Defining concept of design thinking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Defining concept of design thinking - Essay Example an a branch of career study which applies the sensitivity, creativity and innovativeness as well as coming up with executions and implementation strategy in order to bring out satisfaction of the consumers who intends to use the product and to cope up with the market competition. 3. Choose examples exploring the current literature on design thinking, its influences and its critiques and relate it to real world application of design thinking used as a strategic tool in business leadership. Some technological companies such as Google and Apple have in the recent past given room for about 20% of their employees to think and come out with their ideas in improving their services and the goods for the case of Google. For many consumers in the market the need is full satisfaction in which consumers need new products with development in operations. Design thinking has much influence on the profitability of the company. Taking for instance phone applications, most consumers will go for those phones with many features as compared to those with fewer features. These features are some of the products of ideas which in this case is design thinking. In addition design thinking brings about competition among the companies thereby resulting in high quality products. Of course there is aspect of critics coming from the social side. Most of the design thinking are associated with the destruction of the environment, exploitation due to high demand of the input place in implementing the se ideas. When we take for example the motor vehicle industry such as the Lamborghini which is a current design thinking product is very expensive as compared to other cars which are not highly designed but it is surprising to note that the raw materials are just the same. This makes us to believe that the increase in price is due to the designing services. Most of business strategic plans are based on the applications of the ideas from the management and other employees. After depict of clear

Commercial bank of kuwait (CBK) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Commercial bank of kuwait (CBK) - Essay Example Characteristics of the industry in which the bank operates Commercial Bank of Kuwait operates in the Kuwait’s banking industries whose environmental features are identifiable. The industry is one of the strongest in the region and this identifies positive prospects such as sustainability and a business’ profit making interests. The industry is also free from unfavorable competition from international financial institutions. It comprises of about ten local banks and nine foreign banks, a number that identifies oligopolistic market. This means that the market players have significant potentials to dictate market factors but competitors can at the same time use such powers to gain competitive advantage over the firm. This further identifies banks’ fears of customer manipulation and leads to significant level of stability in the industry. The industry is also in its developmental stage in which competition is increasing as each bank seeks to expand its market control . Developments in the industry also identify diversification into new products and application of technology for developing new products as well as for efficiency. Innovation has been another characteristic feature of the industry and is a factor to increased level of competition. Favorable political environment has also been reported within the industry with policies that support commercial banks’ stability and operations. The policies indicate stability of the industry, regardless of possible entry by more foreign banks, because of the government policies that focuses on protecting the industry. Further, the minimal market size helps in protecting the industry from further venture by foreign banks because of risks of failing to reach breakeven points by new entrants and the country’s small population explains this (Capital Standards 1). The Industry however faces risks from volatility in two industries that are significant to its sustainability. The industriesâ€℠¢ dynamism affects performance and profitability of the banking industry that is also susceptible to threats of concentration. The role of Islamic banking that is gaining momentum in the country is another threat to the banking industry because of its ability to reduce the market base. Islamic banking is a significant threat because of the country’s dominant faith that is likely to induce bias towards the religious banks (Capital Standards 1). The Kuwait’s banking industry is also susceptible to global economic factors as global recession was witnessed during the global recession in the year 2009. Other significant sectors to the banking industry such as the construction sectors are also susceptible to the global economy and affect banks’ conditions. The industry’s financial indicators such as gross loans and non-performing loans also offer a basis for its analysis. Amount of gross loans has been increasing and this indicates increasing demand for financi al services. Increasing trend in nonperforming loans in the industry also indicates increasing advanced services to customers that culminates to increased defaults and threats of defaults. The increasing volume on non-performing loans is however, a threat to the industry as defaults constrains liquidity. Policies to improved asset quality have however promised to reduce the threats of growing volume of nonperforming loans with positive results being reported in the year 2010. The industry also relies on low cost deposits as sources

Introduction To Mnc And The Company Nestle Marketing Essay

Introduction To Mnc And The Company Nestle Marketing Essay Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is any forms that investor earns interest in corporation which functions outside of the domestic territory of investor. Besides that, foreign direct investment needs a relationship between a parent company and it foreign subsidiary. It is also gives rise for multinational corporate based on their report Economy Watch (2010). Recent research on globalization (Global Education, 2009) has shown there are many different definitions of globalization, but most acknowledge the greater movement of people, goods, capital and ideas due to increased economic integration which in turn is propelled by increased trade and investment. It is like moving towards living in a borderless world. There has always been a sharing of goods, services, knowledge and cultures between people and countries, but in recent years improved technologies and a reduction of barriers means the speed of exchange is much faster. Globalization provides opportunities and challenges (Global Education, 2009). Nestle is a multinational corporate since it headquarter was located in Switzerland but it operate its business in the other countries over the world such as Europe, United State, China, Malaysia, Hong Kong etc. As we known, Nestle is an infants product. Besides produced infants, Nestle have yet produces some others products such as chocolate, yogurt drink, cornflakes, ice-cream etc that we can easily founded in supermarkets over the world. Introduction to Nestle In 1860s, a pharmacist named Henri Nestle had success developed a food for babies which are unable to breastfeed. And his first success was a premature infant who could not tolerate his mothers milk or any of the usual substitutes. (Nestle, 2010) In 1867, he adopted his own coat of arms as a trademark in 1867. In German Nestle means little nest. And the now-famous symbol is universally understood to represent nurturing and caring, security, nourishment and family bonding. These attributes are still the guiding legacy for the company Henri Nestlà © founded as it fulfills its commitment to Good Food, Good Life. The Nestlà © Coat-of-Arms Sources: Nestle Sdn Bhd 2010 In 1905 Nestlà © merged with the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company. The year after Nestlà © added chocolate to its line of foods. The newly formed Nestlà © and Anglo-Swiss Milk Company had factories in the United States, Britain, Spain and Germany. Soon the company was full-scale manufacturing in Australia with warehouses in Singapore, Hong Kong and Bombay. Most production still took place in Europe. (English Tea Store, 2004-2009) While the original business was based on milk and dietetic foods for children, the new Nestlà © grew and diversified its range of products, through acquisitions and mergers with the better known brands of the time. For example: The manufacturing of LACTOGEN began in 1921, and in the same year, a beverage containing wheat flour was marketed under the brand name MILO. In 1938, NESCAFÉ, the worlds first instant coffee was introduced. Then, in 1947, the MAGGI Company merged with Nestlà ©. Today, Nestle company still adhere their principles that is provides the best products throughout the world. Beside that as the leading Food, Nutrition, Health and Wellness Company, Nestlà © is the provider of the best food for whatever time of day and for whatever time of your life. Nestlà © has grown to become the worlds largest food company offering more than 8,500 brands and 10,000 products. With its headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland, Nestlà © has more than 456 factories spread over 80 countries, and employs more than 283,000 people. (Nestle Products Sdn Bhd , 2010) Actual impact of globalization on Nestle PESTLE analysis which contains of political, economic, social, technology, legal and environment analysis which consist of external environmental. It is a useful analysis to understanding the situation of a company in an industry. Political analysis The stability of political in a country will be under the consideration by NESTLE to build a plant that can operates NESTLEs factories that considering the countrys political stability, good tax incentives as well as its skilled workforce, NESTLE chose Malaysia to be the site of another regional manufacturing centre for NESCAFE (Mr. Josà © Lopez, Executive Vice President, Nestle S.A. responsible for global operations and GLOBE (Nestlà ©s Global Business Excellence Programmer)). Economic Analysis The important of economic factors will leads to the strength of consumer spending. For example, in recession economy, people might cut of their budget to consume household stuff rather than unnecessary stuff such as chocolate. Americans likes luxury chocolates, a new premium line of cacao which is called Nestle Treasures God had launched in order to cash in on the recession. Social Analysis Even though Nestle as a multinational corporate which operates their business in the other country, but do respect to peoples culture and traditional which is a corporate that think global, act local by working hard to integrate itself into the cultures and traditions of the country. For example, Kit-Kats formula is almost different everywhere. A Russian Kit-Kat is smaller than a Bulgarian, but less sweet than Germanys Kit-Kat. While in Japan, the strawberry Kit-Kat is all the rage. Technology Analysis As the technology of recently changed rapidly in global, Nestle have attracted people to purchasing their products by using advertising. For example, Kit-Kat have been advertised by attracting youngster or child because it is a sweeten tid-bits. Infants foods advertisement is to attracted housewife to purchase it to given their child a healthy life. Recent research on technology analysis (Nestle Policy and Environmental sustainable) (2008) reports shown that during the manufacturing process, Nestle had using efficient technologies to ensure that there is no wasted energy while producing products. In addition, to control the eliminate emission including the greenhouse gases. Legal Analysis In 1996, Nestle was the first multinational corporate that voluntary for Halal certification for its own food products. Those food products that exported to the other countries were certified as Halal products. As a global food company like Nestle, hygiene is a must. Since Nestle has the Halal certification and hygiene was the procedure which contain in that certificate. Besides that, health and safety were the principle that keeps by Nestle. While provided employees to minimize risks in their personal lives, Nestle had always emphasize each of their employees about to change the employees attitudes towards personal safety. Environmental Analysis Nestle always committed to people to produce the best quality to their consumers. Besides that, Nestle also prevented the wasted food by reduced the materials weight and volume, yet supported initiatives of recycle from used packaging. Nestle have also use recycled materials to produce its products. But, Nestle had done a fact that will cause of the lost of the home for orangutan. According to Heidi Marshall (2010), Nestles product-Kit Kat is a product of environmental destruction. This is because of the material that used in the candy bars and for the other Nestle products as well was comes from a palm oil that get from by destroying Indonesia rainforests. SWOT Analysis of Nestle As Dr. Jill Novak, (2009) commented that: Strength Nestle is a global food producer since it located in over 100 countries. It is consistently one of the worlds largest producers which with global sales in 2008 topped $101 billion. In addition, Nestle was named one of Americas Most Admired Food Companies in Fortune magazine. Furthermore, Nestle provides quality brands and products and line extensions that are well-known, top-selling brands including: Maggi, Haagen Dazs, Kit Kat, Nescafe, CoffeeMate, prepared baby foods, yogurt, foods for infants and many more. Weakness Most of the products have their own weaknesses. For Nestle, it was not as successful as the other country in France. Nestle could not compete against a strong and established brand which is Dannon that entered into France earlier than Nestle which is top selling of health yogurt. Besides that, since 2004, Nestle has been forced to reduce the amount of sugar in their products that may cause of diabetes among American children. In addition, Nestle has been removed the packaging and advertising that false claims of heart healthy and lower cholesterol which is an order from FDA(Food and Drug Administration) and American Medical Association which is the under fire of the breakfast cereal industry. Opportunities In today, everyone hope and needs to have a healthy life, as a producer like Nestle, it has an opportunities to raise their selling profits with producing health-based products. Since Nestle was a well-known branded, for sure, it will be easy to attract people to purchase their products. Further, they launched a new premium line of cacao called Nestle Treasures Gold, in order to cash in on the recession economy in which consumers cut back on luxury goods, but regularly indulge in candy and chocolate. Americans want luxury chocolates, and high-end chocolate is immune to the recession (so far), because it is an inexpensive indulgence. Threats Even though Nestle was a big producer in the world, but it still has its competitor, such as Hersheys, Cadbury-Schweppes (owned by Pepsi), Kelloggs, Starbucks, , Quaker, Kraft Foods, Danone, , Heinz, Unilevel and many more. In addition, any contamination foods supply especially e.coli which causes the recalled of their brand-Toll House cookie dough. Outbreaks were linked to 28 states and the product had to be recalled globally. Nestlà © has yet to find out how this happened, and is still investigating (Dr. Jill Novak, (2009). Potential impacts of globalization on Nestle Nestle corporate have its own potential in globalization since it is a big foods producer in global. Technology In the world of today, technology will be changing rapidly in global. And this will leads a good improvement in all type of products that will be produce around the world. A research and development department will be a part of Nestle from today towards future achievement by gaining profits without wasting the raw material in manufacturing process. Besides that, by using a developed technology may reduce the effects that will occurs greenhouse effect. For example, use of plastics packaging in every single of Nestle products improve to recycled paper packaging, used of plastic bottle in filling the Nestle beverage into tin that can recycle use. On the others side, a case that occurs in India, which is Nestle chocolate, will be melted before its eyes. This is because there are lacks of distribution and the heat temperature in India will make the chocolate melted. By using the technology that can solve this problem that is using the technology to change its chocolate ingredients so that can afford India heat temperature. Environmental As the info below, Nestles Kit Kats was made from a palm oil that came from by destroying the rainforest in Indonesia. This is cause of the pollution in Indonesia. To solve this problem, Nestle corporate should consider using the palm oil from the other countries by not destroying the rainforest of the country. On the other side, there is another solution too. That is, refining the vegetables oil that can out inside the ingredient of making chocolate. Social As a food producer in global, Nestle may do some different in their products. Such as, a new flavor of the chocolate could be launch. This is because different country has a different taste towards foods. For Malaysia, a durian can be a part of the ingredient in the making of Kit-Kat. For Korea, a Kim chi flavor Kit-Kat can also create. This is a try for Nestle to attract people by producing different flavor but same products around the world. Strategies Nestle may consider by using product-market strategies that determine where the organization competes and the direction of growth (Stuart Wall; SonalMinocha and Bronwen Rees, 2010). Products- market strategies are including market penetration strategy, market development strategy, product development strategy, and diversification. Market penetration strategy is which to refer to increase market share of the current products. A firm using this method by raises their sale revenue without any changing of their existing products. Nestle may try to use the promotion which is buy 1 free 1 for its products. For example, buy 2 packs of 1kg Milo free a 10 pack of instant Nescafe. A market penetration will also involve the 4ps which is products, price, promotion and place. According to (Stuart Wall; SonalMinocha and Bronwen Rees, 2010), the product in international marketing is the extent to which a standard and differentiated product should be provided. For example, Nestle is using the differentiated products since it produce its products Kit-Kat in different flavor. A Russian Kit-Kat is smaller than a Bulgarian, but less sweet than Germanys Kit-Kat. While in Japan, the strawberry Kit-Kat is all the rage. The international price is related to the account market different between countries, exchange rates, difficulties of voicing and collecting payment across borders, the effects of tariffs and purchase taxes on competitiveness, governmental regulations of the host country and the long term strategic plan of the company in the different markets in which it operates. For market development strategy, it is mean by taking present products enter into new markets and thus focusing activities on market opportunities and competitor situations.

