The equilibrium between culturally designated means and ends becomes highly unstable with the progressive emphasis on attaining the prestige-laden ends by any means whatsoever. This is precisely what happened in the Enron debacle. I believe that this theory also can be applied to anyone who sells drugs on any level. The deviant I believe is motivated by his culture, that culture is one based on money and good times. The individual involved, I believe, will get as involved as his superior or supplier will allow them to. For example; a kid who normally sells one ounce of marijuana at a time because he/she can not afford anymore will gladly accept a quarter-pound if his dealer was willing to front it to him/her. However, for this situation to occur the individual must be living in a culture where he/she is confident that they can move the entire quarter-pound quick enough. This environment does exist in several different areas in our cities and towns. This type of Opportunity theory is explained in article 12 Homeboy, Dope Fiends, Legits, and New Jacks by Hagedorn. The article explains the different levels of participation and the amount of money being made by each level. Conflict Theory- The theory that it is society who may be guilty for a crime instead of the deviant himself. The societal stresses and pressures may force one into...

Free Essays on Adolescence And Stereotypes

Today, many teenagers are under constant pressure of stereotypes. Those types of people are defined as shallow, naà ¯ve and sometimes uncompassionate youngsters. Most of the problems come from their common failures to take social risks and the possession of an open mind. We are all one student body. Yet, we are so separated in many aspects. Much of the stereotyping exists, because of our inability to look past appearances. Many designers make up new fashions and trends in clothing, which often increases the competition for and identity of a teenager. If you don’t fit into a group’s clothing style than chances are you can be excluded from it. Different hair styles sometimes dictate the authority among peers or if the person is worth knowing to be friends with. Your friends could simply reject you, because of the look of your pimpled face. It is natural, as a part of a growing process, but your peer groups might have a complete different opinion about that. I remember a friend of mine came up and told me how he was excluded from a group based on a simple thing as his own look. I believe, it is not fair to be rejected, based upon your look comparison with your friends of the same group. These days however, there is too much emphasis on looks, which makes it harder to be a teenager, while finding a way to your own identity. Now days, it would be highly unlikely for boys to become more like girls. Gender roles dictate the appropriate behaviors for boys and girls alike. I can recall a personal example when I was learning how to swim. The girls were falling behind for the most part. It was generally acceptable, even the instructor himself paid more attention to us guys. Traditionally, guys were always pictured as strong and violent and girls were always cute and placid. The looks and behaviors of both genders were reflected from the roles the society intended for them to do. It is also important to remember, that harmony in adolescence t... Free Essays on Adolescence And Stereotypes Free Essays on Adolescence And Stereotypes Today, many teenagers are under constant pressure of stereotypes. Those types of people are defined as shallow, naà ¯ve and sometimes uncompassionate youngsters. Most of the problems come from their common failures to take social risks and the possession of an open mind. We are all one student body. Yet, we are so separated in many aspects. Much of the stereotyping exists, because of our inability to look past appearances. Many designers make up new fashions and trends in clothing, which often increases the competition for and identity of a teenager. If you don’t fit into a group’s clothing style than chances are you can be excluded from it. Different hair styles sometimes dictate the authority among peers or if the person is worth knowing to be friends with. Your friends could simply reject you, because of the look of your pimpled face. It is natural, as a part of a growing process, but your peer groups might have a complete different opinion about that. I remember a friend of mine came up and told me how he was excluded from a group based on a simple thing as his own look. I believe, it is not fair to be rejected, based upon your look comparison with your friends of the same group. These days however, there is too much emphasis on looks, which makes it harder to be a teenager, while finding a way to your own identity. Now days, it would be highly unlikely for boys to become more like girls. Gender roles dictate the appropriate behaviors for boys and girls alike. I can recall a personal example when I was learning how to swim. The girls were falling behind for the most part. It was generally acceptable, even the instructor himself paid more attention to us guys. Traditionally, guys were always pictured as strong and violent and girls were always cute and placid. The looks and behaviors of both genders were reflected from the roles the society intended for them to do. It is also important to remember, that harmony in adolescence t...

