Nation Building Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Nation Building - Essay Example To begin with, it is imperative to define nationalism. A force that is capable of rendering a national character to any uprising or event, nationalism is a phenomenon that permeates into the very core of a citizen's life. This has been studied in context of the book by Charles Tilly titled European Revolutions (1993) The hypothesis of this paper is the study of similarities and differences between UK, France and Russia as far as the aspects of the journey from revolution to nationalism is concerned, as discussed and hypothesized by Charles Tilly. These similarities and differences will be studied on the basis of the following three aspects: The basic hypothesis as put forth by Tilly throughout the book is that Europe is still in the making. Here, it is imperative to understand democracy so as to understand the ends of this journey and the point of the hypothesis. Democracy has been best defined as "of the people, for the people, by the people." It is a phenomenon that arises out of the various contextual realities that people represent in various walks of life as well as the socio economic strata of individual countries. To qualify as a democracy, a country must fulfil the following criteria: According to Tilly, Nationalism as a feature on any country's historical or cultural climate rises to the fore as a result of threats. It is only when confronted with a threat, does a country - made up of its people and their collective sentiments - wake up and recognise their strengths. This has been seen in the case of colonial expansion as followed by France and UK. These countries, with UK garnering maximum areas around the world by 1921, based their foreign policy of nationalism around colonization. France, in particular was a competitor for UK with its policy of colonization. These in effect become the strength of the nation and nationalism is born. (Tilly, 1993; P 10) In this way, nationalism is defined, anew; every time there is suffering followed subsequently by an upheaval. As a result of this, nationalism or nation building can be called dynamic concept. This is owing to the fact that its elements change with the changing times and the reasons for upheavals. (Elias, 2000) 2 The only thing constant about nationalism is its power to bind people together as a nation and the fact that it rises to prominence only in the face of adversity. In modern times, nationalism has become a matter of celebrating everything that a nation takes pride in. This includes independence days, art, literature, music and various other symbols that are a part of the national character as a whole - elements that remind nations of its past victories and present strengths. (Almond et al, 2001)3 Essentials of Revolution Tilly maintains that a revolution is a social movement. He argues that a social movement is one that is punctuated with a highly idealistic environment with realistic parameters that set the stage for immediate results and emergence of future trends that will go onto dominate the structure and functioning of that particular society for generations to come. (Tilly, 1993; Pp 47 - 48) Issues like principles, revolutionary change and personal strength and a search for identity of a group

Organizational Behavior Terminology and Concepts Essay

Organizational Behavior Terminology and Concepts - Essay Example Deal and Kennedy (1982) refer to organizational culture as ‘the way things get done around here’. There are several different forms of organizational culture. Some of them include Process culture, which involves little or no feedback-such cultures are charged for being too bureaucratic but they are also known to be effective and consistent for public services; Task culture, which involves different teams for different tasks; Person culture, which involves individuals performing tasks on their own and consider themselves superior to the organization-however organizations adopting this form of culture face problems as it drifts away from the ‘group’ idea of the culture. Change of culture is a difficult task and requires huge resource investments because it is intensely established in the experience and background of an organization. Often, it is advised to outsource help from specialists outside the organization. ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR Organizational behavior has different viewpoints. There are mainly three perspectives: modern, symbolic and postmodern. According to American academia there are micro and macro distinctions. Micro refers to individual and small organizational behavior. ... Studying organizational behavior is very interesting and challenging at the same time. It shows different results for different individuals. It is interesting to see how a person reacts under some situation and the other individual reacts differently under the same situation and to compare the two. In well-known organizations importance is given to this study as it shows how to improve the state within an organization and improving the output of the personnel. DIVERSITY The basic meaning of diversity is variety. Diversity can be anywhere in individual, religion, mind set, language, culture etc. Each individual is different. It’s important that we recognize them, accept them and commemorate them. Diversity basically creates balance in our society. Diversity is used immensely in financial field, it generally relates to managing financial assets and to put customer’s money in different stocks so as to get positive results. If there is some negativity in one company’ s share the client can get positive result from other thus balancing the loss. Overtime diversity has changed a lot. Long time ago it was used for black people in our societies but now it is being used as Asians, Latinos, Americans. Diversity management is really important in an organization to keep the workers of any color, caste or creed or from different faith or religion collectively in one environment with peace and tranquility. We can’t ignore the role of diversity in our world but the important step is to take it positively and try to ignore the negative impacts of it. This is the only way we can make this world a better place. COMMUNICATION Communication or effective communication is the exchange of information between people or groups. It

