Child Abuse and Neglect Essay

Almost one in every hundred children gets abused in the United States, and it happens every day. Child abuse is when a child is physically, sexually, emotionally, and mentally abused. Sexual exploitation, neglect, abandonment, and maltreatment are also forms of abuse. Physical abuse includes but not limited to, throwing kicking, burning, or cutting a child. Striking them with a closed fist; shaking them when they are under the age of three, interfering with their breathing, threatening them with a deadly weapon, or doing any other act that is likely to give the child bodily harm and other minor to major injuries to their health, welfare, and safety. Sexual abuse is committing or allowing to be committed to any sexual offense against a child as defined in the criminal code and sexual exploitations when a child is prostituted, being filming in pornographic acts, or being a part of a live action of pornographic acts. Neglect and maltreatment is when the child is not provided with an ade quate amount of food, shelter, clothing, supervision, or healthcare. Abandonment is when a child is deserted by their guardian, left without food, water, shelter, clothing, hygiene, and medical healthcare, or when the guardian is just not doing things they are supposed to do for a child, they relieve themselves from their duties. We are all mandatory reporters. Meaning that any citizen that sees anything suspicious should report, or if you know of a child being abused and don’t report, you are just as guilty. Almost five children die every day as a result of child abuse. Child abuse is no doubt a hidden epidemic in our society today. Ninety percent of child sexual abuse victims know the perpetrators in some way; sixty-eight percent are abused by family members. Child abuse also happens no matter how rich or poor you are, doesn’t matter what color you are, and it doesn’t matter how smart or dumb you are. Thirty percent of women in prison were abused as children, and sixty percent of people in drug rehabilitation centers report being abused or neglected as a child, and are 3.8 times more likely to develop drug addictions. About thirty percent of  abused and neglected as children will continue the cycle with their children as well. Eighty percent of twenty-one year olds that were abused as children met at least one criteria for a psychological disorder. Also abused children are twenty-five percent more likely to experience teen pregnancy. I think child abuse is inclining locally because drugs are becoming more known in younger generations, and their also experimenting sexually earlier, and not being safe about which leads to more teen pregnancies. Some of the reasons child abuse occurs in the first place is because of young parents and drugs/alcohol. So if the rate at which those things or more rapidly happening, and at a younger age, the child abuse rate is bound to incline. It doesn’t help that we are a bad drug city and we have one of the highest count of child abuse cases in our city. One way to help stop and prevent child abuse is to recognize it, look for the signs and report it. Make your children aware of sexual abuse, teach them the proper names, and tell them that if anyone tries to engage with them in a way that their private parts are involved, to tell their â€Å"support person†. Teach young parents how to take care of their children before they leave the hospital. Never discipline children when your anger is out of control, ever leave your children unattended. Listen and believe them. If you see child abuse happening, stop it, don’t let it happen. To help end abuse, first you should learn how to recognize it in the first place. Child abuse will never truly come to an end, but there are ways to make sure it happens less. CPS needs to better investigate into cases. If you’ve ever read â€Å"the child called it† then you would know that if they go to the house and everything checks out, they believe it. I think they should go deeper into the investigation, if that means surveillance outside their house for a week then so be it. CPS also needs to better background check their own foster parents. I saw on the news a while back that CPS supervisor was abusing the kids she was fostering. CPS is supposed to be a safe haven for kids to go, yet they go to further get abused. I myself was in foster care, and my â€Å"parents† weren’t the nicest. It’s hard to honestly say anything about improving â€Å"families† considering we aren’t in there every day life, and we may not even know them. How we can best help families is to  make child abuse awareness more public and known, and if we come across a family that has this problem, then intervene. I couldn’t find much on factors of abuse being â€Å"heredity†, but what I could find is that it is not heredity. What generally happens is the child grows up with the type of abuse they know, and because that’s all they know, that’s how they express their â€Å"love† to their child. Not all abused grow up to do the same to their children, I assume the ones most mentally scarred and got psychological problems from it, grow up to do the same. I don’t think that our society is necessarily feeding the abuse to anybody. I don’t really know who would, that’s a touchy subject in the first place. Although I can infer that all of the drug, drinking, partying, and sexual innuendo that is seen everywhere is what is feeding to a worse environment for our society. Drugs, alcohol, and partying is such a huge and wide topic everywhere you go in our society, because of that, it’s more common. Although no one can honestly end child abuse, it is something that we can make more known so that all the poor children that are dying and suffering everyday can also be loved and saved. Learn the signs, report anything unusual.