The New International Economic Order Essay -- United Nations Economics

The New International Economic Order In the early 1960's the economic gap separating the first world from the third or other world began to explode. With the industrialized states controlling more than 3/4ths of the global economy the disadvantage facing the third world could easily be seen. Third world countries lacked the start-up capital, the education, and the technology to compete with the first world. In the early 1970's the United Nations began to listen to the cries from these third world states, and set out to develop a strategy at which to combat these problems. This strategy lead to the development of The New International Economic Order (NIEO) or the Group of 77 in 1974. The group consisted of 77 members " which would rectify what they see as the structural, global, economic inequality that operates to the Other World's distinct disadvantage" (Weatherby 90). The NIEO convened at the United Nations and proposed 6 major issues which they felt needed to be agreed upon in order for the third world states to clos e this economic gap which they faced. The first of these issues was the idea that each state would be free to determine their own economic and political structure. This has not been the case though with Neocolonialism. On the surface it looks as though these third world countries have control over their economic and political structures because the control exercised over these states is indirect. " This influence is exercised through the interaction of the dominant nation's banking, business, cultural, and military leaders with the Other World's elites" (Weatherby 35). Because of the third world's dependence on dominant powers for economic survival they must in essence follow the desires of the more powerful... ...United Nations where each country would deposit 1% of its gross domestic product (GDP). This aid would then be distributed to countries on the basis of needs and not beliefs. As it stands right now the United States only gives 0.017% of it's gross domestic to foreign aid programs. In conclusion the NIEO was a strong attempt at closing the gap between the rich and the poor countries. But in the end the rich and more powerful countries still control everything. The developed countries continue to develop faster everyday. Making it harder and harder for the third world nations to catch up to our pace. It will be the developing nations final decision whether or not we will ever allow the third world to share in the same kind of lifestyle we have developed for ourselves today. Works Cited Weatherby, Joseph N., et al., eds. The Other World. New York: Longman, 1997.

Nathan “Songs of Silence” Essay

The chapters of Songs of Silence hold together as a chorus of songs from one community, but shaped by the recollections of a narrator whose perspective ranges from the innocence of childhood to the maturity of a young adult who emerges unbroken from a failed relationship. One such chapters is ‘Nathan’ and here the narrator is the reflective adult with a sophisticated notion of the wide range if meanings ‘silence’ holds. Through the character of Nation she is able to present some aspects of this theme, which runs throughout the text in many different ways. Nathan acts strategically without words, but with potent meaning – revenge (poking Tony’s eye). Silence is a characteristic feature of Nathan’s personality, which is deep and profound even though he uses few words. The absence of words can mask/hide a great deal (still waters run deep). Nathan’s deep and profound silence was evident even from his birth and the close connection he had with his sister, the narrator – ‘†¦soulmates, welded together by our common need for silence.’ They both started speaking late. However, her silence was different from his – ‘he was a man of dark blue silences,’ while hers ‘hers was a silence of moons.’ Here the narrator suggests that contrary to the saying ‘silence means consent’, silence does not always mean ‘consent’ or agreement nor are all silent people to be treated the same. The ‘manna manna manna mahkita’ game establishes the communication between the narrator and Nathan. It has unspoken personal meaning for them and suggests that its ritual is saturated with almost religious or spiritual significance. It shows that codes of communication which may appear insignificant or meaningless to others looking on, may be a way of expressing connections that (known) words cannot express. The different silences of the siblings allow them to explore, define and find their own authentic selves in their own ways. (E.g. The narrator and the ants, Nathan and his tightfistedness with money). Silence, like money, can express identity.