5 Great SEO Tips for Copy Writers

5 Great SEO Tips for Copy Writers 5 Great SEO Tips for Copy Writers Every modern business has a website. And if you have a website, you need an SEO strategy to help customers find you online. But how exactly does this work in terms of writing website copy? In this post, we run through a few SEO tips that you can use when writing online content. 1. Picking Keywords SEO is all about keywords. These are terms that people search for online to find your website, so it is crucial to use the right keywords in the right places. And this means working out the keywords your target customers are searching for online and building online content around them. A good starting point for this is using a keyword research tool. Alternatively, you can check competitors’ websites to see which terms they use. 2. Integrating Keywords How you work keywords into your copy is also crucial. For instance, you should try to: Use the main keyword(s) in the title of the page Include the main keyword(s) in the first paragraph of the copy Use keywords in subheadings within the copy Highlight keywords with bold or italic formatting where appropriate Include variations of keywords within the copy These may be small touches, but they make a big difference to SEO results. 3. Humans Are More Important Than Computers Keywords are good, but not if they come at the expense of readability. This is because, ultimately, the best way to boost SEO is to write good content that people want to share online. In the old days, you could get away with loading a webpage with keywords and search engines would still find them. This was known as â€Å"keyword stuffing.† But now, if you use too many keywords on a single page (more than 5% of the word count), Google may reduce the ranking of your website. Consequently, you should always focus on writing good content for human readers first. This also means making sure your website is error free, so don’t skip the proofreading! 4. Writing a Good Meta Description Getting your website to rank on search engines is only part of the battle. You also need people to click through to the site when they see the search results. And this is where the meta description is key. The meta description is the text that search engines use to â€Å"preview† a page in a list of results. It should therefore provide a brief summary of what the page is about. To do this: Keep it short (ideally between 155 and 320 characters) Explain how the page will resolve the reader’s problem For example, for this page, we could write: Check out our SEO tips for copy writers to boost your page ranking. Simple solutions for increasing traffic to your website. Perfect for businesses seeking a competitive edge online. In three short statements, we’ve made sure the reader will immediately know what the page is, what following our advice will achieve, and who we’re targeting with the page. 5. Strategic Linking One of the most important SEO tips is to work hyperlinks into your copy, including both internal links to other pages on your website and external links to other sites. Internal links should direct readers towards relevant information on your site. External links, meanwhile, can make your site more authoritative and boost its reputation. And if another site sees that you have linked to them, they might do the same in return, which will boost your SEO results significantly. However, don’t link to sites that rank higher than you for the same keywords, as this will be counterproductive. Focus instead on links to sites that cover related topics. Summary: 5 SEO Tips for Copy Writers When writing website copy, you need to think about SEO. This may include: Researching keywords and picking the right ones for your site Working keywords into the page copy effectively Making sure your work is easy to read for humans as well as computers Writing a strong meta description so people click through to your site Using internal and external links in your copy Applied well, these SEO tips should help boost your website traffic.