An Epic Tragedy of History Essay

Both Native American literature and film have been inspired by the oral tradition of passing down stories and cultural folkways, through the spoken word. The personal journey of chronicling these stories in literature and film is very allegorical in that the personal journeys that these writers also parallel their struggle with a literal journey. As such, these stories become full of symbolism for the types of cultural artifacts that cannot be assimilated into mainstream culture; not in the English language, not in the Christian religion, and not in the reservations that hindered spirituality. There is a theme in all of the texts and in the film that depicts the struggle of trying to determine where the individual and the culture fit into the wider world that knows little of their existence. Other texts provide specific insight into how conversion of Native Americans into Christianity was essential for those of European descent to explain this mysterious group. It becomes apparent that the oral tradition sustained these groups for centuries until the loss of land led to the loss of more freedoms, especially that of having the right to shape ideas about the world without the influence of others. The film and the Native American writers reviewed all seek to exert their power and use words and motion pictures to explain all the literary and historical meaning of the stories told to them, predating all these modes of communication. Scott Momady in his book, The Way to Rainy Mountain describes the story of the creation of the Kwuda, which was passed down in the oral tradition. What is interesting is that he notes that the names of the tribe did change and there was a sense of this tribe being divided. â€Å"Later still they took the name Gaigwu, a name which can be taken to indicate something of which two halves differ from each other in appearance† (17). It is not only the way that this group of people came into existence but also the diversity and difference within this particular tribe that is extremely important. When Native Americans were forced onto reservations, it was of the utmost importance for the rest of the world not to see all Native Americans as the same, as they were varied with the many tribes and also within tribes. These oral stories become even more important to dictate into print or film to show how Native Americans viewed the world, themselves, and most importantly to realistically illustrate their heritage with the hopes of changing how many whites viewed them. The allegorical and symbolic divide that came to move all of these authors to write stories that bridged the gap in their own respective lives, also helped to create a film as well. The movie Dreamkeeper, directed by Steve Barron, shows how a family divided will struggle to keep tradition alive despite the death or disappearance of an important figure. In this film the pressing issues between the grandfather, grandson, and absent father serves as a metaphor for the intrusion on the culture of the family’s tribe versus the tradition of passing down lineage and heritage. The metaphor is that the grandfather is rooted in the past, the grandson is heading into an uncertain future, and the father is the only link to the present. These cultural threats are more than just the loss of land or the loss of a father, it is the changing of times into a future that is being mapped out by another group entirely, that being white Americans. These maps, so to speak, or the oral tradition that has mapped out the history of entire tribes and families has been written about by other prominent Native Americans in their journey and tragedy of trying to fill this divide between past and present all the while wondering what the future will hold. These types of worries were normally settled by spiritual means, but loss of land meant loss of the ability for Native Americans to go on their spiritual quests. Charles Alexander Eastman in his passage from â€Å"The Soul of an Indian† writes about the mystical quest undertaken by Native Americans in his native Sioux tribe that required several nights away from camp in meditation. He also writes of the divide of the Native American, a common theme in all the reviewed works. â€Å"The red man is divided into two parts,-the spiritual mind and the physical mind. The first is pure spirit, concerned only with the essence of things, and it was this he sought to strengthen by spiritual prayer† (767). Because of this loss of land, essentially the loss of spirit or at least the ways in which spiritual rituals were conducted came to an end. Also, the fear of the future was replaced by Christian ideals to help Americans of European descent understand how these natives fir into their Bible. In this way the Native Americans, already concerned with loss of identity were split even further in a divide that led them to an uncertain and uncharacteristic future. It was only through the oral tradition of preserving identity that Native Americans could attempt to achieve a personal wholeness while the many tribes and family members within tribes became scattered and disillusioned. It is through the personal journeys of the writers that it becomes apparent how the loss of land impacted not only an entire civilization, but individuals, who lost identity and did whatever was necessary to try to discover, rediscover, and preserve all that was left. Gertrude Bonnin, in passages from â€Å"Impressions of an Indian Childhood† talks about living what could be considered a double life. Gertrude sometimes refers to herself as her Sioux name, Zitkala-Sa, which means Red Bird. She was born on a reservation to a Sioux mother and her white father was absent in her life. She struggled between the old ways that her mother tried to teach her in the oral tradition and the ways that people conducted themselves outside of the reservation. She became torn and decided that the reservation life was not for her and the American way of treating Native Americans was not appealing either. So she began compiling all the information she could gather from what was relayed to her by her mother in the oral tradition and then wrote these stories in English. She abhorred the fact that the language of her ancestors had disappeared and she was just as concerned as Eastman was about the loss of spirituality for all Native Americans under the conversion to Christianity. Bonnin writes, â€Å"I prefer to their dogma my excursions into the natural gardens where the voice of the Great Spirit is heard in the twittering of birds, the rippling of mighty waters, and the sweet breathing of flowers† (939-940). It becomes clear that for the spirituality of Native Americans to thrive, then land uninterrupted by industrialization was needed in order for this group to be who they had always been before they were removed to reservations. So taking their land was not a simple geographic issue, this also took these peoples’ essence and spirituality from them. It is therefore important for these texts and films to exist as reminder of what was lost, not just space, but a place in history for people who had to rely on a few to pass on as many of the stories given to them in the oral tradition and put it in print or in film. All three written pieces reviewed and the film help to show the importance of the land that was taken from the Native Americans, as well as the influence of the oral tradition of passing down stories and spiritual pathways to each ensuing generation. The film and the written works display both a metaphorical divide in the ways of the respective authors and tribes and the bigger community, showing that differences need to be acknowledged as well as the common goal of this group to gather their cultural artifacts that would have disappeared into an assimilated America. Also, the allegorical journey that all these contributors took to discover their part in history is akin to an epic and a tragedy. Scholars, as well, have looked at the impact of the spiritual strivings of Native Americans and the ultimate need for tribes to achieve a new identity in a foreign land to them, a land that was once their own. It was the need for Christian legitimacy on the part of European settlers that led to a need for Native Americans to be stripped of their spiritual roots and forced to resign to religious conversion. The mission of these Christians â€Å"absorbed Native Americans into a Christian world view that made them comprehensible to Euro-Americans, who were otherwise faced with a population whose mysterious origins threatened to call into question the explanatory value of the Bible† (Wyss, 162). So as Euro-Americans sought to explain the discrepancies with Native Americans and their absence from the Bible, Native Americans had to wrestle with their own identities that were being challenged by these settlers for purposes other than just the acquisition of land. What then became an issue was the questioning of creation on the part of settlers and the â€Å"lost tribe theory† (162) that proposed that Native Americans were part of a tribe that was not thoroughly explained in the Bible. All the while many Native Americans asserted their own creation myths while other Natives tried to assert superiority over whites with the reasoning that if Natives were a part of Israel’s lost tribes then, therefore, they were closer descendants of Jacob. This hierarchy of Biblical place did play an important role on the identity of Natives during their assimilation into Euro-American culture, though the oral tradition certainly did support a different idea for the origins of each tribe. Even those Native Americans that did subscribe to a Christian ideal were â€Å"defined by a constant deferral of home, or the constant movement, both geographical and cultural, of a fragmented people† (165). It seems then that the roots of all Native Americans, who were fragmented and spread across the nation, was entrenched in the oral tradition of creation stories and spirituality. However, the many Native American stories that were told and passed down led to they idea the Euro-Americans had as Natives being savage and mythical, making their stories, even true encounters appear to be false. This led to the Natives â€Å"invisibility in the annals of encounter: constructed as tellers of myth and as peoples of myth, they are denied a place in the national story and a voice in recounting it† (Bellin, 99). This created the powerlessness found in Natives attempting to assert their place in the new America that was founded on laws, both the divine and those conceived by Europeans. The fact that Natives had stories, spirituality, and kinship was not enough to place them in a position of asserting their power in any way that seemed rational to Euro-Americans. As well the illiteracy of Native Americans certainly did not assist this group in gaining any type of recognition for having much to offer the Europeans in their stories. â€Å"the oral nature of much Indian narrative has been taken to explain both the Indians’ irrelevance to history-for what could illiterates offer? -and their inability to remember and record it† (102). As well, Native Americans stories were not just told, they were animated through acting, making the stories more meaningful to the Native audience but meaningless to a person outside of a tribe. It is fair to say that the identity of Native Americans was not only in their oral tradition, but in the ways in which stories were acted out. This is something that is lost even if a story is recounted by a Native to as close to the original message as possible. Much is also lost in translation further undermining any attempts that Natives could make when forced on reservations, where their land and language was taken along with the ties of spirituality that sustained them. It also makes the spiritual identity of Native Americans more complicated when they are not only placed in an Anthropological category of uncivilized, the literary category of completely mythical, and finally over romanticized by scholars, who do not understand the deep meaning behind Native American spirituality and ritual. These rites and rituals are meant to cement a community of people together and individual identity can be created within these rituals. Instead, many times, these acts and stories are perceived as more universal and therefore there is the mistaken implication that Native American spirituality can be lumped into a religion that can be used by all. This has placed and continues to place the sense of community outside of the purposes intended and sadly many people use information gleaned from Native spirituality for profit or for writing scholarly articles that do not take into account the private lives of a single Native, but instead combine individuals into a whole. With a fragmented sense of history and culture, it is right to note that there has been and continues to be fragmentation in the Native American communities, but for an individual, a sense of self requires both community identity and a complex set of cultural artifacts to make that individual whole and not a watered down, assimilated version of the Euro-Americans. To be more clear, the text versions of Native Americans stories involving spirituality and rituals many times do not take into account the personal nature of these events. It is not only a matter of entire communities of Native American feeling the need to forge and reclaim their converted or dismissed identities as a whole, but the essence of the individual in a tribe, separate from others that must do the same. â€Å"Nicknames, shadows, and shamanic [sic] visions are tribal stories that are heard and remembered as survivance [sic]. These personal identities and stories are not the same as those translated in the literature† (Grim, 44). This lack of voice to individual Native Americans and stereotyping of all communities and persons being inherently the same in their spirituality and other social activities makes more important the voices, such as the Native authors and filmmakers reviewed all the more important. These artists have shown how gender, tribe, place, and, politics, to name just a few social forces can affect an individual struggling for acceptance within him or herself and in the larger world. All these factors must be considered when looking at film and literature, separating the individual from the group while at the same time seeing the struggle for those individuals as being the best representation available for a group without a strong voice. In conclusion, the film and the literary works of Native Americans highlight the voice of a specific individual, attempting to speak for their community. Taken with scholarly research, it can be seen the effect of colonialism and religious conversion on the vulnerable Native American population. Their history has many gaps in that the myths and traditions were many times dismissed and the absence from the Christian Bible made their existence confusing and unsettling to the settlers. The voices that have been stifled serve to help save the history of the mainstream at their expense, and this powerlessness and absence from history can only be reconstructed in the best way possible. Though even stories passed down in the oral tradition are lacking in the gestures and actions of the storytellers, which is the essence of oral storytelling. Works Cited Joshua David Bellin, The Demon of the Continent: Indians and the Shaping of American Literature, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001. Gertrude Bonnin, â€Å"Impressions of an Indian Childhood† in The Heath Anthology of American Literature Vol. 2. Ed. Paul Lauter, Lexington: D. C. Heath and Company, 1994. Dreamkeeper, Dir by Steve Barron, Hallmark Entertainment Productions, 2003. Charles Alexander Eastman, â€Å"The Soul of an Indian† in The Heath Anthology of American Literature Vol. 2. Ed. Paul Lauter, Lexington: D. C. Heath and Company, 1994. John A. Grim, â€Å"Cultural Identity, Authenticity, and Community Survival: The Politics of Recognition in Native American Religions† in Lee Irwin Native American Spirituality: A Critical Reader, Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2000. Scott N. Momaday, The Way to Rainy Mountain, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico, 1969. Hilary E. Wyss, Writing Indians: Literacy, Christianity, and Native Community in Early America, Boston: University of Massachusetts Press, 2000.