Leadership Theory

BA365 Leadership Theory Mid Term Paper For this paper I decide to look at four of the leadership theories. The ones I chose are Trait, Contingency, Situational, and Behavioral. I will talk about the definitions of those four theories. Also I will discuss the overviews of the four theories including positives and negativities of each. Leadership Theories There is a wide and ever growing variety of theories to explain the concept and practice of leadership; to me leadership is a dynamic and complex process.Per our text book leadership is an influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes and outcomes that reflect their shared purposes. (Daft, 2011) The theories that I will talk about simplify leadership into different theories. The first I will talk about is the Trait Theory. Trait theory assumes that people inherit certain qualities and traits that make them better suited to leadership. (Cherry, 2012) Also Trait theories often identify particular personality or behavioral characteristics shared by leaders. Cherry, 2012) Per our text book traits are the distinguishing personal characteristics of a leader, such as intelligence, honesty, self confidence, and appearance. (Daft, 2011) Contingency Theories of leadership focus on particular variables related to the environment that might determine which particular style of leadership is best suited for the situation. (Cherry, 2012) Success with this theory depends upon a number of variables and qualities of the followers and aspects of the situation. (Cherry, 2012) Situational Theories propose that leaders choose the best course of action based upon situational variables. Cherry, 2012) Per our book the Hersey and Blanchard’s extension of the leadership grid focusing on the characteristics of followers as the important element of the situation, and consequently, of determining effective leader behavior. (Daft, 2011) Behavioral theories leadership is based upon the belief that great lead ers are made, not born. This leadership theory focuses on the actions of leaders not on mental qualities or internal states. According to this theory, people can learn to become leaders through teaching and observation. Cherry, 2012) Trait Theory The trait model of leadership is based on the characteristics of many leaders both successful and unsuccessful and is used to predict leadership effectiveness. (Daft, 2011) The resulting lists of traits are then compared to those of potential leaders to assess their likelihood of success or failure. Scholars taking the trait approach attempted to identify physiological, demographic, personality, intellective, task-related, and social characteristics with leader emergence and leader effectiveness. â€Å"Trait Theory of Leadership†, 2012) Among the core traits identified are: achievement drive, leadership motivation, honesty and integrity, self-confidence, cognitive ability, knowledge of business, emotional maturity, charisma, creativi ty and flexibility. (â€Å"Trait Theory of Leadership†, 2012) Strengths of Trait Theory include: it’s naturally pleasing, and it gives a detailed knowledge and understanding of the leader element in the leadership process. (â€Å"Trait Theory of Leadership†, 2012) There are some limitations of the Trait Theory.They include: subjective judgment in determining who is regarded as a good or successful leader and the list of possible traits tends to be very long. (â€Å"Trait Theory of Leadership†, 2012) Contingency Theory In contingency theory of leadership, the success of the leader is a function of various contingencies in the form of subordinate, task, and/or group variables. (Daft, 2011) Fiedler’s contingency theory is the earliest and most extensively researched.Fiedler’s approach departs from trait and behavioral models by asserting that group performance is contingent on the leader’s psychological orientation and on three contextua l variables: group atmosphere, task structure, and leader’s power position. (â€Å"Contingency Theory of Leadership†, 2012) Fielder came up with his approach to leadership after realizing that leaders could function well if they changed their styles to suit the situation at hand. (Smith, 2012) According to Fiedler, leadership style may be defined as the way leaders and employees interact with one another. Smith, 2012) It should be noted that Fielder's theory does not cover all the possible factors affecting leadership. Some leaders may be more effective if they undergo training or gain experience on the job. Such factors have not been accounted for by the contingency theory. (Smith, 2012) Fielder was trying to say that leaders are not just successful or unsuccessful. Leaders can either be effective in certain situations and not all of them. Therefore, all individuals can become leaders if they choose the most appropriate situation to apply their leadership styles. Smit h, 2012) Additionally, it is possible to make a leader more effective by altering the following; position power, task structure and leader member relationships. Situational Theory The Situational Leadership Theory was developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard. The model shows that leadership of employees must be adapted to the skills and job maturity of the individual employee. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) The situational leadership style includes four leadership’s styles.They include telling, selling, participating and delegating. Also the situational theory includes four maturity levels. They include: M1, M2, M3 and M4. Telling is characterized by a strong leader categorizing roles for the employees, and who conducts his leadership with one-way communication. This leadership style is very autocratic, and is based upon followers being told what to do. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) Selling is characterized by a strong leader providing directi on, but there is more communication with followers.Leaders are trying to sell their messages to the followers, so that the followers understand the importance of their duties, and understand why different processes are important for the organization. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) Participating is characterized by two-way communication and shared decision making. Leaders include followers in job related aspects and in how task are to be accomplished. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) And Delegating is characterized by a leader leaving much of the decision making power to the followers.Leaders are still monitoring progress, but are not as heavily involved in decision making processes. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) The maturity level M1 is followers with this level of maturity lack knowledge, skills, or confidence to work on their own. They often need to be directed and supervised before they take on tasks. (â€Å"What is the Situationalâ₠¬ , 2010) Maturity level M2 is followers in this category are still unable to take independent responsibility for tasks, but they are generally willing to work at the task. â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) Maturity level M3 are followers in this category are very experienced and able to perform the task at hand satisfactorily. And they do not have the confidence to take on sole responsibility for task accomplishment. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) With Maturity level M4, followers are experienced, and believe that they are able to perform well. They are not only able and willing to perform their tasks, but are also willing to take on independent responsibility for the accomplishment of tasks.By using the situational leadership model, leaders honor the different needs of individuals, leaders may increase the learning curve of followers, and get a more skilled and motivated workforce in return. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) Behavioral Theory Behavioral approach does not focus on the internal states or mental qualities of the leaders. Based on this theory, a person can learn to be a leader through observation and teaching. This theory believed that the environment is a big factor of how a leader behaves. Most behaviorists assume that in order to understand the behavior of the leaders must be observed.Every behavior can be observed and monitored through the responses in every stimulus. The behavioral theory also assumes that the qualities of a leader are developed, and everyone starts with a clean slate. It is believed that the qualities of a leader are formed based also on the environmental factors. (â€Å"Behavioral Approach†, 2012) Conclusion So in conclusion I discussed in this paper four of the Leadership theories that we have learned about in this class. I went through and defined Trait, Contingency, Situational, and Behavioral theories.I also discussed the overviews of the four theories including positives and negativities of each theory. References Behavioral Approach. (2012). Retrieved September 20, 2012 from http://qualities-of-a-leader. com/behavioral-approach/ Cherry, K (2012). Leadership Theories – 8 Major Leadership Theories. Retrieved September 20, 2012 from http://psychology. about. com/od/leadership/p/leadtheories. htm Contingency Theory of Leadership (2012). Retrieved September 20, 2012 from http://www. utwente. nl/cw/theorieenoverzicht/Theory%20clusters/Organizational%20Communication/Contingency_Theories. doc/ Daft, R. L. (2011). The Leadership Leadership Theory BA365 Leadership Theory Mid Term Paper For this paper I decide to look at four of the leadership theories. The ones I chose are Trait, Contingency, Situational, and Behavioral. I will talk about the definitions of those four theories. Also I will discuss the overviews of the four theories including positives and negativities of each. Leadership Theories There is a wide and ever growing variety of theories to explain the concept and practice of leadership; to me leadership is a dynamic and complex process.Per our text book leadership is an influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes and outcomes that reflect their shared purposes. (Daft, 2011) The theories that I will talk about simplify leadership into different theories. The first I will talk about is the Trait Theory. Trait theory assumes that people inherit certain qualities and traits that make them better suited to leadership. (Cherry, 2012) Also Trait theories often identify particular personality or behavioral characteristics shared by leaders. Cherry, 2012) Per our text book traits are the distinguishing personal characteristics of a leader, such as intelligence, honesty, self confidence, and appearance. (Daft, 2011) Contingency Theories of leadership focus on particular variables related to the environment that might determine which particular style of leadership is best suited for the situation. (Cherry, 2012) Success with this theory depends upon a number of variables and qualities of the followers and aspects of the situation. (Cherry, 2012) Situational Theories propose that leaders choose the best course of action based upon situational variables. Cherry, 2012) Per our book the Hersey and Blanchard’s extension of the leadership grid focusing on the characteristics of followers as the important element of the situation, and consequently, of determining effective leader behavior. (Daft, 2011) Behavioral theories leadership is based upon the belief that great lead ers are made, not born. This leadership theory focuses on the actions of leaders not on mental qualities or internal states. According to this theory, people can learn to become leaders through teaching and observation. Cherry, 2012) Trait Theory The trait model of leadership is based on the characteristics of many leaders both successful and unsuccessful and is used to predict leadership effectiveness. (Daft, 2011) The resulting lists of traits are then compared to those of potential leaders to assess their likelihood of success or failure. Scholars taking the trait approach attempted to identify physiological, demographic, personality, intellective, task-related, and social characteristics with leader emergence and leader effectiveness. â€Å"Trait Theory of Leadership†, 2012) Among the core traits identified are: achievement drive, leadership motivation, honesty and integrity, self-confidence, cognitive ability, knowledge of business, emotional maturity, charisma, creativi ty and flexibility. (â€Å"Trait Theory of Leadership†, 2012) Strengths of Trait Theory include: it’s naturally pleasing, and it gives a detailed knowledge and understanding of the leader element in the leadership process. (â€Å"Trait Theory of Leadership†, 2012) There are some limitations of the Trait Theory.They include: subjective judgment in determining who is regarded as a good or successful leader and the list of possible traits tends to be very long. (â€Å"Trait Theory of Leadership†, 2012) Contingency Theory In contingency theory of leadership, the success of the leader is a function of various contingencies in the form of subordinate, task, and/or group variables. (Daft, 2011) Fiedler’s contingency theory is the earliest and most extensively researched.Fiedler’s approach departs from trait and behavioral models by asserting that group performance is contingent on the leader’s psychological orientation and on three contextua l variables: group atmosphere, task structure, and leader’s power position. (â€Å"Contingency Theory of Leadership†, 2012) Fielder came up with his approach to leadership after realizing that leaders could function well if they changed their styles to suit the situation at hand. (Smith, 2012) According to Fiedler, leadership style may be defined as the way leaders and employees interact with one another. Smith, 2012) It should be noted that Fielder's theory does not cover all the possible factors affecting leadership. Some leaders may be more effective if they undergo training or gain experience on the job. Such factors have not been accounted for by the contingency theory. (Smith, 2012) Fielder was trying to say that leaders are not just successful or unsuccessful. Leaders can either be effective in certain situations and not all of them. Therefore, all individuals can become leaders if they choose the most appropriate situation to apply their leadership styles. Smit h, 2012) Additionally, it is possible to make a leader more effective by altering the following; position power, task structure and leader member relationships. Situational Theory The Situational Leadership Theory was developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard. The model shows that leadership of employees must be adapted to the skills and job maturity of the individual employee. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) The situational leadership style includes four leadership’s styles.They include telling, selling, participating and delegating. Also the situational theory includes four maturity levels. They include: M1, M2, M3 and M4. Telling is characterized by a strong leader categorizing roles for the employees, and who conducts his leadership with one-way communication. This leadership style is very autocratic, and is based upon followers being told what to do. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) Selling is characterized by a strong leader providing directi on, but there is more communication with followers.Leaders are trying to sell their messages to the followers, so that the followers understand the importance of their duties, and understand why different processes are important for the organization. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) Participating is characterized by two-way communication and shared decision making. Leaders include followers in job related aspects and in how task are to be accomplished. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) And Delegating is characterized by a leader leaving much of the decision making power to the followers.Leaders are still monitoring progress, but are not as heavily involved in decision making processes. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) The maturity level M1 is followers with this level of maturity lack knowledge, skills, or confidence to work on their own. They often need to be directed and supervised before they take on tasks. (â€Å"What is the Situationalâ₠¬ , 2010) Maturity level M2 is followers in this category are still unable to take independent responsibility for tasks, but they are generally willing to work at the task. â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) Maturity level M3 are followers in this category are very experienced and able to perform the task at hand satisfactorily. And they do not have the confidence to take on sole responsibility for task accomplishment. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) With Maturity level M4, followers are experienced, and believe that they are able to perform well. They are not only able and willing to perform their tasks, but are also willing to take on independent responsibility for the accomplishment of tasks.By using the situational leadership model, leaders honor the different needs of individuals, leaders may increase the learning curve of followers, and get a more skilled and motivated workforce in return. (â€Å"What is the Situational†, 2010) Behavioral Theory Behavioral approach does not focus on the internal states or mental qualities of the leaders. Based on this theory, a person can learn to be a leader through observation and teaching. This theory believed that the environment is a big factor of how a leader behaves. Most behaviorists assume that in order to understand the behavior of the leaders must be observed.Every behavior can be observed and monitored through the responses in every stimulus. The behavioral theory also assumes that the qualities of a leader are developed, and everyone starts with a clean slate. It is believed that the qualities of a leader are formed based also on the environmental factors. (â€Å"Behavioral Approach†, 2012) Conclusion So in conclusion I discussed in this paper four of the Leadership theories that we have learned about in this class. I went through and defined Trait, Contingency, Situational, and Behavioral theories.I also discussed the overviews of the four theories including positives and negativities of each theory. References Behavioral Approach. (2012). Retrieved September 20, 2012 from http://qualities-of-a-leader. com/behavioral-approach/ Cherry, K (2012). Leadership Theories – 8 Major Leadership Theories. Retrieved September 20, 2012 from http://psychology. about. com/od/leadership/p/leadtheories. htm Contingency Theory of Leadership (2012). Retrieved September 20, 2012 from http://www. utwente. nl/cw/theorieenoverzicht/Theory%20clusters/Organizational%20Communication/Contingency_Theories. doc/ Daft, R. L. (2011). The Leadership

