Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Impact Of Management On The Development Of Organizational...

The Hawthorne studies were initiated in 1924 by the management of the Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric Company in Chicago (Levitt List 2011). The Studies are referred to as the â€Å"behavior modifying effects of being the subject of social investigation† (Wickstorm Bendix 2000). The leading man behind the experiments Elton Mayo developed the study to make further inquiry into what factors affect productivity in the workplace. Ever since the studies were conducted between 1927 and 1933 (Wickstorm Bendix 2000) there has been much speculation of whether or not these results should be used to make a fundamental change in the development of management in society. This essay will cover the various aspects of management that has been†¦show more content†¦Stage one of the experiment aimed at examining the effect of changes in working arrangements upon productivity (Gale 2004). During this stage five girls were transferred from the factory floor to a special test r oom where their output of relays was recorded for over two years, during which a large number of alterations were made to their working conditions (Carey 1967). One of the changes made was to the illumination values in the factory environment. When the light was cut down to .06 of a foot candle the girls maintained their efficiency (Carey 1967). They found that only extremely low illumination caused decreases in levels of production (Broches 2008). According to Carey (1967) the conclusion came as a great â€Å"à ©claircissement† as the founding’s were quite different from what they had expected. The results identified the importance of social satisfactions at work and researches were puzzled to observe that productivity continued to rise regardless of the changes made to the physical working environment. At the end of the two years the results found that the girls output had increased by about 30 percent (Carey 1967) and physicians indicated improved workers health an d a decrease in absenteeism (Broches 2008). Due to the steady increase in output the investigators took into

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Tariff - World Customs Organization Example

Essays on Tariff - World Customs Organization Term Paper World Customs Organization Introduction The world is becoming a global place with each passing day. Thus, it is becoming increasingly easier for companies to penetrate the international market as well. To ensure that the trade between countries runs smooth, the World Customs Organization was created. The harmonized system for is an "is a multipurpose international product nomenclature developed by the World Customs Organization (WCO, 2015). The system is used by many countries across the globe to monitor tax on imports and to review the world trade statistics. Rationale The harmonized system coordinates the blending between terms of trade and tax levy of different countries by reviewing them and coming up with a conclusive and final terms of trade applicable to all the countries. WCO also sets the pace on issues like† internal taxes, regulation of goods, price monitoring and statistics among others to organizations like government, the private sector, and NGOs â€Å"(WCO, 201 5).Strengths and Weaknesses One of the major advantages of WCO is its ability to bring together States across the world and regulate the way inter-trade is done between countries across the globe. Whereas WCO also leads to better goods and services, its major weakness is that it does not consider the less developed nation when its setting up the policies.Recommendations We are in the information era, and technology is one of the principal determinants of trade today. WCO should consider reviewing their policies to incorporate technology and how it can improve customs. For example; e-commerce has revolutionized the way trade for businesses and has enhanced easier inter-trade. Developing countries like Jamaica should also be factored in when reviewing this.Conclusion With globalization, trade between has become easier. Thus, the need to have a standardized way of doing business for all countries.ReferencesKeen, M. (2015). International Monetary Fund.  The Future of Fiscal Frontie rs and the Modernization of Customs Administration.World Custom Organization. (2015).  About Us. Retrieved from http://www.wcoomd.org/en/about-us/what-is-the-wco.aspxWorld Customs Organization. (2015).  The Harmonized Systems. Retrieved from http://www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/nomenclature/overview/what-is-the-harmonized-system.aspx

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Case Study Ordinary Income

Question: Case Study Ordinary income Answer: i)Californian Copper Syndicate Ltd v Harris (Surveyor of Taxes) (1904) 5 TC 159 Through analyzing this case, we can conclude that the primary objective of the organization California Copper Syndicate was to get the land which consists copper. After getting the land, the company did not extract or remove copper from it. Moreover, the organization sold the property to another organization (Cebi and Woodbury, 2013). The verdicts of the court was that the group needs to pay the income tax for the agreement as the organization's intension was to produce the capitals or the money to trade the land or the property. This is not a capital gain and should be considered as the ordinary income of the organization on which taxes are bound to be levied (Taylor, 2011). ii) Scottish Australian Mining Co Ltd v FC of T (1950) 81 CLR 188 As per the case given over here, it can be seen that a business organization has established a business of coal mining. After a certain point of time, the fuel was strictly removed, and the group decided to sell the land or the property to produce the money from the trade. To makes the deal more profitable the group needed to subdivide the land and also to build roads in order to make it much more profitable (Coan, 2008). The verdict of the court was that the organization by subdividing the land can benefit a lot. In this particular case the firm is not liable to pay any taxes as it did not ultimately sell the land (Freebairn, 2008). iii)FC of T v Whit fords Beach Pty Ltd (1982) 150 CLR In this case, the tax payer is a firm or an organization, which gets an undeveloped land at the white fords beach. This property or land was located at the faade of the beach, and it could easily be utilized for the purpose of fishing. However, after a certain point of time, for the betterment of organization the difficult shares of the organization or the company were sold. After that, the new shareholders procured the land since they obtained the power of the management of this land and it is, in general, to increase the profitability the fresh shareholders need to subdivide the land and sell (Gunter, 2013). But during this time a disagreement arose amongst the shareholders about whether they need to add the share of their profits to the ordinary income or not. In general, the verdict of the court was that the shareholders can use the land in order to generate revenues for themselves. As a result of this, the organization or the firm established another organization of land develop ment, the income of which will fall under the category of ordinary income as per the Section 26(a) of ITAA (1983) (Heng, Niblock and Harrison, 2015). The court verdicts were that the profits or the income is assessed as a simple or an ordinary income and also need to be assessed as a regular or a single income. iv) Statham Anor v FC of T 89 ATC 4070 This case in this context is closely related to income tax system. In this case, the income tax was assessed for quite a long period of time. However, the decision was furnished that also need to the commissioner that is regulating the estates the profits or the income (KINGSTON, 2006). This is a simple or ordinary profits or the income and also need to be imposed to the law of the Income tax of this state. v) Casimaty v FC of T 97 ATC 5135 In this case the features and conditions associated for decreasing profit can be recognized (Leigh, 2007). Here the person under consideration endeavors to earn an amount of profit by selling a part of the land owned by him. The issue is whether the individual would have to pay taxes for the amount of money earned by him or not. This type of disagreement was mostly arising due to the exact reason if the income or the profit he gains from this type of trade that is assessable for the purpose of the tax or not. According to the Australian Taxation Act Section 25(1) of ITAA (1983) the agreement that was assessable and needs to be added in an ordinary or a simple income. vi) Moana Sand Pty Ltd v FC of T 88 ATC 4897 In this scenario, here also we can say that an organization was dealing with sand was keeping a property or the land to remove the sand from the land. Moreover, the land or the property was a trade to give birth to this disagreement which is closely related to the taxable amount (Lim, 2009). The verdict of the court was that the property or the land needs to be traded for only commercial purpose. It also said which the property or the land may be purchased by the other person, who will mostly used it for the business reason. Generally, to the Act is needed to be measured as ordinary or the single income (Strully, Rehkopf, and Xuan, 2010). vii) Crow v FC of T 88 ATC 4620 This scenario is related to a farmer, who is the taxpayer here. Here, we can see that the farmer was tried to buy a grazing field of land. Moreover, there was a general disagreement about the property. However, it also is also understood that this property or the land was an offer to the farmer (Liu and Arnold, n.d.). Depending on the scenario; it need not still be added in a single income or the profits or income tax deductable and provisions under this subsection 51(1) ) of ITAA (1936). It is a crucial subject matter to the provisions of the capital gain. viii) McCurry Anor v FC of T 98 ATC 4487 In this scenario, it was a land or the property possessed by the two brothers. Moreover, theres present some homes on that land to renovate this land the homes of the land need to be removed. The deviation aroused though this two brothers must need to pay their tax that is closely related to the land (Rodger, 2008). The result was in the proper support of these two Australian brothers besides the court ordered while this two Australian brother need not be require to compensate their tax for the property or their land also. References .DREW, M. (2006). Superannuation: Switching and Roulette Wheels.Australian Accounting Review, 16(38), pp.23-31. Basu, A. and Andrews, S. (2014). Asset Allocation Policy, Returns, and Expenses of Superannuation Funds: Recent Evidence Based on Default Options.Australian Economic Review, 47(1), pp.63-77. BATEMAN, H. (2006). Recent Superannuation Reforms: Choice and Flexibility in Retirement.Australian Accounting Review, 16(38), pp.2-6. Bennmarker, H., Calmfors, L., and Seim, A. (2014). Earned income tax credits, unemployment benefits, and wages: empirical evidence from Sweden.IZA J Labor Policy, 3(1). Cebi, M. and Woodbury, S. (2013). HEALTH INSURANCE TAX CREDITS, THE EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT, AND HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE OF SINGLE MOTHERS.Health Econ., 23(5), pp.501-515. Coan, J. (2008). The Value of Proposed Earned Income Tax Credits to the Office of Child Support Enforcement's Caseload: A Comparison and Recommendations.Politics Policy, 36(5), pp.806-833. Freebairn, J. (2008). Comment: on The Economics of Superannuation'.Australian Economic Review, 19(3), pp.87-88. Gunter, S. (2013). State Earned Income Tax Credits and Participation in Regular and Informal Work.National Tax Journal, 66(1), pp.33-62. Heng, P., Niblock, S. and Harrison, J. (2015). Retirement policy: a review of the role, characteristics, and contribution of the Australian superannuation system.Asian-Pacific Economic Literature, 29(2), pp.1-17. KINGSTON, G. (2006). Choice of Tax Regime for Superannuation Contributors.Australian Accounting Review, 16(38), pp.41-46. Leigh, A. (2007). Earned Income Tax Credits and Labor Supply: New Evidence from a British Natural Experiment.National Tax Journal, 60(2), pp.205-224. Lim, Y. (2009). Can refundable state Earned Income Tax Credits explain child poverty in the American states?.Journal of Children and Poverty, 15(1), pp.39-53. Liu, K., and Arnold, B. (n.d.). Australian Superannuation Outsourcing: Fees, Related Parties, and Concentrated Markets.SSRN Electronic Journal. Rodger, A. (2008). The Economics of Superannuation.Australian Economic Review, 19(3), pp.75-86. Strully, K., Rehkopf, D. and Xuan, Z. (2010). Effects of Prenatal Poverty on Infant Health: State Earned Income Tax Credits and Birth Weight.American Sociological Review, 75(4), pp.534-562. Taylor, S. (2011). Captured Legislators and Their Twenty Billion Dollar Annual Superannuation Cost Legacy.Australian Accounting Review, 21(3), pp.266-281.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