Participation dance Essay

On Thursday October 28th at Cardinal Carter Academy of the Arts the grade twelve’s performed their ISU pieces in the theater. It was 3:30p. m after school hours. The piece I chose to critique was called, â€Å"Beyond the Reflection. † This piece was done to the song called Primavera. Adelaide Batuk, Julianna Bissessar and Jacalyn choreographed this piece. The dancers were Josephine Di Cosmo, P. J. Elisha, Melanie Ferrara, Lauren Paul and Chelsea Santoli. In the piece Beyond the Reflection, most of the choreography was contemporary style of dance. The female dancers wore white dresses with their hair down, each in a slightly different way. The male dancer wore a white shirt and black bottoms. This group used mirrors that hung from above the stage and hovered across centre stage. They also used black curtains that were hung over the mirrors at different times in the dance. This contemporary piece had five dancers; four girls and one boy. The piece had white lighting for most of the dance. It also has some blue lighting. The choreographer chose to use top lighting and side lighting, as well as floods and spot lights. The choreographers used many of the elements in their creative piece. They used energy, time, space and shape throughout their dance. The energy of this piece was calm but fierce. The music (primavera) was slow and soft but the dance moves were strong and powerful. The choreographers used a mixture of energy qualities. They used suspension various times in their dance. For example, the dancers did a grand battement to the front and held it in a continuous motion to second, where it then grew and was lowered. Another energy type that was used was swing. The dancers used this motion as they ran across the stage swinging their arms back and forth like a runner. They raised their arms and then used a fast motion on the way down due to gravity. Sustained was another energy quality used in this piece. One of the dancers forcefully threw her arms up high in front of her and then smoothed out the motion that continued to reach forward with a sudden burst of energy. Percussive moments were also shown through out the piece, with sharp arms and legs extending. Collapse was also used in this dance. When the dancers dropped to the floor and dropped their heads they were doing a collapsed movement. In the dance another element was used; this was time. The dance was completed in a 4/4 time signature and had accents on the down beats. The music was steady like a pulse in sections of the song and sub-diving pulse in other sections. The third element used in this piece was space. The dancers used many levels. High levels when they did a split leap, medium levels when they were standing straight and low levels when they dropped to the floor. The dancers were also given small movements such a hand rolls. They were also given medium and large movements when they ran across the stage and did various jumps. The last element that was used in the piece was shape. Many shapes were used. Spacing was either lines, scattered, or groups. The movements the dancers demonstrated were straight, curved, angular, symmetrical and asymmetrical. They used straight lines and straight legs on kicks. They used curved arms on pirouettes. Angular legs when they were bending low to form a strong stance. They also showed symmetrical positions in side jetes and asymmetrical movements as they ran across the stage. The piece Beyond the Reflection had many different ways of interpreting the piece. The choreographers demonstrated the struggles and hardships in a persons life. They choreographed movement that showed the battle of their insecurities and the people that will help them along the way. They wanted to do this piece because dancers struggle with this situation all the time. They never believe their good enough or can truly make it big, but the reality is that everyone can conquer through hard times and achieve miracles. The mood of this piece was powerful and uplifting even though the song was slower. The dancers used strong movements to show they can achieve anything and come threw and recognize the positive qualities they have. I thought this piece was presented beautifully. The dancers had great technique and also strong and passionate emotion, threw their steps and in their performance. The choreographers did a fantastic job with the choreography and the staging of the performance. I thought the costumes suited the piece and the mirrors were used apparently. The energy behind the piece and was incredible. I also really enjoyed the use of the male dancer. The three choreographers used him to his advantage and showed both males and females have life struggles and both can conquered them. This piece was very well done, and I think it was a strong and deep story line to perform apiece on. The lighting and staging was effective, as well as the movement used in this piece. I really enjoyed this piece and saw many creative movements throughout it.

A letter to the editor of Wall Street Journal Assignment

A letter to the editor of Wall Street Journal - Assignment Example It can be argued that the next election will see a wide gender difference among the voters. Republicans have tried to come with measures to appeal to the female voters as the Democratic Party strives to take advanatge of the female vote by promoting economic policies that are more likely to favor women including equal pay protection and increasing the minimum wage. This is not the first time the Democrats have employed this strategy to campaign against the Republicans. I agree with the fact this is not simply about the social isssues but about the economic issues affecting the population. Furthermore, there is a clear diffrence in views on whether it is possible for individuals to succeed in the US. Most men agreed to the proposition that anyone could compared to 37 percent of women (Hook and Timiraos). A study conducted by the NBC Survey/new journal found that most women believe that the recession has not yet ended as compared to 43 percent of males (Hook and Timiraos). This explains why 70 percent of the women are of the view that increasing that minimum wage would result to an improvement in the economy (Hook and Timiraos). This letter confirms the facts stated in the paper on the disparities between the economic views between men and women and how it influences

Life is Short Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Life is Short - Essay Example These emotions shape his character, which helps him deal with the real world that is made up of different dynamics that he is yet to discover. Part of a man's life is to find out what the different compositions of life are. Furthermore, as he tries to discover the world, he learns from it. Man initially learns fear. He fears of being alone. He fears the world as it engulfs him into a myriad of rationally opportunistic human beings like him. These people are exactly just like him who wants to find their place in the world. However, once man learns how to deal with the different circumstances that are naturally existent on earth, he no longer fears. He finds comfort and excitement upon realizing his ability to interact. With his ability to maintain a harmonious relationship with other human beings, he discovers the different ways of how to make his life exciting. Man learns to have fun. It is at this point when he forgets the reality that sooner or later his happiness will have to end. The attention that he gets from the world and the unlimited pleasure that it gives him feels like a drug that makes him yearn for more wealth and power. As such, he does not realize how his life had gone by so fast. More often than not, it is too late when he finally realizes once more that his life will soon come to an end.

Research Methodology for User Evaluation Dissertation

Research Methodology for User Evaluation - Dissertation Example Scenario 4: Fourth scenario involves making changes in the personal settings of the user to protect his personal infroamtion and to enhance the level of privacy from any undesired source. Changes may also be made to alter the settings for font type, color schemes, languages etc. Scenario 5: This scenario involves the usage of the system on an alternate technology and platform to analyze the level of compatibility with multiple environments. A video has been designed to provide a means for visual recollection of all the processes and functions of the system. It is common for people to understand computer operations in a better manner if visual step-by-step tutorials are available. The video shall be made available in both Arabic and English languages. 9.1.1 Profiling of exemplar UbIAMS The preceding chapter explains the models that form the basis of the development of UbIAMS. The addition of the word ‘ubiquitous’ has transformed the conventional concept of being constrain ed at one place to being available in different spaces; this introduction enhances the application to physical, as well as virtual spaces. UbIAMS has been designed on the basis of multiple models, including, architectural model, behavioural model, interaction diagram, collaboration diagram, sequence diagram and state machine diagram. The three criteria, security and identity, accessibility and acceptability, usability and user experience have been highlighted in the architectural model to ensure the inclusion of a diverse range of properties in the end product. The behavioural model has been developed for UbIAMS to highlight the basic operation of the system. Collaboration and interaction diagram can help the user evaluate the complexity and usefulness of the operations. State machine and... Research Methodology for User Evaluation The formulation of the considerations for the development of the prototype has been discussed in this chapter, alongside the scenarios that shall prove to facilitate the functionality of the system for the users. The scenarios also provide a full insight into the system and the scope of its functions before even operating it. This chapter also described the process and design of the survey which is an important step in the acquisition of feedback from the users. Different age groups and types of users (varying levels of experiences and diverse degrees of disabilities) have been chosen to ensure that the end product proves to be flexible for all ages and user groups. Developers often develop systems without considering the probable elementary computer skills of users therefore this factors has been given careful consideration in the designing of this system. This chapter also highlights the ethical considerations that have been undertaken in the processes of acquiriung feedback from the users. Their willingness to participate in the study and eagerness to protect their information have been kept as top priorities. The users that have been chosen for the research study have been limited to the land of Saudi Arab to reflect a true image of the level of acceptance that can be expected from the region after its eventual launch. The next chapter shall include details regarding â€Å"Statistical Tools and Data Analysis Approaches†.

IMC AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

IMC AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION - Essay Example In recent years, Integrated Marketing Communication, a newly emerging and young academic framework, has become a very strategic and magical bullet that is found to help a firm achieve sustainable competitive advantage. IMC is a careful coordination of varying promotional tools such as sales promotion, personal selling, advertising, event marketing, public relation with a view to facilitate effective brand communication along with ensuring of consistency in every message (Lamb, hair and McDaniel, 2008,p. 413). This paper discusses the advertising strategy of Milky Way and explains different promotional strategies, measuring of the effectiveness of advertising and marketing research approach. Milky Way’s advertising Strategy Milky Way bar, a chocolate bar distributed by Mars Incorporated Company headquartered in Mclean, USA, is one of the most admired and widely renowned chocolate brand name across the world. In 2012, the company launched an ad campaign labeled ‘Sorry, I w as eating a Milky Way’ to attract targeted market to a feeling that the bar is particularly irresistible. The advertising strategy used in this ad campaign seems more or less to be affective advertising strategy. Literatures including Clow and Baack (2004, p. 231) and Shimp (2008, p. 225) identified the very basic advertising strategies, that are cognitive strategy, affective strategy and brand strategy. Affective advertising strategy elicits emotions, feelings and perceptions so as to affect the reasoning process of targeted audience which in turn lead them to take a proper action (Clow and Baack, 2004, p. 234). Milky Way’s adverting campaign in the print media labeled ‘Sorry I was eating a Milky Way’ is shown in the figure below. This advertising integrated both resonance and emotional advertising techniques. This advertising provides both resonant and emotional messages to customers that a bride is quite unlikely to be present on time when she was enjoy ing the gooey caramel tastes of the Milky Way. Arens, Weigold and Arens (2008, p. 340) noted that resonance in advertising refers to echoing, reverberating and vibrating. Milky Way’s advertising is meant to catch the imagination of audience. Emotional advertising tries to reflect emotions that motivate customers’ recall of product and choice. Emotions such as reliability, happiness, pleasure, passion etc are connected to Milky Way’s advertising message. Milky Way’s advertising is meant to attract customers attraction and to influence them to recall the brand name and thus to build brand image. Measuring the effectiveness of Advertising There are basically four outcomes of an advertising effort, they are; 1) recognition and recall, 2) emotional reaction, 3) persuasion and 4) sales responses. Shimp (2008, p. 289) has clearly outlined certain techniques that can help measuring the effectiveness of an advertising. To measure the recognition and recall of cust omers, Shimp (2008, p. 289) suggests Starch Readership Service, a testing service of a company named GfK Custom Research North America to measure the reader awareness of customers through magazines, Buzzone Research Company to research consumers’ recognition through TV and Day-after recall testing to test customers’ recall after one-day of the advertisement. To measure the emotional reactions, Shimp (2008, p. 289) suggests brain imaging of customers with help of neuroscience, self-reporting of customers and physiological tests to measure any of several autonomous reactions of customers to advertising. To m

