Community work program, take position about pros and cons of this Essay

Community work program, take position about pros and cons of this alternate approach to criminal justice - Essay Example The rest of the essay will discuss the pros and cons of this alternative approach to criminal justice. As a result of community work programs, the participant individuals undergo a personal transformation in the way they relate to society. Moreover, the places and events where they serve require volunteers; and when there is a shortfall of volunteers, the criminal justice system can enroll some minor offenders into this program. In other words, the chief strength of community work programs lie in the fact that they are â€Å"essential services†, as opposed to work conjured up on an ad hoc basis in some of the prisons in the country (Zehr, 2002). The drawbacks of the prison system are all too well documented in social science scholarship. Now that crimes in the twenty first century have taken on more devastating proportions in the form of terrorism, etc., the retaliatory and revengeful measures against individuals and groups found guilty of these crimes will only help increase the likelihood of such attacks in the future. Also, unlawful detention and instances of torture are more likely in under such a legal framework. There are disagreements concerning the ends and means of a particular case. One might dispute that the means are more important than the ends they realize. The question of ethics also crops up while dealing with such topics. Human rights activists hold that an individual, however inhuman he/she may be, needs to be treated ethically maintaining human dignity. An additional barrier towards legalizing torture is that a lot of thought and effort needs to be pumped in to make torture acceptable to all sections of t he society. As long as these questions remain unanswered, more inclusive and compassionate approaches like community service would be ideal as the criminal justice system goes forward (Zehr, 2002). Although community work would be too mild

Critical Thinking Case Study Essay Example for Free

Critical Thinking Case Study Essay Describe all assumptions you see in any documents. Kelly Thomas Senior Engineer, Product Development1. Assumed AcuScans customers would not be happy with just anything developed and launched. 2. Assumed Pat did not have any technology experience previous job in the cereal industry. 3. Assumed Pat was talking to the programmers without Kellys knowledge or consent. 4. Assumed Pat wanted to continue arguing on email. Pat Lambert Director of Marketing1. Assumed the customer would be happy with anything launched on the market from AcuScan2. Assumed programmers could work in the new launch. 3. Assumed a new product launch would be simple to achieve. 4. Assumed that Kelly Thomas would go along with her regarding the Operation Optimize5. Assumed that the Operation Optimize could be launched in 6-months6. Assumed that meeting with Kelly Thomas in person would rectify the situation. Cliff OConnor CEO1. Assumed Pats work ethic and experience in previous job will automatically benefit the firm and reach AcuScans target market. 2. Assumed the staff would not have any communication or personnel issues. 3. Assumed there would be a budget crisis. Chris Martinas VP, Product Development1. Assumed that it would not take much time to produce and launch a new product. 2. The potential return for first year would outlay with substantial ROI. THE CONFLICT2) Explain the arguments made by each of these people. Kelly Thomas argued that the new product features could not be developed just like that and was detailed with planning, testing and quality control and could long make the features completely work by August. Kelly also stated that since the layoff two years ago, and 25% fewer programmers, they do not have the time or manpower for the product successfully to launch in time. Pat Lambert argued that Retail is the answer instead of airports and store security for the new iScanner product to enable retailers to identify incoming customers, with several high-tech features can be developed as a prototype by August and at one point Kelly admitted to it not being a problem to make the iScanner market-ready in time. Chris Martinas argued that Secur-A was, AcuScans competition was working on a new product so AcuScan needs to expand into a different market and launch a new product by early 2004 or Secur-A would be on the top of the market. Cliff OConnor argued that even though AcuScan was facing budget dilemmas they can find a way to launch the new iScanner. 3) Evaluate each argument. a. Kelly Thomas Kellys argument was logical mostly due to the fact he used the numbers and man hours from the first iScanner launch and he did not want to jeporize his and AcuScans reputation by throwing together a flimsy product launch. b. Pat Lambert Pats idea on launching a new product in a new market was a positive one, in fact, a great marketing strategy to be the first company on the market with a new product to get ahead of competition. c. Chris Martinas Chris does realize that to gain and maintain their  targeted market, a budget deficit would need to be put in action because he believes it is important to have a product launch in a new market. d. Cliff OConnor Although Cliffs argument deems logical, it becomes unbeknownst there are major budgetary issues with AcuScan and to launch the iScanner correctly, there are many other decisions that need to be involved, this may include more lay-offs. Cliff is basing the fact that this new launch in a new market will take minimal cost in time and money because AcuScan has done it in the past. 4) Describe specific fallacious arguments, and identify the people who hold them. Pat had a fallacious argument by stating that since other staff members had been with the company longer than Pat, they had a great deal invested in the company and knew what they had to accomplish in order to get a new product off and running. Chris made a fallacious argument about the company being on top again if the company developed a new product. But the since it is unknown, there is no evidence or research at this point the company cannot be certain of this fact. II: CONCLUSIONS1. Describe all problems in this situation. 2. For each problem, describe the data, arguments, and reasoning that contribute to each problem. AcuScan was faced with many problems trying to produce and launch their new iScanner. One main issue was the fact of AcuScan was planning to develop a new product when the company was already facing budgeting issues. Another problem was the staff at AcuScan not meeting face-to-face; instead they relied mainly on email to correspond with one another. Brainstorming, marketing product launches, and budgeting meetings could have benefited the staff and issues could have been handled different and resolved. Cliff, the  CEO should have taken initiative and interjected about the major communication issue the staff was having with one another. Use your reasoning to complete the worksheet below. 3. What is the underlying problem that is the base cause of the conflict within the company?The underlying problem that caused the majority of the issues at AcuScan was the lack of communication between department staff members which resulted in fallacious emails, snide, unnecessary comments which led to lack of production. 4. Alternative solutions. Due to the budgetary issues that were upon AcuScan, instead of a complicated new product launch, expanding the iScanner into industries such as hospitals, colleges and even government offices instead of expanding the new iScanner into the retail environment where the complicated launch requires many additional features is a possible solution, while keeping the idea for the retail industry on the shelf for future product launches. 6. Which solution will you recommend to the CEO? Why? Since both solutions are important, I would mention both to the CEO. Since communication is the backbone of an organization, I would bring up that issue first. Part II: Executive Summary1. Purpose and ScopeThe purpose of this summary is to analyze the issues on launching the new iScanner from AcuScan and rectify any facts pertaining to the potential launch. The scope includes various communications between colleagues and issues that resulted from that dialog. In conclusion the problems will be stated, solutions formulated and recommended results to rectify these problems will be discussed. 2. Summary of the SituationThe conflict between several key persons at AcuScan is hindering the growth of the firm and is causing havoc in receiving positive results for this potential new product launch. Secur-A, AcuScans, main competitor is only 4 months from launching their new product so it is believed to be absolutely essential to the survival of AcuScan to  beat them to market with a successful product as well. 3. Key PointsPat Lambert the new director of Marketing, and Kelly Thomas chief of the software development team, cannot agree on the length of time and the number of programming hours it will take to bring the new product to market. Kelly states that even with current staffing levels, they do not have the time or manpower to launch a new product the correct way. Pats states that a prototype can be built within the timeframe and budget however, neither Pat nor Kelly can compromise. Chris Martinas VP of Product Development believes that Pat and Kelly can work out their differences together. Chris does not quite understand the magnitude of programming involved with this launch though. ConclusionsAs a result of fallacious emails to one another regarding the new product launch for Pat Lambert and Kelly Thomas both feel alienated and find it hard to compromise on the new iScanner Retail Project. The fallacious emails between Kelly and Pat are regarding their disagreement about the capabilities of the software design team and the man-power to create programming for all the features in the new iScanner. Pat is not quite experienced in dealing with software programmers, their processes and requirements. Pat and Kellys emails result in emotional and defensive and inability to listen to each other and cooperate on the new iScanner launch so it does not happen. Conclusion and RecommendationsIn many cases, conflict in the workplace just seems to be a fact of life. Many have seen situations where different people with different goals and needs have come into conflict. And we have all seen the often-intense personal animosity that can result. The fact that conflict exists, however, is not necessarily a bad thing: As long as it is resolved effectively, it can lead to personal and professional growth. In many cases, effective conflict resolution skills can make the difference between positive and negative outcomes. The good news is that by resolving conflict successfully, you can solve many of the problems that it has brought to the surface, in addition to getting benefits that you might not at first expect:My recommendation would be to get Pat, Kelly, Chris and Cliff into a room for a face-to-face meeting. The point of this is to increase the understanding which is needed to resolve conflict and it expands peoples awareness of the situation, giving them an insight into how they can achieve their own goals without undermining those of other people. Additionally, if is resolved effectively, team members can develop stronger mutual respect, and a renewed faith in their ability to work together; and after allowing a brief period of venting, the meeting can be called to order. At this point I would recommend that all emotion be excluded from the communication process, so that the first of many beneficial and productive brainstorming sessions can begin. Another thing I would recommend is to re-vamp the iScanner launch so the product launch is conducive to the budget and to better fit the companys abilities. For instance, instead of launching a complicated product, possibly expand the current iScanner into other industries such as hospitals, colleges and the government, while adding possibly one or two features. The iScanner retinal scanner will perform the same functions as its current version with possibly one or two new features to keep within the companys budget. Keeping the expansion of the Retail iScanner idea on the backburner to launch in a year or two but after Secur-A launches their product. Reference Apollo Group (2003). UOP Assessment. Retrieved 4/19/08, from https://mycampus.phoenix.edu

Shirley Temple: Origins of the Optimistic Image :: Shirley Temple Image Essays

Shirley Temple: Origins of the Optimistic Image Shirley Temple. When the name is uttered an image of the dimpled faced, curly haired, tap dancing four year old from the 1930s automatically appears in everyone's mind. She was the child actress of the depression era, winning over the hearts and pocket books of many. Films, dolls and even a drink named after her, her face and name were ones that couldn't be missed. She was Fox's gem and saviour. She was an escape from the hard life. She was a star. The image that she gave off, of love for the needy and pure optimism, must have had an origin. Did it rise from the social needs of the public to escape the depression or was it purely constructed by Twentieth Century-Fox? Her image clearly correlates with the mentality of the public at the time, but Fox must have had a hand. Undoubtedly her image was created through a mixture of both elements. To analyze the degree to which Shirley Temple's image was formed through the needs of the time or through manipulation by Fox, one must first look at stars' images in general and how they come into being. What do stars represent to the audience? What is the nature of their images? Many people might say that stars are merely a product of the Hollywood system needing to make a profit; Hollywood manufactures a product and creates the demand for it. A star's image is processed through advertisements and promotions and has little to do with what the audience wants and needs from entertainment. There is a widespread mentality that any Average Joe can become a star with enough resources backing him up. Richard Dyer points out, however, that even movies full of stars fail, and stars can and do fall out of fashion (12). A star's economic worth is not invulnerable to audiences' opinions. The audience isn't so easily controlled. As Dyer says, "Stars ... are the direct or indirect reflection of the needs, drives and dreams of American society." (6). The star's image is formed by what the audience chooses to see, and the audience will choose to see a movie that fills their societal needs, even if unconsciously. Once the audience has made its decision, it empowers that star to fulfill these needs. "Stars have a privileged position in the definition of social roles and types, and this must have real consequences in terms of how people believe they can and should behave" (Dyer 8).