Review of Civil War Stories by Ambrose Bierce Essay Example

Review of Civil War Stories by Ambrose Bierce Essay Perhaps no other writer in American history was more uniquely qualified to compose fiction about the American Civil War as Ambrose Bierce.   Naturally disposed toward gritty realism adn journalistic observation,but given to flights of poetic ecstacy, Bierce   served in the Civil War as a soldier, enlisting out of his home in Warsaw, Indiana, (Gale, 2001, p. 51) and wen on to attain the rank of Lieutenant by the wars close. Along the way, he faced combat, being trapped behind enemy lines,   and whose unit which participated in the battle of Shiloh [] suffered the greatest number of casualties of all Union regiments involved on 6–7 April (Gale, 2001, p. 51).   Bierce later wrote extensively about his experiences and the fiction he generated stands as some of the most interesting and innovative writing made during the early post-war years.The stories collected in Ambrose Bierces Civil War Stories were originally published in 1909 as part of the two volume set The Collecte d Works of Ambrose Bierce. The sixteen works of fiction collected in Civil War Stories span a range of genres from memoir, as in What I Saw of Shiloh, to allegory as in An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, to what   might be described as adventure/travelogue, as in Four Days in Dixie. The stories in the book are placed in what appears to be a random, but   is most likely a thematic, order; however, there are no designations for one type of story as opposed to another, no sub-headings or section breaks. The stories are presented without editorial commentary or embellishment.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Unlike the facts-only historical writings that study the Civil War, Bierces writings are flavored with poetic description, biting sarcasm, colorful characters, and well-made plots. The conflicts of the large war are made at a personal level through his descriptive writings. In the case of a story like An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge the death-knell of the South is prese nted as the death of a single man and the moral of the story is that to dream is sometimes to belive in a fallacy which will result in death.In other stories like What I Saw of Shiloh, the reader learns what it was like in a real Civil War battlefield, with grim and shocking descriptions of the battlefields and the dead.   His description of a mortally wounded Federal sergeant is both grotesque and blackly humorous. A bullet had clipped a groove in his skull, above the temple; from this his brain protruded in bosses, dropping off in flakes and strings. I had not previously known that one could get on, even in this unsatisfactory fashion, with so little brain. (Bierce, 1994, p. 10) The above quote shows how Bierce combined sarcasm with realistic detail in order to both horrify his readers and let them see certain realities of war which would contradict the glamorous attitudes that were often used to recruit soldiers and convince citizens to make war. Bierces themes in Civil War Sto ries often make use of pitting the fantasy of war against the reality of war.Using his life experience as a background enabled Bierce to create fiction that would ring as reality for the readers of his time and throughout to the present day.   Perhaps no story better than his most famous Civil War story An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge demonstrates that Bierce wanted to discourage the glamorization of war.   However, all of the tales in Civil War Stories could be considered as showing the reality of war better than the fantasy of war. Where historical studies make use of statistics and dates, Ambrose Bierces fiction makes ample use of anecdotal evidence, and is often sheer fiction without even the pretext of being factually true. Instead, Bierce tries to express the essence of war through the immediate impact for better or worse on the individual person who experiences war. Also within the context of the lived-experience, Bierce is able to show the loss of innocence in a young person, as he does so well in Four Days in Dixie bit also the romanticization of youth and innocence even in the midst of the horrors of war, as he does in What I Saw of Shiloh.The humorous aspect of Bierces writings also gives the memoir and fictional visions of the Civil War an authentic, real-life feeling, reminding modern readers that the people who fought and died in the Civil War or had their lives completely upturned by the war   were people and not just anonymous casualties. By personalizing the war, Bierce may be offering his readers the chance to decide for themselves just how romantic war is and whether or not participating in a war   is morally or even logistically advisable.   A shift in Bierces narrative tone also shows this same encroaching cynicism:It is interesting to compare Bierces description of Chickamauga, written in 1898, with his   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   account of Shiloh, which was begun as early as 1875 [] The trembling indignation , the   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   flashes of poetry, that make Shiloh a fine bit of writing, are absent from Chickamauga. In   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   the latter piece he merely set down the facts with yawning indifference.   (McWilliams,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   1929, p. 51)In A Horseman in the Sky Bierce offers one of the most climactic and sensational plot-twists in the book, which indicates just how hard it is to establish fiction from memoir in these stories. Of course the situation described in the story that a son would shoot his own father probably happened during the Civil War but Bierces version of it is certainly fictional and dramatized in order to leave the reader with a specific impact and meaning. The most illustrative aspect of Civil War Stories is not pictures, per se, but the dramatic mental images generated by Bierces writings.   Most readers will walk away from Civil War Stories with a   deeper and more immediate grasp of the Civil War as it impacted those who participated in it and were touched by it on a personal level. This provides an excellent counterpart to the big picture   view that is gained by reading strictly non-fiction studies of the Civil War.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

How much sympathy does the character, John Proctor Essay Example

How much sympathy does the character, John Proctor Essay Example How much sympathy does the character, John Proctor Paper How much sympathy does the character, John Proctor Paper Essay Topic: Literature Although there is enough evidence proving the fact that John Proctor is entirely responsible for his marital difficulties and his own downfall, the playwright, Arthur Miller, makes it hard for the audience not to sympathise with Proctor, when he decides to hang rather than sign his name to his confession. The audience first meets John Proctor in Act One, where he is portrayed as a powerful man. I forbid you leave this house, did I not. Now get you home! This mood changes when Mary Warren leaves and he is left alone with Abigail. She flirts with him, Gah! Id almost forgot how strong you are, John Proctor! His response is evident to the audience through Arthur Millers use of stage directions, looking at Abigail now, the faintest suggestion of a knowing smile on his face. He now completely changes the subject, Whats mischief here? Although John Proctor has ended their affair, he cannot restrain from teasing her and saying things, which she may see as a come-on, being the impressionable teenage girl that she is, ah, youre wicked yet, arent y! She is not ashamed of this fact, but is proud instead, a trill of expectant laughter escapes her, and she dares come closer, feverishly looking into his eyes. As Proctor starts towards the door, she springs into his path. She then says, give me a word, John. A soft word. Abigail believes she can tempt him, as Elizabeth is a sickly wife. Her dream is shattered when he replies, No, no, Abby. Thats done with. Abigail starts to become angry, and says things about Elizabeth, She is a cold, snivelling woman, and you bend to her! This has hit a nerve, and whilst shaking her John says Do you look for a whippin? In tears Abigail replies, I look for the John Proctor that took me from my sleep and put knowledge in my heart! This shows that she has adult feelings for John, which he had taught her and cannot be forgotten. Their affair took her strict Puritan innocence away and if anyone were to find out, their honest reputation would be severely damaged. Although both John and Abigail have intimate feelings for each other, they cannot return to being lovers, as John has greater feelings for his wife. John also has a sense of guilt, as Elizabeth is willing to forgive and forget his affair, which he does not deserve, and to go back to her would be a big mistake. Arthur Millers stage directions give the audience a real feel for the emotions emitted in the play, as they can imagine what is happening in the speech. Without shaking her and in tears the audience would not know how the characters are feeling. Act Two begins with some detailed stage directions. It is explaining a typical Puritan family of that time; the husband, John, comes home from working on the field, and the wife, Elizabeth, singing to the children. He enters the house and notices a pot in the fireplace. He smells it and is not quite pleased. He then drops a pinch of salt into it, tastes it again. The one pinch of salt would not have made the slightest of difference, but he still wants to be the head of the house, despite his affair with Abigail, which would have destroyed their family. This proves John is still the dominant member of the family. When he hears her footsteps on the stairs he swings the pot back into the fireplace. They then have a strained conversation, which mainly involves John asking her questions and Elizabeth replying in short or one-word answers, Are you well today? I am. She brings the stew to him and as he tastes it he says, Its well seasoned. Later on he says to Elizabeth, Let you look sometimes for the goodness in me, and judge me not. She replies, I do not judge you. The magistrate sits in your heart that judges you. This means that she cannot forgive him until he has forgiven himself. She then says he is bewildered, and he responds whilst laughing bitterly, Oh, Elizabeth, your justice would freeze beer. John somehow thinks that she has judged him harshly and hadnt shown him enough justice. During Act Four, the tension and coldness from Act Two has gone, as John is talking to Elizabeth after being parted. Once they have discussed the events of the trials, John says to Elizabeth, I have been thinking I would confess to them, Elizabeth. What say you if I give them that? Elizabeth replies, I cannot judge you John. She believes that John is one again righteous as he has the courage to face the injustice of the court. John now is trying to make their relationship better, and communicates with her as he would have done before he affair, I would have your forgiveness, Elizabeth. She replies, It is not for me to give. John, it come naught that I should forgive you, if youll not forgive yourself. John still feels guilty for what he did to Elizabeth, but she is telling him to forgive himself. She then puts part of the blame on herself, It needs a cold wife to prompt lechery. This is to make John feel better about himself, and perhaps change his life-altering decision. John decides to confess as he wants his life back, but Danforth demands he write his confession, which he agrees to. However when he is told his confession would be bailed on the church door, he protests once again: (With a cry of his soul) Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live my life without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name! Johns emotional response is evoked by his innocence in the crime he is accused of, and he is willing to die to keep his good name. This shows that he deserves the sympathy from his emotional outbursts John then tears up his confession weeping in fury. This is the noblest thing John has done in the play. Hale says to John, Man, you will hang! You cannot! with desperation, but John replies his eyes full of tears, I can. And theres your first marvel, that I can. Even he is surprised by his actions that later cost him his life. John is finally forgiving himself and making amends, and not even Elizabeth can change his mind. Hale pleads to her to stop her, Go to him, take his shame away, but she replies, he have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him. Although she loves John and doesnt want him to die, she is allowing him his penance, to make up for the wrongs he has done and the hurt he has caused. During Act One, John deserves no sympathy whatsoever, but by Act Four, he does everything in his ability to bring justice to the court, and to save the life of Elizabeth, even when it means making his affair with Abigail known to the village. Despite all the hurt and sin John caused, he makes amends by standing with those who refuse to confess, and hangs with dignity and pride.