Problems That Face Asians In English Pronunciation English Language Essay

Problems That Face Asians In English Pronunciation English Language Essay Speaking regarded as the most important and difficult micro-skill of the four skills in foreign language learning. Most adult non-native students of English in the UK particularly Asian students face a lot of difficulties when they speak English and they sometimes get frustrated when they could not understand or be understand by native speakers of English. Therefore, they encounter the same problems that confront any students studying in a foreign culture, such as grammar, pronunciation, listening comprehension and different cultures. Also, it is difficult for them to adjust to the English language especially when they speak it. They may have difficulty understanding class lecture, making them feel reluctant to participate in class discussion, seminars and tutorials. This essay will first explain and evaluate only one issue that face adult Asian students in UK when they speak English which is English pronunciation. Therefore, pronunciation is a difficult aspect in language learning f or adult Asian students which lead to real barriers to communication and can contribute to motivation with native English speakers. This essay also will examine what are the most frequent difficulties encountered them in English pronunciation, the factors that affecting the pronunciation of non native students of English , some solutions to surmount the difficulties of mispronunciation among Asian adult students and finally it will throw some light on the implications of language teaching. Literature review: Teachers of English as a FL or a L2 know so well how important pronunciation is. Nevertheless, sometimes it has been obvious that a teacher has been paid little attention to the students pronunciation in the process of second language learning and teaching. Celce Goodain(1991) states that over the past years, there have been different views about the value of teaching pronunciation in language teaching and they reported that the cognitive approach and grammar translation reading based method which used by teachers attach no importance to pronunciation. However, in the direct approach, pronunciation is considered important. In addition, Jack and William (2002) reported that pronunciation is no longer considered as an indispensable aspect in a foreign language teaching. According to Beebe (1984,51), `Most current textbooks in English as a second language either ignore the teaching of pronunciation or rely primarily on old stand-bys-to teach non-native learners to pronounce English accurately. Trammell (1993) also indicates that instruction in pronunciation has been deemphasised due to the new teaching methods like the Communicative Approach. Communication is an important need of in daily life and it should be the primary purpose of language learning and teaching . Therefore, teaching English speaking to non-native students of English how to speak English accurately and fluently with native speakers of English is one of the general objectives of the foreign language teaching. According to Yule (2006: 33), language is primarily speech and it is more basic to language than the written form. Knowles (1987) argue that written language is permanent and looks imperfect version of the spoken language whereas spoken Language is more elusive. It is clear that we all speak and hear the sounds spoken in our environment first before we write or read. For instance, child before goes to school, he will speak before write because he will acquire his first Language from his family when he imitates what they said. It is seem that as long as one can communicate with others in the second language, everything is fine but the questions is ,how can communicate with people fluently if your pronunciation is incorrect? Beebe (1984) insists that pronunciation always affect what we communicate and how well we communicate it, and therefore it should be take seriously. Weeren Theunissen(1987: 109) pointed out: Firstly, good pronunciation allows one to be better understood. It gives the speakers oral production a certain redundancy. And this can help to get a message across more effectively as a learning objective because of it is high pay off. The number of sound, sound clusters and intonation pattern in a Language is finite, as is the alphabet. Once the system has been mastered, it can be used, thus giving it fundamentally an infinite scope. Thirdly, a deviant pronunciation means that one is immediately marked as non-native abroad. Harmer (2007) suggests that if students want to be able to speak fluently in English, they need to be able pronounce phonemes correctly and appropriate stress and intonation. Pronunciations of students need to be good enough to communicate the message so that it is understood by other speakers of English. Therefore, most Asian adult students have difficulties to pronounce words or sentences correctly which can be a major cause of misunderstandings. They have difficulties in recognize sound of English, word stress( which part of a word are more heavily stressed that is spoken louder and longer), sentence stress( which part of a sentence can be more heavily stressed), sounds in connected speech( how to link the sounds together in a sentence),and finally in intonation(how our voice rises and falls at a certain point of the sentence).From my own experience as a teacher in a secondary school, most students have potential pronunciation problems when they speak English. They have problem wi th stress and intonation that they unable to put the right emphasis on the right part of the word. Also they have problems with vowels bends and consonants blends as well. For example, sounds likeea and ou can be confusing them because when they listen to the audio recordings, it can be very difficult for them to pick up the subtle blends of two or more vowels. Additionally, In consonants blends, they have problem with th sound because they are not accustomed to putting t and h together to form th sound to reproduce. It is clear that pronunciation is so difficult to learn. The first language of most overseas students effect on learning the second language. Problems that face Asian students in English pronunciation: Most Asian adult students work and study hard to become very fluent in English. However, there are many different varieties of spoken English and non-native students may have achieved fluency such as knowing correct grammar and knowing a large numbers of vocabulary especially when they have been taught by non-native speakers but they have a non-standard accent which make the use of English difficult for native speakers of English to understand. Vowels Celce-Murcia, Brinton and Goodwin (1996) states there are different types of vowel sounds in English pronunciation. Firstly, received pronunciation. It has twelve monophthongs (single or pure vowels).Secondly, eight diphthongs (double vowels) and two thriphthongs (triple vowels).therefore, some of in Asian students like Arabices , Japanese and Chinese have fewer vowels in their first Language which lead to have problems with hearing and pronouncing these distinctions of vowel sounds. For example, Japanese language has only 5 vowels /i/,/e/,/a/,/É‘/,/o/. According to, Kenworthy(1987) there are five vowels letters which are (a, e, i, o, u) .They map to 13 different sounds. For instance, the letter is pronounced differently in the words: boat, boot, out and hot. This is one of the problems that encountered by Asian adult students in pronunciation subject. They have problem with the /a/ sound (e.g. at) because it is not easy for them to hear and pronounce this sound. Also, they could not differentiate between the long sound/a/ and the sound/e/ (e.g. paper-pepper).They also have problems in differentiating between the long/e/ and the short /i/ (e.g. eat-it). Furthermore, diphthongs in English are difficult to learn and definitely tribal markers in English. .They are also very easy for native speakers of English to identify but not easy for non-native speakers of English. So, speech sounds which involve a slide from one vowel to another is the biggest problem which face Asian adult students when they speak English. For example, theou sound in the word out is a blend of /ah/ and /oo/. Several of diphthongs are quiet subtle .For instant the long /ee/ sound in the words feel and fear is a blend of /ee/ and /ah/ as (fee-ah). Celce-Murcia , Brinton and Goodwin ( 1996 ) 2- Consonants Kota(2006) stats that English consonants are less difficult than vowels. Most languages have the sounds which are represented by the letters d, t, s, and z .Nevertheless, some languages do not use certain consonants which can be difficult for non-native speakers of English. For examples, the r and l sounds are not used by Japanese and Korean native speakers. Then, the so- called ra-la distinction is especially difficult for them. They have also difficulty to distinguish between /b/ and /v/ sounds. The /th/ sound is not simply to use it in the naÃÆ' ¯ve language. It can be difficult for Vietnamese students. Therefore, they substitue a /zh/ instead of /th/ as in: /zh/ese problems may be caused by pollution. Also, he adds that there are more consonants in English than in Japanese language .Therefore, the /f/, /v/ /o/, A/, /s/,/3/,/ts/,/d3/ do not exist in the Japanese consonantal system. In addition, Munro((1993) states that some Arabic language do not make use of separate sounds for /b/ and/p/.then, they have difficulty to distinguishing and pronouncing b and p sounds as in : do not bark while I park the van. The difference is quite subtle. They may confuse z withj .These problems cause misunderstanding by native English speakers when they communicate with each other From my own experience as a Libyan student at Leicester University in the UK, I had a car accident in university road because the weather was slippery and snowing which cause that the brake of my car was out of the control. After that the police came to me and asked me some questions about the accident. I said to him I feel slippery. The problem here, the police wrote in the report driver feel asleep but he did not write what I said I feel slippery .I think that was a misunderstanding between the police and me because of my language. He misunderstand me because of his linguistic constraints particularly his heavily -accented English. Other problems which face Asian adult students, is dropping medical stopped consonants. Some of them tend o drop stopped consonants such as, sounds /p/ and /k/ from the middle of poly syllabic words. For example, Chinese students tend to drop the difficult c from the word of success. They say/ suhsess/.Also, some native speaker of English pronounce the word accessory as/ assess or ee/ instead of / ack-sess-or-ee/.(Dalton,1994) Syllable structure: According to Joanna Heather (2003), English allows for in syllable structure a cluster of up to three consonants before the vowel and four consonants after the vowel as in the words straw and glimpsed. Therefore, the structure of syllabus cause issues for speakers of many languages. For instance, Japanese students usually try to in between the consonants (e.g. desk-/desks/) becomes desukusu or in the word milk shake / mIlk ʃeIk/ becomes mirukushȆ¡ku.Kota(2006) there are two types of syllable in English which are open syllables( CV) and closed syllables( CCCVCC).On the other hand, Japanese only permit one type of syllable which is open syllable. For example, Word meaning syllable Ke hair CV Kare boyfriend CVCV So, Words in Japanese do not end with consonants and it Japanese does not allow both initial and final consonants. Knowles (1987) maintains that some Asian students who first languages end in vowels, they often tend to make all English words end in vowels. For example, they pronounce the word make as /meIkÉâ„ ¢ / instead of/ meIk/. Also, they sometimes find it is so complicated when native speakers of English may drop consonants in the more complex blends (e.g. the word months, they say /mɆ¦nÉ µs/ instead of / mɆ¦nos/. 4-Rhythm and Cadence: Brown (2001: 121) pointed out that cadence is the pattern of stresses within a sentence and rhythm refers to the beat syllabus. If each one were marked by tapping fingers on a desk: rat a-tat-tat-tat TAT of this. He adds that the main issue that trips up Asian adult students that British English are stress timed whereas most Asian languages are syllable timed. Stressed syllables are roughly equidistant in time and they like the sound of the mechanical tat-tat-tat-tat of gun machine with equal length to each syllable. However, native English speakers stretch syllables at the same time like putting emphasis on some syllables and not others. For instance,hi. Wonderful to see u again .They say this sentence like this hiiiii woooood fl to seeeeeee yu agaiaiainn. This mean, won- see- gain is both emphasized and lengthened but other syllabuses in the sentence are so lightly and shortened spoken. According to Kota (2006), stress time in English is one of the problem that encounter Asian students particularly for Singaporeans students. They speak in the way which is very difficult for English speakers to understand. 5- Intonation Roach, (2002: 50) defines intonation as the rising or falling pitch of the voice while pronouncing words or syllables. He believes that intonation enables speakers to express their emotions and attitudes when they speak. The most problematic area of pronunciation for most Asian students is intonation. They find it extremely difficult to hear tunes or identify the different patterns of rising and falling tones. Therefore, some Asian languages have less pitch variation than English especially Japanese language.They use pith changes to mark stress on the word level which result the so-called monotonous intonation. Wong(1987) suggests that English as a tonal language(not using tones).We can understand the words in isolation but if we put them together in sentences, the meaning of the sentence may change by a shift in tone. For example, Are you going to the library?(low-then-high on word library) but if u wondered which of two persons agreed to get the list of books, the same words would have a different emphasis Are you going to the library?, and the tone for you would be rather deep which is different from the first question. Jack and Willy (2002) introduce other problems in English pronunciation .Firstly, difference between spelling and sounds. There are lots of words in English language which have silent letters. Therefore, most Asian students specifically Pakistani students pronounce these silent letters unknowingly which make them mispronounce the words. For example, knowledge, kneel .These two word have k silent letter which they should not pronounce it at all. Secondly, multiple sounds of the same letters are also one of the issues that encounter Asian adult students. This mean there are many letters and combinations of letters which produce numerous sounds at different place. For instance, the letter c produces two sounds like s and k (e.g. circle, car) and also ch letter produce three sounds as ch,k andsh. Factors affecting the English pronunciation of Asian students: The effect of native language: Every language in the world has different accent and varsities is true that non native speakers speak the target language in a different way. Sometimes, they speak highly different than native speakers of English do. Avery Ehrlich (1987:9) calls the foreign accent the nature of which is determined to a large extended by a learners native language. Then, native language of speaker may influence on the pronunciation of the target language. Jack and Willy(2002: 184) states that the way we speak is a part of our identity ,that is, phonemic differences between language cause, a target language which will be spoken with a foreign language. Some Asian students specifically Turkish adult students have difficulty in some English sounds or words that are not exist in their first language. For example, the sounds/ÃÆ' °/ and / ÆÅ ¸/ are not exist in Turkish language which lead Turkish students to face difficulty to pronounce these sounds when they speak English. So they produce these sou nds under the influence of their first language. Then, the influence of native language is inevitable. 2-The factor of age: This is the most important factor in learning English pronunciation. If someone wants to pronounce a foreign language with a native like accent, he/she should start to learn it during his/her childhood. For example, children who start learn English language in foreign language speaking people environment. As a result, they have more advantage than the children who learn the second language in their motherlands. Krashen (1988) mentions that people who expose their second language during childhood, they achieve higher foreign language proficiency than those who beginning as adults. It seems that age is the main factor which effect on adults English pronunciation. They are difficult for them to learn English language after puberty. Therefore, it is better to learning it in short run and should be started in puberty. Phonetic Ability: According to Jack and Willy (2002) pointed out that some people who have a good ear, they have the ability to discriminate between the two sounds accurately. So, learners phonetics ability affects the development of their pronunciation. Kenworthy(1987) believes that the influence of age is an efficient factor for phonetics ability. Because it is so difficult for adult students to have more ability in pronunciation than immigrants children who start their learning process in a second language speaking environment. 3-The Amount Exposure: Many non native speakers have not opportunity to practice the English language in their motherlands. English also do not only used in the classroom. If the learners live in an English- speaking country, the learners will have opportunities to listen and speak with native speakers of English. Conversely, there will no advantage for learners if they live in a non English speaking country. Kenworthy (1987) insists that exposure can be a contributory factor but it is not necessary factor for developing adult learners pronunciation. Learners should make use of it is opportunities, if they are aware of the necessity of being exposed to the second language. If the learners do that, they will be more successful in case of improving their pronunciation. 5- Personality and Attitude This factor affect the pronunciation of most Asian adult students in a bad way if the learners have negative attitudes for the English environment .learners or they are introverted students. From my own experience as a student in the UK, I am one of the students who are introverted or shy. Therefore, I usually do not take part in classroom activities; seminars and tutorials .Whereas extrovert students have more chance to improve their pronunciation. Brown (2001) states attitude of the students toward the new language have an effective role in pronunciation learning. Also, if the learners have a good attitude for the target culture, they can develop their pronunciation accurately. If the learners have some prejudices on the second language and its society, this event will influence their approach to the language. It is clear that these above factors are effective in the learners pronunciation and also exert much influence on the adult learners. So, teachers play a significant role for helping adult learners to develop their English pronunciation. Also, they should pay attention to the students concern for pronunciation because they are not aware of the way that they speech. Therefore there are lots of methods and types of teaching English pronunciation which help Asian adult students to overcome the difficulties of it. They will also help them to acquire an accurate pronunciation and improve their speech. Solutions to surmount the difficulties of mispronunciation among Asian adult students:- Teaching pronunciation:- Jigsaw: Pennington (1996) maintains that jigsaw is a form of information gap. Students work in pairs or small group to exchange their information. They try to combine words with each other to create sentences. These sentences consist of words that the learners have difficulty to pronounce these words. For example, in the word rise which has the letters s that they must pronounce it as z and producing /raIz/ e.g. I was surprised that the raisings rise! B-Tongue Twister: This kind of activity helps adult Asian students to say difficult words and phrases so quickly. Celce-Murcia (1987:55) stress that there is a little transfer from practice to natural information. But, if it is needed and necessary, they can be used. Example: Paul piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. 2-Drilling Techniques There are lots of drills which helps adult Asian students to improve their English pronunciation. They are very useful for teaching the correct pronunciation of the words and sentences. A- Saturation drill Wong (1987) proposed it is vey suitable for all position of the problematic sound. For instance, the sound /s/ as a problem sound. It can be drilled in its three positions Initial media final See leasing peace Seem clinic purse Substitution drill Dalton (1994) says that this drill can be applied by substituting any sound instead of other sound. For instance,/t/ sound instead of /ÃŽÂ ¸/ and /d/ in place of /ÃÆ' °/( e.g. this is thin/tin.) It is clear that there are other ways helps learners to overcome difficulties of pronunciation .First, media which give to the students positive advantage especially when they watch standard English news channel like BBC. Second, is practice. Students should practise English with native speaker or non native speakers of English to improve their English speaking Conclusion: To sum up, teaching pronunciation is one of the important areas of foreign language teaching. Most overseas students especially Asian adult students encounter troubles when they try to communicate with native speakers of English. Then, communication should be the primary purpose of language learning and teaching. One crucial part of effective communication for Asian adult students to grasp is: comfortably intelligible pronunciation. They have certain difficulties such as produce correct sound and recognition of English sounds, understanding of stress and intonation, difference between spelling and sounds and other problems. Therefore, it should be studied in the early age (from puberty) to eliminate these problems and also to overcome the negative influence from the first language interference. Teachers must be a ware of the techniques which help students improve their pronunciation according to their age, ability, needs, attitudes and expectations. Count words (3200) Classroom Implications: Appendix I: Generally, pronunciation is really complicated process in foreign language teaching. There are some of sounds which have similar sounds but have different meanings. This can be causing much confusion to the learners. Therefore, most ESL students have problem with English pronunciation when they speak English. From my own experience as a teacher in Libyan secondary school, I used several ways to teach pronunciation which can be benefit all learners. Firstly, introducing phonemes .because the biggest problem that faces them is the distinguage between sounds. For example, in the words fat, mat, cat, sat, the letters /f/, /m/, /c/, /s/ are the phonemes which are the beginning letters of these words. Phoneme makes the distinct difference between similar words. After that, students listen and repeat these different sounds and then identify them. For the best result, I introduce phoneme in pairs. (e.g. the /f/ and/v/ sounds).They listen and speak them and also repeat simple words like( fat- vat)Secondly, practicing phonemes for making the sound accurately. I drew pronunciation diagrams on the blackboard because they help them to know how to hold the tongue and lips. For example, the sound /th/ in #the word this and thank. Anxiety is usually common among students when they lean pronunciation. Then, I usually use some verbal games such as, handclap rhythms and jazz charts which can help them to improve their speaking and relieve much of pressure. Appendix II: Students listen to audio recordings and they practice what they hear because recordings get them attuned to stress, intonation, pitch and phonological distinctions. For example: Listen and say what word you hear: is it from column (a) or column (b)? Some words are unusual. a b 1 Port Bought 2 Pack Back 3 True Drew 4 Fast Vast 5 Thank Than 6 East Easy 7 Please Pleasure 8 Ship Chip 9 Choke joke Appendix III Word stress and intonation Listen and mark the stressed syllable. Daughter- orbit-planet- computer- meaning- handle-homework- hospital derision. 2-Read these sentences and mark the pauses with / and mark the intonation pattern with à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Å". 1- People who look different from others in some way are interesting. 2- The one who looks bored is my sister. 3- The latest design, with CD player is very expensive. 4-A tidy, conventionally decorated room with everything in its place is boring.

