An Interview with a Small Business Owner Essays

An Interview with a Small Business Owner Essays An Interview with a Small Business Owner Paper An Interview with a Small Business Owner Paper Interview Questions for Business Owners A Local Favorite After graduating college, my plan Is to open up a small sporting goods store In my hometown of Baltimore, Maryland. When decline who I wanted to interview, at the last minute I changed my mind and chose Alan Davis, owner of Princeton Sports and Goods In Columbia, Maryland. I chose to Interview him because of his path he has traveled through life and the steps he has taken to be the best business owner he can be. He is resourceful and knowledgeable, and he is very charitable, giving to charities and other events that fuel the community of Columbia, Maryland. Mr.. Davis is halfway through completing his masters. He got his bachelors degree from University of Maryland, and he is currently finishing up there by taking one or two classes a year. His degree is in Business, Personnel Management, and Advertising. He is the third generation in his family to own Princeton Sports and Goods, and he did an Incredible amount of volunteer work during and after college. Mr.. Davis worked his way up the ladder at Princeton Sports, and I feel this Is honorable. He Is very smart and he knows business well. Princeton Sports Is a landmark In Baltimore, and he runs the store effectively and efficiently. I would Like to be Like this after I graduate college because he Is well-respected and well known In the sporting goods aspect of sales in Maryland. The part of the interview I found most interesting was where Mr.. Davis noted that he had done An INCREDIBLE amount after college. I have served on almost every board in Howard County Including help form the Police Foundation and The Festival of the Arts. I am currently on the Howard County General Hospital Foundation Board. I found this interesting because for some reason I believed that volunteer work would top after college, and I would go on to living a normal life. Mr.. Davis does a lot of volunteer work now, even when he doesnt have to. Mr.. Davis Isnt all business. He is an expert skier, and he Is well known In the area for that. He also admitted that he has had some fun Jobs, working at a ski buyer and Snob Hausa SSL Shop In Long Island, a Job that I personally find very Interesting. It seems like Mr.. Davis knows how to have fun and how to succeed in business very easily. He even believes his job is fun, saying l own a toy store, everything is fun. Mr.. Davis is a true inspiration to me, leading a business that started with his grandfather and has grown to be one of the biggest sporting empires in the Baltimore Area. He still volunteers and works for charities, even after he has hit the top of the career ladder for himself. Mr.. Davis has taught me that hard work and preparation for the future are the keys to success later in life. From this assignment I learned that I would need to work hard and have a lot of volunteer work to do. I also learned that I shouldnt expect a great Job right out of allege, that I would probably be starting off by selling skis or living In a box or something. I also learned that its okay to volunteer even after Vive hit the point of success In my career. I have realized that volunteer hours after they are not needed look very good for a persons character. I Nils Interview NAS not change my calicles to nave my own sporting goods store In the future. I find Mr.. Davis inspiring and intelligent, and I strive to be like him when I get older, so I can profit and have a career close to his. I respect him very much and I hope to be like him when I get older.