Isaac Asimov: Envisioning the Future of Our Own Humanity

â€Å"If it brings me humanity, that will be worth it. If it doesn't, it will bring an end to striving and that will be worth it, too. † (The Bicentennial Man 22). Isaac Asimov, a dreamer who with humble beginnings pushed science fiction into the beginnings of reality. There is no one quite like Asimov. He has written more on more subjects, and better on more subjects, and more unexpectedly on most subjects, and in more ways on more subjects, than anyone else in the field. He writes poetry, limericks, short stories, novels, essays, articles, nonfiction books, trilogies, jokes and so on-more of them than anyone else could imagine (The Bicentennial Man 1). With all his intelligence, and all his heart, he fought for a world in which his ideas could become reality. His humanity was found in his struggle to educate us all, encouraging us to expand our horizons beyond our own lack of knowledge. This fact is alluded to in an article he wrote to Newsweek in the 1980s, â€Å"There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge’† (â€Å"A Cult of Ignorance† 19). His view of the world included us understanding. His oppression was caused by our ignorance. Isaac Asimov was born sometime between October 4, 1919 and January 2, 1920 (In Memory Yet Green 1). His parents did not remember the exact date of his birth but claim it to be around that time. He himself celebrated it on January 2nd (In Memory Yet Green 1). He was born to Anna Rachel Berman Asimov and Judah Asimov, a Jewish Russian couple. At the age of three, his whole family immigrated to the United States to the city of Brooklyn, New York (Biblio). Asimov graduated high school early, starting college and writing his first published novel which he completed by the end of college (http://psu. edu). Asimov was a man who spent his entire life writing. His earliest writings were found in magazines. His friend and publisher John W. Campbell saw his early stories as rough but promising (http://psu. edu). The story that really launched his career was Nightfall. Nightfall was a simple story, written about how a society could potentially collapse if great change occurs even if that change is not inherently negative. In Nightfall and Other Stories, he writes, â€Å"The writing of ‘Nightfall' was a watershed in my professional career †¦ I was suddenly taken seriously and the world of science fiction became aware that I existed. As the years passed, in fact, it became evident that I had written a ‘classic'† (Nightfall and Other Stories). His career and fame continued to grow as the years passed. Beginning in 1942 and ending in 1945 he worked for the Philadelphia Naval Air Experimental Station (Biblio). During this time he started work on five novelettes and four novellas that are now known as the Foundation Trilogy. Of the trilogy, Charles Elkins of DePauw University wrote, â€Å"Among SF series, surely none has enjoyed such spectacular popularity as Isaac Asimov’s Foundation stories† (http://psu. edu). The Foundation series received numerous awards for its quality and content, eventually ending up in a Hugo award for Asimov (WorldsWithoutEnd). In the Foundation series, through the use of science fiction he tackled the issues he was passionate about. In his novel Pebble in the Sky he writes about racism. The story is written in the view of humans of other worlds holding a prejudice against Earth-dwellers because they â€Å"simply do not like the Earth† (http://psu. edu). He also tackled another issue that lays claim to how he lived his life. In book three of the foundation series, The Mayors, he begins to describe a religion that focuses on science (Foundation). As an atheistic humanist minority in a culture that was vastly overpoweringly theist, the best approach he took to tackling the issue of religion was through science fiction. As an educator at heart, he just wanted us to challenge the status quo with what we understand. In The Mayors, the religion of science worships a mythical galactic spirit. It is strikingly similar in some respects to modern religion, as this storybook religion had both a prophet, a story of how it all began, and a book of rules to live by (Foundation). His views on religion can be read inside the stories that he wrote. The life of Asimov cannot simply be summed up in a short phrase or story. He was an influential writer, attacking literature in many different writing formats. He fought for the rights of others, shaping our belief systems through the use of storytelling. He pushed for greater desire to learn in all of us, by writing of a robot that learned to become human (The Bicentennial Man 22). The call to be human and to remind us to be human was the goal of Asimov.

How Should Social Networks Be Utilized in the Workplace?

How could these social networking sites be a threat to a company’s security? In today’s world it seems the human race could not live without information technology in the workplace. More importantly, social networks like Facebook and Twitter are becoming very popular tools for business development in today’s world. There are dozens of social network sites and more popping up every day. It is astounding the number of hours that people waste on such sites.Updating, checking in and sending out bits and blurbs about every little aspect of one's life seems cheap. More astounding than individuals wasting time on these things is that businesses are also wasting time on them. Actual megabuck businesses are in on the whole social networking shtick. The challenge for the business world is how to utilize these social networks effectively and safely. The value of social networks and how they can benefit businesses has been in question recently.Also in question is do these so cial networks create a security risk with employees conveying possibly privileged information to a friend or relative through Facebook or Twitter. How does a company prevent potential security risks? They have to block social networking sites or grant limited access to specific departments. Metro Business College prevents students from accessing social networking sites on school computers but allows faculty and staff to access from their desk computers.Metro’s reasoning is students should be at school to learn, not stare at Facebook all class period. The question then is not are these sights a security risk but rather are these sites a huge time suck for employees which creates a reduction in productivity? The biggest risk a company a company faces is how employees that utilize these sights can make their company look and what effects it could possibly have on their reputation. How social networking can tarnish the reputation of a company or enhance it. Unfortunately, there i s a downside to social networking.It is essentially an open forum and anyone can say and post anything on a company’s page. For the most part, it is potentially dangerous to a company’s reputation. Due to this fact, a company’s networking site should have limited access when it pertains to posting information. Take, for instance, a recent report on The Springfield Brewery in Springfield, Missouri. The social media specialist posted a humorous joke to its Facebook page and unfortunately it was met with several disgruntled comments. Several customers stated they would never â€Å"step foot n the restaurant again†. [ (Pettit, 2013) ] It is bad press such as that over such a small comment that could potentially destroy a company. On the other hand there are companies like Tupperware that use social networking internally to boost the pride employees have for the company, the attachment an employee feels and fun an employee has while at work. [ (Huy, 2012) ] Af ter adopting these social media concepts the turnover rate fell by fifteen percent and a webcast created new sales of $700,000 in just three days. (Huy, 2012) ] Sometimes social media can create opportunities for companies that they normally would not have and it is the companies that are willing to evolve and understand the importance of social networking that will survive. Another company that utilizes social networking site is Metro Business College they found that websites such as Facebook and Twitter can be excellent recruiting tools and also they are useful to keep track of their student body and possibly help them if they have issues with homework or even personal problems.Social networking can be an invaluable tool to an organization if utilized properly and monitored by administrators to prevent potentially damaging posts or comments. How to make social networking work for the greater good of the company LinkedIn can be a valuable tool. Resumes can be posted there which can be utilized by human resources departments for recruiting purposes. Potential employees post their profiles there, which also can be utilized by the human resources department to check the character of a potential recruit. Slovensky, 2012) Some companies are requiring potential employees to provide human resources access to their Facebook pages so they can see the character of the candidate. Companies post jobs on networking sites like LinkedIn and Facebook which can benefit other companies to view how their competition is doing, if they are posting new positions then that company is most likely in a state of growth. People looking for jobs are on these sights and they provide all the information a potential employer needs to make an informed hiring decision.When it comes to professional social networking, LinkedIn is the most successful site of its kind. It is better than Facebook or Twitter because it eliminates the everyday social aspect, including the posting of how one’ s morning breakfast made them feel and the LOLs. Another benefit of LinkedIn is that all discussions and groups are moderated. Nonsense is kept to a minimum. Rarely does one have to deal with spam or irritation there. It is a safe haven for serious social networking, for serious business connection building and for serious relationship building.However, there are benefits to using networking sites like Facebook as well. After all, Facebook does have 175 million members according to an article called Inside Facebook written in 2009. Maintaining the strategic advantage through e-business and social networking The questions a company must ask are:  To how many social networks do you belong? How valuable are they to you? If they went away tomorrow, would you feel any impact to your business? A simple answer is that individuals should choose one or two professional networks and farm those like any other social networking situation.Leave the shot gunning to the amateurs. Make connection s that count. 10,000 â€Å"Likes† do not mean anything if they are not buying, reading, recommending or influencing. Companies should not waste your time with such pursuits. The return on investment is not high enough. Mass mailings do not work. Certain types of advertising just do not work for some businesses. Building relationships with clients is the most important aspect of any business and that is best done through human contact not a mass email.Do not rely on flash-in-the-pan online social networks to build your business. Clients and potential clients like to know that there's a 98. 6 degree hand on the other end of those messages and not a piece of software. It might sound old-fashioned and outdated but there is nothing like true social networking to build a business. A company builds a business through building relationships. Studies have shown that relying on social networks to create strong ties actually has the opposite effect and instead weakens them.Facebook is a good example of a social networking site that creates weak ties (Jennifer, 2010). Instead of creating direct networks among its participants, the social networking site creates sub-networks. With no direct link to the company or the issue at hand it can create weaker ties and a customer that does not show as much company loyalty. (Slovensky, 2012) In the end it does not matter how the company views social networking but how the customer base views that company’s use of these social networking sites.If they are well monitored and provide password protected use for a limited amount of employees then it can be beneficial. However, the biggest issue most companies face is that one instance when something is posted that causes a security breach or something is posted that hurts the company’s reputation. They then have to answer the question, what do we do next? Social networking is not going anywhere in fact it is growing everyday with new sites popping up all of the time and companies that want to survive will need to get on board.References Huy, Q. &. (2012). The key to social media success within organizations. MIT SLoan Management Review , 54 (1), 73-81. Jennifer, S. (2010). Planning in the age of facebook: the role of social networking in planning processes. GeoJournal , 75 (5), 407-420. Slovensky, R. &. (2012). Should human resource managers use social media to screen job applicants? managerial and legal issues in the USA. Ifno: The Journal of Policy, Regulation and Strategy for Telecommunications, Information and Media , 14 (1), 55-69.