Two Views of War in Poetry Essay -- War Propaganda Society Essays

Two Views of War in Poetry Nothing can impact society like war. War can be viewed as noble and just, or cruel and inhuman, as well as everything in between. War can make a man a hero, or it can make him a criminal. War affects everyone in society whether they are fighting in the trenches or waiting at home for a loved one to return. War has been the topic of countless pieces of literature, in the poem 'Dulce et Decorum Est,' by Wilfred Owen and the poem 'To Lucasta, on Going to the Wars,' by Richard Lovelace, both show two very different sides to war. Wilfred Owen, who fought in The First World War, tells a tale of the reality of war from the trenches. He cuts though the propaganda to show war for what it is to a young soldier, cruel and dark and unmerciful. He describes ...

Indigo Book and Music Essay

Q1 When two organizations merge what type of structure issues doyou think might need to addressed?When Reisman was made a task to merging two organizations intoone, Indigo and Chapter both had similar organizational structure -afunctional based design.Indigo’s corporate structure, for instance consisted of departmentssuch as marketing, human resources, and retail. However, the neworganization suddenly had 90 big- box stores and close to 7,000employees. Moreover, with the take over, Indigo gained control of thenation wide.So when these two types’ organizations merge they can chose therecustomers and product mix and the assets which they have combined,the resources and the common functions which they have. They alsoset staffing numbers and decide salary levels. All customers, privateand corporate, no matter what size, are the responsibility of a localbranch. That means that even a large global customer such as Volvo ismanaged by a branch office. However, a branch office â€Å"buy in† specialist services it may need in servicing important customers likeVolvo. Each branch manger is also responsible for branch performance,which is measured by ratio of costs divided by revenues, and all thebanks branches are benchmarked against each other. if a branch startsunderperforming the regional office will offer advice and examples of what other branches have done. And to stop predatory competitionbetween its own branches, the company has set strict geographicalboundaries. Q2 What role do you think organizational structure plays in anorganization’s efficiency and effectiveness?Organizational structure is the formal arrangements of jobs within anorganization. When mangers develop or change the structure they’reengaged in organizational design. The challenge for managers is todesign an organizational structure that allows employees to effectivelyand efficiently do their work.

Jonathan Rhys Meyers

Jonathan Rhys Meyers Jonathan Rhys Meyers was born Jonathan Michael Francis O'Keeffe in Dublin, Ireland, the son of Geraldine Meyers and musician John O'Keeffe. His stage name is derived from his mother's maiden name, Meyers. Rhys Meyers was born with a serious heart problem and was baptized shortly after his birth, as it was feared he would not survive long enough for a traditional baptism ceremony. He spent the first few months of his life in the hospital. Born in Dublin, he moved to Cork City at one year old and was raised there. He has three younger brothers named Jamie, Alan and Paul, who are all professional musicians. When Rhys Meyers was three years old, his parents separated. His mother raised Jonathan and his brother Alan, while his other two brothers went to live at their grandmother's house with their father. Career Rhys Meyers was expelled from the North Monastery Secondary School at age 16, and spent much of his time hanging out in pool halls, namely the Victoria Sporting Club on Patrick's Quay and the Coliseum Leisure Centre on McCurtain Street. Casting agents looking for Irish boys to appear in War of the Buttons spotted Rhys Meyers at a Cork pool hall, the Victoria Sporting Club, and invited him to audition. Although he was passed over for War of the Buttons, the casting agents encouraged him to pursue a career in acting. His first film role came soon afterward, in A Man of No Importance (1994). In 1996, he appeared in Michael Collins, as the title character's assassin. In 1999, he appeared in Ride with the Devil as psychopathic guerrilla fighter Pitt Mackeson. Rhys Meyers has starred in television series including Gormenghast (2000) and in the CBS 4-hour mini-series Elvis (2005) as Elvis Presley alongside Randy Quaid as Colonel Tom Parker and Rose McGowan as Ann-Margret. The latter earned him an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe win. He is currently starring in the Showtime cable series The Tudors (2007) as the young Henry VIII. He was nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Television Drama in 2007 for the role. His film roles range from a David Bowie-inspired glam rock star in Velvet Goldmine (1998) to a dedicated girls' football coach in Bend It Like Beckham (2002). He appeared in Vanity Fair (2004) opposite with Reese Witherspoon. His co-starred opposite with Colin Farrell in Oliver Stone's epic Alexander (2004). In 2005, Rhys Meyers starred in Woody Allen's film Match Point, for which he received a Chopard Trophy at the Cannes Film Festival. In 2006, he appeared in Mission: Impossible III. Other projects include August Rush (2007) and The Children of Huang Shi (2008). He is rumored to be appearing in Danny Glover's Haitian epic Toussaint (2008) and signed on to star as Lee Falk's comic strip hero Mandrake the Magician in an upcoming movie directed by Chuck Russell. Upcoming projects include Shelter, co-starring Julianne Moore, and From Paris With Love, co-starring John Travolta. He also has several films in pre-production, including Mary Mother of Christ and Mandrake, both set for release in 2010. Rhys Meyers, a self-taught singer and guitarist, has appeared in a number of musical roles. His first such role was that of rock star Brian Slade in Velvet Goldmine; two of the songs he sang (â€Å"Baby's On Fire† and â€Å"Tumbling Down†) are on the film's soundtrack. He sang briefly in the TV miniseries version of The Magnificent Ambersons, performed in studio scenes of the miniseries Elvis and played the flute in Gormenghast. In the 2007 music drama August Rush, Rhys Meyers performed on-screen as singer-songwriter Louis Connelly and is credited for four songs on the soundtrack – â€Å"Break†, â€Å"Moondance†, â€Å"Something Inside† and â€Å"This Time†. Of the four, â€Å"This Time† and â€Å"Break† were considered in the Best Original Song category of the 80th Academy Awards. â€Å"This Time† was not released as a single but peaked at #84 of the Canadian Hot 100. Rhys Meyers was chosen as the face for the Versace men's collection of Autumn/Winter 2006 and Spring 2007, and he has also been the face of the Hugo Boss men's fragrance range since 2005. Currently, Rhys Meyers is the face of Hugo Boss' newest fragrence, HUGO Element. He is signed to Independent Models in London. In February 2008, he became a celebrity ambassador for The Hope Foundation. This Cork-based charity aims to provide shelter and supplies to Calcutta's impoverished street children. Rhys Meyers hopes that lending his name to the organization will help raise awareness of the issue. As Ambassador he is expected to visit India and record a TV documentary for the charity. On 5 October 2008, Rhys Meyers received an Honourary Patronage from the Trinity College Philosophical Society in Dublin, Ireland. Interestingly, he has played the father of both Freddie Highmore (in August Rush) and Sarah Bolger (on The Tudors); Bolger and Highmore played siblings in The Spiderwick Chronicles film. [edit] Personal life Rhys Meyers owns houses and apartments in Nichols Canyon, Dublin, London and Morocco, splitting his time between Los Angeles and London when not working. He also owns a horse named Belle and a Chihuahua named Boo Boo. In May 2005, Rhys Meyers checked into rehab facility Promises in California seeking treatment for alcohol abuse. On 24 April 2007, the Associated Press reported that Rhys Meyers returned to treatment. The actor's representative Meredith O'Sullivan confirmed the news to People magazine citing his need to take a break from his busy schedule in order to maintain sobriety. On 18 November 2007, Rhys Meyers was arrested in Dublin Airport and charged with being drunk and in breach of the peace. He was later released on bail to appear at the Dublin District Court on 5 December 2007. He was in Dublin to promote his new movie August Rush on the Irish television programme Tubridy Tonight. The charges were later dropped. On 27 February 2009, the actor checked into rehab a third time, seeking help for his alcohol addiction. Rhys Meyers was believed to be in an English treatment facility this time. He checked out on 15 March 2009. On 20 June 2009, Rhys Meyers was arrested after allegedly attacking a number of staff at a bar in Charles de Gaulle airport, Paris and then threatening to kill them. He was bailed to appear before magistrates on charges of â€Å"willful violence, outrage, hitting and threatening death†, and will appear before the Correctional Tribunal in Bobigny, in September 2009.