Global Water Resources Development - Experience From China Assignment

Global Water Resources Development - Experience From China - Assignment Example During the late 1970’s China implemented widespread economic reforms throughout the nation. As a result, the country’s economy grew remarkably which in turn increased the national wealth. Thus, China accumulated the financial resources necessary to implement the SNWTP. (Yang and Zehnder, 2005, p.1) The northern part of China comprises of a fertile flat plain similar to that of France and Ukraine which is ideal for farming. However, this part of the country is devoid of adequate water resources. Though the Yellow, Huihe and the Haihe rivers flow through north China, these river basins are too dry for the growing of produce. In contrast, southern China has abundant sources of water but is not suitable for extensive agriculture because of its hilly terrain. Therefore, it was essential to conceive the SNWTP which provided a solution to this problem. The project is supposed to link the four main Chinese rivers – the Yangtze Kiang, the Yellow River, the Huaihe and the Haihe through three diversion routes stretching from the southern to the northern part of China across the eastern, western and central parts of the country. The SNWTP is an ambitious project which is being constructed with the help of advanced engineering techniques. (Changming, 2009) Environmental Effects on Regional Ecology and Society Once the first stage of the SNWTP is fully implemented, it is expected to channelize 40-50 km3 water annually from the river Yangtze-Kiang basin in southern China to the northern plains. This will partially address the water scarcity faced by about 300-325 million people residing in north China. However, this will not be adequate to satisfy the water requirement of the entire region. According to a study by the World Bank on the SNWTP, the project would involve the shifting of 300,000 Chinese citizens to the northern plains which is expected to incur a series of economic costs. The report also indicates that the SNWTP is likely to deprive the inhab itants of the Han sub basin, of their essential water supplies. (Berkoff, 2003 p.1) The SNWTP is expected to provide a solution to the dual problems of floods in southern China and drought in the north China by transferring the excess water from the south to the north. The project will involve the construction of three canals linking the Yangtze Kiang river in south China to the basins of the Yellow, Hu

Defines Compares and Contrast Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Defines Compares and Contrast - Coursework Example ther hand has been defined to be the putting together of creative ideas either in paperwork or in physical pattern to make the idea a tangible value (Zhao, Calantone and Cavusgil, 2002). Capron (1999) also mentioned that innovation represents the actual implementation of something that is new. From the definitions given, it would be noted that there are some ways in which all of these three important terms are different from each other and other ways in which they closely relate to each other. Comparing the three terms, Poon, Choi and Davis (2008) explained that all of innovation, design and creativity are needed in a typical organization to make the execution of organizational goals possible; especially in cases where organizations want to build a competitive advantage for themselves. By this explanation, the meaning that is drawn is that innovation, design and creativity are all focused on bringing about things that are new and different from what already exists. Therefore even though the three may carry different meanings, they are all concerned with new ideas because it is when organizations are able to differentiate themselves from others through creative, innovative and design oriented means that they gain competitive advantage over their competitors. Another important similarity that organizational leaders ought to know in the application of these three terms is that none of the three is independent on its own (Capron, 1999). Rather, they each depend on the other t o ensure the objectives for which they are independently set are achieved. By implication, even though each of these can help organizations achieve different objectives, the achievement will not be made if the three are not used together. Despite the similarities, there are various differences that exist between these three terms. For example, whereas creativity is abstract and produces abstract results, innovation is highly tangible as it results in implemented products. In effective, a person

By outlining in some detail a piece of structural contingency Essay

By outlining in some detail a piece of structural contingency research, evaluate the contributions of this general approach to s - Essay Example The report will discuss the theory in detail and how it affects the performance of an organisation. The report will also discuss the change on the organisation due to the various contingency variables. The contingency cycle, which changes an organisation from fit to misfit, and then again brings it back to fit though organisation structuring, is explained with examples. Discussion Till the late 1950s, school of classical management dominated the organisational structure. According to this school of thought, one single organisational strategy was effective for all kinds of organisational structure. It was categorised by high degree of planning and decision making. There was a strict hierarchy in this structure and the job responsibilities were well detailed to the lower level staff in advance, by the senior management. From 1930 onwards, this school of thought was challenged extensively by the new school of thought, known as school of human relations. According to this approach, indiv idual employees possessed social and psychological needs. Bottom-up approach was followed here and the lower level departments were increasingly motivated to participate in the decision making processes of the organisation. Many researchers and theorists such as J. W. Lorsch and P.R. Lawrence, (1978) suggested that firms which operated in less stable environments were found to be operating more effectively. Less formalization of the organisation leads to more reliance on mutual agreement between the various departments of the organisation. On the other hand, in case of companies operating in a certain and more stable environment, effective functioning was recognised only when the firm was more formalized, decision making was centralised and there was less reliance on the mutual agreement between different departments. There are many theories of contingency approached. But the most accepted and popular ones are those which are related to leadership, management or organisational struc ture (Tuai, 2011). According to the overall approach of this, whatever happens in a firm depends upon particular circumstances or factors. In general, when whole or parts of an organisation fits together, they are referred to as organisational structure. More specifically, structures include factors such as complexity, formalization and centralisation (Martinez-Leon and Martinez-Garcia, 2011). The dimensions of complexity can be categorised as, spatial, vertical and horizontal. In case of formalisation, the options for individuals are little. There is a higher vertical differentiation where a manager’s work is defined by other senior manager and the senior manager’s work is defined by other managers. This results in division of labour and decrease in discretion. It is different than spatial differentiation because in spatial differentiation, there are organisation wide procedures that limit the discretion. Examples of higher formalisation are bank call centres, superma rkets. Examples for lower formalisation include lawyers, doctors, academics and that formalisation which are associated with skill. Centralisation refers to the extent of decision making, authority and power. Centralisation is inversely correlated with complexity because increase in complexity reduces the central power by distributing these powers through hierarchies and functions. Centralization is weakly correlated to

Critique of Research Articles Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Critique of Articles - Research Paper Example Chavers, B.M., Solid, C.A., Daniels, F.X., Chen, S., Collins, A.J., Frankenfield, D.L., & Herzog, C. A. (2009). Hypertension in Pediatric Long term Hemodialysis Patients in the United States. American Society of Nephrology, 1363-1369. Sample Characteristics: For the USRDS CMS ESRD CPM special study, BP measurements were attained for the complete population of the US of pediatric long-term hemodialysis patients getting therapy during the fourth quarter of 2001. In other words, the researchers have been capable of adequately defining the samples. The theoretical framework that has been considered for the purpose of this study is that most of the clinical issues faced by the patients having haemodialysis are mainly related to their incapability to eat proper foods and restrict their fluid intake. Experimental research design has been used in this study. It can be stated that the research design that has been used is appropriate for such kind of studies. The study was randomized trial in which two teaching programs had been implemented such as video education and oral education. The sample size for this study has been sixty-three patients who have haemodialysis. Therefore, it can be stated that the sample population has been adequately described. The sample size is adequate for this kind of study and can adequately help to achieve the research objective. Sampling Method: The sampling method that has been used for this study is random sampling method. It has been found that the analyses have been successful at addressing each research question. The study makes use of linear mixed model. The study has tried to avoid Type I and Type II error. The slope related to intradialytic BP over dialysis was deliberated by the log of BP degenerated over time. By utilizing a linear mixed model, the slopes between control as well as ultrafiltration groups present at baseline and over a period of times were compared. The effect of dry weight