Biography of Miriam Benjamin, Inventor of Signal Chair

Biography of Miriam Benjamin, Inventor of Signal Chair Miriam Benjamin (September 16, 1861–1947) was a Washington, D.C. school teacher and the second black woman to receive a patent in the United States, given to her in 1888 for an invention she called a Gong and Signal Chair for Hotels. This device might seem to be a bit quaint, but its successor is still used daily- the flight attendant call button on commercial aircraft. Fast Facts: Miriam Benjamin Known For:  Second black woman to receive a patent, she invented the Gong and Signal Chair for HotelsBorn:  September 16, 1861 in Charleston,  South Carolina  Parents: Francis Benjamin and Eliza BenjaminDied:  1947Education: Howard University, Howard University Law SchoolAwards:  Patent number 386,289Notable Quote: From her patent application: The chair would serve to reduce the expenses of hotels by decreasing the number of waiters and attendants, to add to the convenience and comfort of guests and to obviate the necessity of hand clapping or calling aloud to obtain the services of pages. Early Life Benjamin was born as a free person in Charleston, South Carolina, on September 16, 1861. Her father was Jewish and her mother was black. Her family moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where her mother  Eliza hoped to give her children access to good schooling. Education and Career Miriam attended high school in Boston. She later moved to Washington, D.C. and was working as a schoolteacher when she received her patent for the Gong and Signal Chair in 1888. She continued her education at Howard University, first attempting medical school. These plans were interrupted when she passed the civil service exam and got a federal job as a clerk. She later graduated from Howard University law school and became a solicitor of patents. In 1920, she moved back to Boston to live with her mother and work for her brother, noted attorney Edgar Pinkerton Benjamin. She never married. Gong and Signal Chair for Hotels Benjamins invention allowed hotel customers to summon a waiter from the comfort of their chair. A button on the chair would buzz the waiters station and a light on the chair would let the wait staff know who wanted service. Her patent notes that this invention would serve to reduce the expenses of hotels by decreasing the number of waiters and attendants, to add to the convenience and comfort of guests and to obviate the necessity of hand clapping or calling aloud to obtain the services of pages. Anyone who has tried to get the attention of a waiter, especially when they have all seemingly disappeared into the woodwork, might wish this had become a standard in every restaurant. Patent number 386,289 was issued to Miriam Benjamin on July 17, 1888. Her invention received attention from the press. Miriam Benjamin lobbied to have her Gong and Signal Chair adopted by United States House of Representatives, in order to signal pages. The system that was eventually installed there resembled her invention. The Inventive Benjamin Family Miriam was not alone in her inventiveness. The Benjamin family made use of the education their mother Eliza valued so highly. Lude Wilson Benjamin, four years younger than Miriam, received U.S. Patent number 497,747 in 1893 for an improvement on broom moisteners. He proposed a tin reservoir that would attach to a broom and drip water onto the broom to keep it moist so it wouldnt produce dust as it swept. Miriam E. Benjamin was the original assignee for the patent. Edgar P. Benjamin, the youngest in the family, was an attorney and philanthropist who was active in politics. But he also received U.S. Patent number 475,749 in 1892 for a trousers protector, a clip to keep trousers out of the way while bicycling. Death Miriam Benjamin died in 1947. The circumstances of her death are not published. Legacy Benjamin was the second African-American woman to receive a United States patent, after Sarah E. Good, who invented the folding cabinet bed three years prior in 1885. Benjamins invention was the precursor to the flight attendant call button, a key tool for customer service in the airline industry. Sources Brodie, James Michael. Created Equal The Lives and Ideas of Black American Innovators. William Morrow and Co. Inc., 1993Mahoney, Eleanor. â€Å"Miriam E. Benjamin (1861-1947) BlackPast.†Ã‚  BlackPast, 14 Mar. 2019.Miriam E. Benjamin: African American Inventor. MyBlackHistory.net.

3 MGT-TD - Organizational Culture and Change Coursework

3 MGT-TD - Organizational Culture and Change - Coursework Example In addition, the results obtained exceed their expectations. As a manager, transforming a group to a high-performance team would commence by creating a team from this particular set of people. Then I would provide the team with all resources required to improve their performance (Goffee & Jones, 2013). The resources may include more advanced tools of work like an exceptional IT system. Additionally, the team would comprise of individuals from all departments in the organization. Synergy provides the ability to group members to put together ideas and come up with a strategy that exceeds the creativity of one individual. It also enables a group to outperform their best individual. Group thinking is the ability of a set of employees to come into a consensus without creation conflicts. In group thinking, an agreement is reached without the consideration of alternative options thus minimizing effectiveness (Goffee & Jones, 2013). In an organization, promotion of synergy can be easily done by requiring teams to provide more than one solution to a problem. Goffee & Jones (2013) assert that promoting synergy while eliminating group thinking by creating an award system that honors individual performance in a