Theoretical Issues in the Horror Film Halloween essays

Theoretical Issues in the Horror Film Halloween essays In this essay, you are required to discuss any (one) of the topics covered in the module, and demonstrate how such a theoretical paradigm informs an understanding of a particular horror film of your choice, but not one already on the module or that you chose for your first essay. Obviously, this essay requires greater evidence of secondary reading, but it should not ignore some textual analysis in order to demonstrate the theoretical principles you are highlighting. There are many different issues and theories surrounding the study of the horror genre, and in order to gain a greater level of understanding of the genre one must analyse all of these different elements thoroughly. Such topics which warrant discussion are genre, and the sub-genres associated with it, its audience, issues of gender, sexuality and representation, structural and narrative approach, aesthetic values, etc. Obviously an essay discussing all of these elements in depth would be huge, so in the following essay I aim to look mainly at gender, sexuality and sexual representation in John Carpenters Halloween (1978). I will also outline briefly some of the other issues which warrant discussion, and relate them to my chosen film, looking in slightly more detail at the different sub-genres present in horror, with an aim to highlight their conventions and place 'Halloween' into one of those sub-genres. The reason that I chose 'Halloween' for analysis, quite apart from the fact that it is one of my favourite horror films, is that it is an effective choice as an example of how (especially 80's) horror films represent women. The film is also a favourite among theorists in both categorisation and conventions of the horror genre, and gender issues in film. So there is plenty of available reading and research available to me, making it an ideal choice for analysis. 'Halloween' was shot in 1978 by John Carpenter, on a relatively small budget of $130,000. It is seen by m...

Definition of Marketing

Definition of Marketing Free Online Research Papers The meaning of marketing has nearly an infinite number of possible definitions. It involves psychology, statistics, art, logical and creative thinking. The one common denominator within all definitions of marketing is that it leads to an exchange between vendor and consumer. Marketing is used to sell almost every product in our culture, for example, cars, movies, food, furniture, clothes, the list is endless. Specifically defining marketing involves identifying the meaning, the individual influence it makes on a personal and professional level in the microcosms of the population it effects. Marketing and its meaning clearly plays an extremely important role in our culture. On a personal level, I perceive marketing as an attempt to stimulate my own identification. The idea is that products I use define if I am a good quality person, wife, mother, and woman. In my opinion, many organizations attempt to persuade the consumer, through identifying those human desires that will compel the buyer to purchase their product. I personally feel the goal of organizations is to convince shoppers that a happier, healthier, safer and more satisfying life involves the choice of buying and using the product they are selling. The Greek word for market is agora, which means â€Å"gathering place†. In the Agora of ancient Greece, buyers and sellers bickered over the features, benefits and prices of the products being bought and sold there. â€Å"The first markets were places, not targets, demographics, seats, eyeballs or other abstractions. In the first markets, producers and consumers were a handshake apart- and so were all the other reciprocal market nouns: producer and consumer, vendor and customer, supply and demand. They were all embodied in seller and buyer.† (Searls, 2000). In business today, the term market also refers to personality, tastes, and the group of consumers that are interested in a material item or service known as the product. Industry terms that describe the level of narrowing of the market base include: Total Population Potential Market – total population who have interest in obtaining the product. Available Market – potential market who have a sufficient amount capital to buy the product. Qualified available market – available market who authorized to buy the product. Target market – qualified available market that the organization has chosen to serve. Penetrated market – target market who have bought the product. (NetMBA Business Knowledge Center, 2002-2007). We have recreated the agora through the internet, through mass media, through print and it has become global marketplace. The means in which products are sold at market may have evolved, diversified and become somewhat convoluted , and yet the core premise still exists. It is all embodied in seller versus buyer. Success of products sold through marketing becomes evident when the product becoming popular, and becomes thought of as needed by the consumer. In an article in which a gentleman by the name of Bob Maxwell defines the difference in products and brands, additionally he addresses the meaning of marketing. Maxwell states, â€Å"Consumers exist in personal and professional networks where cultural signals are used to communicate status, beliefs, attitudes and values. The clothes worn, TV shows viewed, music listened to, restaurants visited and media personalities favored are just a few of the signals people use to express who they are. Product brands are important symbols in this expression.† (Maxwell, 2007). He further explains that according to research that it is human nature for people to look for dominating media magnets in order to reinforce their concept of self. He theorizes that by identifying the worth the patron relates to in a product; connections, outlooks, attitud es and philosophies, marketers will be more capable of developing inspired and motivating testaments of their product. The results of such knowledge would assist them to link their merchandise with an appropriate consumer base, increasing the success of profitability by selling the product. My experience in the retail industry revealed valuable information in regards to marketing. We understood that part of the home improvement market was to show the consumer that they were not only able to not only afford the products, but that they were capable to do their own home improvements as well, but most importantly all the products to do whatever job could be purchased at the Home Depot. There are many people who would like to believe that they are talented enough to learn some skills to be able to repair and modify their home. This is one of the core strategies that Home Depot has based its whole marketing strategy behind. With that concept in mind, we designed and built a small display bathroom at the entrance of our store. The walls were included a window and were covered from top to bottom with crown molding, wallpaper, paint, chair rail and wainscot. We used a pedestal sink, and a spa tub. On the wall we hung a stylish in-stock mirror. The floor was tiled, and inc luded base boards. In the window we installed a blind, and decorated it with a coordinated bath style curtain. I then created a price menu, in which I based all the prices of the products used in the display on a 10’ x 8’ bathroom. As consumers walked in, they would stop and look over the bathroom, and began to imagine the possibilities. I was able to measure the success of marketing based on the increase in sales of those products used in the display. A report could be generated by requesting specific item numbers and dates of sales. Another key to marketing success is to show value. In another attempt to get the attention of consumers I designed a display that took a multi-item product and broke it down indicating the value and the difference in price if the items were sold separately. Once again I was able to measure the success of the marketing by monitoring a detailed report specifically in regards to the increased sales of this product. In retail, there is a saying, â€Å"Sales cures all.† Therefore anything that employees could do to increase sales would lend towards the profitability and success of the store. Home Depot, at one time, put a lot of capital into the marketing of their enterprise. The goal was to build the confidence and trust of the consumer. The success of Home Depot is well-known, and will almost certainly go down in history as iconic as Coca-Cola. Successful organizations know the importance of not only marketing, but also marketing to the right populations. A great deal of money is spent identifying the triggers in which compel the populations within these markets to identify with and purchase their products. They are acutely aware of the impact of marketing in all the diverse applications, and its financial return to their increased profitability and ultimately their long-term success. Reference: Chulick, Ben. (). Marketing. Marketing Plan, (), . Retrieved March 17, 2008, from msu.edu/course/prr/473/oldstuff/Marketing.htm#Marketing database. Maxwell Bob, (2007). iMedia Connection. How Your Product can Grow up to be a Brand. Retrieved March 17, 2008, from imediaconnection.com/content/16196.asp NetMBA Business Knowledge Center. (2002-2007). Marketing. Retrieved March 17, 2008, from netmba.com/marketing/market/definition/ Searls Doc, (2000). Linux Journal. The Real Meaning of Markets. Retrieved March 17, 2008, from linuxjournal.com/article/3793 Research Papers on Definition of MarketingAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductDefinition of Export QuotasBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfOpen Architechture a white paperHip-Hop is ArtIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalPETSTEL analysis of IndiaThe Project Managment Office SystemTwilight of the UAW

Calidad vs. Cualidad, Spanish Words Meaning Quality

Calidad vs. Cualidad, Spanish Words Meaning Quality Both calidad and cualidad are usually translated to English as quality  - but the two words arent used in the same way and arent interchangeable. A look at these two words show how the meanings of words can change over time  and how corresponding words, known as  cognates, in two languages can take different paths. Calidad, cualidad and quality all come from the Latin qualitas, used to refer to categories or kinds of things. (You can still see echoes of this meaning in the word cual.) Cualidad comes close to retaining that meaning and is used to refer to the inherent characteristics of something. In fact, it can almost always be translated as characteristic as well as quality. Here are some examples: El pelo corto tiene la cualidad de mantenerse en mejores condiciones por ms tiempo. Short hair has the quality of remaining in better condition for a longer time.Mi mejor cualidad como actor es la autenticidad. My best quality as an actor is authenticity.Antonio posee muchas cualidades deseables. Antonio has many desirable qualities.El magnetismo es una cualidad de algunos metales. Magnetism is a quality of some metals. Calidad, on the other hand, suggests excellence or superiority: Siempre queremos la mejor calidad para nuestros clientes. We always want the best quality for our customers.Tenemos que consumir nutrientes en cantidad suficiente y de buena calidad. We need to consume nutrients that are sufficient in quantity and of good quality.La mayorà ­a de las ciudades con mayor calidad de vida estn en Europa. Most of the cities with a better quality of life are in Europe.La baja calidad del servicio hace perder ms clientes que el precio. The low quality of services causes the loss of more customers than does price. Sometimes calidad, especially in the phrase en calidad de, can refer to someones position or status: El representante, actuando en calidad de presidente interino, firmà ³ tres documentos. The representative, acting in the capacity of interim president, signed three documents.