Friday, November 22, 2019

How To Handle Gossip About a Coworker

How To Handle Gossip About a Coworker Gossip happens. And there is always someone in every office who just can’t help but spread it. And of course, it can be fun. But it can be equally hurtful- and can damage careers- not just the person’s being gossiped about. How to take the high road? Here are a few useful strategies to keep your head above the fray.1. Set the tone.You need to be the grownup- especially if you’re a manager or supervisor and will be setting an example for your underlings. But really anyone can do this. If people start speculating wildly about company issues- or worse- gossiping about coworkers, bosses, and peers, you can be the first one to remove yourself and take a step back. This might just show them, by example, the error of their ways- without your having to say anything outright. Don’t let yourself be drawn in. If you can’t leave a conversation, try a subtle change of topic.2. Be open to negativity.People are more likely to gossip about you if you don’t s eem open to hearing their concerns or workplace issues (in the case of being a supervisor) or if you don’t seem open to constructive criticism yourself. Be as transparent as possible when you’re in a position of power. And no matter what your job title, keep the lines of communication open.3. Don’t punish the middleman.If you’re a supervisor and one employee steps forward to address an issue or bring a problem to your attention, don’t punish that person for doing so. That person’s coworkers will likely see this as a sign of your being unapproachable and unfair. Cue: gossip.4. Confront the source.Sometimes it becomes necessary to confront the gossiper, even if the gossip is about you. Most gossipers continue their chattering because they believe there are no negative consequences. But if you let them know you’re on to what they’re up to- and let them know your feelings on the matter- chances are they might stop on their own. If you have to chastise them for their behavior, make your criticism about the issue, not them personally. Don’t just say: you gossiped! that is wrong! Try instead: I’m concerned about the gossip and I’m hoping we can put an end to it. 5. Don’t be self-righteous.It’s all well and good to go high. It’s what you should be doing. But if you start to get really pompous or pious about your own good conduct in the face of rife and rampant gossip, you’re not going to make many allies. Stay casual when dealing with gossip, even when trying to be a good example. It’s not all about you, after all!

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Ryle's criticisms of Cartesian Dualism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Ryle's criticisms of Cartesian Dualism - Essay Example This extends to existence as having two separate planes, a material existence and a mental existence, with the two planes diametrically opposed to each other and separated profoundly, having no link of causation between the two. In the physical world, people can communicate, but the mental conscious world is completely hidden from view and unknowable by others. To the question of what kind of knowledge can be obtained by the mind's workings, the Cartesian dualist perspective asserts that consciousness is able to get a good grasp of the present workings of one's mind, which cannot be shaken as unreal, in spite of inputs by Freud with regard to some unconscious, subconscious impulses that can also govern the conscious processes. The data is presented within the immediate time frame, available to the consciousness or mind. Together with this data are the fruits of one person’s going into himself, introspectively, to examine his mind's contents as a kind of self-observation. The o ther, meanwhile, is not privy and is completely shut out of this immediate consciousness experience. Even language is said to reflect this view of consciousness as something innate and to which the external actions in the environment register and make impressions. Ryle calls this whole infrastructure of thought the ghost in the machine dogmatic formulation. He contests this dogma on several grounds and objects to its validity. Ryle testifies that the whole ghost in the machine infrastructure or theory of mind is completely false (Ryle, 1949, pp. 11-16) â€Å"I shall often speak of it, with deliberate abusiveness, as ‘the dogma of the Ghost in the Machine’. I hope to prove that it is entirely false, and false not in detail but in principle. It is not merely an assemblage of particular mistakes. It is one big mistake and mistake of a special kind. It is, namely, a category mistake (Ryle, Descartes' myth, 1949, pp. 15-16, Paragraph #2) The core of the objection is with re gard to the Cartesian view of the dualism of mind and body as a category mistake and a myth of the philosopher, meaning that in essence those mental processes are miscategorized and made to fit a category to which they do not belong. Ryle gives the example of the University tour given to someone who after being shown the facilities asks where the university is as if the university was in the same category as the buildings and the grounds, rather than constituting the entire of it. He cites another example of a first-time cricket game watcher, who mistakes team spirit as being in the same category of the different players and the positions that they occupy, rather than being constituted by the cooperation and camaraderie of the players in the team. These are examples of category mistakes, to which the philosophers subscribing to the Cartesian dualist frame of mind likewise succumb to. In the examples, Ryle notes that the problem lay with the perceivers having difficulty in grasping t he nuances of language and the limitations of their vocabulary. It is the same with an ignorant man perceiving the constitution as something magical and ethereal, or the fictitious John Doe in the same magical and ghostly terms, because that ignorant man is unable to get away from using the categories of thought that he is familiar with when dealing with physical presences concerning the idea of the constitution and of John Doe. In

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Analyze how Nguyen Du uses an element of literature to develop a theme Essay

Analyze how Nguyen Du uses an element of literature to develop a theme in THE TALE OF KIEU, or if you wish to push yourself to a - Essay Example The imageries in the tale are perceived as symbols that define a character. A common object used in the poem is the moon. Moon has a great significance to the society especially to Asian people whose cultural beliefs revolve around it. Thus with reference to Asian’s, the author has used to convey the message more significantly. For instance, Chinese believe in the goddess moon and as a result make extensively use images of the moon in their literature works. Imagery of moon has been used to illustrate Kieu, who is the tale’s main character. She is a beautiful, attractive lady and thus the author likens her to the moon in order to emphasize her character and striking physical appearance. The moon diligently and gradually shines from a crescent to a full moon within the same time period year in year out. Despite the weather changes, it is persistent to complete its course. Like the moon, Kieu faces many challenges and complications. However, her undeterred persistence and determined to retain her natural character and assume her role is alarming. She even takes the risk of engaging herself in the prostitution to defend her responsibility to her father. In addition, the moon has been used to describe other characters in the tale such as the Thuy sisters. Kieu and Van are both charming and physically attractive. Their beauty epitomizes that of the goddess moon in the Chinese culture. Men who admire and praise her because of her enticing look illustrate the beauty of Kieu. Chinese believe in a goddess moon called Chang-o, a moon ruler whom they highly praise due to her feminine beauty that surpasses any generations. According to the author, Kieu deserves such a high position in the society. Moreover, the changing aspects of her life are characteristic to those of the moon. Just as the moon changes from crescent, that only shines with mild brightness and grows into a full to assume more lighting responsibility, so do her responsibilities increase as she matures. In addition, Kim and Kieu’s lover share such deep love that they pledge vows to the moon. As they do so, the moon is shining brightly and epitomizes their moods at that point in time. Their happiness and excitement could be equated to the moon’s brightness. In addition, the poem ends with Kieu reuniting with her family and lover, Kim, after having been away for fifteen years. Author uses the imagery to illustrate her happiness by saying the moon shone unusually bright at that time (Du 161). Her past fifteen years can be likened to the numerous dark nights that are slowly lit by the moon. The unusually bright full moon depicts joyous return home. Imagery has also been used to illustrate mental conditions of Kieu. A crescent appears during cold windy night (Du 85). At this time, she is sitting at the window while waiting for Thuc. A crescent mood is used to illustrate her low mood since it produces a less bright light as compared to the full moon just as she ap pears gloomy and dull. The presence of three stars surrounding the crescent shows that Kieu has missed Thuc. This is because, to a Chinese character, crescent together with three stars represent the heart, which is also part to the name given to Thuc in Vietnamese. Lastly, the physical nature of the moon illustrates her determination to retain her original personality of innocence and faith despite the challenges in life. In her life,

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Training and Development of Employees Essay Example for Free

Training and Development of Employees Essay Bahria University Karachi Campus Human Resource Development (HRD) Questionnaire Respondent’s Name: ________ ___________________ Organization: __________________________Division/Department: ___________________ Position/Designation: ____________________ Date: ______________________ Instructions a) Please fill out the questionnaire and kindly check ( the appropriate box where it deemed necessary b) In advance we are highly indebted for your full cooperation and professional support in filling out this questionnaire Q.1 Could you please cost some light, on the profile of both the Parent and Subsidiary Company? [pic][pic] Q.2 In HRD it is important to carry out, Strategic / Organization analysis in this context Could you please tell us in the analysis that how do you identify the following? a. Organization’s goals b. Organization’s resources c. Organization’s climate d. Environmental constraints Please elaborate. [pic][pic] Q.3) It is imperative for the HRD Specialists to undertake important activity like assessing the HRD†s need in the Organization. By using various methods kindly explain what is the situation in your Organization? Please provide the details. [pic][pic] Q.4) Do you think that the HRD†s need assessment is yielding the requisite results? Yes(No (In either case please provide the details [pic][pic] Q.5) In designing the effective HRD programs/ interventions do you need the following activities among others? 1. Define the objectives of the HRD intervention. 2. The â€Å"Make-Versus-Buy† Decisions related to the HRD programs. 3. Selecting the trainer. 4. Preparing a lesson program 5. Selecting training methods and media. 6. Preparing training materials. 7. Scheduling and HRD program. Kindly provide your perspectives briefly on the above sighted HRD designing programs within from a to e. a)._____________ b)._______________ c).__________________ d)._______________ e).________________ f)._____________________ g)._______________ Q.6 Are you content with designing effective HRD programs in your Organization? Check the appropriate Box Yes(No (In either case please provide the details [pic][pic] Q.7 There are various methods to deliver the training namely. a. On Job Training. b. Job Rotation. c. The Lecture Approach. d. Discussion Methods. e. Experiential Methods. f. Self Based/ Computer Based Methods. Could you please tell us which method is preferred in your Organization and why. Kindly elaborate. [pic][pic] Q.8 The MNC†s do realize the fact that to implement the HRD programs Physical environments do carry high weightage. Kindly tell us your perspective on this aspect and provide us details. [pic][pic] Q.9 Could you please tell us do you carry out the evaluation of HRD programs and how often in terms of its frequency? Please provide the details. [pic][pic] Q.10 The most popular and influential framework provided by Kirkpatrick’s Evaluation Framework advocated four criteria’s namely. a). Reaction (level 1) b). Learning (level 2) c). Job Behavior (level 3) d).Results (level 4) Are you using the same set of framework? Yes(No ( If answer is â€Å"No† please provide the details which evaluation model your organization is using and consequently its satisfaction level. Please provide details [pic][pic] Q.11 Do you use coaching to improve poor performance? Check the appropriate Box Yes(No (In either case please provide the details. [pic][pic] Q.12 In your perspective what skills are necessary for effective coaching? a).__________________ b).__________________ c).__________________ [pic][pic] Q.13 It is common to witness that MNC†s has a system in place which governs the employees assistance programs. Do you have such program? Please provide the list and comment on its effectiveness. [pic][pic] Q.14 HRD covers the areas of Career Management and Career Development what programs and activities do you have in this context. Please provide the list. Are you satisfied with the current Career Management and Career Development? Yes(No (In either case please provide the details. [pic][pic] Q.15 HRD Specialist also serves as a change agent and actively participates in designing and implements the intervention strategies in the organization. Kindly tell us what the situation in your organization is. [pic][pic] Before we depart, we once again extend our sincere thanks for enlightening us with your invaluable inputs and insights. Finally, if you have any comments/observations which you think is critical for our assignment, please provide the details [pic][pic] Interviewers: 1. _______________________________ 2.__________________________ 3. _______________________________ Bahria University Karachi Campus