Tourism Management Course Work Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Tourism Management Course Work - Assignment Example 5. Identify five motivations for travel of Europeans during Roman times, the Middle Ages, and Tudor times. Do such motivations exist today? Answer: Motivations for travel during ancient, medieval, and Tudor periods consisted of many reasons including visiting family, political purposes, trade, exploration, and military objectives. All of these motivations for travel still exist in modern contexts. The primary difference between ancient forms of travel and modern forms is that it takes a great deal less time to get from one place to another, and where 50 miles was once a great distance, it is now an hour in an automobile. 6. How important are the motives of discovery and curiosity? Answer: The types of interests that are stimulated during a holiday are vital in defining how important discovery and curiosity are in terms of travel. When on a vacation based on seeing more of the world, these two aspects are vital and central to the experience. If the purpose is to relax and enjoy the en vironment, they are diminished a bit, but still important as new experiences stimulate and create new memories. 8. Provide a few examples of how a person's travel needs change over a life span. Answer: Financial considerations will change as a person ages, their ability to travel based upon the amount of funds available towards that pursuit. When one is young, travel is defined by others who choose where one will travel. As one grows older, business purposes may provide for travel needs, as well as the need to decompress. Travel becomes defined more clearly by interests. As age approaches, an individual will become more limited on how they respond to their environment. How those limitations are manifested will contribute to determining how travel will be achieved and what kind of travel will best suit the intended purposes of the individual. 9. Give an example of travel experience overstimulation (mental or physical exhaustion or both). Similarly, give an example of boredom (too lit tle stimulation). Answer: Walt Disneyworld in Orlando Florida is an example of overstimulation as there is so much to see that often families do not plan for rest appropriately. It becomes a marathon to get to the end of the vacation having seen as much as possible. Boredom can be found in a place that has a beach venue, the idleness on the beach not providing enough stimulation to feel how different the experience is to daily life. The beach, however, is still lovely. Chapter 10 1. Evaluate culture as a travel motivator. Answer: Culture is motivational where travel is concerned in relationship to how one culture interchanges their understandings and meanings with another through activities that are designed for discovery. How a culture views travel is central to the purposes that travel is used for. 3. Give an example of a cultural experience that would be most satisfying to a visitor in a country much different from his or her own. Answer: Food is one of the most interesting ways in which to experience a culture that is different from one’s own. Understanding the relationship of food to the individuals within a culture and how it is used in regard to their traditions can provide an informative framework for meaningful discovery. 4. Create a life-seeing tourism program in your community. Answer: In creating a life-seeing tou

Reflection 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Reflection 9 - Essay Example Such companies as Walmart, Walgreens and others are proving that healthy and fresh food sales can bring even higher revenue than those of fast or junk one (Obama 116). Gradually, companies start to sell more healthy products, which, as a result, become more affordable to people and the demand grows. Consequently, manufacturers also receive more money. As such, â€Å"healthier food options make good business sense† (Obama 116). On the other hand, the idea of healthy eating and lifestyle should be actively promoted among ordinary people, especially children. The latter should understand its benefits and effects on their general well-being and even future life and success. The idea of cooperation, or as I decided to call it – â€Å"joint efforts†, is related to original complexity of the obesity problem which has nationwide dimensions nowadays. Instead of, for instance, investing into curing diseases caused by obesity (diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, risks of heart stroke, etc.), big companies could monetarily support production and spread of healthy food items so it became cheaper and more available for people â€Å"living in low-income areas† (Khullar 126). Thus, step by step â€Å"good† food could replace â€Å"high-fat, high-calorie, low-nutrient† (Khullar 126) menus of shops and restaurants in preference to fresh and useful meals. Additionally, the reduction of junk and fast food advertising would contribute to the promotion of healthy lifestyle. Hence, in the essay I described the ideas of healthy eating awareness and joint efforts needed to promote it - two most capturing thoughts expressed in Michelle Obamas and Dhruv Khullars articles – directed at resolving not only physical but social problem of