Ronald McDonalds Goes to China Research Paper Example

Ronald McDonalds Goes to China Research Paper Example Ronald McDonalds Goes to China Paper Ronald McDonalds Goes to China Paper McDonalds entered Hong Kong in 1975 and Beijing only in 1992. After about seven years, there were already 235 McDonalds restaurants across China and in Hong Kong there were 158 franchises as of 1999 (Watson, 2000). Today, there are already about 200 outlets and more than 10,000 staff in Hong Kong (McDonalds HK, 2007) while in Beijing there are 90 outlets some of which are offer 24-hour service (CEN, 2006). The entry of McDonalds in China, although the country is known for its rich, deep-rooted culture, has become successful primarily because of the changing lifestyles of the people themselves along with the changing characteristics of the countrys demographics. This case study identifies the problems McDonalds in China is facing and recommends possible solutions to the problems identified. Problem Identification McDonalds is faced on the issues on how to stay competitive in the fast food industry and on how to take advantage of the many opportunities available for them. If McDonalds does not take advantage of these opportunities, its competitors are likely to grab such opportunities. According to Watson (2000), China is currently experiencing changes with its demographic characteristics such as changing family system, lifestyles, family values, aging population, and rising incomes. Due to these opportunities. China has become more attractive to other fast food companies that the number of fast food restaurants as well as the intensity of competition in the country is increasing. There is the KFC, Pizza Hut, Mos Burger, California Beef Noodle King, Starbucks, Yoshinoya, and recently, Burger King. All of them have their own market segments and have their own way of attracting customers. Burger King for instance had already entered the Chinese market in 2005 (AP, 2005) and can be expected to expand across China in the next few years. Burger King has many similarities with McDonalds from the quality of service to the quality of products as well as with the ability to attract customers. Additionally, Burger King also knows how to innovate and differentiate products from that of the competitors (e. g. patties are grilled thus the taste of its burgers is distinguishable from that of other brands). Another problem is that the taste of McDonalds beef patties does not appeal to the Chinese adults (Watson, 2000). This means that the adult segment of McDonalds market eat there not because they like the taste of the foods but because of the popularity associated with it and the comfort especially the children and teenage customers find at every McDonalds restaurants. Burger King, McDonalds number one competitor in the United States which has been proven to have better tasting burgers than McDonalds, may soon become a big threat to McDonalds if McDonalds will not give careful attention in improving the taste of its burgers to suit the taste preferences of the Chinese. Identification of Options or Alternatives McDonalds may implement one or a combination of the following alternatives: Intensify its communication and marketing efforts to ensure that McDonalds remains attractive to the younger consumers, making up with the loss made due to the unattractiveness of McDonalds burger to adults. McDonalds definitely has competitive advantage over its competitors due to its popularity and strong brand identity which was developed through its strong marketing and communication tools. This particular strength of McDonalds can be further utilized in order to sustain its competitive advantage. However, this alternative requires McDonalds to allot additional budget for its marketing strategies. Instead of allocating additional financial support for promotions and marketing, McDonalds may opt to allocate budget for research and development in order for the company to innovate and improve the taste of its burger patties; that is, integrate Chinese taste preferences with the American burger. McDonalds should conduct research to determine the specific taste of burgers that Chinese adults want and to alter the recipe of its traditional American burger patty. In other words, although Chinese customers are now embracing American foods, it will be better if they can still get to eat the Chinese way even at McDonalds. McDonalds must focus on product innovation. According to Nonaka (1991, p. 25) innovation means â€Å"to recreate the world according to a particular vision or ideal†. If McDonalds is really aiming to localize the company, it must then become serious in offering products with tastes that will be appreciated by the Chinese consumers.. McDonalds is a food company thus, its focus must primarily be on the taste of its products and not only on providing customers the experience of eating in a friendly restaurant. McDonalds may expand its operation by opening new outlets to be able to broaden its market reach and ensure that McDonalds has presence in all possible strategic locations. This alternative addresses the opportunities available for McDonalds; however, it does not really solve the second problem identified above.