Task Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Task - Essay Example mitive; karyon= nucleus) cells lack a true nucleolus, cellular organelles such as mitochondria, chloroplast, endoplasmic reticulum (ER), Golgi bodies etc. The DNA found in prokaryotes is circular, devoid of basic histones; they do not undergo normal cell division of mitosis and meiosis, they multiply by simple replication of DNA, followed by binary fission, thereby the two daughter cells are clones (exactly similar). Single celled organisms do not possess defined nutrition and excretory mechanisms. Some single-celled organisms such as amoeba have simple cell structures known as  vesicles  that are responsible for excretion and  osmoregulation. Moreover, they ventilate through simple diffusion process across the cell membrane. Single cellular organisms can be deemed as simple, as unlike eukaryotic cells where progeny is formed after the fusion of male and the female gametes, and the progeny possesses the characteristics of both the parents, while most single celled organism do not. As a matter of fact, they can divide a number of times within one hour. Additionally, unlike most  multicellular  organisms, single-celled organisms can readily synthesize most of the essential substances that they need from simple nutrients. These processes are very simple and straight forward. Also, single-celled organisms can be considered as simple due to their limited capacity to occupy a wide range of habitats. This is attributed to the fact that they do not have division of  labour necessary for the exploitation and subsequent utilization of a wide range of resources. On the contrary, they achieve division of  labour  by formation of colonies, which they achieve by having their daughter cells remaining attached after subsequent cell divisions. Variation has been estimated as a vital component in the sustenance of species. Most single-celled organisms tend to lack variation owing to their ability to reproduce asexually, implying that organisms retain the exact genetic composition

Responsibility to Protect and Obstacles in Its Implementations Essay

Responsibility to Protect and Obstacles in Its Implementations - Essay Example In so doing, the Assembly deliberately rejected the old paradigm that viewed sovereignty and human rights as diametric opposites of a horizontal continuum, and embraced the notion that the two principles necessarily reinforce each other. In paragraph 139 of the Document, the Security Council was recognized as possessing the right to authorize force under Chapter VII to prevent genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity where "national authorities manifestly fail" to protect their own populations" (World Summit Outcome 31). This recognition has decisively broadened the legal effect of Article 39 of the Charter - it is now fully settled in law that the Security Council may use force in contained domestic crises where atrocities are being committed. The principal argument of this paper is that notwithstanding the advancements of "responsibility to protect", the doctrine in its present form has serious shortcomings that could leave the Security Council without cl ear parameters and guidelines for dealing with future genocides. R2P fails to meet the needs of civilians due to the non-intervention norm enshrined within the Charter. It is vital that more work be done to develop clearer standards and benchmarks in the determination of responsibility to protect. Barriers Implementing R2P R2P, while specifically addressing humanitarian interventions, is a doctrine which is not legally binding. R2P merely serves to clarify the criteria permitting intervention. The criteria are just cause, right intention, last resort, right authority, proportional means, and reasonable prospects. Just cause determines the grounds under which humanitarian interventions may occur. The ICISS identified genocide and large-scale ethnic cleansing, actual or imminent. Right intention prohibits intervention for the sake of regime change or other national interests. The intervention must be solely based on humanitarian motives. The last resort criterion determines that all n on-military means of conflict prevention must be exhausted before relying on the use of military force. The right authority criterion clarifies that while the UN Security Council is the primary vehicle for authorising intervention, it may also, in the case of UNSC paralysis, be authorised by regional organisations such as North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the European Union (EU), or the African Union (AU). Proportional means is the idea that the scale, duration, and planned military intervention are the minimum of what is necessary to secure the defined objective. This assures the country in which the intervention is taking place that the intervention is merely temporary and that sovereignty will be returned in the shortest time possible. The final criterion; reasonable prospects, is perhaps the most important. It is the idea that an intervention will only take place if the consequences of such action will not be worse than doing nothing (Matt 31). However, like all legal c onventions, R2P is subject to interpretation. There is nothing in R2P which prevents states from arguing that the just cause threshold has not been crossed or that the responsibility to protect lies with the host state and not the international community. It is stated within the R2P report that it is a pro-sovereignty doctrine, and that the responsi

Legitimacy Theory In Brewing And Hotels Sector Essay

Legitimacy Theory In Brewing And Hotels Sector - Essay Example These social contracts may be three-fold; between the society and the state, the society and the businesses and between the state and the businesses. Suchman says that legitimacy is the general view that an entity's actions are desirable, appropriate as well as proper in the light of values, norms, and beliefs within a system that's socially constructed.Suchman further highlights three kinds of legitimacy in organizations. These are; cognitive, moral and pragmatic. Management of legitimacy according to him also faces various challenges like maintenance, gaining and the repairing of it. He also writes that communication is where the management of legitimacy rests. Therefore, while the function of legitimacy is being examined it’s not possible to sideline the corporate communications’ essentiality. It attributes to goals or purposes that a business entity has.It's an issue that's widely linked with issues of corporate governance. Corporate governance is defined as the pow er exercised over business entities with the aim of increasing the value toward its stakeholders. These stakeholders should be accountable for their actions to the society at large to make sure that they achieve these objectives. That's, both to the internal and the external societies. The internal society may refer to issues like workers' protection like adherence to industrial and factory safety measures while the external society is the entire society not involved in the business actions first- hand. (William, 2009)

Characteristics of Successful Entrepeneurs Essay

Characteristics of Successful Entrepeneurs - Essay Example Significance of the Research When it comes to business, what makes one successful entrepreneurship is undoubtedly one of the most significant topics because successful entrepreneur finds business opportunity, seizes it and creates a market of his own by beating the competitors and achieving sustainable competitive advantage. Studying and exploring in to the essential characteristics of an entrepreneur would be helpful to understand what makes an entrepreneur and how he brings success to enterprises. As Volery, Doss and Mazzarol (p. 1) noted, entrepreneurship remains to be a driving force in the modern economy more than ever. It’s because, entrepreneurs meet the economic needs through the creation of thousands of business every years. Many businesses in recent days started ‘downsizing’ or ‘outsourcing’ processes, but entrepreneurs are those who create new ventures and new jobs that help strengthen the economy as a whole. Entrepreneur has played pivotal roles in today’s business developments, technological advances and all the radical changes that brought renaissance in business environments. People all over the world are able to meet their varying requirements and specific individual needs only because entrepreneurs in different parts of the world, no matter how smaller or larger they are, have found opportunities, thought creatively, innovated and established an enterprise to provide something valuable to the people. Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs Many researchers have obviously agreed with the very fundamental view of entrepreneurship as described by the father of entrepreneurship, Joseph A Schumpeter. According to him, entrepreneurship is innovation (Carsrud and Brannback , p. 7). Entrepreneur is one who perceives or finds an opportunity to be seized and then to create a new product or service or changes an existing one in order to create new marketable contribution to the economy (McDaniel, p. 57). An entr epreneur is not only an opportunity finder, but be a good manager with basic managerial skills like direction, coordination, supervision, decision making, risk bearing, control and problem solving etc (Brockhaus, p. 1). An entrepreneur doesn’t need to be a manager or not to function as a manager, but he must be skilled in managerial qualities and functional areas like those mentioned above. A basic difference that most literatures have described is that a manager is not always the owner of the enterprise and therefore he is relatively less responsible where as the entrepreneur is the owner of the business and more responsible too. The most essential and basic characteristics of entrepreneur are detailed below: Entrepreneur as an Innovator Innovation is one of the fundamental qualities of an entrepreneur. As Drucker (p. 17) noted, innovation is very specific tool that an entrepreneur is essentially required to have and with this he can find chances and make them opportunities for various business purposes. Finding opportunities for some thing new and bringing a vision in to reality through innovation is thus critical element to the success of an entrepreneur. Entrepreneur needs to be innovator for major innovations, start up of business, developing new products or services for a presently

Resource Management in Schools Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6500 words

Resource Management in Schools - Essay Example 3) The quality of education provided should conform to the policies and priorities of the government and the curriculum requirements of the Board of Studies of that government. 4) The teaching and learning practices of the schools should be effective and be continuously improved up to the welfare of students. 7) The management should emphasize on developing a culture where learning is valued. 8) A culture of collaboration should be developed, in the school community contribute to the achievement of shared goals that are clearly defined. The above factors are easy to define in theory, but what is necessary is that the school management should ensure that they have the necessary resources to put it into practice. For example, to see that the first point mentioned above is practiced, the school management should provide the necessary text books, a good library, an adequately stocked science lab, well trained teachers, a good atmosphere for learning etc. For welfare of the students a good canteen and recreational facilities could be provided. To maintain quality of education qualified teaching staff with emphasis on regular teacher training sessions should be ensured.. Culture of a country is important and this can be imparted by local teachers rather than expatriate teachers. These are the main areas that this study will focus on. Aims & Objectives of this study: The aims f the papers are to: 1. Identify current practices of Omani head teachers with regard to resource management in schools and their perceptions of ideal practices of resource management in Omani schools. The current practices will be explained later in the study. 2. Identify weakness and strengths of the current practices of head teachers with regard to human, material and financial resources. 3. Identify the link between resource management and student achievement. Education in Oman: Education in Oman schools consists of three levels such as Board of Directors for Indian Schools in Oman, School Management committee and School Administration. (Management committee). The new system gives emphasis on Science, Maths and the use of computers. English was also introduced gradually to 17 schools from different regions. Schools have introduced new learning resource centre with laboratory equipment, audio-visual systems and computers. (Education, 2008). The basic education system contains two phases from 5 to 10 years and 11 to 15 years and two years secondary education. For the year 2002-03, 288 schools follow the basic education system in academic year. Second phases of basic education during 2001-02 in 59 schools were 30 boys and 29 girls and 5 schools for grade- four completed students.

Alzheimer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Alzheimer - Essay Example The results also explain the various findings of the study as related to the possible factors that contributed to the occurrence of Alzheimer’s disease: use of anesthetics, neurotic personalities or an inability to handle and manage stress, the occurrence of obesity, incidence of depression, and physical inactivity. The discussion gives detailed effects that the disease brings to the people as well as their complications. Finally, the conclusion gives the recommendations and additional information concerning the management of the disease. The problem of the research relates to the people affected by the disease and at what age. The effects the disease creates on the affected individuals, the economy, and the government. In recent years, over 5 million Americans were suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. After attaining the age of 60, most people started to show symptoms of the disease. This could mean that the risk of being infected increases with age. Younger individuals could also get the disease, but on rare occasions. It is important for people to determine their risk factors, in order to prevent themselves from acquiring the disease. This is because other researchers project that the number of infections could rise significantly in the future (Wimo & prince, 2010). The paper shows that age is the main risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. The prevalence of the disease is analyzed and its fatality rate. The disease affects the caregivers psychologically. It is costly for the government to provide medication and treatment services to the infected person. The disease infects a large number of older women as compared to men. The paper discusses the physical effects of the disease in the elderly. Alzheimer’s disease affects the brain in a progressive manner. It could be fatal for the cells of the brain. It interferes with the memory capacity of the brain and affects the normal thinking of a person. If the affected

Resource Management in Schools Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6500 words

Resource Management in Schools - Essay Example 3) The quality of education provided should conform to the policies and priorities of the government and the curriculum requirements of the Board of Studies of that government. 4) The teaching and learning practices of the schools should be effective and be continuously improved up to the welfare of students. 7) The management should emphasize on developing a culture where learning is valued. 8) A culture of collaboration should be developed, in the school community contribute to the achievement of shared goals that are clearly defined. The above factors are easy to define in theory, but what is necessary is that the school management should ensure that they have the necessary resources to put it into practice. For example, to see that the first point mentioned above is practiced, the school management should provide the necessary text books, a good library, an adequately stocked science lab, well trained teachers, a good atmosphere for learning etc. For welfare of the students a good canteen and recreational facilities could be provided. To maintain quality of education qualified teaching staff with emphasis on regular teacher training sessions should be ensured.. Culture of a country is important and this can be imparted by local teachers rather than expatriate teachers. These are the main areas that this study will focus on. Aims & Objectives of this study: The aims f the papers are to: 1. Identify current practices of Omani head teachers with regard to resource management in schools and their perceptions of ideal practices of resource management in Omani schools. The current practices will be explained later in the study. 2. Identify weakness and strengths of the current practices of head teachers with regard to human, material and financial resources. 3. Identify the link between resource management and student achievement. Education in Oman: Education in Oman schools consists of three levels such as Board of Directors for Indian Schools in Oman, School Management committee and School Administration. (Management committee). The new system gives emphasis on Science, Maths and the use of computers. English was also introduced gradually to 17 schools from different regions. Schools have introduced new learning resource centre with laboratory equipment, audio-visual systems and computers. (Education, 2008). The basic education system contains two phases from 5 to 10 years and 11 to 15 years and two years secondary education. For the year 2002-03, 288 schools follow the basic education system in academic year. Second phases of basic education during 2001-02 in 59 schools were 30 boys and 29 girls and 5 schools for grade- four completed students.