Comparing different international HRM strategies

Comparing different international HRM strategies Human Resources Management is a planned approach to managing people effectively for performance. It aims to establish a more open, flexible management style so that staff will be motivated, developed and managed in a way that they can give their best to support departments missions. Good HRM practices are instrumental in helping departmental objectives and enhance productivity. For the purpose of sharing expeience and providing reference in launching HRM initiatives. HRM Good Practices Since launching HRM movement in 1994 in the civil service, Civil Service Bureau has sponsore and individual departments have introduce various HRM initiatives. In taking HRM forward, we need strategic and integrated approach in managing people effectively for performance. In taking a strategic and integrated approach, HRM is linked to the department strategic direction in a systematic way. Such an approach is often reflected in the following practices clarifying a department strategic direction by way of articulating its Vision, Mission and Values statement; establishing the strategic linkage and integrating HR programmes through a HRM Plan projecting its short to long term human resource need through a Manpower Plan. At the same time, all manager must adopt a more open, flexible and caring style in managing their staff. Such an approach is reflected in number of ways. The three most common practices are managing people effectively for performance through an open Performance Management System that call for individual objectives tied to departmental objectives, regular coaching, and developing staff on job; enhancing staff competencies to perform better through effectively training people to achieve departmental objective and results LITREATURE REVIEW 1)Similarities and Differences in Human Resource Management in the European Union Sources: Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 45(6) 729-755 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ November-December 2003  © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). European authors have acknowledged that HRM originally developed in the United States.. European writer; Hendry Pettigrew, have been critical of apply American HRM views to other countries, especially Europe.Such criticism is entirely valid. A theoretical or practice HR model developed in the cultural context of one country should not indiscrimiately applied to another country without testing the cultural biases of its assumption..While the U.S. influence in HRM has been criticized,there is also a particular fondness among some European HRM academic writers to compare and contrast European with U.S. HRM. Brewster and Bournois posed the following question as a point of departure to justify such a comparison, To what extent there is sufficient similarity in Europe to require us to question whether there may not be significant difference between HRM in Europe as a whole and the United States of America? The comparison point out that in Europe, HRM is less dependent,companies have less autonomy and freedom of action, trade unionism is more important, the social partners have more influence,legal regulations are more important, and there is a stronger tradition of employee involvement. Brewster and Hegewisch push the comparison between European and American HRM even further and justify the existence of a European HRM model based on these differences. They conclude that,There are identifiable difference between the way in which HRM is conducted in Europe and that of the United States, a difference which allows us to speak of a European form of HRM . Brewster and Bournois also speak of two paradoxical trends that run through HRM in Europe. On the one hand there are clear country difference that can be understood and explained in the context of each national culture and its manifestations in history, laws, institutions, and employee organizations. On the other hand, there is an difference between the ways in which HRM is conducted in Europe vs the United States Brewster has made important contribution in pioneering the notion that there is a European HRM tradition distinct from others.He must be credited with being the first to attempt to develop a European model of HRM distinct from existing U.S. model. His European HRM model locates organizational issues within sectorial and national influences. However, according to Clark and Mallory , Brewsters European model has four main problems. First, talking abut European HRM is an example of reductionism that fails to take into account the cultural diversity of the European nations. Second,Brewster overestimates the level of autonomy enjoyed by HR manager and organizations in the United States. Third, his model is potentially culturally conditioned and inherently ethnocentric. 2) Changes in HRM in Europe: A longitudinal comparative study among 18 European countries Sources: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/ To examine HRM strategies and practices and HRM position within organizations in various cultural, economic and sociopolitical contexts from a longitudinal perspective. Findings The overall picture is that the 18 countries form two major clusters. Countries in Europe can be systematically clustered in a North/West-South/East distinction, regarding HRM practices. There is no indication of convergence between the major clusters. However, movement from one cluster to another was observed, with Italy and East Germany moving to the North-western cluster. Research limitations/implications The level of analysis, which is HR practice at a national) and regional level, is a methodological limitation of the present study. Analysis at this level conceals qualitative differences between countries, which are important in the contextual paradigm. Practical implications The issue of convergence in HR practices has important implications for HR managers in multinationals who operate in Europe and the transferability of HR practices. Originality/value This paper addresses the issue of whether over time there is an increasing Europeanisation (convergence) of HRM practices in Europe or not, by studying HR practices in 18 European countries. 