Aztec and Empire Raised

Aztec and Empire Raised Aztec and Empire Raised-field Agriculture Essay 1. Ancient Americas (Pre-columbian) Mesoamerica Agriculture: Cultivation of cacao Chocolate used by elite as money and to consume (with water not milk, no cattle) Corn-meal (mixtamal) Only place that used corn meal Use of the planting stick (coa) Z Raised field lake argo (chinampas) Cultural practices Ball game Didn’t have the same language or religion (this was their similarity) Construction of multiplatform pyramids Calendar 18 20-day months +5 days, combined with 260 day ritual calendar Forms a 52 year cycle Olmecs Early Village life, around 2000 BC Olmec culture flourished 1200 BC to around 500BC Are they the origin of Mesoamerican culture? Tiwanaku Settled around 1000BC Flourished 400-1000AD First Major kingdoms Developed the ideas that the kings associated with the sun and they wanted their own land First major Andean Empire Raised-Field Agriculture Imperial colonization and Evangelization Built things out of rock therefore it lasts and tells us about how they lived and what they did 2. Aztec Empire (Pre-Columbian) classic maya and teotihuacan were there a 1000years before texcoco Aztecs and tlalcopn Founding of Tenochtitln 1200: Mexica arrive in Valley of Mexico ca. 1200 1345: Teno. was founded Tenochtitlan was in the very center of where Mexico City is now 1428: Founding of triple alliance; defeat of Atzcapotzalco 1428-1440: Reconquest of Valley of Mà ©xico A Religion of Empire? Cyclic understanding of times: months, years, â€Å"suns† Use of human sacrifice associated with Huitzilopochtli cult Aztec imperialism and religion therefore closely related Aztec Social Structure Tecuhtli: political and military leaders, judges Warrior: initially, a social group open to new members; perhaps not by 1500 Pilli(administrators) and priests: mainly inherited, but also attainable through education Macehualtà ­n (commoners), pochteca(merchants), and craftspersons Tlatlacotà ­n (slaves) 1519: An Empire in Decline? End of â€Å"productive† conquest Lack of social mobility Resentment of conquered peoples 3. Atlantic Slave Trade (Colonial) Labor and Colonialism 1600s-1740s: Colonial American economies already based on export: silver, sugar, cacao, dyes 1700s onward: Industrial revolution creates demand for raw materials and portable, urban calories 1740s to 1850s: Sugar, rum, molasses, coffee, cotton†¦ SO WHO WILL DO THE WORK Relationship to sugar and coffee estates, especially in Brazil Triangle of Trade around 1800 Manufactured goods from Euro to W. Africa Slaves from W. Africa to Brazil, US, Caribbean Sugar, tobacco, cotton, molasses, coffee from Brazil, Caribbean, US to Europe (and slaves from Caribbean to US) Historical Effects of Slavery & Plantation Society(FROM BRAZIL PPOINT) â€Å"Use it up mentality†: Destruction of Atlantic Forest to make way for coffee plantations Econ based on export ag (Sugar, coffee, rubber) until 1950s: Boom & Bust Economic and education inequality largely based on race Social impacts Mixed mode of production, monoculture, and colonialism/neo-colonialism 4. Brazilian Empire (Independence-Era) 5th largest country and 5th most populous (170 million) President Dilma Rousseff Pre Conquest Brazil Human habitation since ancient times: 500k at conquest, thousands of tribes Large parts of Amazon had been settled by 1500 Black soils: anthropogenic enhancement of the land Discovery and Colonization Discovered 1500 by Pedro lvares Cabral en route to India Initially used for Brazilwood and other extraction Sugar became main product by 1550 Independence & Empire 1807: Napoleon invades Portugal (court escapes to Braz.) 1822: Regent dom Pedro I remains in Braz when most of court returns to Europe Braz ruled as an empire until 1889 End of Empire 1889: Emperor dom Pedro II abdicates; establishment of oligarchic republic 5. Caste System (Colonial) Unequal social structure based on race Castas- indigenious, black,

How to Revise, Edit and Proofread Your Writing

How to Revise, Edit and Proofread Your Writing How to Revise, Edit and Proofread Your Writing How to Revise, Edit and Proofread Your Writing By Ali Hale Whatever sort of writing you do, it’s important to revise and edit your work – especially if you write academic essays, or articles or short stories that you’ll be submitting to editors. However much time you took over the piece on the first draft, you’ll always find a few mistakes to correct. This is the method that I’ve used for years when writing essays or short stories, to ensure they’re as good as possible before a lecturer or editor gets to see them! Do nothing (for a day or two) Set your work aside for a period of time – don’t hit ‘Save’ on the first draft then start again straight away on the second pass. You’ll come to the work afresh if you leave it alone for a while. As Michael said in Write First, Edit Later: Let your writing sit for a while. It may make more sense if you sleep on it. Or, it may make less sense after you have slept on it. At least you’ll know which. For essays, try to allow at least a day. Short stories can sometimes need longer – your mind will carry on mulling over the ideas whilst you’re doing other things. And many novelists advise putting your novel aside for at least a month before starting the revision process. Revision Read over your whole piece quite quickly. Circle any typos and mistakes that you spot, but concentrate on overall flow. If its an essay, check for any gaps in logic or any sides of the argument you might have missed. If its a short story, do any passages drag – or go too fast? Print out the first draft, and read through the whole thing, concentrating on the overall flow of the piece. Circle any typos or mistakes that you notice, but focus on the big picture. If it’s an essay, are there any logical missteps, points you’ve not backed up, or angles to the argument that you’ve missed? If it’s fiction, do any scenes drag or go too fast, and are there any plot holes or inconsistencies of characterisation? This is the stage to sort out any big problems. I often rewrite the whole thing (especially when working on fiction), starting afresh with a blank document on the computer. If you’re better than me at getting it right first time, you may not need to do that – but you could find yourself cutting out whole paragraphs, adding in new material, and changing the direction of the piece. After you’ve done this, you might want to ask a friend, classmate or colleague to read the piece. Tell them not to look for tiny errors like typos or clumsy sentences at this stage: ask whether they think it’s broadly OK, or if they have any reservations about the overall direction of the article or story. Editing and proofreading Once you’ve sorted out the big picture, you can start fixing any individual sentences and words. Again, it’s a good idea to print out the document and do this on paper: I find I miss errors on screen (especially typos which are valid words, such as â€Å"they’re† for â€Å"their†). Look out for: Typos and misspellings (a good tip here is to read backwards! You’ll go much more slowly, focussing on every individual word). Clumsy sentences and confusing or misleading phrasing (try reading your work aloud). Unnecessary words (check for the ones in Five Words You Can Cut). Commonly misused or confused words (there’s a whole list of these in the Misused Words category). If you’re not 100% sure about a spelling, double-check with a dictionary: try Merriam-Webster for clear, succinct definitions. When you can’t quite find the right word, using a thesaurus can help (again, Merriam-Webster is good). Do you have a great tip for revising and editing your work? Or do you have a horror story about an occasion when you handed in a first draft with a glaring error..? Share your experiences in the comments below! Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Writing Basics category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Homograph ExamplesExpanded and Extended50 Synonyms for â€Å"Villain†

Perception of China as a Tourist Country Dissertation

Perception of China as a Tourist Country - Dissertation Example The research identified that Western tourists considered China as an economical place for tourism and the main problems encountered were lack of professionalism by the hotels’ employees, unavailability of Western food and insufficient facilities for Western tourists. Hence, it is recommended that the tourism authorities of China start revamping the image of China by doing marketing activities that will attract the tourists to the country and bringing desired changes in their tourism and hospitality industries. I am pleased to submit my dissertation on â€Å"Perception of China as a tourist country: Western tourists’ point of view†. During this phase of collection of data, its analysis, writing and designing the report, I have gained very useful knowledge and experience of writing an analysis. In addition, it helped join all my skills and abilities to produce the best report. I would like to offer my appreciation to respondents who took out time for filling the questionnaires and providing me the most valuable information. Furthermore, I would like to thank University of Bedfordshire for providing me this opportunity to work on such a report where I utilized my skills and learnt all the necessary theory related to my topic. And most of all we would like to thank University of Bedfordshire for providing me the access to digital library which gave us reliable and meaningful data. In the end, I would like to express my gratitude to my advisor, MR/MS., without his help and guidance, it was not possible to accomplish and complete the report. He provided me with the necessary teachings that really facilitated me during the writing of this report. The tourism industry is one of the fastest growing industries across the worldwide and it is one of the highly contributing industries in the country’s economic growth.

Human Resource Report. Recruitment in In Clover Magazine Essay

Human Resource Report. Recruitment in In Clover Magazine - Essay Example Rosie is willing to make Professor Oliver Ruffle the editor of the future magazine. She proposes a set of HR policies and guidelines, which Oliver Ruffle refuses to follow. Ruffle is willing to achieve a compromise: he wants to chair the Executive Board and take all recruitment and selection decisions without reporting to the Executive Control Board. A compromise is possible: Professor Ruffle must become a member of the Executive Board and have voice in the most important recruitment and selection decisions. He must be obligated to comply with the policies and standards of fairness, non-discrimination, and diversity, to ensure that the recruitment and selection processes work for the benefit of the future magazine and its strategic objectives. HR professionals will be the main carriers of the selection and recruitment vision and mission in the magazine. Decision Rosie wants to work with Oliver Ruffle. She is convinced that his knowledge and professionalism will add rigor to magazine writers and editors’ efforts. In the meantime, Ruffle wants to chair the executive board and become solely responsible for all recruitment and selection decisions in the future magazine ... Simultaneously, he will have to work cooperatively with other Board members and ensure his compliance with the company policies and standards of workplace performance. Ruffle should not be given a leadership position in the future magazine, as long as he is not willing to operate in accordance with the ethical rules and principles proposed by Rosie. Ruffle has knowledge and experience needed to contribute to the development of relevant selection and recruitment strategies. One of the most essential aspects of the selection process is the creation of clear and comprehensive job specifications (Roberts 1997). This is the best way to find and have the right people in the right places. Ruffle is the one who knows what exactly employees, writers, and editors need to become members of the future magazine’s team. Ruffle can benefit the selection and recruitment process, by identifying the most important people qualities at all stages of the employment cycle (Roberts 1997). Ruffle doe s not seem to realise how much the organisation can suffer is the selection and recruitment process is poorly executed (Ingram, LaForge & Avila 2008). The costs of inefficient selection and recruitment are difficult to estimate (Ingram, LaForge & Avila 2008). High levels of turnover that inevitably follow poorly executed selection and recruitment add to the burden of operational costs and lead to the loss of business efficiency and customer relations (Ingram, LaForge & Avila 2008). Ruffle’s reluctance to comply with the proposed set of ethical policies and initiatives must be treated with caution. It is because Ruffle does not agree with the proposed policies that he should not be given a leadership position in the Executive Board. Moreover, all initiatives and

The Cause and Effect of Learning the English Language Essay

The Cause and Effect of Learning the English Language - Essay Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that not so many people can speak the English language well in the companies in Saudi Arabia and such, employees who could speak the language well are often paid high salaries. In addition, English speaking employees also get promoted easily compared to the non-English speaker because companies prefer those who can interact with more people. This is becoming more important today because employees now have to work with other people from other countries and culture with the globalization of our economies. Such, learning English is becoming more and more important to be effective in one’s job in the future. This explains why many of us flocks in English speaking universities in order to improve our English. We would like to get paid well and get easily promoted in the companies that we will work in the future when we go back to our respective countries after graduation. It is hard but it is worth it.  