Management Questions Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Management Questions - Coursework Example Some of the questions that may arise in identifying a market need include the possibility of consumers buying the product and the possibility of their demands being profitable. I would establish a market need through the use of consumer focus groups (Cameron & Freeman, 2001, p. 100). These groups have vital information about consumers including their needs and preferences. This information is vital for an entrepreneur to analyze the properties of the product and align them to the needs of the market. The same applies to Creative Minds as a business in the market for art products. Vital information for the business relate to the needs of children in the market for art services. The needs of the children may include information such as pricing, delivery and forms of arts. What is a new product development process and why is it necessary? The new product development process is a mechanism used by a business in identifying the appropriate features of a product. The process involves a number of stages that include idea generation, screening, concept analysis, development, testing and launching. The process is necessary for a business to determine the suitability of its product in the target market. It ensures that the product entails appropriate features that will make it attractive in the market hence become profitable for the business (Denison & Mishra, 2005, p. 188).

Military Rules & Regulations Essay Example for Free

Military Rules Regulations Essay There are many types of leaders in the military. To be specific, there are five different people(s) that take part in leading the Army. They are as follows (from highest point of responsibility to lowest); the SA (Army Staff) and CSA (Chief of Staff), the Vice CSA, the DCS G-1 (Deputy Chief of Staff), the HQDA (Headquarters Department of the Army) Heads of other staffing support, and commissioned officers/NCOs. In completeness, the Army Staff all take care of how we as soldiers are supposed to behave to each other, as well as civilians, and the duties we are to uphold. LDRSHIP was put into place to give us a basic idea of these responsibilities. The CSA makes sure that the leadership is keeping soldiers ready to perform their jobs effectively and aptly. The Vice CSA advises the CSA of what needs to be done in improving the Army, through the recommendations from the Well-Being GOSC (General Officer[s] Steering Committee) and oversees the rest of the Army Staff. The DCS G-1 leads the Well-Being GOSC by; creating their agenda, bringing in staff and administrators, and guaranteeing these staff are well organized and disciplined in their decisions of the Army’s well-being. The HQDA staff does much of the same thing the Well-Being GOSC does, by supporting the policies, plans, and initiatives to improve the Army’s overall prosperity. The last of the leadership charged with improving our lives, as soldiers and moral, as well as maintaining an order of things, are the commissioned and non-commissioned officers. They help our mental, physical, and spiritual health’s are brought to their peak level. They also help our families to have as much of the same benefits and living circumstances as we soldiers have. As soldiers, we are to be disciplined and handle our duties with respect to the rules and regulations put into place by our above leaders. In the case of CQ, I am to always maintain the Army standard. I understand that one of the biggest of these responsibilities is to keep soldiers from roaming outside of their rooms after bed check. This is for safety purposes for those soldiers, as well as for our sake’s as CQ runners. If we cannot maintain proper order over the barracks, we are to immediately report to the duty NCO, letting him/her take over the situation. We are also required to report any happenings on the CQ log, including deliveries, maintenance calls (COX Communications, etc.), drunken personnel, and the duties we have performed (cleaning, hall inspections) throughout our shift. We are to be self-disciplined enough to know what we can and cannot handle and ensure that we have options to take if we can’t take care of an incident. Since being on CQ is a specific order, we are to make sure that all of those duties aforementioned are followed and fulfilled. We also need to be disciplined in the aspect of our attire, and our appearance. This means we are required to wear whatever the commander specifies we wear on CQ, in a clean and tidy fashion. AR 600-25 explains all of the dos and don’ts of saluting, and honoring and visiting personnel. CQ may not be the immediate first person to see entering/exiting commanders or NCOs (but should be), but the first person to do so should call the group to Attention/At-Ease depending on the enterer. This is where the CQ personnel should have the attention to their surroundings to know when a ranking official is already present or leaving, or a higher-ranking official is entering or exiting. Since we are supposed to be making rounds to check the integrity of our area of work, especially after bed check, if we see an official of officer status, we need to give the proper gesture and remark, depending on the official’s rank and the time of the incident. In situations where we know of events going on, such as reveille and retreat, but we are at our post, we do not have the right to salute, but if we are outside in any area, we need to immediately halt our actions and salute towards the playing. We, as soldiers are to keep well trimmed in our appearance at all times. This includes wearing the proper uniform when required. Mismatching uniforms is not allowed. If we do not, our commander and/or NCO can give us punishment for our actions in consistency with the Army regulations. If a soldier does something outside of military jurisdiction that is unacceptable to civilian rules, the punishment comes from the civilian law enforcement. On top of that, though, the military, depending on the situation, will determine the harshness of ITS punishment as well. This goes so far to say that happenings, such as drinking, may be legal at age 21, but if you drive and are caught by any law enforcement, military or civilian, it is grounds for at least an Article 15 and ASAP (Army Substance and Abuse Program) training, and possible chaptering if there are multiple offences. If there are no law enforcement present to oversee a situation, any senior ranking official can take information on the soldier and give it the that soldiers commander, and should without any hesitation. Last of all, if there are no senior officials to take care of the situation, the peers of the subject should have the responsiveness to stop the soldier from doing acts against Army regulations. In this, anyone can and is required to report anything military personnel do that could be chargeable under UCMJ (Uniform Code of Military Justice). On CQ, as a female, you are not allowed to go into any of the male barracks. As a male on CQ, we are to stop any female who attempts to go to a male part of the barracks. If we are not able to do so, we need, as stated above, to report it immediately to the official on duty at that moment. Then, that official will take action as to what will happen to the individual who was reported in the wrong. Military authority should be done with most of the acronym LDRSHIP in mind (Personal Courage shouldn’t be a factor). It should be fair and not over the top. I thank you for the opportunity to do extra duties and this essay, rather than going to an Article 15. Since I now know the rules I am to follow while in the military, and especially while on duty as a CQ runner.

Pricing decisions as a management strategy

Pricing decisions as a management strategy Supply and demand is an economic model of price determination in a market. It concludes that in a competitive market, price functions to equalise the quantity demanded to the quantity supplied. This results in an economic equilibrium. The Pricing decisions, deciding what to charge the customers may be based on the Marketing or Cost and management accounting. Pricing is one of the most difficult decisions faced by organisations. It is possible for management to foresee a profit squeeze (Horngren, Datar Foster, 2003). Pricing decisions are based on what to charge for the products and services organisations offer. These decisions have major impacts on the revenue an entity earns. This study is focused on pricing decisions as a management strategy. It will then discuss about costing (subset of management accounting) and its influence in pricing. Major changes have occurred in the business world in recent years, including deregulation, privatisation, the growing expectations of share holders and the impact of new technology (Atrill McLaney, 2009). These changes have led towards a fast changing and competitive environment, and this has radically changed the way that entities need to be managed. Managers must approach pricing decisions with care because of the significant impact they can have on the profitability of business (Drury, 2008). Management must approach pricing decisions with care because of the significant impact they can have on the profitability of an entity. Managers consider three main influences on pricing decisions: customers, competitors and costs. Managers tend to see the pricing issues through the customers eyes. Any increase in price may cause customers to reject an entitys product and switch to its competitors. In the current business environment, understanding customers prices and product preferences are a competitive advantage to any entity. Management can price dynamically to respond to demand, to create demand, to reduce waste and to turn over stock immediately. The reactions of competitors influence pricing too. Many companies globally, have established departments to search out information on its competitors financial performance, patents, technology and operating policies (Bhimani, 2008). Most companies price products to exceed the production costs (Alan, 2002). The surveys and case studie s reveal that executives weigh customers, competitors and costs differently. Price taking and price making Most entities need to make decisions about setting or accepting selling prices for their products or services. An entity will have to accept the market price under few circumstances. If there are entities in an industry and there is little to distinguish their product or service from each other then the management needs to consider price taking. Entities in commodity markets can be quoted as examples. Any small entity operating in an industry where there are dominant entities that influence prices then small entities will have to accept those prices. In contrast, if the entity is selling highly customized or differentiated products then they can influence the prices and be a price setter. Time horizons Short run and Long run Pricing decisions have both short run and long run implications. Pricing decisions in short run Short run pricing decisions include pricing for a onetime special offer. This can be an opportunity where an entity will have to bid against its competitors. In such a situation incremental costs of undertaking the order should be taken into account. Product mix could be adjusted where the incremental sales revenue exceeds incremental short run costs and will provide a contribution towards fixed costs. Pricing decisions in long run Long run decisions could include pricing a product in a major market where price setting has considerable leeway. Long run time horizon is mostly of a year or longer. Organisations are supposed to consider the long run implications since they commit their resources for a lengthy period of time. Long run decisions have a profound effect on the firms future position (Drury, 2008). Pricing decisions are more prominent since that is how organisations earn their revenues. Target costing and Life cycle costing are two of the strategies used by organisations in pricing. Target costing is the estimated price for a product or service that potential customers will pay. In other words, firms determine the allowable cost for the product or service, given a competitive market price, so the firm can earn a desired profit (Target cost = Competitive price Desired profit). Firms have two options to cut down costs to the level of target cost. It could be either by redesigning the product or service and or by integrating new manufacturing technology. While once managers focused only on manufacturing costs, they now look at cost upstream (before manufacturing: Research and development and design) and downstream (after manufacturing: marketing, distribution and customer service) in the product life cycle to get a complete analysis of product cost and profitability. Another long term pricing strategy is Life cycle costing. Typically, product or service costs are calculated and reported for shorter periods, such as a month or a year. Unlike the typical strategies Life cycle costing provides a long term perspective.