The American Liberty Elm - Overview

The American Liberty Elm - Overview American Liberty Elm : The state tree of both Massachusetts and North Dakota, American elm is a beautiful tree but subject to getting a serious disease called Dutch elm disease or DED. The good news is that resistant tree strains are starting to improve the American elms situation. Elm Research Institute (ERI) has developed on of the best, called the American Liberty Elm, and offers matching grants to groups who want to plant the tree. Habit and Range: American elm is one of the most popular of urban shade trees. This tree was planted along downtown city streets for decades. The tree has had major problems with Dutch elm disease and has until now been out of favor when considered for urban tree planting. In North America, American elm attains medium to large tree status and grows 60 to 80 tall. American elm occupies one of the largest north-south ranges in North America - from Canada to Florida. Enter Elm Research Institute (ERI): A new matching tree grant program has been announced by Elm Research Institute (ERI), a nonprofit organization based in Keene, NH. This unique, community-oriented promotion features disease-resistant American Liberty Elms which are the only street proven, purebred, native American elms with a lifetime warranty against Dutch elm disease. This warrenty is backed by ERI. About ERIs American Liberty Elm Grant: How the Matching Tree Grant Program works:For every inch of caliper purchased in trees 3 inch caliper and larger, ERI will donate one 1 inch or 2 inch caliper tree for planting on public property.Your Options:(A) For every inch of caliper purchased in trees Size No. 3 or larger ERI will donate an equal total in Sizes No. 1 or No. 2 trees to be presented as a gift to your municipality for planting on public property.(B) You purchase (4)trees of any size and get {1) tree free. Says the Founder of ERI: “Liberty elms have become extremely popular with new home owners, builders, landscape architects, developers and contractors” says John P. Hansel, Founder of ERI. “We will extend the Matching Tree Grant Program to those who are specifying and planting American Liberty Elms.” Why Plant American Liberty Elms?: The American Liberty Elm has shown superior resistance to disease fungus inoculations over successive years, says ERI. The elm has had more than 20 years of street testing, growing in communities where Dutch elm disease is present. In an ultimate field test, losses among the over 300,000 trees planted have been less than 1 per cent. With more elms now on the market claiming resistance, you need to inquire about the origin and track record of any elm you are considering says Hansel. Why Plant an American Elm?: The American Elm displays a classic elm form, and is perfect for many landscape designs, including elm-lined drives, elm groves and specimen elms. As an elms matures, it displays wide canopies to heights that afford clear views of the architectural details of buildings and deep shade for people to enjoy.A favorite of Fredrick Law Olmsted, the American elm was included in his plans for the U.S. Capitol grounds, New York Citys Central Park and other projects. More on the Matching Tree Grant Program: For more information about the Matching Tree Grant Program, phone Elm Research Institute at 1-800-367-3567 (FOR-ELMS), online at www.landscapeelms.com or write Elm Research Institute, 11 Kit St, Keene, NH 03431. Individuals may also get a free 2-3 ft. tree with a $45 membership. Expert Comments on Elms: It is massive, long lived, tough, easy to grow, adaptable and blessed with an arching, wine-glass-like silhouette, making it the perfect street tree. - Guy Sternberg, Native Trees for North American LandscapesMost trees find life an ongoing struggle, but elms have been through a singular hell.- Arthur Plotnik, The Urban Tree BookFrom a pragmatic viewpoint, it is difficult to recommend this species because of the disease problem. If the newer, resistant selections prove successful, then I would consider planting...- Michael Dirr, Dirrs Hardy Trees and Shrubs

261 Intro to Am Literature since 1945 Professor Ramos Blog

261 Intro to Am Literature since 1945 Intro to American Literature since 1945 Intro to American Literature since 1945 1069 – 1086 Intro New Readers, New Writers, New Heroes Literature and American Media Experiment and Play in Twentieth- and Twenty-First-Century Literature Literature Now Modernism vs Postmodernism Modernism Postmodernism Difference between Modernism and Postmodernism

Barriers and solutions to international trade

Barriers and solutions to international trade INTRODUCION This essay provides an overview of the barriers to international trade faced by economies today with examples of barriers faced in various countries, and their solutions. International trade promotes high standard of living for trading nations and hence, despite its various ill effects, it is best to practice international trade as it provides economic and social benefits to economies bringing about an upturn in global economy. This essay attempts to bring to light, the general barriers international trade faces presently and its solutions with recent examples. INTERNATIONAL TRADE: AN INTRODUCTION Trade among countries has existed for a long period now. The trade between Asia and Europe marks this fact as Morrison (2006, pp.314-315) examines that these two continents have engaged in Trade since a long period. He also suggests that with time, international trade has come a long way as far as volume and patterns of trade between nations is concerned. Morrison (2006) has re ferred to figures by the World Trade Organisation (2004, cited in International Trade Statistics 2003, World Trade Developments 2002) from the official website of the WTO that Asia’s share of global merchandise exports has gradually increased, Northern America’s share has slightly decreased and Western Europe’s share has recovered from a downfall in 2001, but not as much as it did in 1990. Morrison further suggests, from 2000 to 2002, China’s exports and imports rose by 30 per cent and today, China is one of the world’s largest traders. Therefore, we may note that International trade plays a very essential role in globalization trends in the world economy. UNDERSTANDING ‘TRADE PROTECTIONISM’ Protectionism is †The deliberate use or encouragement of restrictions on imports to enable relatively inefficient domestic producers to compete successfully with foreign producers, or to protect and preserve those industries and producers con sidered of critical national interest.† (McCracken, 2005) Coughlin et al (1988) state that Protectionist Trade Policies are meant to improve the position of domestic products as compared to its foreign equivalents, and that this may be done through various policies – by increment of the market price of the foreign product or by barring access of foreign products to the domestic market. They explain that protectionist trade policies aim to expand domestic production in the protected industries for the benefit of the owners, suppliers and workers of the protected industry. However this may lead to a downturn in the consumption of protected goods due to either associated rise in its price or consumers start using less of other goods as a result of the decline in outputs and increase in prices. Coughlin et al hence, argue that domestic consumers are said to be impaired as the price of the protected goods keep increasing. Hence, imposing of tariffs lead to domestic producers ’ and the government’s gain, while domestic consumers’ and other domestic producers’ loss. These trade policies also affect foreign interests. ‘FREE TRADE’ & ITS THEORIES Free Trade is †trade between nations that is unhampered by Government constraints such as tariffs, restrictions, and other barriers.† (Financial Times Limited, 2009) Theory of Absolute Advantage