Feminism and the women in black movement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Feminism and the women in black movement - Essay Example To fortify cohesion among women who have been alienated by guns and borders is a strong political aim and they intensely declare, "We are the group of women who stand in silence and black every week to express our disapproval against war. We have decided to see what is the women's side of this war. Women wear black in our countries to show the grief for death of the loved ones. We wear black for the death of all the victims of war. We wear black because the people have been thrown out of their homes, because women have been raped, because cities and villages have been burned and destroyed" (Women In Black, 1992, p. 50). Brief History & Description In contrast to most feminist groups, WIB clusters do not have decision-making bodies, elected officers or branches. One year after the start of the Palestinian Intifada, WIB was instigated by Israeli women going up against the Occupation of the West Bank and Gaza in 1988. Expanding rapidly during the Gulf War and Yugoslav wars in the 1990s, there are probably 300 WIB clusters in possibly 30 countries all over the world. A salient feature of these groups is the practice of holding vigils which entail the women to wear black and stand at regular times and intervals in public places (Cockburn, 2005). Though WIB was in the beginning committed to obtaining peace in the Middle East, other groups almost immediately remonstrated against tyranny in the Balkans and India. For these activists, their status as women provided them extraordinary power and influence when it comes to insisting for peace. At present, the Women in Black in Israel persist on their peaceful and diplomatic resistance to the occupation in partnership with the Coalition of Women for a Just Peace. These groups have been protesting against the shutting down of several Palestinian cities, contending that the barricades preclude students from attending school and pregnant women from getting into healthcare centers and or having access to healthcare services. The group likewise calls for the full participation of women in peace negotiations (Foreign Policy, 2001, p.43). During their very first public statement in Belgrade, the activists characterized themselves as an anti-nationalist, anti-militarist, feminist, pacifist group who opposes the diminution of women to the role of just mothers. "The work of women in peace groups is presupposed, it is invisible, trying, women's work; it's a part of 'our' role; to care for others, to comfort, aid, tend wounds, and feed. The painful realization that the peace movement would to some extent also follow a patriarchal model caused a serious dilemma for feminist-pacifists. We wanted our presence to be VISIBLE, not to be seen as something 'natural,' as part of a woman's role. We wanted it to be clearly understood that what we were doing was our political choice, a radical criticism of the patriarchal, militarist regime and a non-violent act of resistance to policies that destroy cities, kill people, and annihilate human relations" (Women In Black 1993, 23a). In 1997, the WIB backed up and participated in the grassroots democracy movement in Serbia. The scenario looked more hopeful for the very first time in several years. However, Slobodan Miloevic was not about to be outmaneuvered of power by democracy. He rejected to acknowledge the outcomes of the election and later on seized power again. When

Principles of Effective Practice in the Teaching and Assessment of Essay

Principles of Effective Practice in the Teaching and Assessment of Reading - Essay Example The instructors should seek to motivate and stimulate the learners to work at optimum levels. Information should be processed and developed inside the brains of students. Vocabulary is slowly built up in order to ensure that they have obtained exposure to the various language patterns and structures. The final stages of reading involve the ability of students to form complex words and phrases. They are able to decipher the meaning of the text. They can apply outside knowledge in order to obtain an outline of the text. Empirical studies have demonstrated that a staged approach towards reading can produce benefits for young children. It helps to generate interest and passion for young children. It leads to commitment and devotion to reading acquisition skills. Further reading helps to enhance the cognitive and intellectual capacity of young students. Finally, it exposes them to vast literature that can help them achieve educational objectives. The level of understanding of various styles of writing is defined as reading comprehension. The proficiency of reading deeply related to the ability to identify words quickly and store the information in memory. When the identification process is difficult for the students when they use much of their energy of processing memory to read and recognize the individual words and as a result, their ability to understand is greatly affected. Researchers believe that it is very important for the children to learn to recognize the printed text and analyze it, regardless of whether they can read it on their own or not. The process of comprehension begins at the nursery stage. On the other hand, some researchers believe that this approach is not useful particularly for young children because they think that kids should learn to decode different words in form of phonics before developing analytical thinking. Teachers often use the technique of round-robin re, adding. It's a process in which tea cher call upon students individually turn by turn to read a piece of a given particular text. It was evident that this method of reading test focus more on comprehension rather than teaching it.  

Mini Project 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Mini Project 1 - Essay Example According to water.org (2015), nearly 750 million people, globally, lack access to safe water. Population has rapidly grown, for instance, over the last two decades the population of people in the world has doubled, and it is continuing to grow drastically. The growth is due to large family sizes, adequate food supply, and effective access to health care. Therefore, it justifies that the overall consumption of water, cooking, cleaning, and sewage has magnified. Population expansion has led to the global shortage of water as explained by (WWF, 2015). Destruction of vegetation and cutting of catchment areas have led to desertification, globally. Trees act as water catchment bodies and they prevent excessive water evaporation (Forsyth et al., 2012). Therefore, destruction of forests by logging or farming causes the shortage of water. Pollution of air, water, and land contributes to the reduction of water quality. Oil effluents from industries, waste dumping into water bodies, sewage, and radioactive waste from mining activities pollute the waters. Therefore, minimizing the amount of usable water globally The growing and expansion of cities has led to global water shortage. The cities sustain several people who increase the use of sewage, cleaning, construction, and manufacturing (Majumder, 2015). Therefore, urbanization has led to the global shortage of

Principles of Effective Practice in the Teaching and Assessment of Essay

Principles of Effective Practice in the Teaching and Assessment of Reading - Essay Example The instructors should seek to motivate and stimulate the learners to work at optimum levels. Information should be processed and developed inside the brains of students. Vocabulary is slowly built up in order to ensure that they have obtained exposure to the various language patterns and structures. The final stages of reading involve the ability of students to form complex words and phrases. They are able to decipher the meaning of the text. They can apply outside knowledge in order to obtain an outline of the text. Empirical studies have demonstrated that a staged approach towards reading can produce benefits for young children. It helps to generate interest and passion for young children. It leads to commitment and devotion to reading acquisition skills. Further reading helps to enhance the cognitive and intellectual capacity of young students. Finally, it exposes them to vast literature that can help them achieve educational objectives. The level of understanding of various styles of writing is defined as reading comprehension. The proficiency of reading deeply related to the ability to identify words quickly and store the information in memory. When the identification process is difficult for the students when they use much of their energy of processing memory to read and recognize the individual words and as a result, their ability to understand is greatly affected. Researchers believe that it is very important for the children to learn to recognize the printed text and analyze it, regardless of whether they can read it on their own or not. The process of comprehension begins at the nursery stage. On the other hand, some researchers believe that this approach is not useful particularly for young children because they think that kids should learn to decode different words in form of phonics before developing analytical thinking. Teachers often use the technique of round-robin re, adding. It's a process in which tea cher call upon students individually turn by turn to read a piece of a given particular text. It was evident that this method of reading test focus more on comprehension rather than teaching it.  