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Types or Energy Sources :: Environment, Gas Emissions

The current UK energy supply sector constitute about 38% greenhouse gas emissions (Allen et al. 2007). Approximately 65% of the primary energy is lost as wasted heat during the production of electricity using centralised production system. (Allen et al. 2007). Renewable energy technologies have the potential to dramatically reduce these losses because when fossil fuels are used, the heat generated by localised electricity production can be captured and utilised for space and water heating. Heat and electricity can also be produced locally by renewable sources. Another great importance of renewable energy source is the fact that it is carbon neutral (Hall 2006; Allen et al. 2007). A renewable source is said to be carbon neutral if the amount of CO2 emitted during the sourcing of the energy is off-set with an equivalent amount sequestered or removed from the atmosphere. The UK government has been proactive towards the reduction of greenhouse gases such as CO2 emissions. For instance, and as discussed earlier, the nation is now legally bound to the Kyoto protocol to reduce its CO2 emissions by at least 12.5% below the 1990 levels between the 2008-2012 time frame (Stolarski et al. 2010). Furthermore, the UK Government’s Climate Change Act 2008 sets a legally binding target of 80% reduction in national CO2 emissions by 2050 compared to 1990 levels (DECC 2009). To achieve these targets, and at the same time providing affordable and clean energy to buildings, mitigation strategies including the use of renewable energy technologies is being recommended by the government (DECC 2009). Some common renewable energy technologies in the UK are combined heat and power, geothermal, hydro, tidal, wind, wave and solar energy systems. Combined heat and power (Biomass): is a community heating and electricity system that generates fuel derived from biomass or organic matter. It is important to note that combined heat and power is renewable only when dedicated crops or forest used or where replanting occurs. In this case the carbon captured during growth will be equal to the carbon emitted during combustion. Combined heat and power has a primary energy conversion of 80% compared to a normal grid supply of 30-40 % ( Allen et al. 2007). If widely used, it can lead to significant CO2 reduction. Geothermal energy systems: refer to systems that capture energy from the earth’s core. It has a potential in the UK, although it requires an electrical input which, with the current electricity mix will be only partially renewable.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Hamlet vs. Laertes

Jeffrey Kotch Mrs. Ingram Literary Analysis English 12 The main theme in Hamlet is revenge. Although Hamlet and Laertes are both seeking revenge, they go about it differently. Because they are in the same situation, they can be compared to one another. Shakespeare probably created the retaliatory Laertes in order to make the reader or audience side with Hamlet, the protagonist. By comparing him to the rash Laertes, the author forces the reader to appreciate the careful thought that goes into Hamlet's every move (until towards the end when he too becomes rash).They are both high-class males placed in strenuous positions. Without Laertes, the audience would have no one else to compare Hamlet to, other than Fortinbras, who rarely appears. Laertes is almost the standard to which Shakespeare wants his audience to compare the Prince to. Comparing the two almost intensifies their different characteristics. The differences between Laertes and Hamlet affect a main theme of the play revenge. B oth men have fathers killed, and both are seeking revenge. Hamlet, though he knows who murdered his father, hesitates to take direct action against the villain.In stark contrast is Laertes, who doesn’t know who killed his father but will kill anyone on a whim. Laertes’ rashness throughout provides the play with an unlikely stereotypical hero– brave, unwavering, ready to kill– and is rather ironic because Laertes is not the play’s â€Å"hero† role. The hero instead is Hamlet, and Hamlet is not a typical hero, in that he shies away from violence, and is portrayed as insane for half of the play (though that is by his own doing). Hamlet is not even able to kill his uncle until Act 5, by which time he can be argued to be mentally and emotionally instable, if not insane.In order to avenge his father’s death, Hamlet must lose himself in insanity; he must become, essentially, an entirely different character. Another considerable difference be tween Hamlet and Laertes are their relationships with Ophelia. Hamlet is obviously taken by Ophelia in the first two acts of the play, as he writes her letters and even tries to grab her in his lustful advances. This is clearly not the case with Laertes, as he is Ophelia’s brother; although Shakespeare is not beyond writing about incest, it is not being portrayed here.Instead, Laertes takes on a protective role of â€Å"big brother† (although we do not know which sibling is the elder), warning Ophelia of Hamlet’s advances as being juvenile and false. Hamlet later begins to treat Ophelia badly, scorning her affections and seemingly driving her insane and to her inevitable death. Laertes seems to dislike Hamlet from the beginning of the play, and emotions collide in Act V: the two men scuffle in the open grave of Ophelia, each believing that they loved her the most, and jealous of the other’s affections for her.Hamlet’s clashes with Claudius also bui ld the plot of the play; knowing that his uncle killed his father in cold blood, Hamlet’s scorn of the new king grows throughout the play. Hamlet continually struggles with his emotions as he fights the desire to avenge his father’s death by killing the king. He uses circuitous means to take metaphorical stabs at his uncle: a play about a man killing his uncle by pouring poison in his ear (the same method of murder used to kill Hamlet’s father). Claudius eventually gets the feeling that Hamlet knows more than he is letting on, and begins to feel threatened.Claudius begins looking for ways to get rid of Hamlet, and eventually decides to send him off to England, where he has sent orders to have his nephew killed. His plan, however, is thwarted when Hamlet discovers the orders for his death. Claudius now needs Laertes, a rash and violent person, to kill Hamlet for him. He tells Laertes that Hamlet killed Polonius, and Laertes allies with Claudius against Hamlet. Th us, another dissimilarity is disclosed, as Hamlet would never consider allying with Claudius for anything, and Laertes, hungry for blood, is willing to ally with anybody who will give him an easy kill.How the characters feel about their fathers is also very dissimilar. Hamlet loves his father and is devastated when King Hamlet is killed; Hamlet is suicidal at the beginning of the play due to his father’s death. Hamlet feels that, for the love of his father, he must take revenge, yet is unable to do so for lack of courage and ambition. Laertes (while the level of his relationship with his father is unclear in the play) shows very little emotion over the actual death of his father, but is over-eager to avenge it.It is therefore apparent that while Hamlet truly loves his father, Laertes is more concerned with the saving the pride of the family by avenging his father’s death than with realizing that his father is dead. Therefore, Hamlet seems to be more exocentric, while L aertes, continuing his father’s quest for personal gain, appears to be more egocentric. Hamlet seems to fancy himself an actor; several times during the play, he either gives â€Å"pointers† to other players or excessively dramatizes a scene.The famous line, â€Å"Alas, poor Yorick! (V. i. 179-188)† finds Hamlet dramatically talking to a skull. In order to enhance emotion and to add a mood to a monologue, Elizabethan actors often talked to inanimate objects. In this scene Hamlet is utilizing the skull and the overall dark aura of the graveyard to speak of Ophelia’s death. In addition to these instances, Hamlet is acting insane for the majority of the play, in order to put his devious schemes into action without being suspected by his uncle.He uses his surroundings to enhance his words, thus acting out a philosophical monologue in a regular conversation. Laertes seems to be more rough and unrefined than Hamlet– like his actions, his words are bold a nd to the point. Unlike Hamlet, Laertes’ lines at the end of the play tend to be short and to the point– he speaks no more than eight lines at a time in all but one occasion beginning in Act 4, Scene 5. Hamlet frequently goes into long monologues that can exceed fifty lines.The distinctions between Hamlet and Laertes are significant because they provide some insight into the personalities of both characters, particularly Hamlet. By introducing Laertes into the play as a fiery, compulsive person; any resemblance of ambition or courage displayed by Hamlet pales in comparison to Laertes’. This enhances the emotion in Hamlet’s monologue at the end of Act II, when Hamlet examines himself and finds him lacking in courage. The inner turmoil in Hamlet is strong, as he calls himself a â€Å"coward† and thinks himself as weak as a woman.He wants to avenge his father’s death at Claudius’ hands, yet, like his uncle, he does not approach conflict directly– he takes covert action. Conversely, Hamlet’s lack of action allows him to think through his plans before he puts them into effect, allowing for much deviousness in planning on his part; Laertes does not tend to think before he puts his throat to a person’s throat. Laertes provides a counterpart to Hamlet– they are in relatively the same situation, but they deal with their problems in entirely different ways.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Strategies to Implement Sustainability Programs