Movie review and analysis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

And analysis - Movie Review Example The film is splendid visually beginning from the costumes, sets, Mississippi location and the props. The FBI agents according to Bradford (1965) were not anywhere close to heroes and the civil rights activists; it was solely because of the social movement by the black Americans that the struggle succeeded as they took their destiny in their own hands and not because the paternalistic figures of white authority rescued them. This film practically dramatizes the death of the three civil rights activists. In the process of investigating the murders, the two FBI agents cajole and charms their way into the lips of the Mississippi residents. They solve the this murder case via exerting some influence on a worker in a beauty parlor, McDormand Frances, who wants to revenge the beatings she received from her husband, Brad Dourif, who happens to be connected to the Klan. The movie implicates that the social movement may not have attained a momentum without the white participants. Almost half o f the movie is taken up with various scenes of flame and smoke. The death of the three civil rights activists and the investigations make show how the social movement is part of the whole script. ... Majority of the debates in the film is focused on the disagreements in portraying the key events in history of the civil rights movement. The presentation of the white southern women and men, the determination of the FBI agents to fight for the cause of the civil rights, and the depiction of the process of capturing those who were at fault of the murder of the civil rights activists by the two FBI agents were the major focus of the debates in the film. In the film, I learned that the civil rights movement was purposely created to fight the racial discrimination in Mississippi of the black Americans. The movement emerged due to the consistent discrimination and violation of the civil rights of the blacks. The fight went on during the year 1964, until June the 21st when three civil rights activists were murdered by the Ku Klux Klan. The FBI agents were assigned to investigate the murders and this gave the black Americans hopes of continuing with the fight against discrimination. The ci vil rights movement first emerged in Mississippi and has spread all over the United States. As stated earlier, racial discrimination led to the emergence of this social movement by the black Americans. The major goal for the campaign of the civil rights movement was to eliminate the discrimination of the blacks and sell the idea that all people are supposed to be treated equally and with equity in as much as events and resources are concerned. The story of the movie surrounds the murder of the civil rights activists. The two FBI agents sent to Mississippi for investigation of the murder by the Ku Klux Klan enforced the social movement. The two agents agreed on the objective of the investigation, but they had constant disagreement on the methods and mechanism of how to best attain their

The Cost of War How Government Can Strategically Reduce the Cost of Essay

The Cost of War How Government Can Strategically Reduce the Cost of War - Essay Example Now, it has been unanimously concluded that wars do much damages than it do the goods. The huge costs involved in wars put heavy strain on the state’s finances and jeopardize the future prosperity. The only solution to reduce the number of wars, if not stop wars at all, is to create an environment of global peace and tranquility. In this regard, all the parties involved, such as the governments and the global populations have to unitedly play a proactive role to spread the message of peace and universal brotherhood. The history of human civilization is replete with innumerable wars, many of which were indeed colossus in nature and were incredibly costly. Though many wars waged earlier are credited with many remarkable developments for the humankind such as the rise of capitalism, breaking out from the oppressive rulers, creation of administrative state, repossession of own territory, class struggle etc., but at the same time these brutal wars have had imprinted their indelible adverse impact on the mankind also. The huge monetary costs apart, these wars resulted into loss of invaluable human lives, which cannot be measured or consoled through money. Wars also result into inestimable demand on the scarce resources of the country. In modern times, it is believed in some quarters that wars benefit the economies of the first world countries which are rich to begin with, or countries which initiated the war. Again, it is believed in some other quarters that wars do not necessarily benefit the develo ped countries, rather wars can sometimes make these countries worse off. Whatsoever, it is undeniable that wars involve some costs such as the cost of servicing army / military, costs of rebuilding destroyed areas, human costs, environmental costs, etc. It is not easy to quantify these costs involved in wars, but the states can definitely adopt some

Misuse of DNA in Homicide Cases Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Misuse of DNA in Homicide Cases - Dissertation Example Law enforcers and the justice system had a breakthrough when DNA profiling was discovered and applied in law enforcement. This method was deemed more effective than other methods in terms of accuracy and efficiency. This is because it was difficult to disprove DNA, evidence since it places an individual in the scene of the crime. Fingerprints were equally effective, but they are easier to be corrupted and offenders have become knowledgeable with time, for example, they do not leave fingerprints behind in crime scenes. DNA, however, is hard to be corrupted, and it is difficult for and individual to conceal it, since DNA is present in tissues and fluids in the body of a person. Krude (2004) shows how DNA has changed the society and science since mitochondria DNA can be obtained from bones and teeth of an individual. Hypothesis Like any other breakthrough, there have been controversies, which have been raised regarding the misuse of DNA especially in homicide case, despite the fact that DNA of an individual is unique and could not match with others; individuals and law enforcement have misused the technology. Data Source and Method of Collection The data collected through holding surveys, which involved doing personal interviews on DNA specialist. Data was also collected through extensive research on existing literature discussing the subject. Variables We had two defendant variables, defensive and retaliatory violence. Defensive violence was measured through identifying two scenarios that involved Method of Analysis In the analysis process, statistical information including graphs and figures were employed and were cross referenced with the information in the literature on DNA in law enforcement. Major findings DNA Sequencing The data collected by Culliford (1994), DNA refers to the genetic instructions vital for the function and development of all living organisms. DNA is unique in each personage with the exclusion of monozygotic twins. DNA profiling, however, i s the practice commonly employed by forensic scientists to make out the identity of individuals using their DNA profiles. I believe that these profiles are number sets that are encrypted to reflect an individual’s genetic makeup. This identification method is commonly employed in criminal investigations and paternity tests. This is effective since 99.9% of sequences in human DNA are dissimilar with the exception of monozygotic twins. It is crucial for one to understand the concept of DNA technologies in order to have a better insight on the use of DNA in criminology. History of DNA Profiling According to The technique of DNA, profiling was initially reported in 1984 at the University of Leister. This was through sir Alec Jefferys, a British geneticist who developed a method of DNA fingerprinting and profiling. It is evident that the scientist made this crucial discovery while observing the image of a DNA in an x-ray film. This image showed evidence of some similarities and di stinctions in DNA. He used samples of DNA from the different family members of his staff. This enabled him to determine a scope through which DNA fingerprinting could be used to identify individuals using this method. Despite the method being discovered in 1984, it was made commercially available three years later. In the article,

News Media Comparison Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

News Media Comparison - Assignment Example o curb the effects of these chemicals on the environment, companies involved in these mining prospects have created lakes where this water is collected and recycled (Bisset, n. p.). Recycling requires extra time and resources, which these companies try to minimize by storing the waste chemicals in lakes. Most of the flow back is pumped into exhausted wells, but it is mostly liked to leach to aquifers and surface waters. Fracking might disrupt radioactive elements and gases that might leach up to the surface and harm people and environment (Dembicki, n. p.). Corporate media like the CTV News’ report that the benefits of natural gas shale mining through the Fracking method’s advantages outweigh the disadvantages. This is in terms of job creation, consistent and steady supply of natural gas for next 100 years, and the income it will generate in terms of savings accrued from expenditure on fuel imports (Bisset, n. p.). The minister, for energy and mines, is quoted advocatin g for natural gas mining using the Fracking process, saying that all it requires is gradual integration of both conservative and avant-garde approaches to both environmental protection and the economic potential of natural gas shale mining (Bisset, n. p.). The framing of the news lays emphasis on the positive impact of the proposed and continued natural gas mining prospects are going to have a long lasting effect on the economies and lives of the people (Krugel, n. p.). This brings to fore the argument that is forwarded by those who are advocating for the continued exploration and mining of natural gas. Their arguments are focused on improving the livelihoods through the creation and acquisition of jobs, and how these mining ventures help in improving the ailing economies of towns and provinces where... This essay approves that alternative media provides complimentary information to that provided by the mainstream media or corporate media. It does this by being different in their delivery of information through varying dimensions of content, models of production, distribution, dynamic artistry and target audience integration. Alternative media’s main objective is to mitigate the effects of existing authorities, like governments and corporations that run the mainstream media, by representing the plight of the marginalized, in society. Although both types of media are bias, alternative media claims that its bias is different from that of corporate media because of their values and overall objective of agitating for the common man’s well being. This paper aims at comparing these two types of media by analysing how they handle a specific current issue in Canada. This report makes a conclusion that the focus on the negative environmental impacts of Fracking, in Canada, is not highlighted as much as it should, but the only mention of the environment is what the government will do, and measures it intends put, in place. There is no mention of what people should do to protect themselves against the harmful effects associated with frack mining. The sources used, in their reporting on this issue, are those that are benefitting from the ongoing mining operations because all their expositions, on the matter, are focused on the positives associated with continued mining activities without focusing on the effects of mining on the environment. Sources from the ministry of environment that would have highlighted the plight of sensitive ecosystems at risk of destruction and its contribution to global warming are not included in their articles.

A letter to the shop personnel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A letter to the shop personnel - Essay Example Assistance was to be provided then in the solution implementation, and improvement monitoring. The time line for the measurement phase was two weeks, with each of the following phases taking a week. In the initial phase, it was found data flow was slower than expected, with workers in the team claiming lack of time to utilize the tools. The involvement of the shop management was sought, as the means to persuade the workers to use the tools. Management pressure resulted in the desired flow of data, but the data did not provide any sensible findings. The tools worked fine, and the workers were trained in their use. So the data had to be flawed. Time was also running out. This strong resistance from workers in the team was unexpected, and the challenge faced. I realized that the solution to the challenge lay in obtaining cooperation from the workers in the team, rather than compliance. For this an understanding of the reasons for lack of cooperation was required. This led to talks with shop employees on their perspective of our engagement, which concluded in our finding that despite their respect for us, they feared loss of jobs. To resolve the problem I realized that the shop employees needed to be convinced of our mission, which was increasing their efficiency. Increased efficiency would lead to more jobs rather than retrenchment. Working with the researchers in the team, three actions were initiated. The first action involved the writing of a letter to the shop personnel informing them that they were in fact assisting.