Positivity in Your Job Search Will Get You Farther Than You Think

Positivity in Your Job Search Will Get You Farther Than You Think Perhaps you’ll identify with me when I say I can’t stand hearing anyone complain- except for myself. That said, even my tolerance for my own complaints has plummeted in the last few years. As soon as I start complaining in a conversation, I know I’ve made a big mistake. I leave the interaction feeling horrible, sure the person I was talking to will never want to talk to me again. Last week, while reading AJ Jacobs’ The Guinea Pig Diaries, I learned something new about the impact of my complaining or criticizing. I was shocked to discover a phenomenon that makes people really and truly think poorly of me when I speak poorly of others. You Are What You Speak It turns out that not only are complainers seen as negative, but that the characteristics they attribute to others are automatically attributed to them by their listener. So if I call someone racist, the person listening to me will unconsciously dub me a racist. If I call someone stupid or incompetent, I will be seen as stupid and incompetent. In contrast, if I talk about how nice, helpful, talented, and all-around awesome people are, listeners will associate all those positive characteristics with me. Since learning about this mind mechanism, I’ve become much more conscious of my speech. I now understand that by using negative language, I’m risking not only that people will have a generally negative feeling about me, but also that they will make specific negative judgments that I certainly don’t want attached to me. By using more positive words, I can consciously shape the way people think of me. I recently had a conversation with one of my executive clients, who had been given the runaround, then turned away by another resume writing company, because they don’t work with â€Å"Muslim terrorists.† I can assure you this man is one of the most generous and kind people you would ever want to meet. He did not have anything negative to say about that company, and he chose not to report them to the BBB or even tell LinkedIn to investigate their profiles. He figured he could stay positive, and let them dig their own graves. If they are putting out that negativity into the world, they themselves will be seen as negative. Positive Language in Your Job Search Also last week, I saw a resume that spoke of bringing together often â€Å"fractious† staff. The word â€Å"fractious† appeared twice in one resume! Guess what anyone reading that resume will think of the applicant? Yep†¦ that he himself is the fractious one. His final resume will not include that word if I have anything to say about it. Instead, he will say that he fostered teamwork in a diverse, multi-cultural environment. That sounds much better doesn’t it? While it’s important in many cases to provide a â€Å"before and after† picture to highlight your accomplishments, putting people down will never serve you. You can talk about bringing negative profits to positive ones, but don’t let the negative adjectives spill over onto people.  (Learn more about creating compelling accomplishment bullets with my DIY resume books. Sign up here to get a free excerpt!) In job interviews as well, I can’t emphasize enough the importance of staying positive. I still remember an interview I gave when I was a manager in a legal department. The interviewee had an impressive background, but in her interview, almost every word out of her mouth was about the negative aspects of her prior employment. Needless to say, she didn’t get hired. If she had been more positive, we would have considered her. In Business Insider’s 29 Words You Should Never Say in a Job Interview, here’s what author Jacquelyn Smith says about some clearly damaging words you must avoid: Terrible, horrible, awful, hate, etc. You shouldnt use negative language during your interview - especially when youre talking about your current or previous boss or employer. Even if the interviewer invites you to,  dont, Hoover says. Its not classy, and it  will make you sound bitter and petty. It also shows that you could bad-mouth any boss or company in the future - and it could even be a test to see if you will say anything disparaging. That’s great advice, and now I understand that if you use words like these, you will actually be perceived as terrible, horrible, awful, hating person. While Ms. Smith doesnt suggest positive words to emphasize, I would offer â€Å"exciting,† â€Å"growthful,† â€Å"positive,† â€Å"amazing,† â€Å"collaborative,† â€Å"talented,† â€Å"friendly,† â€Å"smart,† â€Å"brilliant,† â€Å"creative,† â€Å"innovative,† and other adjectives that paint others – and, by default, you – in a favorable light. The Challenge, If You Choose to Accept It Eliminating negative language is not as easy as it sounds. I caught myself today talking to a very helpful man at the airport about how unhelpful a customer service person had been because she gave me directions to the hotel shuttle that didn’t help. â€Å"Wow,† I thought, â€Å"I’m addicted to complaining!† There was clearly no useful purpose in sharing that information with him, and now he probably thinks I’m negative and unhelpful. I sure have a lot more work to do on this positivity project! I’m grateful to have people like my client and others who inspire me to live and work â€Å"above the line.† They keep me honest and, well, I think they’re fantastic and awesome! Are you ready to start being more aware of your language so you can be perceived in a positive light yourself, in life, in business, and in your job search? Please share your thoughts and stories below.