The Role of Human Resources Essay Example for Free

The Role of Human Resources Essay Describe the unique challenges of managing the human resources function for your specific organization As a new Senior Vice-President of Human Resources for Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) Inc are presented many challenge because the size of healthcare organization. HCA owns and operates one hundred and sixty nine hospitals, and one hundred and five surgery centers within twenty-five states, including London England furthermore, the organization and its affiliate employee approximately one hundred and ninety thousand people. Therefore, there is a need for a large qualified staff of human-resource individuals. As the Senior Vice-President of Human Resources, one would report to the CEO of the company as well as have a staff of several vice presidents who would handle all the relevant regions and facilities. The human resources department is broken down into sections and there are vice presidents over each of these respective sections that would report to a senior vice-president of HR groups. This includes, * Division offices that oversee the hospitals and surgery centers. * Operations and recruitment. * Employee relations. * Benefits and compensation. * Information system and executive workforce development. * Human resources ITS. * Community relations and foundations. * Organizational leadership and development. Each one of these groups covers all the various human resources functions within the organization. According to Flynn, Mathis and Jackson (2011), â€Å"HR professionals in all segments of the industry will be faced with the challenge of recruiting and retaining the right number of competent employees for their organizations† (p. 11) The organization like many others has the challenge of recruiting and retaining mostly registered nurses, but HCA cannot forget about retaining the employees which a company presently has. There are human-resource departments at each of these hospitals that handle the hospitals and affiliated surgery centers. These HR directors at the hospitals report to the division offices who then report to the respective corporate human resources vice president. Furthermore, the issue of managing changes, such as costs, governmental compliance, diversity, technology and the quality of work life falls under one of the responsibilities of the vice presidents. All of these items must be handled efficiently and effectively at the same time ensuring that company has happy employees. A person also has to ensure that there is a diverse group of employees within the organization, as well as give employees options so that they will have a good balance between work and family. The company had a very different group of employees, and continues to educate their employees through the Cultural Inclusion series that business offer monthly along with a separate group that manages all of employer accreditations and governmental compliance issues that do not fall within the jurisdiction of human resources. Analyze the competencies required for your specific position and determine in which areas you need to develop. Provide specific examples to support your rationale. According to Flynn, Mathis and Jackson, â€Å"the five core competencies that are critical in a high-performing HR leader are strategic contribution, personal credibility, HR delivery, busi ness knowledge and HR technology (Flynn, Mathis, Jackson, 2011) p. 22. Together with these competencies company a human resources must be emotionally, intelligent, connect to proper procedures and behaviors in their jobs, due to the structure and how businesses are set up. People will feel confident that all of these areas are covered and support the organization successfully. The areas that one needs to develop and have a better understanding are the business knowledge aspect also the technology aspect. Since this Corporation is large and has many different departments, it would be beneficial for leader to have a general and basic understanding of how each department works and interacts between one another and know who reports to whom to give a person a well-rounded picture of each group. The technology is changing so much that it would be advantageous to have a good understanding of how new technology can assist in hiring, training and promoting employees within the organization. In the past the company has tended to hire outside of the organization before promoting within however, it is in the process of changing that with the modern system that allows employees to update their education and skills for the human resources group to review. It is also important in a HR position to be able to communicate effectively with all employees from the top to the bottom and to be approachable and make employees feel comfortable coming to talk with others within our department. Finally, mutual respect is a necessity and a requirement to make everything run smoothly. Determine the role you think the company could play in developing you for the opportunity. What would you need the company to do? How does it benefit the company? In preparing some for this position, the company plays a vital role. One way to prepare for this position would be to have a person work his way through the various HR positions. The training would first start with a corporate overview and the functions HR department. Training at the division level would be the next step, how they handle the HR departments of the hospitals, and finally training at the hospital level itself so that staff could understand their positions and what they deal with daily. In this training, one would get a fundamental understanding of what everyone does from the clerks to the directors. As a present manager, it is very important for management to have a grasp on everything that happens under their leadership. Person should have a basic understanding on how to do every aspect of the job, employees have more respect for a leader when they are not afraid to get in the trenches and help out including understanding what they deal with in their respective jobs. For example, the staff wants the manager to appreciate their job and give them reward for their performance. A Human Resources manager would, need to have a bachelor’s degre e, preferably in human resources along with some work experience for this position. Furthermore, for this position, a graduate degree is preferred; one should enroll in the executive development program and have a mentor. If the company does not have a mentoring program, could check with the American Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration. â€Å"The ASHHRA Mentoring Program is designed to create a mentorship community for health care HR professionals to enhance and grown knowledge, skills and abilities to excel in their careers† (ASHHRA Mentoring Program). Moving into this position would involve a series of cross training to prepare for this position within the organization. The company would need to outline a training program that would be approximately two years, and within that time frame, all the various human-resource jobs and managerial duties should be reviewed. One would need to ensure that a person had the knowledge, skills and abilities to do the job. Coming from a legal background, training for the labor and employment law section would also be beneficial so that company would have a general knowledge on how employment matters affect the organization when they reach a litigation level. In adequately preparing a self for the role, it would be advantageous to the organization because one would be a well-qualified employee who has understanding of all the areas that fall within arena. Develop a strategic view of human resources that supports your institution’s organizational strategy The strategic plan for the human resources department would incorporate company missions into the organizational mission statement and goals: â€Å"Our organization (HCA) is committed to the care and improvement of human life and strives to deliver high-quality, cost effective healthcare in the communities we serve. With patient first mentality and then the community, the human resources department has to ensure that it recruits competent individuals from hospital employees to the corporate level. The vice presidents who fall under one position would cover the organizational objectives and strategies ensuring that their goals line up and compliment the overall goals. Right now, there is increased focus on recruiting in the registered nurse field due to the shortage of licensed nurses in healthcare. The vice president and group of operations and recruitment deal with the nursing shortage and ensure that business is doing everything possible to get these vacant positions filled so that the patients and communities will not suffer. The organization will pay for any of employees to get their nursing degree along with scholarships for employee children who wish to go into the nursing profession. The vice president of community relations and foundations would ensure that people have a positive presenc e in the communities. Manager oversees projects such as our community day whenever individual work with United Way to serve the community. The company will be sponsoring various events, including performing arts, museums, and school partnerships. Employees will be volunteering in different non-profit agencies. Internal and external assessments and forecasts would be done by the vice president of the human resources information system on both the corporate level and the hospital levels. The development of a Talent Management program helps to guarantee that employer, has the right people in the appropriate jobs. If an employee is not matched up correctly, then that group works on matching them so that they can be relocated to other areas of the company where they will be more beneficial. The vice president of HRIS and his group would be the ones handling these internal and external assessments. A couple of years ago, there were layoffs at the organization in the job, but they were at the corporate level not the hospitals. Some individuals were relocated to other positions due to the Talent Management system, and other people were offered early retirement and others severance packages. The vice presidents of employee relations and the vice president of benefits and compliance would also be involved in the area. They not only want to look within the communities in which company served for employees, but also wants to ensure that person look within the organization to fill positions. These vice presidents would work together to see that the entire employee package is complete and that the employee has everything covered from hours to insurance and stock options. These vice presidents and their groups cover all of employee’s organizations, so they not only have to be concerned with hospital employees. In addition, they have to be concerned with all of our employees, including executive management. According to the American College of Healthcare Executives, â€Å"out of 300 hospitals surveyed, the overall turnover rate for 2010 was 16 percent nationwide† (Modern Healthcare, June 20, 2011, p. 33) Often a company thinks of the employees at the hospitals such as nurses, clinicians, technicians, etc. but doesnt think about the executives that are at the hospital. The company must ensure that they are satisfied employees as well. All the groups of the human resources department work together for the benefit of all employees. There are many things that come into play, such as ensuring a person has competent HR employees who can assist others within the organization. HR wants to recruit the best people it can and to have a diverse workforce within the organization. Once they are recruited, HR wanted them to remain happy and realize that they can have a career and not just a job. Management wants employees to realize that this is an organization where they can grow with the company and that their HR department is pleased to help them do so. Health care HR departments realize the value of healthy employees, and some organizations have even started programs for the employee’s family. â€Å"While most big companies already have employee wellness programs, the newest trend is expanding those efforts to include dependents† (Bloomberg Business Week, January, 21, 2010) If company employees are happy, healthy and their families are the same, business will have a satisfactory employee who will display those duplicate qualities as an employee daily. REFERENCES American College of Healthcare Executives, (2011, February 11) American Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration – Mentoring Program. Retrieved from www.ashhra.org Flynn, W., Mathis, R., Jackson, J. (2011). Healthcare human resource management. Mason: Cengage Learning Flynn, W., Mathis, R., Jackson, J. (2011). Healthcare human resource management. (2nd ed). Mason,OH: Thomson South-Western/Cengage. HCA – Hospital Corporation of America: About our Company. Retrieved from http://www.hcahealthcare.com Health Care: Human Resources Targets Your Family. Bloomberg BusinessWeek (2010, January 21). Retrieved from http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_05/b4165067423261.htm Hospital CEO turnover by state. (2011, June 20). Modern Healthcare p. 33