Relationship Between Ambient Airborne Fungal Levels and Meteorological

Total Spore Trap Sampling Method The spore trap method is used due to the ability to immediately identify a large spectrum of the majority of fungal spores within the air. This method is able to identify species that are unable to culture well or those that are no longer viable, but present. Alternatively within the industry there is not a consensus on the method. Downfalls include the difficulty of identifying some mold spores and there is no differentiation between non-viable and viable spores. For example, the lab analysis of Penicillium and Aspergillus is reported together due to the inability to differentiate between the two, therefore are categorized as Penicillium/Aspergillus types (Clean Air Labs, 2007). This would be an issue if trying to model either through use of the spore trap method. The spore trap method also lacks to ability to determine mold spore viability, which could be useful in determining which mold spores are able to grow when placed in the right environment (Emlab, 2011). Overall the method is questionable for industry when used alone as a method to classify and determine indoor mold problems. For the purposes of creating models based on meteorological data, those issues seem to be irrelevant if the appropriate fungus is selected for comparison. Sampling Technique Total Spore Trap sampling occurs through use of air pump with cassette. The air is pulled through the cassette and trapped on a slide, which is analyzed by a laboratory. The lab with read a count the total number of fungal spores in a small area and multiplied to determine a total spore count. This process is very quick and cost effective, but can only be used as a guide, with all reported numbers representing an estimation of the total sp... ...ions of Cladosporium spp. and Alternaria spp. spores in Zagreb (Croatia) and effects of some meteorologicial factors. Annals of Agricultural and Environmental Medicine , 303-307. Recio, M., Trigo, M. d., Docampo, S., Melgar, M., Garcia-Sanchez, J., Bootello, L., et al. (2011). Analysis of the predicting variables for daily and weekly fluctuations of two airborne fungal spores: Alternaria and Cladosporium. International Journal of Bioeteorology . Smith, G. (1990). Sampling and identifying allergenic pollens and molds. San Antonio: Blewstone Press. Trout, C., & Levetin, E. (2001). Correlation of spring spore concentrations and meteorological conditions in Tulsa, Oklahoma. International Journal of Biometeorology , 64-74. Whittaker, C. (n.d.). A rationale for collecting viable and non-viable samples for airborne fungi. Retrieved from Environmental Solutions Group.

Consumer and Market Knowledge Essay

During the internship at ITC (in logistics), I interacted with ground level employees (on floor)-even when it is not mandatory. Through which I got in debt understanding of the actual process happening on field. By doing so I was a able to identify that the workers are mixing up the stock without associating with their respective codes. I was also able prove that by abandoning one particular plant J-1(name shortened) will save cost irrespective of its flexibility and proximity. During my schooling, I was the School president during my X- class.There was an alumni meet along with the inaugural function every year. My role that year is to look over the snacks and gifts (for our our alumni and guests). We were allotted a budget and we paid the dealer in advance. The function has been postponed to the next day, So we left the oder (snacks and gifts) in the dealers godown. But the next most of it is spoiled by the rats. The dealer accepted to take the responsibility, but neither is he able to return our total money or reproduce the order immediately. I being the response point took two decisions: For gifts, i made the dealer to give gift vouchers, which we will give to our guests and alumni, through which they can go to that distributor and select a gift of their choice within the price range (discount included as per original agreement). And for the snacks, instead of buffet I opted for dine-in to avoid the stock out situation. And also instead of having three common snacks, we opted for a variety of snacks in small quantities(it includes fruits to a large extent). During the crisis I conveyed my proposal to my Vice-principal, and it was readily accepted. And next day i was applauded during the morning prayer in front of the whole school by the principal for my effective handling of the situation.

Civic Engagement

Civic Engagement and Political Awareness in the Youth of America Change is inevitable and the popular one hit wonder, Video Killed the Radio Star, echoes a nostalgic desire to appreciate the past. The simple, yet meaningful verse, â€Å"we can’t rewind we’ve gone too far,† drives home the notion that the past is in the past, and one can only move forward. The song directly relates to technological changes in music at that time period.The lyrics give the impression radio will be replaced by visually stimulating music videos; however, the future has proved that radio has not been replaced; music has merely been enhanced by the continuous change of technological advancements. Political scientist and professor, Robert Putnam illustrates in his book, Bowling Alone: America’s Declining Social Capital, how one of the primary culprits in the decline of political awareness and civic engagement is the new media, for example, the Internet. Further studies suggest thi s is not necessarily the case.Video Killed the Radio Star mirrors the relentless argument of whether the mass media has hindered or assisted in political awareness and civic activity in adolescents and young adults. The radio made people famous, and even after music videos became popular, music was still streamed through a radio and continues to be used to this day. Studies have shown that civic engagement and political awareness has declined, at all age levels, and yet there is evidence that the mass media can have a positive effect on cultivating social capital, especially in the interest of young voters in America.The issue at hand is not mass media, but how mass media can be used as a means to stay informed on community issues and how it can create a sense of community. In the article, America’s Youth and Community Engagement: How Use of Mass Media is Related to Civic Activity and Political Awareness in 14- to 22-Year-Olds, the authors begin by providing troubling evidenc e, â€Å"Voter turnout in congressional and presidential elections has dropped since 1960†¦ Americans are less involved in political activities ranging from signing petitions to attending rallies† (Pasek, Kenski, Romer, and Jamieson 115).Putnam compares the decline in civic engagement to the massive decline of bowling leagues; however, as bowling memberships are declining, the number of people bowling has increased. He explains the concept of a bonding capital and a bridging capital within the social capital as a whole. The theory of bonding and bridging can also be described in terms of strong ties and weak ties of networking.Professors Homero Gil de Zuniga and Sebastian Valenzuela explored Putnam’s research further in their article, The Mediating Path to a Stronger Citizenship: Online and Offline Networks, Weak Ties and Civic Engagement, finding it inclusive that bridging, or associating with weak ties provide one with a greater networking base, and therefore mo re information and resources. Bridging and weak ties are when an individual socializes with people who are different from themselves. Bonding and strong ties are individuals who are linked to each other on varying levels of intimacy; for example, one’s inner circle of friends and family.Putnam additionally points out that bonding and bridging strengthen each other. Because of the decline of bonding, there is a decline in bridging, which he links to the drop of organizational forms of capital due to the mass media. Like Putnam, authors Zuniga and Valenzuela agree that â€Å"larger networks foster civic participation so long as they provide access to weak ties,† yet they take into consideration that the internet is vast with diversity and is not â€Å"geographically bounded,† and therefore â€Å"argue that the online context should be more strongly associated with weak-tie communication than the offline context† (405).According to Zuniga and Valenzuela, thi s connection shows that internet based networks and weak ties will be more effective than the relationship between personal, offline networking and weak ties. The authors mentioned earlier, Josh Pasek, Kate Kenski, Daniel Romer, and Kathleen Hall Jamieson conducted a telephone survey to assess â€Å"12 different uses of mass media as well as awareness of current national politics and time spent in civic activities† in respect to the youth and how mass media is related to political awareness and civic activity (115).If the conclusion made by Zuniga and Valenzuela is accurate, then the new media will have a positive effect on the younger population’s role in developing social capital. Historically, when print media flourished, it served as a way to stay in touch with the community of readers with no face-to-face interaction and â€Å"made possible the development of the modern nation state† (117). Internet is just another mechanism to build social networks, in whi ch interpersonal communication is absent, like the newspaper.However, unlike the newspaper, internet provides individuals with an extensive opportunity to network with people who are not in their inner circle, thus weak ties are created. Furthermore, Pasek, Kenski, Romer, and Jamieson examine how some forms of media are more effective than others, and explain how media that solely exists to entertain adolescents and young adults can aid in promoting group activities with individuals that can share their experiences and develop a sense of community.They are still experiencing social participation, even if the activity is not directly associated with civic activities. The authors evaluated the 12 different uses of mass media and assessed each media variable based on if it improved political awareness or civic engagement, or both. The researchers also included demographic predictors that would correspond with the study: age, race, gender, and socioeconomic status. It is apparent that a dults would have a higher amount of political knowledge. â€Å"The average education level in our sample was 10. years of schooling†¦ Of respondents, 78. 