Studing is what matters Essay Example for Free

Studing is what matters Essay Brain drain is also known as â€Å"The human capital flight†. It can be simply defined as the mass emigration of technically skilled people from one country to another country. Brain-drain can have many reasons, for example-political instability of a nation, lack of opportunities, health risks, personal conflicts etc. Brain-drain can also be named as â€Å"human capital flight† because it resembles the case of capital flight, in which mass migration of financial capital is involved. For the balance of power and for the staggered development of the world, it is very important to stop the phenomena of brain-drain. This will help a particular country to use all local skilled citizens for development and proliferation. But to hold these skilled workers at their native places, it is also important to provide them enough work opportunities and living facilities. For this purpose, developed nations should help developing countries with necessary money and resources. So that each and every human of this planet can have good standard of living and each and every nation can introduce itself as a developed nation. **** Brain drain (or human capital flight), is the large-scale emigration of a large group of individuals with technical skills or knowledge. The reasons usually include two aspects which respectively come from countries and individuals. In terms of countries, the reasons may be social environment (in source countries: lack of opportunities, political instability or oppression, economic depression, health risks, etc. ; in host countries: rich opportunities, political stability and freedom, developed economy, better living conditions, etc. ). In terms of individual reasons, there are family influence (overseas relatives), and personal preference: preference for exploring, ambition for an improved career, etc. Although the term originally referred to technology workers leaving a nation, the meaning has broadened into: the departure of educated or professional people from one country, economic sector, or field for another, usually for better pay or living conditions. [1] Brain drain is usually regarded as an economic cost, since emigrants usually take with them the fraction of value of their training sponsored by the government or other organizations. It is a parallel of capital flight, which refers to the same movement of financial capital. Brain drain is often associated with de-skilling of emigrants in their country of destination, while their country of emigration experiences the draining of skilled individuals. The term brain drain was coined by the Royal Society to describe the emigration of scientists and technologists to North America from post-war Europe. [2] Another source indicates that this term was first used in the United Kingdom to describe the influx of Indian scientist and engineers. [3] The converse phenomenon is brain gain, which occurs when there is a large-scale immigration of technically qualified persons. There are also relevant phrases called brain circulation and brain waste. Brain drain is common among developing nations, such as the former colonies of Africa,[4] the island nations of the Caribbean,[5] and particularly in centralized economies such as former East Germany and the Soviet Union, where marketable skills were not financially rewarded #theme :technologiE introduction: throught history technological innovations have helped humankind improve their standards of living,begining ¬ with the simple invention of bonetools of prehistorie times,continuin ¬g on to and beyond modern air conditioners,au ¬tomobilies and super computers. nowad ¬ays,when the rapideness of development and research is so imprssive ,its easy to think about the advantages of modern technology. .Nevertheless,t ¬echnology can save lives and give us a lot of comfort provided that it doesn’t fall in the wrong hands. Yet,it’s blatantly conspicuous that the deleterious effects of technology out wrigh its benefits. Teach ¬ children self confidence+lear ¬n them how to deal with certains obstacles ,how to defend him self+teach children how ti use their ineligence+faci ¬lities researches communicatin+th ¬e computer games are the best alternative to keep children safe at home ery good job also you can add this:To live, learn and work successfully in an increasingly complex and information-ric ¬h society, students must use technology to Innovate, Collaborate, Investigate and Think Critically. Benefits*techno ¬logy can save peoples lives*it shortens distances*it solves the problem of many childless parents*technol ¬ogy improves other fields*the  internet is a source on valuable information*tv makes the world look like a small village Understand that modern technology has benefited human beings by increasing production of goods and services, reducing the amount of labor needed to produce these goods and services, and providing higher living standards. Understand that technology has al so had negative effects on society—environ ¬mental pollution,deple ¬tion of natural resources, unemployment, and the creation of ethical dilemmas, among others. Disadvantages*i ¬t can teach violence*it can harm the eyes*it can cause pollution*cloni ¬ng is perceived as smoothing immoral*childre ¬n can be addicted to it*nuclear power and weapons destroy our world*machines can replace men at work characteristics of inventor ,, everyone dreams of being famous and remembered forever. some are known for their skills in inventing and designing new things to facilate humans life. in fact there ara many caracteristics required to be a seccessful inventor .  first an inventor imagines , disigns and refers many times to previous results to build on tham, second inventors are determined to work intensively and at many time to earch a result. morever an inventor is commited to his work that is he dedicates his time , his mony as well as his effort to creating a useful appliance medicament or even an item of clothes ,, in this context ,, i may mention the work of alfred nobel who devoted his wealth to sponsoring students only to show that his inve ntion was for the benifit of humanity. all in all we should encourag all the inventors and support tham. †¢Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Advantages and disadvantages of living in the country and in the city. There is a tendency in the modern society to abandon the country and to migrate to the city. More and more people, especially young and well educated, decide to live in large metropolises rather than in small towns or villages. The main factor that influences their decision is unemployment problem which is very acute in the country. The city offers many opportunities to young people. First of all, they can attend there the best universities and use the best learning resources which will allow them to develop their knowledge and skills. Good educational background increases their chances to find employment in good companies which will offer them lucrative posts. People who are ambitious and want to be successful and pursue their careers find in the city many possibilities to realize their potential and to gain the best professional experience. Besides, large modern metropolises provide their inhabitants with limitless sources of entertainment. Young people can socialize in cafes, pubs, clubs or discos or take part in various cultural events, like for example concerts, art exhibitions or spectacles in the theatre. Moreover, they can enjoy shopping in large shopping centres or department stores. All these charms and attractions of the city are appealing to young people, however when they start their own families they usually start missing peacefulness and tranquillity of country life. As they become older, people are tired with the hectic and stressful city life and often decide to move outside the city. However, country life, although more quiet and peaceful, has also disadvantages. ***Where shall we live? Some may choose to live in big cities, while other like the natural and quiet surroundings in the countryside. As far as I am concerned, I would like to live in a big city because living in a big city has more advantages than living in the countryside. To begin with, the city is the symbol of human civilization and there are a many facilities for living, recreation and health care. Therefore, living there is more convenient than living in the countryside. Living in such a big city has a lot of advantages. There is a big offer how to spend free time. There are always plenty of social activities, sports events, concerts and other ways of entertainment. There are more recreational places in big cities, such as opera houses, movie theatres, clubs, and swimming pools. You will have many kinds of entertainment in big cities, and meet many people. In countryside, however, the life may be dull and quite, and you may only have a few neighbors. In a big city, people can take the chances to study and work best. There are many good University choosing in a big city. There you can express your ability to study what you like. Moreover, when you graduate, you also find it easier to find chances to get a good job with good salary, that is quite difficult in small citiesor countrysides. On the other hand, there are some disadvantages of living in a big city. Cities are very crowded. Everywhere there are crowds: on the pavements and in the buses. What is more, the traffic is heavy and citys car parks are always very full. Sometimes it is very difficult to get from a given place to another. It may take hours! And it follows to that, that the air in the city is more polluted, than in the countryside. People in the city are like ants. They are always in hurry, busy and out of time.