Strategic Supply Chain Management: Individual Assignment Table of Contents Content Introduction What is Supply Chain Sustainability? Why is Supply Chain Sustainability important?Traditional supply chain vs sustainable supply chain Advantages of Supply Chain Sustainability Strategies to implement sustainability in supply chain process Step1: Access the current supply chain Step 2 Access Environment: Current, Potential, and Future Impact Factors Step 3: Evaluation: Identifying Potential Risks and Opportunities Step 4: Extend or Re-design the Supply Chain Strategy Step 5 & step 6: Implementation with the Sustainable Supply Chain Scorecard Conclusion References Page No 2 2 2 2 3 3 5 6 6 6 7 8 9 AHMG Kibria Page 1 Strategic Supply Chain Management:Individual Assignment Topic: Strategies to implement sustainability programs in the supply chain firms Introduction: Environmental issues are becoming the main concerns of many global supply chain practitioners in today’s world. In order to address these emerging environmental issues, businesses around the globe are looking for a total solution on the reduction of the waste generated from the current supply chain process. Meanwhile, implementation cost that is needed to implement these environmental issues plays a major part in their considerations in selecting an implementation strategy.Recent studies by Carter and Rogers (2008) emphasised that sustainable supply chain development in terms of social, economic, and environmental benefits should be taken into consideration in a supply chain practice. More specifically, supply chain management can be defined as the integration of the social, economic, and environmental practices within a global supply chain that provide green products, excellent services and accurate information sharing that beneficial to all employees, shareholders, business partners and the wider community.The intent of this research is to propose strategies to implement sustainability in supply cha in firms. There are many different strategies have been used by the supply chain firms. This report analysed six step process approaches to implement sustainability in the supply chain process. What is Supply Chain Sustainability? Supply chain sustainability is the management of environmental, social and economic impacts, and the encouragement of good governance practices, throughout the lifecycles of goods and services.The objective of supply chain sustainability is to create, protect and grow long-term environmental, social and economic value for all stakeholders (consumers, community, government, society, employees etc). Why is Supply Chain Sustainability important? There are many reasons why companies start a supply chain sustainability journey. Primary among them is to ensure compliance with laws and regulations and to support international principles for sustainable business conduct.In addition, companies are increasingly taking actions that result in better social, economic a nd environmental impacts because society expects this and because there are business benefits to doing so. By managing and seeking to improve environmental, social and economic performance and good governance throughout supply chains, companies act in their own interests, the interests of their stakeholders and the interests of society at large.According to Penfield (2009) Supply chain operations are fundamental to sustainability performance and supplying for sustainability is being touted in management circles as the future of competitive supply chains. Traditional supply chain vs sustainable supply chain Conventional supply chains are more interested in serving the purpose of logistics than optimization. On the other hand a focus on sustainability aims at creating and protecting value with reference to long-term social, environmental and economic components in bringing goods AHMG Kibria Page 2 Strategic Supply Chain Management:Individual Assignment and services to the market. The primacy of operations is to adequately meet current demands while making reserves for future generations. Linton et al (2007), indicates the focus of sustainable logistics is on optimization of resources along the entire production so that final production is of the highest value at the lowest cost. There is strategic optimization of resources, reduction of wastages, as well as utilization of supply by-products. In addition, it entails a focus beyond delivery to consumers, to other areas beyond the traditional scope of supply chain management.According to IBM report (2009) supply chain management in contemporary business practice faces five key challenges: cost containment, supply chain visibility, risk management, growing market demand and globalization impacts. Conventional chains only focused on delivering the end-products and, as such, suffered diminished returns owing to the growth in market and volatile consumers. On the other hand, supply chain sustainability seeks to not onl y deliver the utility, but also seeks to improve social, economic and environmental performance.As such, companies and supply chain managers deliver their own interests and those of the stakeholders and the society (Misra, et al. 2010). Advantages of Supply Chain Sustainability Social Advantage – Primary benefits are derived from positive environmental and social externalities that are enjoyed by both customers and companies’ stakeholders alike. For example Wal-Mart has implemented a program that successfully minimises the waste allocated to landfill within the USA (19. 1%), and increasingly China and Brazil (52%), which has the potential to prevent 11. million metric tons of CO2 emissions annually (Wal-Mart, 2012). Financial Advantage- Companies are realizing competitive benefits from investing in supply chain efficiency, Wal-Mart generated in excess of $231million in 2011 through a combination of increased recycling revenue and decreased expenses (Wal-Mart, 2012). En hanced supply chain security – Improvements in labour conditions has the compounded benefit of reducing employee induced work stoppages and can positively impact a company’s ability to continuously manufacture goods and services, increasing customer satisfaction and revenue.Increased competitiveness of suppliers – Buyers increasingly interprets suppliers’ good CSR performance as a sign of strong overall management, which affects other elements of supplier development, such as quality and on-time deliveries. In the long run, suppliers that work to continuously improve their environmental and social performance will gain better access to markets and clients (BSR Survey). Strategies to implement sustainability in supply chain process In order to develop strategies supply chain managers need to consider what a supply chain strategy is, link the strategy to the competitive strategy and sustainability.The following figure shows the three important elements in o rder to develop a successful sustainable supply chain. AHMG Kibria Page 3 Strategic Supply Chain Management: Individual Assignment Figure: Three areas to integrate sustainable supply chain Cetinkaya (2011) This report analyses an iterative six step process approach to implement sustainability in Supply chain firms. A systematic approach to strategy design and integration can help companies developing a sustainable supply chain to create a value proposition.This iterative six-step approach has to be seen as a cycle which should be executed regularly in your supply chain, since relevant conditions may change quite quickly and sometimes radically for example, the oil price spike of 2008. AHMG Kibria Page 4 Strategic Supply Chain Management: Individual Assignment Figure: Steps of a sustainable supply chain strategy Cetinkaya (2011) Step1: Access the current supply chain: Step 1 aims to take stock of the current state of company- and supply chain specific characteristics regarding strate gy, resources, and current and planned practices.It is mainly concerned with internal factors and considers elements which are usually within the control of a company. It seeks to discover whether there is a common strategic alignment, and whether the goals of each strategy element are integrated, aligned, and complementary. A company’s own supply chain strategy which is not aligned to the corporate and cross-company supply chain strategy cannot be sustainable. Potential short- and long-term goal conflicts can rapidly become serious barriers to implementing a sustainable supply chain along its members; especially if the supply chain is required to adapt quickly to change.The analysis also shows if top management commitment is given within the individual companies and the supply chain. In summary the findings from this step are: ? ? ? ? The existing corporate and competitive strategies The sustainability strategies (if sustainability is not already part of the corporate strate gy) The company-specific supply chain strategies, and finally The cross-company supply chain and collaboration strategy Cetinkaya (2011). AHMG Kibria Page 5 Strategic Supply Chain Management: Individual AssignmentStep 2 Access Environment: Current, Potential, and Future Impact Factors The second step of this process deals primarily with what is changing in the business environment, what kind of scenarios your company will face in the medium and long term, and finally, what the main driver of change may be. This will lead, together with the analysis from step 1, to the definition of potential risks and opportunities for your supply chain strategy in step 3. Supply chain input resources such as fuel, energy, and natural resources nowadays deserve close attention in supply chain management logistics.The trend of rising prices and increasing scarcity make input resources major risk management factors in an economic perspective, especially when a company runs cost- and energy-sensitive s upply chains. Understanding and forecasting input resource-related information helps in developing a sustainable supply chain strategy Cetinkaya (2011). Step 3: Evaluation: Identifying Potential Risks and Opportunities: After analysing first two steps of this process it is easier to identify potential risks and opportunities to implements sustainability in supply chain process.Supply chain firms can use framework to access supply chain capabilities in the context of the scenarios identified in the step2. The assessment then serves to determine supply chain specific Threat-OpportunityProfile. Companies need to understand the cause-and-effect relationships between potential success factors to undertake evaluation. For example, companies should be able to estimate that the regionalization of procurement structures in response to an oil price increase would be likely to reduce transport costs Cetinkaya (2011).Step 4: Extend or Re-design the Supply Chain Strategy Based on the Threat-Oppo rtunity-Profile, now it is possible to define strategic gaps on the route to a sustainable supply chain; gaps between current supply chain strategy and the changing business environment. The greater and more relevant the potential risks and opportunities, the larger will be the gaps, and the greater the need to act and make strategy changes. At this stage the following strategic programs can be distinguished: 1. Compliance- to obtain the benefit and competitive value of reducing and managing risk. 2.Process-Re-engineering- to obtain the benefit and competitive value of improving productivity and efficiency and in consequence, of reduced supply chain costs, increased resource productivity, and reduced environmental impacts. 3. Restructuring- to obtain the benefit and competitive value of the long term and fundamental improvement of effectiveness and early prevention of risk. 4. Innovation- to obtain the benefit and competitive value of differentiation. 5. Progression- to obtain the b enefit of first mover advantage, and establishing market entry barriers Cetinkaya (2011).AHMG Kibria Page 6 Strategic Supply Chain Management: Individual Assignment Step 5 & step 6: Implementation with the Sustainable Supply Chain Scorecard: After completing step1 to step4 companies must be able to develop appropriate scope of strategic vision and determine the right actions to align supply chain strategy to the changing business environment. These findings have been incorporated into the reformulation or redesign of existing supply chain strategy and the associated objectives. Now, the following step will show how to implement them.This research analyses â€Å"Balanced Scorecard† developed by Kaplan and Norton from 1990 in order to show implementation of findings from stage1 to stage4. Figure: The Kaplan/Norton Balanced Scorecard Cetinkaya (2011) The Balanced Scorecard is a (performance) management system providing a framework to translate a strategy into balanced operationa l terms via objectives and measures, organised into four different perspectives: financial, customer, internal business process, and learning and growth. The measures represent a balance ?Between external measures for shareholders and customers, and internal measures of critical business processes, innovation , and learning and growth. ? Between the outcome measures – the result from past efforts- and the measures that drive future performance, and ? Between objectives, easily quantified outcome measures and subjective, somewhat judgmental, performance drivers of the outcome measures. Scorecard: the financial perspective: Assess social and ecologic activities accurately from the economic point of view.Scorecard: the sustainability perspective: Link financial figures with customer needs. Extend this link by the environmental and social perspective. AHMG Kibria Page 7 Strategic Supply Chain Management: Individual Assignment Scorecard: the supply chain perspective: Incorporate t actical and strategic decisions along the end-to-end supply chain. Collaborate with your sales and product development departments and partners Cetinkaya (2011). Scorecard: The learning and growth perspective: Drive supply chain wide learning.So, after analysing Balance Scorecard it has seen that supply chain companies will be able to implement their strategy and also evaluate their strategy. Conclusion This research paper described the importance of sustainability in supply chain process. It also showed the differences between traditional supply chain and sustainable supply chain, the advantages of having sustainability in supply chain process. Most importantly this research analysed the strategy to implement sustainability.In order to do that it showed a six step process which is: step1: access the current supply chain, step2: access environment: current, potential, and future impact factors, step3: evaluation: identifying potential risks and opportunities, step4: extend or re-des ign the supply chain Strategy, step 5 & step 6: how to implement strategies with the sustainable supply chain scorecard which shows the financial, sustainable, supply chain and learning & growth perspective. Supply chain companies will be able to implement sustainability in their process by following these six step-by-step processes. AHMG Kibria Page 8Strategic Supply Chain Management: Individual Assignment References: ? BSR20, Maximizing Benefits From a Sustainable Supply Chain, BSR, March, 2011, viewed 28 September 2012, http://www. bsr. org/reports/BSR_Maximizing_Benefits_From_A_Sustainable_Supply_Chain. p df Carter, C. R. and Rogers, D. S. â€Å"A framework of sustainable supply chain management: moving towards new theory,† International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics Management, vol. 38, pp. 360-387, 2008. Cetinkaya, B. , 2011, 1st edn, Developing a Sustainable Supply Chain Strategy’, Sustainable Supply Chain Management, viewed at 13/11/12. http:// www. pringer. com/business+%26+management/production/book/978-3-642-12022-0 IBM, 2009. The smarter supply chain of the future: Global chief supply chain officer study, New York: IBM Global Services. Linton, J. , Klassen, R. & Jayaraman, V. , 2006. ‘Sustainable supply chains: An introduction’, Journal of operations management, Kaplan RS, Norton DP (1996): The balanced scorecard: translating strategy into action. Boston, Mass: Harvard Business School Press Misra, V. , Khan, M. & Singh, U. , 2010, ‘Supply chain management systems: Architecture, design and vision’, Journal of strategic innovation and sustainability, vol. , no. 4, pp. 102108. Penfield, P. 2009, Seven Steps to Implementing a Sustainable Supply Chain, Syracuse University, Charlotte. Sisco, C. , Chorn, B. , Jorgensen, P. , 2010, Supply Chain Sustainability- A Practical Guide for Continuous Improvement, UN Global Compact Office and Business for Social Responsibility, viewed at 12/11/12 http://www. u nglobalcompact. org/docs/issues_doc/supply_chain/SupplyChainRep_spread. pdf Walmart Boyend 50 years: Building a sustainable future, Walmart, viewed 27/09/12 http://www. walmartstores. com/sites/responsibility-report/2012/ ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? AHMG Kibria Page 9