Misuse of DNA in Homicide Cases Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Misuse of DNA in Homicide Cases - Dissertation Example Law enforcers and the justice system had a breakthrough when DNA profiling was discovered and applied in law enforcement. This method was deemed more effective than other methods in terms of accuracy and efficiency. This is because it was difficult to disprove DNA, evidence since it places an individual in the scene of the crime. Fingerprints were equally effective, but they are easier to be corrupted and offenders have become knowledgeable with time, for example, they do not leave fingerprints behind in crime scenes. DNA, however, is hard to be corrupted, and it is difficult for and individual to conceal it, since DNA is present in tissues and fluids in the body of a person. Krude (2004) shows how DNA has changed the society and science since mitochondria DNA can be obtained from bones and teeth of an individual. Hypothesis Like any other breakthrough, there have been controversies, which have been raised regarding the misuse of DNA especially in homicide case, despite the fact that DNA of an individual is unique and could not match with others; individuals and law enforcement have misused the technology. Data Source and Method of Collection The data collected through holding surveys, which involved doing personal interviews on DNA specialist. Data was also collected through extensive research on existing literature discussing the subject. Variables We had two defendant variables, defensive and retaliatory violence. Defensive violence was measured through identifying two scenarios that involved Method of Analysis In the analysis process, statistical information including graphs and figures were employed and were cross referenced with the information in the literature on DNA in law enforcement. Major findings DNA Sequencing The data collected by Culliford (1994), DNA refers to the genetic instructions vital for the function and development of all living organisms. DNA is unique in each personage with the exclusion of monozygotic twins. DNA profiling, however, i s the practice commonly employed by forensic scientists to make out the identity of individuals using their DNA profiles. I believe that these profiles are number sets that are encrypted to reflect an individual’s genetic makeup. This identification method is commonly employed in criminal investigations and paternity tests. This is effective since 99.9% of sequences in human DNA are dissimilar with the exception of monozygotic twins. It is crucial for one to understand the concept of DNA technologies in order to have a better insight on the use of DNA in criminology. History of DNA Profiling According to The technique of DNA, profiling was initially reported in 1984 at the University of Leister. This was through sir Alec Jefferys, a British geneticist who developed a method of DNA fingerprinting and profiling. It is evident that the scientist made this crucial discovery while observing the image of a DNA in an x-ray film. This image showed evidence of some similarities and di stinctions in DNA. He used samples of DNA from the different family members of his staff. This enabled him to determine a scope through which DNA fingerprinting could be used to identify individuals using this method. Despite the method being discovered in 1984, it was made commercially available three years later. In the article,

A letter to the shop personnel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A letter to the shop personnel - Essay Example Assistance was to be provided then in the solution implementation, and improvement monitoring. The time line for the measurement phase was two weeks, with each of the following phases taking a week. In the initial phase, it was found data flow was slower than expected, with workers in the team claiming lack of time to utilize the tools. The involvement of the shop management was sought, as the means to persuade the workers to use the tools. Management pressure resulted in the desired flow of data, but the data did not provide any sensible findings. The tools worked fine, and the workers were trained in their use. So the data had to be flawed. Time was also running out. This strong resistance from workers in the team was unexpected, and the challenge faced. I realized that the solution to the challenge lay in obtaining cooperation from the workers in the team, rather than compliance. For this an understanding of the reasons for lack of cooperation was required. This led to talks with shop employees on their perspective of our engagement, which concluded in our finding that despite their respect for us, they feared loss of jobs. To resolve the problem I realized that the shop employees needed to be convinced of our mission, which was increasing their efficiency. Increased efficiency would lead to more jobs rather than retrenchment. Working with the researchers in the team, three actions were initiated. The first action involved the writing of a letter to the shop personnel informing them that they were in fact assisting.

Revenue Generation in Local Government Councils in Nigeria Essay Example for Free

Revenue Generation in Local Government Councils in Nigeria Essay Local governments are potentially very important for Nigeria as they play a significant role in generating revenue and encouraging civil involvement, as well as creating a visible link between taxes and service delivery. The increasing cost of running government coupled with dwindling revenue has left various local governments in Nigeria with formulating strategies to improve the revenue base. Despite the numerous sources of revenue available to the various tiers of government as specified in the Nigeria 1999 constitution, since the 1970s till now, over 80% of the annual revenue of the three tiers of government comes from petroleum. However, the serious decline in the price of oil in recent years has led to a decrease in the funds available for distribution to the states and local governments. The need for state and local governments to generate adequate revenue from internal sources has therefore become a matter of extreme urgency and importance. The need underscores the eagerness on the part of state and local governments and even the federal government to look for new sources of revenue or to become aggressive and innovative in the mode of collecting revenue from existing sources. The general concern over the seemingly slow development of the rural areas in Nigeria has created a doubt as to the relevance of local governments in Nigeria whose primary function was to effect a representative government faster to all areas of the state land. Inadequacy of funds for various developmental projects stands as the cause for these shortcomings despite the increasing revenue allocation from the Federation accounts to the local governments. Hence the reason for the various avenues granted the local governments to generate revenues themselves. This essay is being carried out to appraise and evaluate revenue generation in the local governments, particularly the internally generated revenue (IGR) to point out its adequacies, inadequacies and give recommendations where necessary. It study seeks to:- * Identify the various sources of internal revenue available to local government council; * To examine the prospect of improving the internally generated revenue of local government council; * Spotting of factors militating against effective revenue collection in the local government; and * Proffer solution to identified problems. Good governance is good money. Revenue generation can play a significant role in improving local government efficiency and reducing local government dependency. This essay would provide positive suggestion on how to improve the financial position of the local government councils. Secondly, it will provide useful suggestions on how to effectively manage problems of revenue generation. Thirdly, it will provide useful suggestions on the budgetary control system the council can embark upon. Lastly, this work will help researchers, individuals, organizations, higher levels of government and also local government councils on how to enable them meet their obligations. The theory of public finance is a field of economics that is concerned with paying for collective or governmental activities, and with the administration and design of those activities. The proper role of government provides a starting point for the analysis of public finance. In this view, public sector programs should be designed to maximise social benefits minus costs, then revenues needed to pay for those expenditures should be raised through a taxation system that creates the fewest efficiency losses caused by distortion of economic activity as possible. In the light of the above, the focus of this essay is on revenue generation in local government councils with particular reference to Ikenne local government, Ikenne. This work will embrace an examination of the internal and statutory source to the total revenue. This work was intended to cover all the twenty (20) local government in Ogun State, but because of limited time frame and the unavailability of some records due to negl igence on the side of the staff, the focus will be on Ikenne Local Government only. This work will begin with the intention of developing an initial understanding of the opportunities and potential for revenue generation. To do this, the revenue generation constraints faced by local governments, perceptions of local governments, the importance of revenue, various revenue generation and service delivery will be appraised. This study will attract data from both primary and secondary sources. The data from primary sources will include those obtained from personal interviews. Secondary data would be obtained from budget speeches of council chairman, existing records in the council, journals, and CBN annual financial publications.