Supply Chain Management Case Study: Turkish Airline

Supply Chain Management Case Study: Turkish Airline At present, many companies are usually seeing their profits and income slip through their fingers as result of the of process gaps existing in various departments. As clienteles, staffs, partners or dealers move through a companys business processes, new publically conscious tools can inhibit them from getting stuck in multifaceted processes. Therefore, there is a need for synchronizing and integrating various processes which include; operation process, market process, production and procurement process. If not, a lack of synchronization and integration of various business processes can deny many of the vital benefits resulting from employing commercial process management and business instructions management or any other solutions that guarantee operational competence and efficiency. Before looking at how Turkish airline can Synchronize and integrate operation process, market process, production and procurement process, there is a need for defining what is meant by each of the processes; Marketing process This is the marketing model that any company must find a way to realizeunsatisfiedconsumer needs and bring to market goods and services that fulfill those desires. The procedure of doing so can be exhibited in a series of steps that ensure unsatisfied consumers fulfill their desires. Operational processes These are the processes that ensure consistenttactic to all activities accomplished. There is no anycompany that can afford several ways to undertake activities, nor can it afford extraopenings to encouragedisaster from lack of documented and well-definedoperational process. Production process Production process is focused with transmuting a variety of inputs into yields that are essentialto the market. All production process encompasses a sequence of networks in a production chain. In every stage, value is added during production process. Procurement process This is a process thataida firm in acquiring goods and services from peripheral dealers. Having looked at the meaning of operation process, market process, production and procurement process, it is very clear that all this processes are very vital in the operation of any organization. Therefore, Turkish airline can Synchronize and integrate these processes in the following ways: In order for Turkish airline to Synchronize and integrate these processes at the correct time at the right place at the right quintets, so they can shrink the cost and upsurge customer services fulfillment simultaneously, they need to do matching. Matching is the process of collecting and relating all the similar activities in the organization. Through matching process, Turkish airline will be able to synchronize and integrate all the company processes. This will be done by putting all the related activities in every process then relate them. This will ensure employing a certain group of workers to work in those clustered processes from different departments (processes) in the company. This will help Turkish airline save a lot of money due to the reduction in the number of employees. This is because; one employee can work in different department within the same airline. Apart from synchronizing Market, operation, production and procurement processes, integration process would be very important integration in order to reduce operation cost and increase customer satisfaction. Integration, in Turkish airline, can be done by investigating affiliations across a corporate compendium in order to formtaxonomiesand unifyprocesses into a standardized system. To do this, it will include both merging and matching methods. Through integration, processes within the airline which are closely related will be unified thus forming one standardized system. This will help in saving time in saving customers, lower operation cost due to reduction in the number of employees and also be able to increase customers satisfaction due to the existence of a standardized system of operation. Outsource the Catering Since Turkish airline is a very big airline, it must outsource some services like catering because this is the service that requires a lot of working strategies. Turkish airline should therefore identify large company of caterers who have their in-house experts for nearly everything that is required to done in catering department in Turkish airline. It would be a way forward for Turkish airline to hire outside experts for special catering services that are required in order to cater for various kinds of the customers travelling in Turkish airline. By employing this catering company, the Turkish airline should divide the kind of miles to be offered to the travellers travelling in Turkish airline. This will ensure that customer only chose their preferred meal from the available set of food items and drinks available for every type of schedule. This will ensure that there is catering services for breakfast, lunch and dinner which will depend on the schedule of the airline. In doing this, Turkish airline will be able to save a lot of money by ensuring only food items prepared are suitable a certain type of travel schedule. It will also avoid inconvenience of the customers ordering something which is not available. Also, this will increase customer satisfactions since customers will be choosing items available in the menu for a certain schedule of the airline. This will help market Turkish airline since customers will be satisfied by the services being offered by the Turkish airline. This will therefore increase the number of returning customers and also help Turkish airline attract other new customers through the good thing being said by the old customers of Turkish airline. Supply Chain Management Supply chain management means the oversight of information, finances and materials as they shift in a procedure from the supplier to the manufacturer to the wholesaler to the retailer and to consumers. Supply chain management engrosses integrating and coordinating the flows both among and within companies. It is believed that, the final goal of all efficient supply chain management systems is to lower inventory, with the presumption that, all products are readily available when they are needed. Supply chain management surge can be subdivided into three key flows: The information flow The product flow The finances flow Products flow involves the faction of goods from the supplier to the customer, and all customers returns or service necessities. The data flow involves conveying orders as well as updating the delivery status. The financial flows consist of payment schedules, title and consignment ownership and credit terms provisions. There exist two key types of supply chain management software: execution applications and planning applications. Planning applications make use of advanced algorithms to examine the most appropriate means to fill orders. Execution applications pursue the physical characteristics of goods, materials management, and the financial information engrossing entire parties. Some supply chain management applications are focused on open information models, which support the distribution of information both outside and inside the enterprise. This is known as the comprehensive enterprise, and may include main suppliers, end customers and manufacturers of a particular company. This shared information might reside in variedÂÂ  data warehouses or database systems at several different companies and sites. By giving out the data upstream with the companys suppliers and the downstream with the companys clients, supply chain management applications have the capability to upgrade the market-to-time products, allow all parties and reduce costs in the supply chain management to better manage the current resources as well as plan for future necessities. Supply Chain In early 2008 AMR Research (2008b) reported that, firms in the Supply Chain Top 25 reported an average total stock market return for 2007 of 17.89%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) had average returns of 6.43% and the SP 500 index had average returns of 3.53% during the same period (Hauser 2010, 446-462). At the time the Supply Chain Top 25 included firms in the computer, electronics, automotive, retail, beverage, health care, apparel, and pharmaceutical industries, indicating a widespread recognition of the value of effective supply chain practices. Later in 2008, when the stock markets were down substantially, the Supply Chain Top 25 was down significantly less than the DJIA and SP 500 indices (Hambrick 2009, 193-206). But it is not all good news for firms participating in supply chains. The downside of ineffective supply chain practices can have a substantial negative effect on firm performance as well. In a study of supply chain glitches, Holbrook (2007) found that when publically traded firms experienced supply chain disruptions, the average abnormal financial returns to firms over the subsequent two year period was close to -40%, and the equity risk of the firms increased at the same time. But supply chain problems are not limited to supply disruptions. Being introduced the design for the new 787 Dreamliner several years ago, but has had numerous production problems with supply availability, collaborative design and development challenges, and problems developing new materials for production (Holbrook 2007, 21-71). In a different industry, Ericsson experienced a supplier problem when a small fire eliminated supply of a critical cell phone chip, and the firm never recovered (Hauser 2010, 446-462). There are many examples of how firms have suffered from ineffective management of supply chains, but regardless of the specific causes firms recognize that mere participation in competitive supply chains does not mean the firm will gain potential benefits. These issues present a conundrum: why do some firms gain significant advantage for supply chains, while others do not and may even underperform relative to their competition? Why is this important? Because planning and implementing effective supply chain practices requires managers to make decisions today that affect how well firms will perform in the future, and the costs of poor decisions today have dramatic effects on future firm performance (Harland 2003, 51-62). Supply chain analysis Why do some firms achieve success with their supply chain practices while others underperform to their potential? One potential answer to this puzzle lies in understanding the difference between the breadth of an overall supply chain versus the effective span of control or influence that a firm has on its particular supply chain, and how the span of influence can be used to competitive advantage. For example, Toyota and Wal-Mart have worked to extend their span of control in supply chains beyond their immediate suppliers while working to implement strategic information systems that provide increased visibility of information in their supply chains to help improve flow of product, reduce inventories, and reduce overall supply chain costs (Hambrick 2009, 193-206). This increased visibility also provides early warning of problems that may be developing in the supply chain, providing additional reaction time that may mean the difference between a supply disruption and effective performance. The value of increased visibility has strategic benefits to firms. Some firms, particularly large firms that have the power of high purchase volumes to induce suppliers to participate in supply chain initiatives may do very well in return. But there are limits on span of control in multi-firm relationships and many firms do not achieve the ability to increase their span of control and leverage in supply chains (Habib 2007, 589-606). If a firm has a low-cost strategy, then the firm should optimize and coordinate the supply chain by having frequent and timely deliveries from suppliers to reduce the required level of inventory and achieve low cost. There are two types of generic strategies to achieve a competitive advantage: low-cost and differentiation strategies. A low-cost strategy enables a firm to design and produce a product more efficiently than its competitors. A differentiation strategy allows a firm to offer a variety of products to the customer with reliability and responsive services (Gutman 2002, 60-72). Functional products which are considered to have stable and predictable demand require an efficient process (efficient chains) to supply that product. On the other hand, innovative products which are considered to have unpredictable demand require a responsive supply chain. This match between product type and supply chain strategy will result in a better profit margin for the organization. An efficient supply chain strategy aims at cutting cost and eliminating non-value activities (Gordon 2007, 396-415). A responsive supply chain strategy tends to focus on being flexible and responsive to changes in customers demand. An agile supply chain strategy combines both risk-hedging and responsive supply chain strategies. In other words, it aims at being flexible and responsive to customers while pooling and sharing resources among suppliers (Glazer 2006, 1-19). Effective Supply Chain Span of Control What happens when a firms effective span of control in a supply chain is less that the span of the total supply chain? If the firm cannot see problems that occur beyond its supply chain span of control, the unforeseen problems can affect business continuity and supply chain performance with no prior warning. The Ericsson example above, where the customer was not aware of the extensive contamination of the chip production plant that resulted in months of delays, is but one example. And increased visibility is not a panacea. In 2003, When Apple was planning to launch its G5 computer using chips from IBM, the launch was delayed by a multi-state power outage because Apple was using a single source strategy in its supply chain for the CPU processor chip (Ghoshal 2007, 425-440). These issues of visibility, control, and coordination all fall under the realm of SCD. They require investments in developing specific capabilities that substitute for the internal control that would be available through vertical integration (Ganesan 2007, 1-19). This observation suggests that superior SCD provides another potential answer to the puzzle of why some firms performance better than others through the use of effective supply chain strategies. This leads to a discussion of SCD (Galunic 2010, 215-255). Capabilities As previously noted, when firms develop specific capabilities in supply chains these capabilities influence how the supply chain performs. Thus, once a capability is implemented it changes the behavior of the system. When the underlying behavior of a organizational system is systematically influenced, it is said to have properties that are identified with that behavior (Christopher 2007, 1-10). For example, firms develop capabilities to improve responsiveness in uncertain environments, and once successfully implemented these firms are said to have agility. Agility is one of many properties that have been identified in supply chains, as noted below. To build on this introduction to properties the discussion turns to defining the term properties and then examples of properties are provided within a supply chain context (Child 2005, 1-22). Supply Chain Relationship Structure Costs and benefits In choosing an SCRS, for every benefit there is a corresponding cost. With a modular SCRS, the expected increase in flexibility and responsiveness comes at the cost of more relationships to manage, more suppliers to qualify, more inter-firm interface standards to define/gain acceptance, and a spread of purchase volume commitments to more than one company, resulting in lower purchase volume leverage. For a firm employing a modular SCRS, the benefits of lower switching costs and responsiveness are traded-off by lower visibility to identify potential problems and the loss of lower total system costs that are available through more extensive coordination and communication practices (Holbrook 2007, 21-71). For an integrated SCRS, the advantages of higher visibility, improved coordination, lower inventories, and lower system cost come at the expense of investments in more integrated information systems, more human capital to maintain closer relationships, and lower flexibility and higher switching costs during dynamic competitive environments. When relationships are switched in an integrated SCRS, the new relationships and integrated processes have to be integrated over time, increasing investments in new suppliers and increasing human capital to aid in the transition. In addition, if a firm over-invests in a relationship, it negates some of the performance benefits, particularly financial performance (Harland 2003, 51-62). If a firm under-invests, it loses some of the potential benefits. Thus there are trade-offs that firms must consider between increased coordination and investment, and between control versus flexibility during environmental change. These SCRS-related costs and benefits need to be placed in the context of a firms desired strategic outcome.