How to Pass a Lie Detector Test

How to Pass a Lie Detector Test A polygraph test or  lie detector test is designed to analyze physiological reactions to questions to determine whether or not a subject is being truthful. The accuracy of the test has been widely contested by groups including the National Academy of Science, the US Congress Office of Technology Assessment, and the American Psychological Association. Even so, the test is routinely used to screen employment applicants and interrogate criminal suspects. While a person may be told to answer all questions honestly, the test is designed to measure responses to white lies, which means truly honest people run the risk of generating a false positive on the test. Other people may wish to conceal answers to certain questions, whether guilty of wrongdoing or not. Fortunately for them, its not that hard to beat a lie detector test. The first step to passing the test is understanding how it works. How a Lie Detector Test Works A lie detector test includes more than the time spent hooked up to the polygraph machine. The tester will start making observations the instant a person enters the test center. A skilled polygrapher will notice and record nonverbal cues associated with lying, so its a good idea to know your tells. The polygraph machine records breathing rate, blood pressure, pulse rate, and perspiration. More sophisticated machines include magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain. Physiological responses to irrelevant, diagnostic, and relevant questions are compared to identify lies. Questions may be repeated two to three  times. The subject may be asked to intentionally lie to help the examiner establish baseline values. The test typically requires one to three hours to complete, including the background assessment, medical history, explanation of the test, actual polygraph, and follow-up. Most Advice Isnt Very Effective The internet is filled with advice on ways to beat a lie detector test, but many of these ideas arent very effective. For example, biting your tongue or putting a tack in your shoe to use pain to affect blood pressure wont affect perspiration levels. Similarly, imagining a lie when telling the truth and imagining the truth when telling a lie wont work because it establishes differences between lies and truth. Remember, differences between the truth and lies are the basis for the test! 2 Ways to Beat the Test Basically, there are two good ways to beat the test: Be completely zen, no matter what youre asked. Note: Most people cant master this.Be completely distraught throughout the entire test. 7 Tips to Try Most people are nervous when taking a lie detector test, whether they intend to lie or not. The physical responses to nerves probably wont fool a lie detector. You need to up your game to simulate feelings of mortal terror. This is because beating the test is all about mind games, which naturally affect physical responses. Here are some tips to try: If you want to beat the test, your best bet is to stay upset, fearful and confused throughout the entire test. The goal is to appear calm and in control, despite the inner turmoil. Remember your worst experience or solve difficult math problems in your heads include, Have you ever taken anything from your workplace? or Have you ever lied to get out of trouble?Alter your breathing during control questions, but return to normal breathing before answering the next question. You can make minor admissions here or not, as you choose. When you answer questions, answer firmly, without hesitation, and without humor. Be cooperative, but dont joke or act overly-friendly.Answer yes or no whenever possible. Do not explain answers, give details, or offer explanations. If asked to expand on a question, reply: What more do you want me to say? or Theres really nothing to say about that.If accused of lying, dont fall for it. If anything, use the accusation as fuel to feel upset and confused. In fact, answering diagnostic questions honestly may have given the examiner conflicting results, so be prepared to be questioned further.Practice any countermeasures before the test. Ask someone to ask you likely questions. Be aware of your breathing and how you react to different types of questions. Keep in mind, applying these tips may enable you to invalidate the test, but wont be much use if youre taking a lie detector test to get a job. In most cases, the easiest way through a lie detector test is to approach it honestly. Drugs That Affect Tests Drugs and medical conditions may affect a polygraph test, often leading to an inconclusive result. For this reason, drug tests and a screening questionnaire are commonly given before a lie detector test. Medications that affect heart rate and blood pressure can affect polygraph results. These include antihypertensives and anti-anxiety medications and also a host of illegal drugs, including heroin, marijuana, cocaine, and methamphetamine. Caffeine, nicotine, allergy medications, sleep aids, and cough remedies may also affect the test. Some Medical Conditions May Prohibit the Test While diagnosed sociopaths and psychopaths may be excluded from the test due to a potential ability to control responses, other medical conditions may prohibit the test. People who have epilepsy, nerve damage (including essential tremor), heart disease, have suffered a stroke, or are extremely fatigued should not take the test. Mentally incompetent people shouldnt take the test. Pregnant women are generally exempted from the test unless a doctor gives written approval. With the exception of mental illness, drugs and medical conditions dont necessarily enable a person to beat a lie detector test. However, they do skew the results, making them less reliable. Sources Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences and Education (BCSSE) and Committee on National Statistics (CNSTAT) (2003). The Polygraph and Lie Detection. National Research Council (Chapter 8: Conclusions and Recommendations), p. 21.Scientific Validity of Polygraph Testing: A Research Review and Evaluation. Washington, D. C.: U.S. Congress Office of Technology Assessment. 1983.

Critical Analysis 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Critical Analysis 2 - Essay Example Some rationalist ideas and the remnants of Puritan ideas are seen in the Declaration of Independence. Thesis Statement: The purpose of this paper is explain three examples of Rationalist and remnants of Puritan ideas in the Declaration. Whether Puritan ideas seem to be in conflict with Rationalist elements will be investigated.The works of Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, John Locke and Thomas Hobbes will be referred to. Rationalism is a philosophic belief in natural rights which is perceived and applied by individuals with the help of reasoning powers (Hill 74). Puritanism, on the other hand, is marked by rigid beliefs on living a pure life devoid of indulgence, and a Christian life in the quest of Godliness and the establishment of the truth of God. The period of Enlightenment (1650 to 1800) believed to be an age of rationalism, evolved from the humanistic changes in religious beliefs of the earlier period and the emergence of puritanism. Puritanism began with Protestant reforms in the early sixteenth century to purify the Church and society of corruption and dogma (Cody & Landlow, 1988). Puritanism was the philosophy of life â€Å"which was carried to New England by the first settlers in the early seventeenth century† (Miller & Johnson 1). Thomas Jefferson’s concept of rationality included the belief in natural rights and an innate moral sense common to all people. One example of rationalist idea in the Declaration is Jefferson’s attack on the practice of slavery in the first draft of the Declaration of Independence. He stated that slavery did not follow the natural law of right to freedom which was a basic human right (Hill 82). Another example of a rationalist idea is that â€Å"all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness† (U.S. History 2009). This should mean equal treatment of Africans with white settlers. However,