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Jiggery-pokery and Pure Applesauce

Jiggery-pokery and Pure Applesauce Jiggery-pokery and Pure Applesauce Jiggery-pokery and Pure Applesauce By Maeve Maddox The choice of words in a recent Supreme Court dissent prompted this email from a reader: Justice Scalia recently used the terms pure applesauce and jiggery-pokery. I was able to find what jiggery-pokery means but not pure applesauce. Can you help? Jiggery-pokery, as the reader presumably discovered, is a colloquial expression meaning â€Å"deceitful or dishonest manipulation; hocus pocus, humbug.† Merriam-Webster labels it â€Å"chiefly British.† Applesauce is an informal expression meaning, â€Å"insincere flattery, lies.† The OED labels it â€Å"North American slang,† but I found examples in Australian and British usage. â€Å"Pure applesauce† is â€Å"nonsense unmixed with a shred of honesty or truth.† Examples of applesauce to mean nonsense or invention: â€Å"Well, I need you to understand, Lindsay, that that is  a load of applesauce.- Dale: Image of Innocence, Roo Palmer (Australian novelist), 2010.   â€Å"All those grandmas want to talk about the vote. Thats nothing but  a load of applesauce.† Lilies in Moonlight: A Novel, Allison K. Pittman, 2011. â€Å"Well, flattering as this passage may be to my self-esteem, it is, as far as my recollection goes, pure applesauce.†- Owen Barfield (British philosopher), quoted in C. S. Lewiss List: The Ten Books That Influenced Him Most, 2015.   Examples of jiggery-pokery to mean â€Å"deceitful or manipulative goings-on†: But  spare me  this nationalist  jiggery pokery; no one needs to hear it- Reader comment. God only knows what jiggery pokery has been going on with the judicial branch but Id be shocked if they havent also been compromised.- Reader comment. I’ve been busy of late with the new jiggery pokery that is The Children and Families Act  2014, Part 3.- A blogger on children’s issues. Dont come to me with your sociological jiggery-pokery; its all coincidence and barely worthy of remark.- The Guardian (UK). Examples of jiggery-pokery to mean â€Å"manipulation of objects†: Ever since then, Ive been a secret advocate of the ancient Chinese art of needle-based jiggery pokery.- Article about acupuncture, The Week (UK).   I did some techno-jiggery-pokery to let me watch videos outside the country they were meant to be viewed in, but that was in Firefox.- Reader comment in The Guardian. The thrill of it all is in the reactions of the spooked, rather than the clever jiggery-pokery that allows furniture to become mobile or a marble to stop dead at someone’s feet.- Review of The Enfield Haunting, a television miniseries, The Guardian. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:30 Synonyms for â€Å"Meeting†Ten Yiddish Expressions You Should Know15 Names and Descriptions of Effects

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

How To Drive Traffic To Your Blog In Little To No Time

How To Drive Traffic To Your Blog In Little To No Time Okay, if you’re game, I’m going to do a little mind read on you.  Ready? As a writer, you focus on these  traffic-building topics: Creating epic  content Writing better headlines Guest Blogging Sharing on social media Basic SEO (when you get time) How close was I?  If you’re anything like when I first started writing for Internet audiences, I’d imagine I’m right on. That’s because these are the traffic methods that come easily to you. You understand them. They’re always in the forefront of your mind. You always remember to do them. But, the truth is, by relying only  on these strategies, you’re letting your content down. You’re missing out on so many easy to use methods that will drive  traffic to your page in no time at all. And, here’s the real kicker: You already know most of them. You just forget to use them. Don’t worry though; that’s going to change with this article.  You’re going to learn how to drive traffic to your blog in little to no time. In return, youll get that sweet, sweet traffic your content deserves. How To Drive #Traffic To Your Blog With A Few Easy Optimizations #1: Use An Image Every 75–100 Words Using images in your blog posts will drive  traffic to your content. That’s no secret. It’s important to understand how many  images you need to use. Slapping on a featured image and the occasional screenshot  isn’t the best strategy. Luckily, Canva  and BuzzSumo  came together to do some deep research into how many images you really need. And, they found some interesting data: From looking at more than  1,000,000 articles, they found that using an image every 75–100 words increased the social shares of an article by at least  30%. Using an image every 75–100 words increases the social shares of an article by at least 30%.So, simply put, for every 1,000 words you write, you should aim for 10 images. But there is one caveat here you need to be aware of: These images need to be relevant. You can’t just stuff your post with images to fill the quota. Instead, these images need to be relevant to what you’re writing about. If you’re unsure, stick to: Relevant photographs (here are the best blog photography tips + 128 free images for your blog) Graphs Charts Screenshots of relevant steps/actions And, for bonus points, add captions to your images. They’re read  300% more  than your body copy,  which  makes them an excellent way to boost your on-page time. As you know, more social shares = more traffic. Recommended Reading: How To Design The Best Blog Graphics With Free Tools And Design Theory How To Make The Best Blog Graphics (For Non-Designers) #2:  Build Trust By Linking Out To Reputable Sites Okay, I’m not going to send you on a whole SEO link building campaign. Because that’s another topic for another day. So don’t worry about getting people to link back to your site right now. But right now, you can  link  to other reputable sites to drive traffic to your blog.  It's  as easy as  backing up your points with data or referencing scientific studies, including articles at the end of your article, or even simply linking back to an authority site when you quote them. This has two brilliant traffic-driving implications: Google will trust you more You can build relationships and trust with people in your niche Let’s look at each of them in a little more detail†¦ Capturing Google's Trust Google wants to rank sites based on facts. And, with good reason. Nobody likes searching and finding themselves on a spammy site that provides zero  value to them. In order to do this, Google uses  a metric called trust flow.  Without getting into too much detail, trust flow measures how accurate your  facts are and where you get your data from. If you’re linking to sites that are already authorities and are on Google’s good side like news sites, they’re more likely to trust the content you produce. While this isn’t a direct  way to drive  more instant traffic, it could improve your search rankings  in the long term. That  makes it invaluable. Outbound links build trust and relationships to help you drive #traffic to your blog.Building Relationships In the words of  Jeff Goins, â€Å"It’s not who you know, it’s who you’ve helped.† And by linking out to these authority sites, you’re helping them. You’ve given them something valuable that plays a big role in their success. If you reach out to them and let them know that you’ve linked to them, there’s a really good chance they’ll share your content with their audience. And that means  you get more exposure and traffic. But, that’s not the only benefits for you. Consumers see bloggers as one of the biggest influencers in how they choose a product. In fact, according to Technorati research, 31% of people say they’ll use a blog to choose a product. If you can get these bloggers to tweet, share, and interact with you (or feature them on your site) they’re more likely to buy into your brand,  which will drive traffic back to your content. #3: Do Influencer Interviews Interviews seem to have become the realm of Podcasters and YouTube stars. But, why? Getting influencers (people who have made a name for themselves in your niche) to appear on your blog is a direct brand endorsement. That's  powerful because 92% of people say they trust this earned media  more than any other form of advertising. So when they see a person they know sharing or tweeting about your blog, they take notice. Even if it’s just to promote their own interview. Take a look at this interview with Seth Godin from Contently. It’s been shared by over 11,000  people: That's  between 5,000–9,000 more  shares than their other top shared articles for the year: Now, your interview may not blow up this much. But if you choose the right  influencer and create a good interview, the exposure you get can be incredible. Recommended Reading from Neil Patel: The 6 Types Of Social Media Content That Will Give You The Greatest Value Boost Blog Traffic wrote an excellent article on how to get influencers to interview with you right here. Pro Tip: If you decide interviewing an influencer is something to check out, simply record the conversation as a podcast and embed it in the blog post you'll write. Pat Flynn just released an embeddable tool to help you put those podcasts right in your blog posts. Now there's no reason not to get started. #4: Focus On Long Tail Keywords You’re probably using a tool like Yoast SEO, right? So you can put keywords into your posts and get to a good  level of SEO for the piece of content. Now, there is nothing  wrong with optimizing it this way. After all, keywords are what people search for. But, you probably do a little Keyword Planner  research and come up with a two- or three-letter keyword like: Traffic methods Drive  traffic Good blogging Because they get a good amount of searches and they seem to fit the bill. But, if you’re not an SEO wizard by trade, you’re going to struggle to rank anywhere near the top results for keywords like this. Unless you’re already an established authority. That’s where long tail keywords come in. By switching to long tail keywords, Neil Patel managed to go from 89,000 visitors  per month to 174,000 people  per month  in a 14-month period. That’s a 91% increase in traffic from search engines. If you’re not sure what a long-tail keyword is, here’s a quick definition: Now, you can swap out the word ‘buy’ there for ‘learn’ and it’s exactly the same for your content. The longer it gets, the more specific it is. The more specific it is, the better you can optimize your blog for it because there will naturally be less competition. This is really specific to your niche and your site, so there’s no one-size-fits-all way to find these keywords. However, you can use tools like SERPed  or AdWords  to analyze your short keywords and build them into long-tail keywords. Recommended Reading:  How To Make An SEO Content Strategy That Will Improve Your #1–3 Results By 248% #5: Get Involved In QA Sites The reason your content (or blog or platform) exists is for one reason: To help people answer their questions. Each piece of content you create answers a question in your niche. No matter how big or small, that’s the purpose behind it. And you’ve probably got a lot of answers to a lot of questions by now, haven’t you? Instead of hoping  people stumble across your answers, it’s time to go straight to the source and put your well-researched and expertly written content in front of the people who are asking all the questions. Enter Quora. If you don’t know what Quora is, it’s a question and answer site. And, to you, it’s now a powerful traffic-driving tool. The smart marketers over at WishPond have used it to build up to  27,000 views a month  from their Quora answers. And it’s pretty simple to do. Let’s say you run a copywriting or content marketing blog. You’d search the broad topic that you blog about, and ‘follow’ it: Then read through a few pages of questions to find ones that: Have lots of engagement You have the content to answer You can provide a valuable  answer to That are either new  or get around 1,000 views a month Like this one right here (the comment from Sarah is the top answer right now)... Click on it, and take a look at what they’ve actually asked: Then answer the question in your way, giving plenty of value throughout. Think of it like a mini blog post where you can link back to yourself throughout, without them needing  to click the link to get the value. Like this one that starts with a link: Has a meaty, value-filled middle. And then finishes with a link back to their site: This particular answer has 26,000 views. That  means even if only 1% of people click that link, there’s still 2,600  people  who have clicked through to their site! If you answer questions regularly and with enough detail, the traffic you can drive really has no limits. How To Drive Traffic To Your Blog? Pick One, Run With It†¦ There you have it. Five easy-to-remember and implement traffic-driving strategies that you can use right now. Here they are again, in short: Use an image every 75–100 words: Add a relevant image every 100 words to break up your article, boost on-page times, and boost social share  that will drive traffic to your blog. Link out to reputable sites in your niche: This builds  trust, establishes relationships, and drives traffic. Do influencer interviews:  Tap into an established traffic stream, get brand endorsements, and create a strong image. Focus on long tail keywords:  Focus on  less competition, target specific users' search intent, get more search traffic. Get involved with QA sessions:  Use  sites like Quora to get the content you already have in front of people who need to answers you’ve given. Now, I have a challenge for you. Pick one  of these strategies and commit to doing it every month. Comment on this post with your choice. Then track the results. It could be the influx of traffic you’ve been waiting for.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Child hood obesity Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Child hood obesity - Assignment Example Child obesity rates in the U.S. have more than trebled in the previous 30 years, and one of every three kids is obese, counting the children in Ohio.   Obesity of such prevalent proportions can lead to innumerable negative implications on children’s health, and the health of the adults they develop into.  Around one-third of Ohio children are obese or overweight, and that number has been growing over the years. Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Centre and the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association have powerfully reinforced this bill from thebeginning. According to the 2008 Ohio Family Health Survey, around 500,000 children between the age 10-17 (35.6%) are regarded as overweight or obese according to BMI-for-age values. Moreover, the National Survey of Children’s Health implies that 37.1% of children ages 10-17 in Kentucky are overweight or obese, positioning Kentucky as the 48th in the nation. These general statistics disguise the greater burden of obesity among low income as well as minority populations. It is a common fact that physically fit and active children actually do better educationally, and that large and overweight children are 30% more likely to repeat a grade and nearly 60% more probable to miss more than two weeks of school. It is indications like these that support policy makers comprehend why action is needed. The wide spread epidemic of obesity will require an intensive comeback on the part of families, communities, practitioners as well as policy makers at the local, state, and national points. Focus should linger on generating the evidence base to notify policy decisions, creating timely data available to support and assist in monitoring progress, serving practitioners in improving their ability to stop, recognize, and cope with children who face obesity, and associating with community organizations to improve synchronised, multi-sectorial responses. A specific importance in our work will