Ethical Implications Of Image Manipulation

Ethical Implications Of Image Manipulation There are many arguments both for and against image manipulation in the media by the public. Groups argue that image manipulation contributes to eating disorders in both women and men and a general decline in self-worth. But opposing views suggest that image manipulation is a necessity for the upkeep of our idyllic view of celebrity culture, or is a form of art. Through my research, I will look at literature that may suggest that the use of image manipulation is negatively affecting our views of society and, in turn, what positive effects it is having too. When speaking about image manipulation, we need to think of the ethics involved. In a post about the ethics of image manipulation, Lodriguss says; When we correct, manipulate and enhance images in Photoshop, we must deal with questions of both ethics and aesthetics. (Lodriguss, 2006) What is ethical and what is not in terms of image manipulation? In what way are we manipulating the images, and is this for good or bad? There are a whole host of questions that can be asked, but we must focus our attention on whom the editing is affecting. When an image is edited, we are looking at two possible audiences who could be affected by the image; the subject and the people viewing the image. These two parties will each have different views about the editing that means the moral implications become entwined. When a reader picks up a magazine, looks at a billboard advertisement of a celebritys latest perfume release, or a fashion shoot, their view of the subject is most likely skewed. The editors of these publications often embrace imaging software and its editing features to better engage their target audience, and also to assist celebrities in keeping up their perfect image. Lucy Danziger, editor-in-chief of Self Magazine, has been quoted saying Yes, of course we do post-production corrections on our images. Photoshopping is an industry standard. (The Daily Mail, 2012) This was said about an image of Kelly Clarkson that was heavily altered. It may be seen by some that the editing of the image is ethically correct as it is maintaining a positive image of the artist. We have to remember that looks sell and in the dog eat dog world that is celebrity culture, does the digital world offer a safe haven for those who may need those few extra pounds shaved off? We have seen a strong example of how digital manipulation can help those that are being edited, but what about the audience that view and interpret the images? It is quite apparent that the editors of the media publications have an agenda when it comes to image manipulation. Maximising profit. A general understanding is that the public want to see the glam and glitz that comes with the size zero celeb. Its a form of escapism in the sense that the decoders may look at a magazine front cover and get lost in its world of designer gear and pocket sized pooches. But that escape from reality is short-lived, and the effects of over exposure from these edited images can be devastating. Young girls are exposed to between 400 and 600 media images per day. (Hawkins, 2012) With such a high figure, is it any wonder that there has been an outcry from charities, that support those affected by eating disorders, to ban excessive photo manipulation? The BBC say that the media is a powerful influence and we know how vulnerable some people at risk of eating disorders can be to its visual images in particular in a quote from Susan Ringwood of B-Eat. (British Broadcasting Corporation, 2010) Charities are getting angry that the media is allowed to digitally diet celebrities with no form of ethical guidelines that they must adhere to. However change may be on the horizon. The government are currently looking at reducing the amount of editing that institutions are allowed to put out into the mainstream public. They [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] want to keep computer enhancement and digital manipulation to an absolute minimum (eg red eye reduction, background lightening). (Herrin, 2011) The gov ernment have seen that the stream of unrealistic photos that plague the media is affecting the way some people view themselves, which is therefore having an effect on their own wellbeing. By creating an ethical code that institutions have to follow, they will be taking one step to safeguarding those at risk of influence. Early this year, a young 14-year-old girl named Julia Bluhm from Maine, USA, started a petition on the Internet to try and get teenage magazine Seventeen to print unedited photos of women once a month. Julia didnt think that she would get nearly the amount of signatures that she did, totalling up a staggering 84,000. This figure effectively illustrates how many young females believe that image manipulation has a negative influence on the youth of today. The magazine promises not to doctor girls body shapes or face shapes (Dieken, 2012) which means that it wont be reducing the waist size or the complexion of the young girls. Girls will now be able to read a magazine with accurate representations of their peers, even if it is only once a month. This was seen as a massive breakthrough in the media industry, with her crusade [leading] to a magazines commitment to change. (The Daily Mail, 2012) I believe that both the encoder and the decoder of media texts have valid arguments when it comes to the ethics of image manipulation. I think that the celebrity culture demands that those in the spotlight look their very best at all possible times, and the media make a positive contribution to that image remaining so. I do however believe that the repercussions of this editing take an over arching negative effect on those who view them. Young women should not have to be subjected to a bombardment of ultra skinny, perfect representations of women. If those images were mediated by the institutions to a set code of ethics, I believe that the representations of women and the ramifications would be much less negative and tarnished.

Newtons Method: A Computer Project :: Newton-Raphson Method

Newton's Method: A Computer Project Newton's Method is used to find the root of an equation provided that the function f[x] is equal to zero. Newton Method is an equation created before the days of calculators and was used to find approximate roots to numbers. The roots of the function are where the function crosses the x axis. The basic principle behind Newton's Method is that the root can be found by subtracting the function divided by its derivative from the initial guess of the root. Newtons Method worked well because an initial guess was given to put into the equation. This is important because a wrong initial guess may give you the wrong root for the function. With Mathematica, a program for Newton's method can be produced and a graph of the function can be made. From the graph, the a good initial guess can be made.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although Newton's Method works to find roots for many functions, it does have its disadvantages. The root sometimes cannot be found by using Newton's Method. The reason it sometimes cannot be found is because when the function is equal to zero, there is no slope to the tangent line.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As seen in experimentation's, it is important to select an initial guess close to the root because some functions have multiple roots. Failure to choose an initial value that is close to the root could result in finding a the wrong root or wasting a lot of time doing multiple iterations while getting close to the actual root.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On some occasions, the program cannot find a root to an initial guess that is placed into the program. In some instances Mathmatica could not find the root to the function, like if it is a parabola with its vertex is placed

Michele Cliff, Sidney Mintz and Antonio Benitez-Rojos Writings :: Caribbean Race Racial Issues Essays