Exam questions Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Exam questions - Coursework Example Since collective bargaining is a process directly associated with the trade unions, it can be rightly concluded that a fall in trade union membership would reduce the collective number of workers the unions represents, and therefore would lead to a decline in the collective bargaining practice itself. Union membership in the UK was in a consistent decline period from 1979 to 1998, and this can be attributed to a certain set of factors, both direct and underlying reasons. The direct causes of the dramatic decline of union membership are as below (Millward et al., 2000): Unions failed to gain a bargaining presence where it was necessary in the newly established workplaces, as the British manufacturing industry declined, which led to the establishment of new workplaces The union membership in places where they were previously recognized led to people leaving the trade unions as a follow up to other. The decline however is not due to these simple factors only, there are certain underlyin g factors which must be identified and critically analyzed in order to complete the study. Firstly, the macroeconomic conditions of UK underwent a change during the decline era, there was massive unemployment which led to a weakened status of the employees who did not want to lose their jobs by undertaking the risk of contradicting the employers, since the number of layoffs were high, this consciously instigated the workers to leave trade unions, thus leading to decline in membership and collective bargaining. Secondly, the legal and institutional policy framework established by the state government led to an automatic decline, since the policies were anti-union and unfriendly, the unions could not reach agreements since they no longer held a powerful position, thus resulting in declining membership. Thirdly, the policies instated by the management itself focused on meeting individual needs rather than coordinating with the trade union’s representative to reach a consensus, t his change in policy abolished the need of having joined any trade unions, thereby reducing the membership number by dramatic numbers. And lastly, according to Metcalf, the aggregate number of union membership is not just a function of environmental factors, but it also accounts for the way in which the trade union responds to the environmental changes, and in UK, the trade unions did not respond diligently, while making the recruitment plan more strenuous, and by ignoring the environmental changes leading to no major changes in the union’s agendas, thereby resulting in further decline (Metcalf, 1991, 22). In light of all the reasons stated and explained above, it can be rightly concluded that there were major underlying reasons which led to a decline in union membership which simultaneously caused a decline in the collective bargaining process and practices in the United Kingdom, since they are directly proportional to each other. The decline of one will inevitably result in the decline of other, because collective bargaining is a practice undertaken by trade unions to meet their objectives, and striking agreements

Project paper on Addison Disease Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Project on Addison Disease - Research Paper Example so leads to the secretion of androgens which are important for the normal sexual development in a person along with the proper hair distribution (GANONG, 2005). In Addison’s Disease the hormone that is initially and mainly affected is aldosterone. It is then that cortisol and the androgens follow. The laboratory findings indicate the ionic imbalance led to by aldosterone deficiency. The decreased levels of sodium arise because the ions cannot be reabsorbed due to the absence of aldosterone and hence they are lost in urine which results in low levels of the sodium ions in the blood. At the same time potassium ions which are exchanged for sodium in the kidney tubules with the assistance of this hormone do not get excreted and this results in high levels of potassium in the blood and hence the condition hyperkalemia. The retention of hydrogen ions also occurs because aldosterone plays a role in the excretion of hydrogen ions. Thus this results in increased levels of hydrogen ions and resultant acidosis. Retention of chloride cannot occur due to decreased aldosterone as well which results in low levels of chloride ions in the blood. Anot her reason for low chloride level is that there is an exchange of chloride with the bicarbonate in the cells. This is because bicarbonate is required for the compensation of the acidosis which has resulted and hence the chloride ions enter the cell and the bicarbonate ions are ejected in the extracellular compartment. The loss of chloride ions can also be associated with the vomiting episodes that the patient had. This is because the gastric juices contain a high content of chloride and prolonged vomiting can lead to a reduction in the level of the chloride ions. The low level of carbon dioxide is also because of the compensatory hyperventilation which results to overcome the metabolic acidosis. This occurs in the form of deep breaths and is referred to as Kussmaul breathing. This results in loss of carbon dioxide and hence the