Thursday, October 31, 2019

Singapore Prosperity Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Singapore Prosperity - Case Study Example Singapore has ultimately risen above all odds to become one of the world’s Economic power houses. It has been used as a bench mark of economic analysis across different parts of the world. However, of great importance is to focus on the several aspects that have contributed to this splendid success in almost all spheres of the Singaporean society. After forty years of economic reconstruction, Singapore has attracted the interests of not only economic analysts but also global investors that do not hesitate to invest in the island nation.Economic growth occurs at the predisposition of a conducive investment environment. The government definitely has a hand for the attainment of this conducive environment. This brings us to the analysis of the government structure and how its policies in one way or the other has contributed to Singapore’s spectacular economic growth. The people’s Action party has been greatly accredited of transparency, accountability and effective management not to forget sound policies that have been put in place to foster remarkable growth. Having only been ruled by just one party since independence, an aspect of stability has been initiated in the Singaporean political system which extremely puts great focus to economic growth rather than political destructions. It has developed policies that encourage domestic trade without much interference to the several foreign investors that have played a key role in its immense growth. Leadership transition has been peaceful playing a great role in stability making it a high affinity destination for investors. Singapore’s effective policies and able leadership was witnessed during the climax of the worst ever global recession that even shook economic giants such as the United States. The prime minister fostered bank lending of which the government also contributed without much interference to its GDP.Within no time after the introduction of this measures, Singapore bounced back to its economy fact living other economic titan states in the turmoil. Contrary to the common perspective that the private sector has got leverage over public enterprise, Singapore has stood the test of time to prove otherwise. It goes against the popular notion and treads its own economic course which baffles both its admirers and Critiques

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

The importance of a Cardiovascular Diet among College Students Essay

The importance of a Cardiovascular Diet among College Students - Essay Example College students are growing up in a completely new environment outside of their parents’ home, which is a completely new experience for most of them. This means that they are making independent choices with respect to their food consumption. Today, most college students lack the right kind of education regarding what is good for one’s body and what is bad, primarily because parents have largely determined their diet in the home and public schools have largely determined their diet in school. For this reason, college students are more and more likely to adopt unhealthy practices as opposed to the healthy, cardiovascular diet options. Nevertheless, college students are perfectly capable of realizing the benefits, and necessity, of adopting a cardiovascular diet. A cardiovascular diet, as the name implies, is a diet that is friendly first to a person’s heart. Because the long-term health of the heart is the best determinant of how long a person lives, a diet that i mproves its general condition is important. Additionally, with the rise in rates of cardiovascular disease as the single most prevalent killer in the United States, people are realizing that protecting the heart even from an early age is imperative. An example of a cardiovascular diet is the so-called Mediterranean diet, which incorporates high olive oil consumption, legumes, unrefined cereals, vegetables, fruits, fish, and wine. In eating only these foods, individuals can cut out much of the saturated fat associated with cardiovascular disease. The beauty of the Mediterranean diet and similar cardiovascular diets is that they are practical. Certainly, it is not difficult to find the kinds of food choices considered acceptable under the guidelines of any cardiovascular diet. Of course, college students who consume a mostly-fatty diet put themselves the most at risk for cardiovascular disease. Students may have such a diet if access to food is limited, such as the case with most dorm itory cafeterias, or the fast food density in their area. Access to exercise also plays a large role in whether a high-fat diet is manifested in being asymptomatic for cardiovascular disease. However, students can have the most impact on their own health by starting on a foundation of good quality foods, which can be as simple as making more intelligent choices in the cafeteria or at the fast food restaurant: such as choosing a smaller portion, choosing a less-fatty food, or eating less often. By adopting these changes, college-aged people can reverse their unhealthy habits. Part of preventing unhealthy eating choices from creating long-term cardiovascular problems is to catch the problem early. For college-age students, the problem can start on the first day of one’s first year eating in the school cafeteria, which tends to offer mass-produced, cheap food that have a high fat content. Colleges and universities can both educate incoming first-year students about the importanc e of smart eating choices and the cardiovascular diet even before they begin eating there. In addition to this, colleges and universities can invest in practical ways to make the food choices in their cafeterias healthier for students. Instead of offering a high fat, high-sodium pizza, for instance, a cafeteria could make a thin-crust, low salt, cheese-free option, which represents the kind of Mediterranean diet that achieves long-lasting cardiovascular health. Young women, who

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Understanding Business Organisations