Current State Of Ethics In Business Commerce Essay

Current State Of Ethics In Business Commerce Essay The pace, scale and complexity of modern business has forced a change in how business is done. While it is accepted that it is foolish to do business with someone who is not trustworthy, the question arises whether you can trust those who are not ethical in all of their behaviour. Short timelines, tight supply chains and narrowing margins mean that chances cannot be taken that suppliers or customers will not honour their contracts as expected. Suppliers and customers are now becoming partners and stakeholders in business, and relationships with them are becoming more and more underpinned by trust. Trust is built on expectations of truth in words and consistency in behaviour. It is impossible to do profitable business with someone who says one thing one day and does something different the next. Ethical leadership is vital in business today. It is the backbone to any long lasting successful company in todays business market. It is important for companies to clearly layout their stance on ethical leadership to employees and the public, to have members of the company lead by example, and to reinforce the ethical leadership concept through out the year. By following these steps, the company will sustain or acquire ethical leadership in their companys culture. Although business accepted ethics slightly change through out the years, everyone should know if an action is ethical or unethical before they take an action. The importance of companies clearly defining their stance on ethical behavior will let individuals know how making an unethical decision will impact them, their fellow workers, and the company as a whole. On the other hand members of the company will also know how making an ethical decision will have a positive impact. Once a clear ethical leadership stance is taken, rewarding or punishing ethical or unethical actions should strictly uphold the rules. There should be an unbiased group to facilitate this activity, for example a Human Resources Department. Every employee, from the CEO to the mailroom clerk, should practice ethical leadership. Every member and every group can and should exhibit ethical leadership. This concept should not just be thought of as a manager to his report. Ethical leadership can happen in unexpected situations, for example where a CFO of a company asks the mailroom clerk to do an unethical act and the mailroom clerk refuses the CFOs request. The clerk refused based on the companys stance on ethical behavior. In this example, the clerk presented ethical leadership, but was in no way in a leadership role. The clerk would also feel safe taking this stance because he believes in his companies set rules on ethical leadership. He will not be negatively impacted due to the fact that he can contact his unbiased Human Resources department with issues of this nature, on top of the fact that he maybe rewarded for taking this ethical stance. Reinforcing the ethical leadership concept through out the year is also important for businesses. Not only reinforcing, but also reinforcing with meaning and showing the value of ethical leadership. Making positive examples of employees through rewards, have mandatory yearly training (make it fun), send positive ethical leadership examples out as part of company newsletter, ensure that unethical behavior is dealt with in an ethical way, restate companys stance during large meetings, make ethical leadership apart of each employees personal evaluation each year (make them give examples) and have ethical workshops. All of these examples will ensure that every employee knows the companys stance on ethical leadership through reinforcement. The over all concept of ethical leadership is that it is as important as making a profit in the business world. Profit and ethical leadership should be top priorities for any company that plans to have a long lasting existence. Ethics in itself can become a very pliable term with many grey areas, so focusing on specific ethics may prove futile. However, focusing on doing the right thing along with the reinforcement of ethical leadership may be the answer. Baking ethical leadership into a companys culture is key. Ethical leadership holds a positive outlook with great potential in the current business environment is the improvement that we have seen in ethical issues over the relatively recent years. As we all know accepted ethical behaviors have slightly changed over the years and will continue to do so. Ethical leadership along with the help from laws has driven the implementation of the halt or reduction of racial discrimination, sexual harassment, and sexual discrimination. It is believe that accepted ethics have made great leaps and ethical leadership is one of the driving tools to solidify these concepts. Recent huge companies like Enron and World Com have made great examples of the importance of ethical leadership. It is said that the CEO of Enron, who was just sentenced to many years in prison, had the saying that nothing else matters besides profit. This is apparently not the best way to lead a long-term successful company. The fall of companies that disregard ethical leadership cost all Americans, the companys employees, and share holders billions of dollars. Based on this fact, the health of economies depends on companies to lead with strong ethics. One positive aspect that these unethical companies did do for America is to drive home the absolute importance of ethical leadership in business. Due to the unethical acts of these huge companies, everyone has taken notice. Many colleges are driving ethics harder then they ever have, the media attention has been enormous, and US companies are really sticking to ethical leadership programs better now than in the past. Recent changes in the business environment have deeply affected businesses and ethics consultancies that are concerned that the word ethics, in a business context, has lost its original meaning. They consider ethics to be unregulated behavior as well as regulated and talk about what is ought to be done as well as what we is compelled to be done. Not only would an ethical person not break the law or flout a regulation, but he/she also would think hard about doing something perfectly legal that gave the person ethical concerns. The ethics industry, now called the ethics and compliance industry, dwells almost entirely on issues of law and regulation. It is thought that ethics, as an important business tool, has been sidelined. The ethics industry emerged in the 1970s with defense scandals that resulted in the Defense Industry Initiative, a self-regulatory body of defense contractors. It really launched in 1991 with the Federal Sentencing Guidelines for Organizations, which helped judges to determine consequences for corporate misbehavior and, critically, identified seven steps that businesses could take to mitigate those consequences. The suggested steps included a code of ethics or conduct, training in the code, and a high-ranking person to oversee the program Many of the early providers were academics and nonprofits, like IGE, who believed that it was possible to guide corporate behavior through improved corporate decision-making. The waves of scandal that culminated in the 2008 financial tsunami have all but erased our formal ethics beginnings in business. A backwash of regulation, prompted by an outraged public, followed each wave. Companies, ethical and otherwise, are drowning in rules, expensive rules and regulations that make global competition difficult. Good companies are still doing the right things, but the focus has shifted from thinking ethically to complying with myriad regulations. In other cases, a whole new workaround ethic focuses on ways to skirt the rules. Following the recession, companies are demanding that people make their numbers while still following the rules, which even ethics professionals see as difficult. Professionals who used to direct their employers ethics programs are disappearing, replaced by legal professionals with specific expertise in bribery and corruption, export controls, insider trading, money laundering, and other topics of special interest. Were unhappy with the retrogressive sea change, but our respondents found some treasure silver lining, perhaps washed up on the beach. Anticorruption has a surprising ally, social networking, which has become a global phenomenon. Although the United States has a new portfolio of laws governing business (especially financial business) called the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which encourages whistle-blowers with offers of cash bounties and protection, social networking already has leapt far beyond. It is almost impossible to escape the reach of texting, tweeting, YouTube, and Facebook. Employees, customers and suppliers stay connected and theres really no place to hide when people take pictures and movies with their smart phones and make their observations public on the Internet. Although staff departments responsible for ethics have experienced cutbacks in funding, they are now working more closely with other departments that help to manage their companys risk. Its common to find close cooperation among ethics and compliance, internal audit, security, health, safety and environment, legal, and human resources. The benefit is that companies are likely to spot and avert misbehavior more quickly. Additionally, ethics and corporate social responsibility (CSR) now work more closely because their intentions are similar making the corporation a responsible citizen through attention to environmental and human rights issues. There is also exposure to legal penalties. Companies involved in international trade have to represent their products to potential or current clients based on their expected inputs by the suppliers. Â  A company that is involved in illegal activities, or that knowingly falsifies information on inputs supplied can create serious problems for its business partners. Â  A company with a good reputation and solid brands has much to lose, and should not take chances with its brand value. Another issue challenging the practice of good business ethics is the values, which employees bring to the work environment. Much has been said over the years about the deterioration of employees work ethics. The impact of poor work ethics results in low productivity owed to high levels of absenteeism, tardiness, theft and acceptance of bribe taking. A company that wishes to be efficient and competitive in the future cannot accept this state of affairs. There is a strong business case for the introduction of structured programs to support ethical behaviour in companies, size notwithstanding. These programs should be more than a mere encouragement to be honest, and should be based on clearly articulated values that are linked to the overall vision and mission of the company. The Manual of Business Ethics for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises prepared by the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC) and the US Department of Commerce describes the following benefits among others: Enhanced Reputation and Goodwill: A reputation for integrity is important for securing the loyalty of customers, for recruiting and training the best staff, for winning community acceptance and accessing bank and supplier credit. Risk reduction: The process of developing a business ethics program involves the company in identifying and assessing the factors that could pose risks to reputation and financial performance, and developing and implementing the business processes that reduce those risks. Reduced costs: Providing employees with clear guidelines of how to conduct day to day business such as where and when to obtain quotations; how to carry out tenders; how to conclude contracts and how to avoid conflicts of interest can reduce transaction costs and improve the supply chain function. Protection from Unethical Employees: A program would include clear guidance in respect of the misappropriation and unauthorised use of company resources, and the consequences that could flow from violations, information that employees with undeveloped values may not fully appreciate. Recommendations for efforts that build ethical cultures without increasing expenses are as follows: Improve communication practices. Ethics programs are usually well constructed, but poorly disseminated. Require middle managers to train their direct reports and keep the message alive with ethics meetings. Employees often dont know or recognize the CEO and merely tolerate E-learning, but they actually pay attention to their managers. Encourage government to recognize and reward the value of ethics and compliance programs. Focus on corporate culture. Perhaps more emphasis on culture will galvanize corporate intentions and resources toward long-term corporate health in addition to dealing with the emergency of the moment. Operating according to values, accentuating the positives, telling the stories, and removing the negatives would empower good employees and managers and boost productivity. People actually like to work when the culture is right. Ever hopeful, we expect corporate ethics to rebound with serious attention paid to aligning individuals within positive values-driven cultures. It wont happen until the recession fades and businesses start spending the cash theyve hoarded for the last several years to acquire the human and intellectual resources needed to make it happen.

Career Choice :: essays research papers

Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions a person has to make in their life. It is so important because that is what we will have to do to support ourselves throughout life. Imagine being stuck in a dead end job and having to go to work every morning and dreading it. That is no spending oneÕs time and life is too short to work 35 years and be unhappy with it. If a person likes the job they do then it is not work, because finding satisfaction out of a job can bring great happiness. That information has enabled me to make the decision of choosing my area of study and career in the field of Information Technology. Many things have lead up to my decision to choose a career in Information Systems. It started at my first semester at my local community college. I was enrolled in their graphic design program and most of the classes I was taking consisted of art classes. My first computer class was working in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. They are graphic programs that many graphic designerÕs use to make their design work. While working with these programs I was very intrigued by the power of computers and how they work. While going to school at the local community college I soon got a job at CitiMortgage working at the computer help desk. I was learning more about computers and networking which helped lead to my decision to change my degree of study to information systems. Along with my change of interest and working for a company that helps pay for my school I was looking for a better college to attend and that had a program that would fit my needs. I soon became aware of Maryville University and the weekend and evening college program that they offered.

Your Writing Style Essay -- Writing Writers Education Essays

Your Writing Style How can one person know what good style is when writing a paper? Where is it written that we as students should have to follow specific guidelines while writing? Anyone wanting to make their writing clear, precise, and simply correct will usually try following some type of guideline, or book in order to perfect their own writing style. After reading both The Elements of Style by Strunk and White, and also Williams’s Style toward Clarity and Grace I can see why teachers discuss these books as tools for correcting and perfecting their students writing, and style. While at the same time understand someone out of the classroom setting, brushes up on their skills in writing with these books before they have to complete some type of report that needs to be concrete and readable. Students and other writers should understand that while these books can be effective tools they simply are that a tool and not a style that should be studied, and copied word for word. In these two different forms of writing and style that are addressed by both authors I feel they are targeting different audiences that have two dissimilar styles. These books are great tools for perfecting our style as writers, but they should not be relied on too heavily by the writer. Everyone has a different angle of style they go for in their writing; these books simply either enhance that style, or with books like Strunk and White’s curtail that style into one of the authors. Making a style one’s own is something most writers’ struggle with in the classroom and through out their careers because there are various types of books all claiming to be the â€Å"Bible† of style. These books are all geared toward... ... broad audience develop their own style, rather than copying his. Each book can benefit a student or person struggling to find the correct writing style for them, but they should understand these are simply guidance books to be used as tools, and not only way to write and use style correctly. Their style will develop over time when they implement some of these elements/rules with their own words. Works Cited Jamison, Larry. â€Å"Assignment 3 STRUNK-A-SAURUS VS TERRA-X-WILLIAMS.† February 16, 2004. Larry Jamison’s Blog. ljamison.blogspot.com (March 7, 2004) Newsom, Paula. â€Å"No Title.† February 10, 2004. Paula Newsom’s Blog. paulanewsom.blogspot.com (March 7, 2004) Strunk, William and White, E.B. The Elements of Style. New York: Longman, 2000. Williams, Joseph. Style toward Clarity and Grace. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press, 1990.