Self-Directed Well-Being Assessment And Enhancement Program Essay

Self-Directed Well-Being Assessment And Enhancement Program - Essay Example I ask my parents, friends and teachers to describe me and my actions when am at work or when pursuing my personal career. My parents reported that I love my work but I usually find time to interact with them. My friend said that I enjoyed working and find happiness in doing the same. The colleagues at work indicated that I work without any form of supervision and that I found time to interact with the rest despite my busy schedules. My strength at home is that am in a position to manage my time effectively and balance the time I spend at work and time I spend with families and friends. Additionally, I have the talent to sing and tell stories an aspect that makes my work enjoyable and fulfilling. This is due to the fact that I can easily teach the children various songs in addition to telling them amusing stories. Therefore, doing what I like doing have greatly helped in improving my career wellbeing. Moreover, to the fact that I do relate well with fellow teachers, am in a position to learn from them and apply the same in my work as a teacher. Some teachers have better skills than I do but I usually try to emulate them so that I can improve on my skills too. The school has partnership programs whereby teachers from the neighboring attend (Rath and Harter 123). These programs aim at ensuring that teachers share skills and learn from each other in addition to sharing problems that affect them in the course of performing their duties. My social wellbeing is always impacted by individuals who are close to me. These include friends, relatives and colleague at work. The parents have been a source of motivation, an aspect that has made me to achieve my goals in life. Additionally, friends have been a source of inspiration to lead a healthy life and ensure that I am positive about life. Higher level of social being therefore had assisted me to be in a position to establish

Why do we, as a culture, need monsters Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Why do we, as a culture, need monsters - Essay Example Most parents use excuses relating to imaginary monsters in order to straighten out their children and make them behave in a certain manner. This paper thus helps to provide an insight regarding the need of monsters in our culture with respect to monsters in popular culture. (Cohen, Jeffrey Jerome Cohen) Most human beings are scared of the unknown; they are afraid of chancing upon people that belong to or have extraordinary powers or are of the supernatural. People are used to living normal lives without such elements of mystery popping up in their lives. However, people worship God and regard him as the highest power or omnipotent and omnipresent being in everyone’s life. Just like there is God, people have also created monsters, just so they can be doubly sure of keeping each other in check. Scaring someone makes them think about the situation in a better manner and also helps people to get disciplined as they feel that they are being threatened. Thus, most people started men tioning the presence of monsters in everyday life in order to scare others and make them do certain things or carry out specific actions. (Asma, Stephen) Most parents had a habit of putting their children to sleep or making them do tasks only by talking about monsters and scaring them in order to ensure that the children are scared enough to follow through with the task perfectly. For example, most children are scared of the dark and that is only because parents tell their children that monsters come in the night. However, no one knows what exactly a ‘monster’ is, it simply has been defined as an abnormal ray of light in the form of a figure that lurks around in the dark and scares and messes around with people. Children thus are scared of what they do not know, i.e., they believe their parents and have this sense of fear inculcated within themselves right from the very beginning. When they grow up, they use the same measures on their children, so on and so forth. Some people even say that monsters have been created by people in order to answer questions that people have not yet been able to answer. For example, the use and creation of characters such as Dracula, vampires, werewolves and Frankenstein are names that have been given to extraordinary creatures that in reality may or may not even exist. Monsters are thus generally metaphors for things that people are not able to comprehend or relate to in their lives. They are thus a personification of the worst fears of mankind and exist on the planet just to be able to keep a man in check with respect to whatever he does in order to scare him as and when the need arises. This is how the spread of monsters has been possible in popular culture because with the help of such knowledge about monsters people have been able to express their views on the same subject matter of interest, in books, movies as well as song and dance. Culture has amalgamated the use and existence of â€Å"monsters† as an essential aspect of a human being’s life because as the years have progressed, people have found it increasingly important to have an element of fear in their lives which can further motivate and instigate them to do better in different fields. In reality, there have been rumours about monsters existing under the sea as well as in broken down and remote areas of the world. For example, the Loch Ness Monster in