Nike Inc Analysis of Marketing

Nike Inc Analysis of Marketing Nike Inc. was founded in  1962 by Bill Bower man and Philip H.  Knight as a  partnership under the  name, Blue  Ribbon Sports.  Since Germany conquered  the domestic market in America, Nike came with low-cost and high quality products for the American people. Today, Nike manufactures and distributes athletic shoes in the global market and 40% of  its sales come from athletic apparel, sports equipment, and subsidiary ventures and they have  traditional  as  well  as  non-traditional  distribution  channels  in  more  than  100countries globally. Nike has attained a premier position in the market but in 1998, the company has to face the issue of exploiting overseas workers and the altering consumer  needs negatively pretentious the sales of Nike. In this report, I have discussed the case history of Nike that majorly covers the child labor  problem and the problem of change in consumers preferences after which I have done the SWOT analysis and h ave come up with strategic objectives, market driven strategy Objectives. Furthermore, the marketing strategy is discussed that covers the segmentation strategy, targeting, positioning and channel distribution of Nike and the product, price and promotional strategy it must approve.  In the  end, I  have given some  recommendations to Nikes management to force it towards success. Contents INTRODUCTION: The company stable out just an airplane built-up in arranges to make happy path job at Stanford University. Mr. Phil knight a adapt student at Stanford University and a comprehensive space messenger firm that he would create small price organization shoes in Japan and then advertise them in USA. Knight solicits the help of a history teacher Bill Bower man to help him in his big business project. Knight called his first shoe Tiger and began allocation at path meet. Blue Ribbon in 1971 earned its Swoosh and knight introduces the most important Nike brand line. In 1978 the Blue Ribbon becomes Nike and both years their earnings grow steadily. Due to Nike attention in informal shoes in the 1980, they missed the leaning to aerobic shoe and cut down after allowing Reebok to manage the marketplace. MISSION AND VISION: Nike states in its mission declaration that it entail responsibility commerce in a guilty way, most important to sustainable monetary increase. With the advance in knowledge, Human resource practices, the healthy knowledgeable and skilled employment power, here is extremely small deficient to distinguish organization. Living being seen to go added than the lowest amount necessary on community issue can draw and keep patrons. This bottle sea green modification attracts concentration to the association; they are view as thoughtful and public liable (Mullins, L. 2005). A speech, on the construction put into practice of Nike during its make obtainable sequence accuse the association of individual concerned in limited operational circumstances, defiance of hard work civil rights, low salary and pestering of its labor force. Nike takes this information seriously. On the basis of the learning answer the business has make stronger the check of its dealer (Hummels, H and Timmer, D.2004) OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY: The SWOT examination aim to suggest the participate government of the Sà ¶derkà ¶ping growth with an instrument to charge their past giving in the Sà ¶derkà ¶ping procedure as fit as to appraise the choice for the modus operandi to bear on after the conclusion of the in progress development in February 2009. SWOT ANALYSIS: Strengths Nike is a very competitive organization. Phil Knight (Founder and CEO) is frequently quoted as saying that Business is war without bullets. Nike has a healthy aversion of is competitors. At the Atlanta Olympics, Reebok went to the outlay of sponsoring the games. Nike did not. However Nike sponsored the top athletes and gained valuable reporting. Nike has no factories. It does not tie up cash in buildings and manufacturing workers. This makes a very lean organization. Nike is tough at research and development, as is evidenced by its evolving and innovative product range. They then manufacture wherever they can produce high quality product at the lowest possible price. If prices rise, and products can be made more cheaply elsewhere (to the same or better specification), Nike will move production. (ynkamat, 2009) Nike is a global brand. It is the number one sports brand in the World. Its famous Swoosh is instantly familiar, and Phil Knight even has it tattooed on his ankle Nike is quite strong regarding its research and development; quite marked regarding its evolving and innovative product choice. They manufacture high quality at the lowest potential price, if prices rise due to price hike then the production process is made cheaper by changing the place of production. It belongs to the  Fortune 500 companies. Nike employs about more than 30.000 people worldwide. It has a strong sense of marketing promotion by sponsoring top athletes. It uses linarite foam and flies wire materials in order to make the manufactured shoes lighter and more convenient. (Adam, 2009) Its standing for high quality and innovative footwear .Nike is also known for its innovative marketing .Nike ads are part of the pop culture an impressive achievement. Famous campaigns feature bo Jackson, Michael Jordon, and Tiger Woods the Nikes swoosh is highly recognizable world wide .Nikes recent comeback has been greatly helped by increased sales of Nikes apparel. (Robert N. Lussier, 2009) Political Analysis According to PEST analysis the political enviourment can be taken as strength The government must create economic policies that will foster the growth of businesses. Nike, fortunately, has been helped by the US policies which enable it to advance its products. The support accorded to Nike by the US government, particularly in the general macroeconomic stability, low interest rates, stable currency conditions and the international competitiveness of the tax system, form the foundation critical to Nikes growth. (Cuizon, 2009) Society Analysis According to PEST analysis the social enviourment can be taken as strength People are more health conscious currently. Diet and health are getting more prominence. Consequently, more and more people are joining fitness clubs. There is an accompanying demand for fitness products particularly exercise apparel, shoes and equipment. Nike is at the front position of this surge in demand as people are looking for sports shoes, apparel and equipment. (Cuizon, 2009) Technology Analysis Political Analysis According to PEST analysis the technological enviourment can be taken as strength Nike uses IT in its marketing information systems very effectively. Nike applies marketing information systems to the economics of improvement, segmentation and differentiation for nearly all of its businesses. Nikes leadership status owes in large part to the use of extremely valuable Information Technology, and applying it to every aspect of the product from development to distribution. Nike, being the world leader in the athletic footwear industry, is able to effectively harness its environment to boost its marketing efforts. This strategy has translated into robust sales of Nikes products. (Cuizon, 2009) Weaknesses The organization does have a diversified range of sports products. However, the income of the business is still heavily dependent upon its share of the footwear market. This may leave it vulnerable if for any reason its market share erodes. The retail sector is very price sensitive. Nike does have its own retailer in Nike Town. However, most of its income is derived from selling into retailers. Retailers tend to offer a very similar experience to the consumer. Can you tell one sports retailer from another? So margins tend to get squeezed as retailers try to pass some of the low price competition pressure onto Nike. Nike was for quite some time unwilling to disclose any type of information concerning its partnering companies. It was charged with the violation of overtime and  minimum wage  rates in Vietnam, 1996, that was seen as having poor working conditions, and that it was also charged for exploiting cheap workforce overseas. (ynkamat, 2009) Nike was also reported to have applied child labor in Pakistan and Cambodia to produce  soccer balls. It was positioned as a subject of criticism by anti-globalization groups due to its unruly and exploited manner that was quite a disaster for its reputation. (Adam, 2009) In late 2005 founder phil knight resigned from the CEO position at Nike. Since that time Nike has had two CEO s. Nike brand co president mark parker is the companies new president and chief executive officer following the resignation of William D. Perez will Nike ever be able to replace the larger than life founder Phil knight? Another question on the area concerning is that global sales, such as Europe and Asia ,have instead at a much faster pace than domestic sales in the United States. (Robert N. Lussier, 2009) Economic Analysis According to PEST analysis the economic enviourment can be taken as weakness In economy, the biggest threat for Nike would be economic recession. During recession, Nikes growth will be adversely affected. The US economy is experiencing a downturn right now. Consumer purchases are slowing down. Currently, Nikes feeling the pinch of the economic recession. The Asian economic crisis also affects Nike since its goods are manufactured in Asia. The labor costs and material prices are going up. Nikes growth is not just affected by the local economy but also in the international economy. A weak Euro and an Asian recession could mean weak sales for Nike. The overall results in the sales generated by Nike in athletic footwear, however, remained stable. The global market makes up for the variances in sales particularly between peak and lean seasons. (Cuizon, 2009) Society Analysis According to PEST analysis the social enviourment can be taken as weakness Nike, however, failed to foresee problems brought about by a sweatshop expose pertaining to labor and factory conditions at production locations in Asia. This caused bad publicity and declining sales as society and consumers Opportunities Product development offers Nike many opportunities. The brand is fiercely defended by its owners whom truly believe that Nike is not a fashion brand. However, like it or not, consumers that wear Nike product do not always buy it to participate in sport. Some would argue that in youth culture especially, Nike is a fashion brand. This creates its own opportunities, since product could become unfashionable before it wears out i.e. consumers need to replace shoes. There is also the opportunity to develop products such as sport wear, sunglasses and jewellery. Such high value items do tend to have associated with them, high profits. The business could also be developed internationally, building upon its strong global brand recognition. There are many markets that have the disposable income to spend on high value sports goods. For example, emerging markets such as China and India have a new richer generation of consumers. There are also global marketing events that can be utilized to support the brand such as the World Cup (soccer) and The Olympics. (ynkamat, 2009) The brand is sternly defended by its owners who believe that Nike is not a fashion brand, however, a large number of consumers wear Nike product because they derive a fashion  trend  rather than to participate in a sport. It is mostly argued that in youth culture, Nike is a fashion brand which also creates  opportunities  for Nike since its products would become outdated before even the product wears out i.e. consumers will feel the need to replace the product with a newer  trend. There are many international regions that still need tapping and there is need for sportswear and with Nikes strong global brand recognition, it can initiate in many markets that have the disposable income to spend on high value sports goods. Nike gives a lot of effort on its corporate marketing mainly through the  promotion of  corporate brand  and sponsorship agreements. (Adam, 2009) Nike has an opportunity to capitalize on its own Nike Technology. This is a sensor placed in Nike footwear that interacts with Apples iPod to record the distance a runner has completed and the calories that have been burned. Another opportunity will be to capitalize on an endorsement deal with LeBorn James after his NBA playoffs and championship series appearances. Additionally, Tiger woods yearly attempt to win all four major Golf Tourments automatically allows Nike to build product campaigns around the Tournaments. (Robert N. Lussier, 2009) Threats Nike is exposed to the international nature of trade. It buys and sells in different currencies and so costs and margins are not stable over long periods of time. Such an exposure could mean that Nike may be manufacturing and/or selling at a loss. This is an issue that faces all global brands. The market for sports shoes and garments is very competitive. The model developed by Phil Knight in his Stamford Business School days (high value branded product manufactured at a low cost) is now commonly used and to an extent is no longer a basis for sustainable competitive advantage. Competitors are developing alternative brands to take away Nikes market share. As discussed above in weaknesses, the retail sector is becoming price competitive. This ultimately means that consumers are shopping around for a better deal. So if one store charges a price for a pair of sports shoes, the consumer could go to the store along the street to compare prices for the exactly the same item, and buy the cheaper of the two. Such consumer price sensitivity is a potential external threat to Nike. (ynkamat, 2009) Consumers are constantly shopping around for a better deal that conveys a good quality and if one store charges a higher price for the products, the consumer would try to seek a better deal of the same product in the premises that delivers the same value but cheaper of the two, this type of price sensitivity among the consumers is a potential threat to Nike. The textile industry unpleasantly upsets the atmosphere, and therefore the organization is constantly struggling to retain its eco-friendly reputation. A recession may lead to job shortages in most of Nikes worldwide branches. The organization has experienced many adverse publicity feedbacks due to its widespread advertising If you have a body, you are an athlete   Bill Bower man said this couple of decades ago. The guy was right. It defines how he viewed the world, and it defines how Nike pursues its destiny. Ours is a language of sports, a universally understood lexicon of passion and competition. A lot has happened at Nike in the 30 years (Adam, 2009) Specific threat is the contracts that Reebok (now part of Adidas) signed with the NBA and NFL for its apparel businesses. Another threat is the ongoing public relationship s problem pertaining to working environments in the factories producing Nike sneakers. Nike has striven to overcome images of sweatshop conditions, but the problem has been difficult to solve. (Robert N. Lussier, 2009) Porters five forces Source:http://www.google.co.in/images?hl=enq=porters+5+diagramum=1ie=UTF-8source=univei=8UhZTfaOCoXJrQfarcnuBwsa=Xoi=image_result_groupct=titleresnum=1ved=0CCIQsAQwAAbiw=1366bih=643 Potential Entrants Low Bargaining power of buyers High Bargaining power of suppliers Low Threats of substitutes Low Industries rivalry High Refer to appendix 1 CONCLUSION: SWOT analysis should always be measured by all companies as it helps show companies all their weaknesses and threats. At the same time it also shows what the companies strengths and opportunities. Using this analysis companies can spotlight on their good part of the business and focus more on the bad part to make it good. Also a company can see what factors are external or internal which helps the business in a long run to be more capable REFERENCES Adam, 2009. Nike SWOT Analysis. [Online] Available at: HYPERLINK http://www.mba-tutorials.com/marketing/240-nike-swot-analysis.html http://www.mba-tutorials.com/marketing/240-nike-swot-analysis.html [Accessed February 2011]. angeletti3, 2005. Nike versus Adidas Case Study and Competitive Analysis. [Online] Available at: HYPERLINK http://www.echeat.com/essay.php?t=27606 http://www.echeat.com/essay.php?t=27606 [Accessed February 2011]. Cuizon, G., 2009. Marketing Audit of Nikes Strategies. [Online] Available at: HYPERLINK http://www.suite101.com/content/marketing-audit-of-nikes-strategies-a94402 http://www.suite101.com/content/marketing-audit-of-nikes-strategies-a94402 [Accessed February 2011]. E, P.M., 1998. In Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors. Free Press. Gerry Johnson, K.S.W., 2008. In P. Education, ed. Exploring Corporate Strategy. 7th ed. Phil Knight, 2011. Company History. [Online] Available at: HYPERLINK http://www.nike.com/nikeihm/about/history.shtml http://www.nike.com/nikeihm/about/history.shtml . Robert N. Lussier, D.K., 2009. Applied Sport Management Skills. Human Kinetics. ynkamat, 2009. SWOT of Nike. [Online] Available at: HYPERLINK http://www.scribd.com/doc/13163456/swot-of-nike http://www.scribd.com/doc/13163456/swot-of-nike [Accessed February 2011].