9 percent were currently students,† which would give them the edge since there are more opportunities to become involved in community service activities and clubs the schools have to offer. Some schools require community service to graduate. Socioeconomic status also plays a role in political awareness and civic engagement. This correlates directly to the fact that individuals who are wealthier have the resources and means to educate their children and are probably highly educated as well.Race and gender is yet another factor in evaluating political knowledge and civic engagement, whereas â€Å"whites appear more politically aware than Blacks, Hispanics, and other non-Whites†¦ however, race has not been as strongly related in one direction or the other [in regards to civic engagement, and]†¦ women, on average , belong to more associations and organizations than men but tend to exhibit less political knowledge† (123).The results of How Use of Mass Media is Related to Civic Activity and Political Awareness in 14- to 22- Year-Olds, revealed that if media usage increased in frequency, it had a negative impact on political awareness and civic engagement, which is to be expected. Although reading remained positive, the results showed individuals took longer to develop a well-rounded political knowledge base if their reading increased. This is the cause of a decrease in active engagement with others. The authors could not predict if newspapers increased civic activity, however, it was evident that it increased political awareness.Civic activity was strongly related to political awareness, and the findings also concluded that the Internet increased civic engagement, along with listening to news on the radio, following shows on television, and reading magazines. Not only were civic activiti es found to be directly related to political awareness, but the media had an overall positive effect on civic engagement and political knowledge. In his research, Putnam fails to assess new ways to approach civic engagement and political awareness, and instead looks to the old.Relating civic engagement to the decline of bowling leagues seems futile to the reader, especially to a young adult. As society changes, activities change; people change. The youth of today are more interested in modern technology, which is why more candidates should reevaluate how they approach the younger generation in regards to the elections and make use of the Internet during elections. Because young voters are growing up in a time when technology is usually readily available to them, they look mostly to the web for political information.Youth turnout for the 2004 elections showed â€Å"marked increases. † Most likely prompted by the war in Iraq, intense efforts were made to ensure younger generati ons were actively engaged throughout the campaigns. New media tools were also used, with websites put up that focused on attracting the younger population to politics; â€Å"an estimated 28 percent of 18- 29-year-olds received most of their information about the campaigns via the Internet in 2004, making them the age group most reliant on new media for political information about the election† (Xenos and Bennett 444).However, in the article The Disconnection in Online Politics, Michael Xenos and W. Lance Bennett stress the fact that although younger voters are participating online, they are less likely to visit a site that is sponsored by a specific party or electoral candidate. Unfortunately, politicians are very slow when adapting to the modern world of technology, and do not make use of the web to attract young voters. On sites like Rock the Vote, they give young voters access to interactive features, and yet links to websites with related political information and resourc es are not easily accessible.Young voters only attain a morsel of information from youth engagement websites. Between 2002 and 2004, Xenos and Bennett conducted an extensive analysis of political sites that focused on youth involvement, as well as electoral sites, and they found the â€Å"overall pattern is one of overlap† (456). The candidates’ websites were not designed to attract young voters. They merely addressed the same issues on their sites as seen on the youth sites; however, on the electoral sites they clearly were not reaching out to the younger population of voters.Professional consultants correlate politicians’ indifference to youth voters because senior citizens have a higher voting rate. Xenos and Bennett express their disappointment, â€Å"younger voters who ignore politicians largely do so because politicians largely ignore them† (457). It is ironic because voters are less involved in politics due to politicians’ lack of interest i n their appeals, and politicians show disregard for the youth because of their low voting turnout and vice versa.If politicians, our leaders, are putting the youth aside, who is going to devote the time to inform the younger generation of the importance on civic activities and political awareness? In correlation with the decline of adult involvement in social participation and volunteering, people simply do not have the time or energy to devote to their own needs, let alone join a civic organization. In today’s society, both parents work to make ends meet.There are usually a higher percentage of female volunteers to male volunteers, but now that women are taking on raising children, housework, and working an additional 15 hours per week than men, the idea of becoming involved in community activities is overwhelming. The economy is in a stale state, and since the 1970s, the percentage of single mothers has increased dramatically (Freedman 246). Children are being isolated more often than not, which can also result in the disregard for community and civic engagement.Mentoring programs are unreliable, and many adolescents and young adults are left in the dark without an adult role model: â€Å"In his essay â€Å"Building Community, John Gardner [Miriam and Peter Haas Centennial Professor at Stanford Business School] offers both consolation and wisdom about the historical process of community erosion and renewal†¦ â€Å"disintegration of human communities is as old as human history†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ â€Å"We can’t know all the forms community will take, but we know the values and the kinds of supporting structures we want to preserve. We are a community building species.We might become remarkably ingenious at creating new forms of community for a swiftly changing world. †Ã¢â‚¬  (Freedman 248) Robert Putnam insists on looking to the old, and if he must, he should look at the potential of civic renewal in the volunteering of senior citizens . Over the past thirty years, the population of Americans over the age of 65 has doubled and will continue to increase. Marc Freedman, the author of the article, Towards Civic Renewal, Journal of Gerontological Social Work, expresses his faith in the nation’s retirees to change the deterioration of volunteerism in the U.S. , where children are in need of the most help. If children at an earlier age gained better insight into what it means to have a sense of community and belonging, they would have a better awareness of civic engagement and a broader knowledge base of politics on the state, local, and national level. Senior citizens also have the time, and there is evidence that implies older adults are looking to stay active in their communities; â€Å"As one recent U. S Administration on Aging-sponsored survey reveals, a full 37. percent of older Americans say they would volunteer if asked, while an additional 25. 6 percent already volunteering indicate that they would like to devote more time to service,† and they prefer to work with the younger generation (Freedman 249). Not only will it help the children, but it will also help the senior citizens. 55 percent of seniors feel a sense of uselessness when they retire†¦ a 25-yr National Institute of Mental Health study finds, for example, that â€Å"highly organized activity is the single strongest predictor, other than not smoking, of longevity and vitality† (Freedman 250).The local and federal government is known for lost proposals. Perhaps some of them would have been successfully planned out and put into action if accepted, and Freedman makes the idea of senior involvement seem feasible. Freedman provides the reader with examples of effective programs in community involvement created by the older population; one example is a â€Å"union-sponsored initiative that helps nonviolent juvenile offenders find and keep blue-collar jobs. Freedman goes onto explain to doubtful readers that are thinking, where is this money going to come from? America’s budget is steadily falling into a rabbit hole, and yet the author is confident in the â€Å"†talent, experience and commitment† of older adults,† and their ability to organize well and get tasks completed quickly and effectively (252). Civic engagement and political awareness is declining because of the absence of an inspiring role model in the youth of today, and this program shows romise of creating a healthier sense of community for the older and the younger generations. Reiterating authors’, Homero Gil de Zuniga and SebastianValenzuela’s earlier consensus, the decline in civic engagement is not the consequence of the mass media and modern age of technology. The importance of weak ties through the Internet is actually seen through the web of networking that people from all over the world create, which ignites a stronger relationship in civic participation than networking face-t o-face with weak ties.This finding was reinforced by the study on various media uses in the article; How Use of Mass Media is Related to Civic Activity and Political Awareness in 14- to 22- Year-Olds, where the end result is conclusive with Zuniga and Valenzuela’s evidence. The media can enhance civic engagement and political awareness if used sparingly and in the right context. â€Å"The mind is a double edged sword. It has immense power and it is capable of accomplishing both useful and destructive feats. † (Atharva Veda http://thinkexist. com/quotes/atharva_veda/). It is not the media that is destructive.The minds of the populace are ignoring the real issue at hand. The mind could be used more effectively in developing new ideas to encourage civic engagement and political awareness in the younger population. The media actually promotes civic participation and therefore is directly related to political awareness; overall the media has a positive effect on social capi tal. It is the communities’ job to instill these values on the children so they can grow into informed adults and have their own opinions and ideas, passing those values onto their children and so on.Bibliography Freedom, Mark. â€Å"Towards Civic Renewal. † Journal of Gerontological Social Work 28. 3 (1997): 243-63. EBSCOhost. The Haworth Press, Inc. , 11 Oct. 2008. Web. 1 Oct. 2011. . Pasek, Josh, Kate Kenski, Daniel Romer, and Kathleen H. Jamieson. â€Å"America's Youth andCommunity Engagement: How Use of Mass Media Is Related to Civic Activity andPolitical Awareness in 14- to 22-Year-Olds | DeepDyve. † DeepDyve – Millions ofArticles At Your Fingertips. Sage, 27