Stateless nations Palestine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Stateless nations Palestine - Essay Example This population of people has no citizenship and its benefits and thus lacks full access to services offered by the reference government to the legitimate citizens. This is despite the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which asserts that every person has a right to nationality (Balaton 1). The stateless people do not have the benefit of civil and political, economic, cultural, and social rights, economic and cultural rights that citizens in a state enjoy. Indeed, this population does not even have an avenue to claim for these rights and hence do not participate in any national matters. As such, the stateless population is prone to poor employment, poverty, travel barriers, inequality, discrimination, sexual and physical violence, no legal protection, property ownership restrictions, political barriers, exclusion, and humanitarian crisis (Balaton 2-3). Moreover, they cannot access health, education, and other social services. As such, statelessness is arguably one of the dangerou s and undesirable conditions that affect the world population. Nevertheless, the UNHCR is undertaking re4levant measures to reduce statelessness in the globe (â€Å"UN News Centre† 1). In this context, this paper will detail Palestine as a stateless nation. ... Notably, for a long time, Palestinians and the Jewish people of Israel have been living in the same area where Israel now controls most of that territory and Palestinians are still struggling to reclaim that area for purposes of their own independent state. As a result, there has been a struggle for the stateliness of Palestine with Israel seeking to maintain the status quo. We can trace this dispute from the historical days of the Bible, which involved Abraham’s son Isaac representing the Jews and Ishmael representing the Arabs. Since then, Israel and Palestine has been on war with Israel winning all wars thus rendering Palestine to be stateless. Actually, in 1967, Israel captured Israel captured major territories with huge Palestine population, which included Gaza from Egypt and the West Bank from Jordan. Nevertheless, this victory did not derive peace and security to Israel as Palestine kept up the fight for West Bank, which is their probable independent state. As such, the struggle for land, security, and Palestine independence persists to this day and Palestine remains a stateless nation. Most assuredly, Israel seeks to reduce the Palestinian Arabs population while increasing the number of Jewish immigrants. Nevertheless, most Israelis are slowly accepting that Palestinians deserve to have an independent state with Palestinians con?ning their concentration to the West Bank. The stateless Palestine fall into three categories which include holders of nationalities of convenience, holders of the ‘Refugee Travel Document’, and holders of the Palestinian passport issued by the Palestinian Authority (Shiblak 8). Historically, the geographical location of Palestine was a region in

Communication Skills for Managers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Communication Skills for Managers - Essay Example Managers should adopt a business environment that supports high employee productivity. Communication skills of managers should be effective in addressing the different demands of the employees and achieving the objectives of the business. Proper communication skills used by managers are critical in retaining employees. Business managers should consider the effective use of the different levels of communication. Communication channels at the workplace should encourage a nationwide forum in which all employees engage. Departmental communication is equally valuable in any business. Team communication is vital to ensure an inclusive teamwork. Communication at the lowest level involving individuals is equally valuable. A vital role of management is to ensure employee satisfaction. According to studies, employee dissatisfaction is an innermost factor that can be the cause underperformance at the workplace. Business goals are unattainable when there is a high level of employee dissatisfacti on and underperformance. Poor communication strategies adopted by managers have diverse impacts on the operations at the workplace. The implications of increased employee turnover can be massive when there is ineffective communication at the workplace. ... The business may make serious losses and fail to meet its goals. Poor service provision by employees to business customers may be a cause of a high rate of product defects. High defect rates of products also leads to serious business losses. Communication in the workplace is necessary in updating employees on the business goals. Communication is also central in passing informing to employees on the possible adjustments in the programs of the organization. Such adjustments are invaluable in attaining the business' set goals. Any lack of focus on the business objectives, by employees, can affect the business to a vast level. Communication, therefore, is instrumental in ensuring that employees are at par with the business objectives and make necessary adjustments. Innovation is central in achieving the objectives and successful operation of every business. Businesses are most likely to have stifled innovation when communication is poor, ineffective and uncoordinated. With little innovat ion, the business attracts low competitive advantage in the market. The emergence of market trends necessitates the adoption proper communication skills to drive diverse success factors in the management of every business. Organizational behavior has an extensive contribution in the achievement of workplace success. This depends on the extent of communication that managers invest in, at the workplace. The success of every business must encompass all aspects including effective communication. Internal communication involves the exchange of information within the organization (Kaul 7). It occurs between the business management and organization’s employees. External communication involves the exchange of