Understanding Business Organisations TASK 1 The government has an important role to play in providing easy, low-cost access to information. Numerous studies and reports call for a more coordinated access for businesses to information on markets, industries and regional economies. In this case, most SME’s want better information about the local and regional economy to help position their businesses and raise competitiveness. Therefore, there is an urgent need for these government funded organizations to play the role of considering a more formal mechanism to listen to the needs of businesses, improve access to information and ensure they provide partial electronic services to people and small businesses through Government portals. The stimulation of the SME’s by these funded organizations can reduce the level of unemployment and contribute to a more equal distribution of economic powers. The development of the SME’s is important for the social and economic development of the country, since they increase competitiveness and mobilize idle funds to productive aims. The business community (the SME’s) has unique information needs that need to be addressed with a specifically designed information system integrated in the National Treasury, Kenya Revenue Authority, Home Affairs State Department and Immigration Office. A multi-faceted approach to information provision is necessary because of the variation in needs, literacy and business prospects. Training needs of both the business managers of the SME’s and information specialists should be identified and recommended as part of the business information system design. TASK 2 UNIT: Understanding Business Organizations TITLE: Technology Advisory Group Task 3 Organization chart for T.A.G ORGANISATION STRUCTURE The structure adopted is functional organizational structure which will involve organizing the activities of the advisory group around areas of specialization. This approach involves a considerable amount of process standardization within the organization, with the real decision-making authority centered at the top of the organization. EFFICIENCY INTO OPERATION BY THE STRUCTURE the organization will achieve significant efficiencies in terms of process flow and management methods as the staff will be allowed to focus on one specific functional area to the exclusion of all else. It is ideal for the organization because it is easier to monitor and update the training of employees when they are focused on narrow functional areas. The organization will also use this approach to cultivate a group of extraordinary specialists who can strongly impact the functions of the company. KEY MANAGEMENT PROFILE Administration and Finance Their role is to provide a general oversight of the operations of the organization.The team will consist of a General Manager, Finance Manager with 1 administrator and ICT Manager with 1 administrator. This team will be responsible for effective planning, delegating, coordinating, staffing, organizing, and decision making to attain desirable profit making results for the organization (Sayles 1979). Marketing and PR   Their function is mainly to increase sales for the organization. Assigned here will be the Head of Marketing, two(2) executives inMarketingand two (2) executives in PR. As the teams begin to work together they need to come up withconcrete and up-to-date plans to maximize profits while creating long-term customers as well as adding value to the product and our services. IT Consultants  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ They play the role of advising businesses on how best to use information technology to meet their business objectives.Two(2) Senior Consultants will be in charge. In addition to delivering advice, four(4) Middle-Level Consultants and four (4) Junior Consultants will oversee the workshops that will look at the technologies that can be underpinned by Superfast Broadband. They will work hand in hand with five(5) IT Trainers, two(2) website administrators and two(2) graphicdesigners to manage, implement, deploy, and administer IT systems of the organization. TASK 5 BUSINESS PLAN FOR T.A.G The intentions of Technology Advisory Group is to offer clients with an all-inclusive assistance through free consultancy and specialist advice on business prospects offered by Superfast Broadband In the form of articles and blogs written by IT specialists.The three year goals for Technology Advisory Group are the following: Achieve break-even by Year 2. Establish along-term contract with the Central Government. Establish a minimum of95% customer satisfaction rate to establish long-term relationships with our clients and create word-of-mouth marketing. T.A.G has established a status for quality work and plans to continue to heighten its image in the trade. The organization endeavors to become a well-known benefactor of IT related guidance to SMB’s through the following: Increasing service backings by consolidating specialist workshops which will look at the technologies that can be fortified by Superfast Broadband, including Cloud Computing, collaboration and interactive websites. Increasing obtainability and accessibility to present and future customers through a range of pamphlets and case studies that give hands-on insights into the enactment of Superfast Broadband by small businesses Crafting innovative, unique, and cost-effective interpretations to hitches currently met by customers. Technology Advisory Group has established community calendaring and groupware applications for use by the organization. This will support in providing a modest, convenient tool for the organization and staff to consolidate, plan, track projects and workshops. T.A.G will leverage its profile-raising services to help offer secondary income streams as the organization will inaugurate induction of free email services, business directories, and other related services which will entice current and prospective customers to our offices and workshops. These will be used to generate advertising proceeds, as well as increase publicity of our range of services. To generate sales, T.A.G has incorporated the use of direct marketing which will focus on Trade Shows. T.A.G will partake in selected local and national shows that will provide an opportunity to develop exposure. This is a very effective tool in creating responsiveness and stimulating lead activity.And also Contact Campaigns as this initiative will encompass various methods of reaching potential customers to generate interest, followed by direct mail to the potential customer. The organization has a well-articulated human resources strategy which ensures that labor regulations are stringently followed and that all pamphlets relating to labor law are upheld hence confirms that the employees are exceedingly inspired to ensure that they are industrious. T.A.G has articulated human resources scheme that is in line with those that directly deal with intensifying through attainment. Strategies that should be put to ensure that the company achieves further growth Marketing strategy The organization has to put more exertion in having access to the global market. It should put more effort in advertising of its services to other parts of the ecosphere that it has not accessed the market. It should discover probable market such as other African republics. T.A.G should upturn the number of workshops and virtual assistance services and through this; the company will offer its customers with a choice of service to pick from. The organization should guarantee that its branding and packaging are of high standard and should change with customers change in taste and fashion. The company should contemplate using publicizing tools such as S.W.O.T analysis in guaranteeing that it retains its control of limited market and as a means to subsist in an atmosphere that has stiff competition. Information system strategy Technology Advisory Group should deliberate on using more than one software when executing a given assignment. The administration should concoct a way in which the systems are incorporated. This is to warrant that proficiency is upheld and the work done is precise and can also certify that fraud activities are curtailed. Human resources strategy The organization should also upturn the number of university fresh alumni who are undertaking management drills. This is decisive in that it will advance new skills and different concepts from these graduates and this will support the Technology Advisory Group in development. It is persons who make an organization to grow therefore, to ensure that T.A.G has a stout pool of human resources, it should contemplate efficient in training for employees to keep them informed on new skills so that the enterprise can keep pace with other major conglomerate corporations in relations to human resources. Competitive Edge The Technology Advisory Group should emphasis precisely on facilitating small and emergent businesses exploit their potential for accomplishment by distinguishing itself in the following means: Cost-effective personal interaction with IT consultant presence: T.A.G should target new expanses with local consultants, permitting it to personally cooperate with small businesses without needing to bring consultants to the region. A diverse network of consultants and alliance partners: By relying on a nationally circulated talent base harmonized to work together tenuously, the organization should be able to bring together an assortment of skills to encounter the needs of its clients. Positioning Statement The Technology Advisory Group delivers much needed skills and experience to small to medium business initiators to help their businesses embrace the Superfast Broadband. Our services are bespoke specifically to the distinctive needs of small to medium businesses and focuses on up-to-date citations of specialist suppliers of Superfast Broadband and allied services that can advance overall business performance. With a scarcity of available talent plus the usual budget pressure usually associated with small businesses, our services provide a cost-effective substitute to attaining faster communications inorder to advance the ways in which they do business. The Technology Advisory Group will position itself as the prominent marketing and management consulting firm focusing solely on small businesses. Projected Profit and Loss Key expenses will comprise the cost of payroll for the growing staff, marketing to endorse the Superfast Broadband in the community, and the organizations rent and devaluation. The organization will show a revenue in the first year which will continue to propagate. This is anticipated due to the high gross margins of marketing internet broadband to small and medium businesses Annual sales projection Annual sales projection Task 6 Formal communication Communication is the process through which one person conveys information to another person through applicable medium. These are the major communication systems implemented as these terms are used recurrently in organizations. Upward communication Is the process of information travels from lower to higher ranks in the hierarchy.Various mechanisms can be implemented by T.A.G to facilitate upward communication. Examples, Suggestion boxes, group meetings and participating in decision-making. This is maintained to get feedback to managers from employees. Downward communication Is the process of information flowing from superior to subordinate – from managers to operating staff.Itis related to the hierarchical structure of the organization as messages seem to get large as they travel downward through successive levels of the organization. Example, annual reports, notices and employee performance feedback. Horizontal communication Flow of messages across functional areas shared among people on the same hierarchical level of an organization. This form of communication facilitates for problem solving, task coordination between departments and project teams. How can intranets and groupware help improve communication? Intranets Organization information can be warehoused centrally and retrieved at any time due to superior internal communications. sharing of resources and best practice as virtual groups can be deliberated to expedite information sharing and collaborative working improved customer service better access to accurate and reliable information by your staff leads to heightened levels of customer service forms can be accessed and completed on the computer, then forwarded as appropriate for approval, without ever having to be printed out, and with the benefit of an audit trail Groupware It facilitates users to post ideas, questions or suggestions on given themes of discussion as it allows users to engage with other members of the group thus enhancing business alliances. It permits users to send messages to other members of the organization and outside of the organization. It ensures that users can retain online calendars viewed by other colleagues to assist with the arranging of meetings and project planning as users are able to identify when members are available or times when they are consumed with other tasks. Task 7 Managing virtual teams Virtual teams are defined as â€Å"affiliated individuals using computer-mediated telecommunications to share information electronically† (Kirkman, Rosen, Tesluk, Gibson, 2009, p. 54). Challenges posed by virtual teams in managing individual teams Physical Observation Limitations managers are physically limited to observe their employees’ performance and efforts, and how to implement effective methods for going about measuring productivity, building trust, and managing teams given their particular constraints (Kirkman, Rosen, Gibson,Tesluk, McPherson, 2002). This renders the manager unable to provide constructive performance feedback and harness the full potential of the team. As a result, monitoring and measuring performance remain problematic and sources of concern (Kurkland Bailey, 1999). Overemphasis on Output Evaluation Evaluation of virtual team performance is a challenge when managers directly focus on outcomes rather than process especially when those results prove difficult to measure and observe.Therefore, Managers cannot accuratelyascertain performance due to reduced capability toobserve and monitor the process. Employee Equity and Organizational Justice Issues Virtual team members may feel organizational injustice when compared to those who are present in the actual workplace. Professionally, employees fear that being â€Å"out of sight† infers being â€Å"out of mind† fororganizational rewards thus becomes a significant challenge whenevaluating members of virtual teams against those at the physical office (Kurkland Egan, 1999). Recommendation on how T.A.G will address this challenges Increasing Information Flow–the virtual team project manager should institute mutual knowledge among team members through team building activities and grant members access to evocative project documentation, which lists acronyms and other project specifics important for team members to understand (Davis Khazanchi, 2007). The â€Å"Balanced Scorecard† – the virtual team manager should create an all-inclusive balanced scorecard based on T.A.G’s priorities when evaluating performance. This may consist of the organization’s values in the fields of growth, profitability and customer satisfaction. This enables managers to have a far more transparent understanding of the effectiveness of their virtual team and create more standardized methods of evaluating future virtual team performance. References: Boddy, D. (2005). Management: An introduction. 3rd edition.England, Pearson education, Prentice Hall. Campbell, D Craig, T. (2005).Organizations and the business environment.2nd edition.Oxford, UK, Butterworth-Heinemann. Davis, A., Khazanchi, D. (2007). Does mutual knowledge affect virtual team performance? Theoretical analysis and anecdotal evidence. American Journal of Business, 22(2), 57-65. Kirkman, B.L., Rosen, B., Gibson, C.B., Tesluk, P.E., McPherson, S.O. (2002). Five challenges to virtual team success: lessons from sabre, Inc. Academy of Management Executive, 16(3), 67-69. Kurkland, N.B., Bailey, D.E. (1999). Telework: The advantages of working here, there anywhere,and anytime. Organizational Dynamics, 28(2), 53-68. Mullins, L.J. (2010). Management and Organizational behavior. 9th  Edition. England, prentice hall financial times.