Michele Cliff, Sidney Mintz and Antonio Benitez-Rojo's Writings With a focus on articles written by Michele Cliff, Antonio Benitez-Rojo, and Sidney Mintz. Michelle Cliff, "If I Could Write This on Fire, I Would Write This on Fire," and Abeng Antonio Benitz-Rojo, "From plantation to Plantation"; Sidney Mintz, "The Caribbean: A Sociocultural Area"; On this island of Black and Brown, she had inherited her father’s green eyes—which all agreed were her "finest feature." Visibly, she was the family’s crowning achievement, combining the best of both sides, and favoring one rather than the other. Much comment was made about here prospects, and how blessed Miss Mattie was to get herself such a granddaughter. The legacy of the plantation, the class struggle between dark and light skinned, the different lifestyles of city and country people, and the lack of a cohesive culture are all ideas toughed upon in the writings of Michele Cliff, Sidney Mintz, and Antonio Benitez-Rojo. The distinct difference in styles is what separates these writings. Cliff writes from the viewpoint of an islander, while Mintz and Benitez-Rojo write from a European point of view. All three authors begin by "telling" the history of the region in different ways. Mintz describes the Caribbean using nine distinct similarities, that he feels all islands have in common. He paints a picture of explorers "island-hopping" and discovering characteristics of each island. Mintz goes on by saying that the sole purpose for colonization was the plantation and the products of that plantation (mainly sugar). He continues by stating that the Caribbean is "western society" formed by European ideals and thoughts that were infused into the everyday life of the islands and its inhabitants. He says, that because of this heavy European influence, the Caribbean has no real culture. Its culture was formed by the teachings of European ideals and the remembered African tradition, which they brought over with them. Benitez-Rojo speaks of a rhythm that is present in the Caribbean. He does not believe that there is a Caribbean culture. He does say that the people of the Caribbean have a certain rhythm to them. "It is rhythm that puts all the Caribbean peoples in ‘the same boat,’ over and above separations imposed on them by ‘nationality and race,’ it is rhythm—not a specific cultural expression—that confers Caribbeanness." Cliff doesn’t really go into a description of the whole Caribbean. She tells the story of a light skinned Jamaican named Clare. Michele Cliff, Sidney Mintz and Antonio Benitez-Rojo's Writings :: Caribbean Race Racial Issues Essays Michele Cliff, Sidney Mintz and Antonio Benitez-Rojo's Writings With a focus on articles written by Michele Cliff, Antonio Benitez-Rojo, and Sidney Mintz. Michelle Cliff, "If I Could Write This on Fire, I Would Write This on Fire," and Abeng Antonio Benitz-Rojo, "From plantation to Plantation"; Sidney Mintz, "The Caribbean: A Sociocultural Area"; On this island of Black and Brown, she had inherited her father’s green eyes—which all agreed were her "finest feature." Visibly, she was the family’s crowning achievement, combining the best of both sides, and favoring one rather than the other. Much comment was made about here prospects, and how blessed Miss Mattie was to get herself such a granddaughter. The legacy of the plantation, the class struggle between dark and light skinned, the different lifestyles of city and country people, and the lack of a cohesive culture are all ideas toughed upon in the writings of Michele Cliff, Sidney Mintz, and Antonio Benitez-Rojo. The distinct difference in styles is what separates these writings. Cliff writes from the viewpoint of an islander, while Mintz and Benitez-Rojo write from a European point of view. All three authors begin by "telling" the history of the region in different ways. Mintz describes the Caribbean using nine distinct similarities, that he feels all islands have in common. He paints a picture of explorers "island-hopping" and discovering characteristics of each island. Mintz goes on by saying that the sole purpose for colonization was the plantation and the products of that plantation (mainly sugar). He continues by stating that the Caribbean is "western society" formed by European ideals and thoughts that were infused into the everyday life of the islands and its inhabitants. He says, that because of this heavy European influence, the Caribbean has no real culture. Its culture was formed by the teachings of European ideals and the remembered African tradition, which they brought over with them. Benitez-Rojo speaks of a rhythm that is present in the Caribbean. He does not believe that there is a Caribbean culture. He does say that the people of the Caribbean have a certain rhythm to them. "It is rhythm that puts all the Caribbean peoples in ‘the same boat,’ over and above separations imposed on them by ‘nationality and race,’ it is rhythm—not a specific cultural expression—that confers Caribbeanness." Cliff doesn’t really go into a description of the whole Caribbean. She tells the story of a light skinned Jamaican named Clare.

Dantes Inferno in Comparison to Christianity and The Media Essay

Dantes Inferno in Comparison to Christianity and The Media Dante's Inferno is a strange journey through hell, which at times seems familiar but then sometimes seems unexpected. As an American and a Christian it is possible to think that my opinion on this could be crafted from my religion and our society, particularly its media. In my mind I see hell as this place of immense torment bestowed on sinners. My faith has taught me that those who sin go to hell to be punished. Dante's adventure clearly shows that the souls of hell are punished, as I thought. Punishments range from living in filth to painful tortures. What my religion or any movies or television shows I've seen mentioned is the idea of a hierarchy. The idea of hell being made up of circles that descend based on sin. While this idea makes sense, I have never been exposed to that thought, so it a little surprising, but also interesting. My view of hell was this burning hole where all the souls of sinners kind of dwell together. I basically felt that a sin is a sin, this is probably because it was instil...

MBA Application

Essay Question #1Some students pursue an MBA to make a career change; others pursue an MBA to accelerate their current career path. (500 words or less) a) If your goal is to change careers, describe your plan to achieve your goals before, during and after your MBA. b) If you intend to follow your current career path, describe how the MBA will add value to achieve your goals.A Project Manager- Construction at present, I wish to now gain expertise in Supply Chain Management and make a lateral shift towards the operation of facilitating the right materials in the right amount at the right time and progress to a position of Strategic Management within the Energy Sector. Working with Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, a fortune 500 company, I have had limitless opportunities to enhance my technical understanding as well as to develop into an effective team player and a leader. The numerous situations and opportunities have been instrumental in the holistic growth in terms of assessing the conditions and utilizing the available resources in the best manner possible. These experiences have laid the foundations for my aspirations, preparing me to understand the basic requirements that would facilitate the shift.My project management experience and relevant engineering education helped me understand the close relation between operation and supply chain management which form the backbone of any corporation I have acquired a good grasp of technology, infrastructure and regulatory roles behind production, transportation and distribution of petroleum products. I have not only learned about the supply-chain of an oil company but also tackled numerous businesses, environmental and political challenges involved in the energy sector. I enjoy working in such intellectually stimulating business environment and hence, have decided to pursue a career in this sector in the long run.With the needed experience in technology, planning and execution in place, at this stage, I intend to understand the finance, strategy and interaction aspects of the businesses. Though on-job learning experiences might usher me in the desired direction, I strongly believe that only structured education  coupled with practical experience can fill the knowledge gaps and equip us with proper decision-making tools. There are specialized opportunities surfacing in this sector today and the outlook for supply-chain management is in a phase of transformation.An MBA from W.P. Carey will help me understand the fundamentals of management and the specialization in Supply Chain Management would effectively groom me for my future career choice. This would be further substantiated by the global curriculum, the intellectual indulgent peer network and a faculty that would guide me towards the best ways of harnessing my skill set and abilities.Immediately after leaving W. P. Carey, I wish to join a global firm’s Supply Chain Department as a supply chain analyst and Consultant to further substantiate my knowledge of real-time market complexities and interactions. As a supply chain manager I will identify new markets and opportunities for my company.Helped by the skill sets acquired at W.P.Carey, I will strategize cost effective solutions, methods to increase sales and thus achieve high turn around. Growing within the organization, I would master the art of comprehensive business development and gain valuable insights into innovative strategies to counter supply chain worries. This growth in turn would ensure that I move steadily, marking my own career path and growing into the position of a Strategic Leader within the Operations and Supply Chain Division.Essay Question #2There are many important factors to consider as you choose an MBA program. What matters most to you for your MBA experience and why? How will the W. P. Carey MBA provide you that experience? (500 words or less)As a Project Manager I have learnt the art of planning, managing teams, assessing the chan ging environment and taking actions in time. As a thoroughbred professional, I have managed to guide multi-lingual and multi-dimensional teams.My experiences, coupled with my engineering degree, have helped me to grow both personally as well as professionally, but more than six years of managerial experience in oil & gas have limited my exposure to one aspect of the energy industry, and I believe a well-balanced  MBA curriculum would significantly improve my knowledge base of different functional areas and provide me with essential operation management skills which will be helpful to promote my career ahead and propel me towards my long term aspirations of being a Leader and an Innovator in the field of Logistics and Supply Chain.At this juncture, I seek an MBA that would help me understand the fundamentals of management, guide me surely towards understanding the various tools required in decision making and provide me with a competitive global experience. After weighing many MBA options, I find an MBA at W. P. Carey School of Business the most suitable program to pursue my goals. My choice for W. P. Carey School is based on careful analysis of three primary parameters – alignment of my long-term ambition, focus on my all-round development and unparalleled networking opportunities.Starting with the basic core functions of management, the MBA Program would help me to gain a complete perspective about business in general. Learning about current trend in business administration would augment my understanding of business interactions and enhance my focus on market assessment tools. The global curriculum and the eminent faculty would ensure that I am able to implement my learning in the best manner possible. The case-study method would bring to the fore the key elements of historic cases and help me learn to develop cause-and-effect aptitude and strategic planning concepts.Adding to these advantages is the Summer Internship at W.P. Carey that would help me implement my learning in the real world. I also look forward to the Global Connection Study Tours to further enlighten my mind. Academic advantages aside, what would fuel my long term dreams is a right mix of personality and network. On the basis of my needs and aspirations, I knew that it had to be a school that would give me the right amount of training as well as the benefit of a peer group that I would be able to relate to and evolve with.Meeting with entrepreneurs and strategy-experts during my curriculum, I would get the opportunity to observe the current trends in the global market, learn about the challenges the industry faces and gain from their valuable practical experience. Further, I believe that Diversity at W. P. Carey will add a new dimension to  my thinking. Diverse alumni would offer unparalleled networking opportunities and help me become a part of the global W.P. Carey community, in effect making my dreams come to life.Essay Question #3If you had five tweets to describe the most significant moments in your life, what would you tweet? (140 characters for each tweet)Tweet 1: Dedication and hard work have sweet returns†¦ B. Tech class of 2004†¦ my success story begins.Tweet2: It wasn’t easy but perseverance and intellect helped me fight†¦ overcoming all hurdles I finally found my place in Bharat Petroleum in 2006.Tweet3: You have helped me, comforted me and brought success to my life†¦ my darling beautiful wife.Tweet 4: I thought I would never see anyone as pretty as my wife, till my angel came into my life. She brought fortune and success†¦ all smiles are next!Tweet 5: New role, new responsibilities. Assistant Manager – Engineering & Projects for BPCL. The road ahead of 2010 is uphill!