Foundations of Leadership

This paper examines foundations of leadership and the role behavior plays in leadership. Behavior defines a person's ability to communicate and form active and powerful relationships within the organizational structure. Behavior influences how a leader will sustain communication to their team members and defines their strategy for leadership. This influences their ability to motivate, build powerful teams and adjust to organizational conflict and change. One role model of effective leadership would Bill Clinton. This paper looks at not only organizational examples of leadership but also the political role model of president to aid in defining foundations for leadership. This paper examines how proactive leadership can be applied to the organizational structure and outcomes or implications result. In today's business world, it is important to address how change agents influence the workplace and how leaders address such issues. In today's marketplace, the pressure to succeed is intense. Never before has a company's efficiency and profitability been so closely measured and studied. Without powerful, active leadership and a well-tuned team in place to motivate and encourage teamwork, a company is doomed to fail. This paper will explore key elements that build a foundation for leadership. See, sometimes what is not completely understood is that leadership involves so many other attributes found in a person. Two main attributes discussed in this paper is the ability to effectively communicate and display emotional intelligence. This brings into focus other skills needed to manage the day to day conflict and corporate environment of today's changing business world. Not only is leadership a key to success and a reflection of the organization's cultural values but it is group of skills needed. These skills include areas of expertise such as communication, motivation, and team building skills. In order for an organization to carry on success, it must turn to role models in the community for inspiration. Rather these role models be present within the culture is important but inherently, people will look around them to leadership already within the framework. This means looking to American culture for such leadership models. It can be continuously debated rather or not the most important leader in the world is effective. This person falls under tremendous scrutiny and accountability. The President of the United States must lead by example and be active in their leadership but one aspect of leadership that must be understood is that people are human and they err in the human way, nor are they perfect. As a role model, this paper will not only look at organizational examples of effective leadership skills but also examine the leadership of Bill Clinton. A key to the foundation for leadership is effective communication and one's ability to behave intelligently. It can be easy to confuse the two concepts of management and leadership on an organizational level. George S. Odiorne (1987) writes, â€Å"one of the more popular definitions of management is that it consists of getting results through other people† (p. 13). In today's company, the role of management also involves leadership within a team structure. Managers have the responsibility to set goals, maintain moral, aid in training and communicating corporate objectives. A good leader provides vision and clarity for the employee. Such a leader will be able to communicate and create a rapport with their team. This connection begins at a fundamental level of human sociology where the use of story is central. Howard Gardner (1995) reflects, â€Å"the ultimate impact of the leader depends most significantly on the particular story that he or she relates or embodies, and the receptions to that story on the part of the audiences† (p. 14). By telling stories, allows for a certain level of openness or vulnerability on the part of the leader and makes them human. By opening the line of communication, gives the employee knowledge of their environment and develops trust. The leader's role is to sell the idea of commitment within a culture. Odiorne (1987) suggests, â€Å"if employees know what is expected, and what help and resources are available, they can then be relied upon to govern their actions to achieve the commitments they have made† (p. 138). This sets the stage for goals and achieving high performance. The culture in turn feeds off this energy and excitement. There are three reasons why leaders are important. First they are responsible for the effectiveness of organizations. Second, the change and upheaval of past years has left us with no place to hide. We need anchors in our lives as a guiding purpose. Third, there is a national concern about integrity of our institutions. Being mindful of own context is difficult for us. (p. 15-16) Managers with a keen understanding of leading represent these three key attributes and create a foundation from which to act. A leader must also display curiosity and have the guts to be daring. They must be a dominant force within the team. Bennis (1989) reflects, there are two kinds of people â€Å"those who are paralyzed by fear, and those who are afraid but go ahead away. Life is not about limitation but options† (p. 185). In the book Primal Leadership, authors David Goleman, Richard Boyatzis, and Annie McKee (2001) present their research on leadership styles within the organizational structure. The research discusses the relationship that these executives have with their emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is the study of emotions and their impact upon the work environment. The research investigates the different leadership styles evident in most organizations today. Mainly, leaders are categorized as either having the visionary, coaching, affiliative, democratic, pacesetting, or commanding leadership styles. Emotional Intelligence relies upon the fact the leader will be able to have a competent level of interaction with the employee by changing leadership styles and adapting to each unique situation throughout the time at work. It reflects successful leadership by allowing for complex relationships for team members by recognizing relationship building, capacity of visions and personal development. Emotional Intelligence for a leader means being able to read people, be read and allow for open dialogue or communication. Research stresses the importance of the leader's flexibility and capability to adapt to his or her environment. An effective leader will understand not only their environment and people but also understand the potential for impact upon that environment. By understanding this key element, an effective leader will know how to define the environment. This is important because employees look to management for guidance. The leader defines the boundaries for the team and creates an atmosphere for building relationships and open communication. This in turn creates stronger teams. Any time people are brought together, behavior both positive and negative can occur. According to the American Heritage College Dictionary (1997), behavior is: â€Å"the manner in which one behaves or the actions or reactions of persons or things in response to external or internal stimuli. † Upon further investigating the verb form also in the American Heritage College Dictionary, the word ‘behave' means â€Å"to conduct (oneself) in a specified way† or â€Å"to act† (p. 123). It is human nature to behave in a certain manner while existing in society. Over a period of time, we react differently to events that happen. How we respond to those events is essentially our behavior. How we communicate with one another is how we express behavior. Organizational Behavior focuses on the study of behavior within the organizational construct. This field of study concentrates on how an individual, group and structure affects the behavior within the organization. Therefore, this has direct bearing on communication as information is vital to learning within the organization. It is important for an organization to learn from its mistakes as this information enhances the organizations' performance. This information when communicated can bring about change and growth within the organization's functions and policies. Motivation can be a complex issue for a leader to communicate when managing a team of different personalities. One key to success is having an understanding of people and the many different things that motivate people, influencing their behaviors while performing a task therefore, influencing communication. A good leader will work to understand what motivates each individual on the team in an effort to improve communications. Still this brings up the issue of needs and how to get them met by the situation. Maslow's Theory of Needs, suggests that individuals have a range of needs and will be motivated to fulfill whichever is the greatest need at that moment in time. In this construct, there are lower-order and higher-order needs. The lower-order needs are dominant until they are at least partially satisfied. Maslow predicted a normal person will turn their attention to higher-order needs once the lower ones were taken care of (Motivation 2005, par. 3). Lower-order needs include items like making a living for food and shelter while higher-order needs are more in tune with personality such as esteem and worth. A team leader will understand how his or her team members perceive themselves within the team and what needs are important to each member. This will aid the leader in knowing how to approach each individual and how to effectively discuss the every day team happenings. By understanding motivation, a leader can also understand which methods of communication work best for each employee. In this way, the leader can adapt his or her tone and body language to better convey the point. By knowing what motivates people, the leader can effectively communicate incentives to the team to boost their morale. This will lead to them offering the team ways to make work interesting and challenging while encouraging members to take ownership of tasks. This encourages the pursuit of goals. Once an employee is acknowledged, a higher level of pride and respect is achieved. This inspires them to take advantage of new learning opportunities and lead within the team. It is also important for the leader to give regular praise and positive feedback when the standard of work is high. On the other hand, it is also important for the leader to offer support during times of struggle and conflict in order to decrease the influence of stress. For managers who actively keep and open dialogue are putting their people first. They are more focused on nurturing and training. Research suggests leaders are more interested in mentoring and training their team rather than focusing on output of numbers or turn around time. This once again acts a mini-strategy to manage communication within the team. This development in team building allows for â€Å"providing people opportunities to learn from their work rather than taking them away from their work to learn† (Hughes, 2004, p. 4). A healthy culture inspires options and the innovations that grow out of creativity. Another issue when creating an intimate team experience is building trust. In an example, the South African Breweries, plc or SAB found itself needing to create trust in a post Apartheid era where racism was still very much causing conflict and lack of communication among workers. As part of implementing an integrated management process, the organization carried out workshops to target its 6,000 employees. These workshops encouraged open discussion about South Africa's past, Apartheid's influence and how shared values increased a sense of workplace community (Supporting workplace learning for high performance working, p. ). The President of the United States has a tremendous pressure on his shoulders as he represents our country to the world. The President can be considered the most powerful man in the world. Is he a good leader, effective in his communication, motivation, team orientation skills? Does he understand the needs of the people and actively lead on this premise of continually making the country a better place or is he a puppet acting out the agenda of his political party? From this standpoint, the United States government can be seen as the ultimate organization with the President as the CEO. Within this structure, is the foundation of leadership present or is the term just used to clean up past mistakes and create new policies only to be changed by future leaders? In this respect, it can be difficult to separate the human from the leader while in public view. He will be analyzed from every angle. From an Organizational Behavior standpoint, it is only logical to believe how one conducts his personal life also reflects his business integrity. Many would argue because of President Clinton's indiscretions that he was a poor leader. He lied and therefore, that changes the public view of him and the level of trust that can be instilled in him. This indiscretion calls his accountability into question or does it? In order to examine Clinton's leadership ability and skills, one must have a handle on their own Emotional Intelligence and be able to separate his business practices from his moral decision of his personal life. There is a reason the business world leaves the personal life at the door; there is a job to be done. Leon Panetta (2001) reflects, â€Å"Clinton is a paradox. He can be described as brilliant, dedicated, slick and dishonest† (p. ). Liberals claim he was passionate about the issues and succeeded in changing many policies concerning civil rights, education, the environment, medical ethics and women's rights. Conservatives liked him because he was able to balance the federal budget, fight for free trade like NAFTA and create tough crime programs. Still does addressing these issues make him an effective leader? Panetta (2001) explains, â€Å"to get a better measure of the man and his presidency, it helps to look at him, both accomplishments and failures. Only then can we understand Bill Clinton, the leader† (p. ) Discussion, Application and Implications The issue of ethics raises another concern for Organizational Behavior and how one conducts themselves within the construct. Communication can lead to misunderstanding but so does lack of action. Sometimes it is not evident that taking action could have changed the outcome. What is important to an organization is that they follow through with every possibility. This is where employees pick up on non-verbal communications from management. If a leader appears not to be concerned, then more than likely the team members will not be either. Internal cues, both verbal and non-verbal are extremely important to not only success but just day-to-day functioning. First leadership must be put in place then a change of policy can be put into place. There must be consistent with the chain of command where both the product and the use of the product are concerned. Everyone must have the same perception of the organization's objective. By having a trusting, open door policy with people creates an atmosphere of safety where communication can take place. Also another idea is to have a program of due diligence where people back each other up and support each other through periods of conflict. This will enable teams to have not just one chain but multiple chains of communications where information is double-checked and triple checked before put into use. This will ensure that any new issues or mistakes are found and addressed before they are put into real-world situations. This can also lead to teams thinking outside the box to create new innovative ideas to fix the problems. By building this type of culture, allows the organization to maintain a high level of integrity with the public but to also remain competitive within the market. The implications of doing business in today's world means constantly being open-minded and remaining comfortable knowing that not every day is same. Some people cannot work in such conditions. As Stephen Robbins (2001) comments, â€Å"As humans, we are creatures of habit. Changes substitute ambiguity and uncertainty for the known† (p. 546). People, by human nature, inherently resist change. Management may find older employees are more loyal but have a harder time embracing new ideas like the Internet because they remember the old days. This resistance to change can result in conflict but it also creates opportunities for innovation. The practice of innovation also begins with embracing or adopting the unexpected. Peter Drucker (1998) describes, â€Å"unexpected successes and failures are such productive sources of innovation opportunities because most business dismiss them, disregard them, and even resent them† (p. 3) and this type of behavior represents people's resistance to change but at the same time creates recognition of new opportunities within the market. Change in the global market, including multicultural demographics and new technologies, has required perceptions to change. The attitude toward knowledge has evolved because more than one type is needed in order to implement a new idea. This changes the needs of workers and organizations as diffusion of innovation takes place as many different points of view are considered. This adds value as it spawns creative thinking but it must also fall within economic reality. It is important to carry out a detailed implementation but also to remain on budget and schedule. The concept of innovation brings up other implications, however. It produces a whole new reality that employees may not be prepared to handle. Product diversification could mean failure. Technology, while it is wondrous and makes jobs easier, can also be dangerous. With telecommunications, a new breed of crime has been created with identity theft and corporate brand protection becoming important. Technology can be disastrous if put in the wrong hands. Antibiotics used to cure infections have saved numerous lives while there is a continued threat of biological weapons of mass destruction. With innovations come new inventions that make our lives easier but also have a higher risk when used. This is the nature of the realm of possibility. This can backfire as it can also destroy and impose new rules of conduct upon communities. As much as many like the idea of innovation, for those scared of change, it is difficult o embrace fully. This means as change rapidly flourishes out of control, those resistant aim to gain control of laws and rules to make change more difficult. This leads to Big Brother watching every public move and return to conservative leadership. One can look to the events of recent months to see the value of Bill Clinton's leadership. He has not retreated from the limelight but instead applied his passion and hope for people in his daily life of action by carrying on his role as a leader. Rather it be his participation in aiding Tsunami victims or right here at home, recent victims of Katrina, he continues his objective of serving the people of the United States. This communicates to us that he cares. Panetta (2001) reflects. â€Å"only in crisis is a president fully tested as to what part of his character will prevail† (p. 6). He may have failed many times but he also used failure as a positive means to evolve as a better man and leader for today's people and their needs. His ability to reach the every day man still defines his leadership power. This paper explored key elements that build a foundation for leadership. Two main attributes discussed in this paper is the ability to effectively communicate and display emotional intelligence. This brings into focus other skills needed to manage the day to day conflict and corporate environment of today's changing business world. Not only is leadership a key to success and a reflection of the organization's cultural values but it is group of skills needed. This paper also discussed how leadership skills have implications and define the work environment for employees. It discussed how leaders must be mindful of change agents and possible outcomes due to innovation and new technologies available. In this respect, the workplace is constantly evolving and without leadership as a framework, the organization would be motivated or able to communicate and teams would dissolve. In order for an organization to carry on success, it must turn to role models in the community for inspiration. Rather these role models be present within the culture is important but inherently, people will look around them to leadership already within the framework. This means looking to American culture for such leadership models. It can be continuously debated rather or not the most important leader in the world is effective. This person falls under tremendous scrutiny and accountability. The President of the United States must lead by example and be active in their leadership but one aspect of leadership that must be understood is that people are human and they err in the human way, nor are they perfect. As a role model, this paper looked at organizational examples of effective leadership skills but also examined the leadership of Bill Clinton. It is important in leadership to embrace change and stick to a vision. By having Emotional Intelligence one can â€Å"recogise the physical and mental signs of our feelings/emotions before we can act on them meaningfully and constructively† (Eby Ruin par. 20). It is by recognizing these attributes that one can build an effective team structure. A leader acts as a coach to not only reinforce the game plan with directions but also encourage creativity, new ideas and acquiring new skills. Foundations for Leadership include: effective communication, motivation and team building. In order to better understand leadership, we must look for role models within the organization but also outside to society. The President of the United States can be considered the ultimate definition of leadership but can he live up to the standard? This allows an organization to build a value system where the foundations of leadership are prized and seen as tools for success. And in order to survive in the business world, leadership and its foundations must be valued by the organization.