Trauma and Adult Learning Essay -- Adult Education Learning Essays

Trauma and Adult Learning Effects of Trauma on Learning Adults experiencing the effects of past or current trauma may display such symptoms as difficulty beginning new tasks, blame, guilt, concern for safety, depression, inability to trust (especially those in power), fear of risk taking, disturbed sleep, eroded self-esteem/confidence, inability to concentrate, or panic attacks (Mojab and McDonald 2001). Some people may manifest no symptoms; at the other end of the spectrum is Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, characterized by flashbacks, avoidance, numbing of responsiveness (including substance abuse), persistent expectation of danger, constriction (dissociation, zoning out), and memory impairment (Isserlis 2001). It may not be readily apparent that a learner is experiencing the effects of trauma. Instead, such manifestations as missing class, avoiding tests, spacing out, and having what may be interpreted as inappropriate or extreme reactions to class discussions or activities may actually be responses to trauma. It is true that learning may be impeded by fear, anxiety, poor concentration, and the enormous energy involved in hiding abuse or struggling with immediate survival needs. However, interpretations of trauma and its effects on learning are shaped by education discourses (Horsman 1997, 2000b; Isserlis 2001). A deficit perspective suggests that the learner, not the social system, must change. A medicalizing discourse emphasizes that healing, "getting over it," must take place before learning is possible. Discourses of educational practice may view dropping out, stopping out, or spacing out/dissociating as lack of motivation or persistence rather than survival mechanisms. Discourses focu sed on outcomes and account... ...all/fob/2002/morrish.html Pearce, C. E. "Informal Learning of Homeless Women: A Feminist Study of Surviving the Everyday." In 40th Annual Adult Education Research Conference Proceedings, compiled by Amy Rose. De Kalb: Northern Illinois University, 1999. (ED 431 901) http://www.edst.educ.ubc.ca/aerc/1999/99pearce.htm Rosenwasser, P. "Tool for Transformation: Cooperative Inquiry as a Process for Healing from Internalized Oppression." In AERC 2000: An International Conference, edited by T. Sork, V.-L. Chapman, and R. St. Clair, pp. 392-396. Vancouver: University of British Columbia, 2000. (ED 452 417) http://www.edst.educ.ubc.ca/aerc/2000/rosenwasserp1-web.htm Williamson, B. "Learning in Extremis." In Lifelong Learning inside and outside Schools. Collected Papers, vol. 2, edited by P. Alheit et al., pp. 676-697. Roskilde, Denmark: Roskilde University, 2000.

What is Online Discussion? Essay -- Technology, Communication

Many benefits of online discussion have been recorded in the literature. For example, participation in an asynchronous online discussion is time and place independent (Morse, 2003: Williams etal., 2001). Participants who involved online discussion can contribute whenever they have a useful input and wherever they are as long as they have access to a network based computer. Williams (2002, p. 266) explained the freedom from temporal and geographical constraints international students have â€Å"flexibility in the time, place and pace of communication† with others. In contrast, the traditional face-to-face discussion does not have this flexibility. Online discussion allows students taking time to think about the messages they receive from their peers as well as what they postings. After a long time practice they can send without the pressure as an immediate responder (Biesenbach & Lucas, 2003). Therefore, online discussion is also defined as "a powerful tool for the development of critical thinking, collaboration, and reflection" (Williams et al., 2001, p. 151). Online discussions are deeply engaged and benefits the diverse students compared with traditional classroom discussions (Crevener, 1999, cited in Pinch & Graves, 2000). Students tend to participate more as they are aware that their participation is being monitored and recorded (Tullar et al., 1998). Online discussion within small groups or learning sets also affords a growing sense of community and a feeling among students that they can get to know each other through this medium (Curtin, 2002, cited in Lewin & Jerram, 2003; Hammond, 2000). Another major benefit of online discussion relates to the fact that in the traditional classroom situation, a few students often domi... ...e way it is used by instructors and students and how it is contribute to the course work (Elgort et al., 2003; McKinlay, 1999, cited in Biesenbach-Lucas, 2003; Weasenforth et al., 2002). The length of the discussion, the number of postings required, the size of any one contribution, the role of the instructor, the students' technical preparedness and so on, need to be carefully considered. Otherwise, the discussion may consist of contributions that are not strongly interactive and the students may simply "play the game" of assessment whereby they make postings that earn marks but do not really contribute to the development of the conversation (Oliver & Shaw, 2003, p. 56). Therefore, some authors offer tips for designing and running a good discussion in a networked environment based on their experiences (Hawisher & Pemberton, 1997; Kimball, 1995; Sullivan, 2002).

Change and the Management of Change Essay

Change Management Planning, Implementing, controlling, and reviewing the movement of an organization from its current state to a new one Causes of Change External Incremental (Evolutionary) †¢Occurs slowly over time (fuel-efficient cars) Dramatic (Revolutionary) †¢Can cause many problems especially if unexpected †¢Might lead to total rethink of operation of organization oBusiness Process Re-Engineering Business Process Re-EngineeringFundamentally rethinking and redesigning the processes of a business to achieve a dramatic improvement in performance Globalization-Increasing interdependence for countries’ economies through free trade and multinational company investment †¢New opportunities to sell products in other countries †¢Increased competition from products made more cheaply in other countries-often by multinationals †¢Use either pan-global marketing for localization strategies †¢Achieve and try to maintain a competitive advantage Technological Advances-Leading to new products and new processes †¢Products: new computer games, iPods and iPhones, hybrid-powered cars. †¢Processes: robots in production; computer assisted design (CAD) in design offices and computer systems for stock control. †¢Staff retraining †¢Purchase of new equipment †¢Additions to product portfolio-Other products may be dropped †¢Need for quicker product development which may require new organizational structures and teams Macro-Economic Change- Fiscal Policy, Interest Rates, Business Cycle†¢Changes in consumers’ disposable incomes-and demand patterns that result from this †¢Boom or recession conditions-need for extra capacity or rationalism †¢Need for flexible production systems (staff flexibility) to cope with demand changes †¢Explain need for extra capacity or need to rationalize †¢Deal with staff cutbacks in way that encourages staff who remain to accept change Legal Changes †¢Changes to what can be sold †¢Working hours and conditions †¢Staff training on company policy †¢Flexible working hours and practices Competitors’ Actions †¢New products †¢Lower prices †¢Higher promotional budgets†¢Encourage new ideas from staff †¢Increase efficiency by staff accepting need to change production methods †¢Ensure resources available to meet challenge Environmental Factors †¢Increase green consumerism †¢Increasing concern about industry’s contribution to climate change †¢Social and environmental audits supported by strategic changes (recycle packaging) Internal Organizational Changes †¢Delayering* †¢Matrix structure** replaces hierarchical º †¢Retraining of less senior staff to accept more responsibility †¢Job security †¢Retraining staff in teamwork and project management Relocation †¢Moving operations to another region/country †¢Redundancy schemes for workers who lose their jobs †¢Grants for those willing to move Cutting Costs To Improve Competitiveness †¢Capital-intensive rather that labour-intensive methods †¢Rationalisation of operations †¢Retraining staff to operate advanced tech. †¢Redundancy schemes for workers who lose their jobs †¢Flexible employment contracts and working practices *DelayeringRemoval of one or more of the levels of hierarchy from an organizational structure **Matrix StructureAn organizational structure that creates project teams that cut across traditional functional departments  ° Level of Hierarchy A stage of the organisational structure at  which the personnel on it have equal status and authority Factors Causing Resistance to Change †¢Fear of Unknown (Uncertainty) †¢Fear of Failure (Skills/Abilities beyond worker’s capabilities) †¢Losing Something of Value (Income, Status, Job Security) †¢False Beliefs (Some convince themselves current system will work to avoid risks) †¢Lack of Trust (Past experiences between workers and managers) †¢Inertia (Might have to work harder) Strategies to Reduce Impact of/Resistance to Change Change Management Force-Field AnalysisAn analytical process used to map the opposing forces within an environment (such as a business) where change is taking place 1.Outline proposal for change 2.List forces for and against change 3.Assign estimated score for each force †¢Weighs importance of forces †¢Helps identify who is most likely impacted by change †¢How to strengthen forces supporting decision and reduce forces against it †¢Can implement leadership style that reduces opposition and resistance to change Project ChampionA person assigned to support and drive a project forward. Their role is to explain the benefits of change and assist and support the team putting change into practice Project GroupsCreated by an organisation to address a problem that requires input from different specialists Promote Change 1.Establish a sense of urgency. 2.Create an effective project team to lead the change. 3.Develop a vision and a strategy for change. 4.Communicate this change vision. 5.Empower people to take action. 6.Generate short-term gains from change that benefit as many people as possible. 7.Consolidate these gains and produce even more change. 8.Build change into the culture of the organisation so that it becomes a natural process.