3) Employers Find An Innovative Way To Escape The Growing Expense Of Providing References Sources:www.workpass.co.uk/calculator UK Unemployment is at its highest for over a decade and still rising fast. One unexpected impact of this trend has been to increase the administrative burden on Human Resource departments, whose staff are required to provide references for the rising number of former employee who are seeking jobs. Added to that is the growing scrutiny of landlord and lending organisation seeking to authenticate the salary detail of current employees, in the wake of recent scandals about irresponsible lending. It is all making managing references unacceptably time-consuming and costly for HR team, at a time when most businesses are seeking to find new efficiencies and save money. As a result, more and more employers are choosing to entrust reference management to the specialists at WorkPass. Using WorkPass is one of those rare things in business: a genuine no-brainer. Its an innovative, online solution thats able to handle all kinds of reference requests relating to both previous employees looking for work and current ones looking for, say, a bank loan or to rent a property. WorkPass is a wholly owned subsidiary of Verifile Ltd the UKs leading provider of pre-employment screening services. Its services are fully compliant with the Data Protection Act -which means that using WorkPass helps businesses pass the common compliance challenges associated with providing references over to WorkPass, thereby reducing their risks. Ben-Cohen continues: We take data protection very seriously. Thats why we make sure that each employee has control over who can access their data by letting them generate consent codes which provide controlled access to their details on our site. As well as effortlessly maintaining high levels of compliance, clients can provide a platinum service that enhances the good reputation of their organisation, while freeing up costly HR resource, helping them to deliver real and rapid cost savings. Uniquely on the market, WorkPass is offered as a free service to employers and employees. Reference-seekers instead pay a small access fee for the benefit of getting accurate and speedy responses to their online queries, often within seconds saving them time and money as well. Employers can offer a flexible choice of reference though WorkPass. These include providing basic references, confirming only dates of employment and position held; detailed references of the sort usually sought by financial institutions requiring confirmation of salary; and customised references, such as those required under compromise agreements. 4) The Human Resource Development function: the ambiguity of its status within the UK public service Source: http://ras.sagepub.com/cgi/content Improving performance thrugh better employee development practice is a recurrent theme within the UK public sector. Human Resource Development is seen as playing a pivotal role in this process. This article will review the role, structure and status of HRD with in the UK public service. It will consider the apparnt paradox that exists. On the one hand, the HRD function is reported to have a vital role in the developent of those working within public service organizatons. On the other hand, some hold the view that the reshaping the function is diminishing its status and influence. The article draws on the findings of the first phase of study examining the role, structure and status of the HRD function in UK public sector organization. Findings suggest that how the HRD function is presented and represented is problematic. 5) The Unique Recruiting and Human Resources Practices in Japan SOURCES:The Unique Recruiting and Human Resources Practices in Japan By Ames Gross and Larry Hewes Spring 1997 Published in International HR Journal EXECUTIVE SUMMARY à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Foreign firm attempting to enter the Japanese market must first acquaint themselves with Japans labor laws and human resource practices in order to be successful. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Although not required by statute, in Japan, workers generaly have lifetime employment with a single company. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ In Japan, promotions and increaes in responsibility are usually based on seniority, rather than solely on merit, and the promotion of a younger employee over more senior co workers can cause discomfort in the workplace. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ While Japan does have a national health system, many foreign company enroll their workers in a private health insurance plan, which are offered by foreign insurance companies. As matter of background, the Japanese economy is now recovering from a long period of recession and stagnation. It is a huge economy in world term, second only in power and size to that of the United States. In many way, Japans economy is superior to that of the United States; for example, Japan is the worlds largest creditor nation while the United States is the largest debtor nation. Japan run a trade surplus while the United States has a deficit, and the savings rate of Japans citizens far that of the United States. Japan has a population of 130 millions people, and its society which has been for centuries, and even during several decades, closed is opening up more and more to foreign commerce. For example, there are many more foreign car in Japan now than there were just 10 years ago, and hundreds of U.S. and European company now do business in Japan. Given the size of its market and its economic power, it behaves almost any U.S. business to look seriously at doing business with Japan. For some companies those whose products are so unique or who simply do not have the resources to establish a physical presence in Japan purely exporting may work, however, setting up an office in Japan and, of course, recruiting and hiring staff are the best way to go. However, one cannot do this successfully without understanding what the human resources issues and labor laws in Japan are, and how the written and unwritten traditions governing business and employment operate in that country. The purpose of this article is to provide foreign employer with some guideline on this subject. Recruiting, hiring, firing, termination, out placement, salary, title, and other basic subjects are covered. 6) The transferability of Japanese HRM practices to Thailand Jun Onishi Hirosaki University, Aomori, Japan This research examined the transferability of Japanese human resource management to Thailand. Attitude toward life-time employment, seniority system, consensual decision-making, quality circle, and house unions were considered. The sample included 560 managers and staff of Japanese companie in Thailand. The results indicate that all five practice except seniority are transferable. The Thai employees have more positive attitudes toward consensual decision-making, quality circles and house unions than the Japanese managers in the Japanese manufacturers in Thailand. Some Japanese managers think that consensual decision-making and quality circle are not appropriate or accepted in Thailand. This belief may limit the implementation of these practices. Regarding seniority, both the Japanese manger and the Thai employees agreed that performance should be evaluated by achievement, but years of service should be part of evaluation criteria. OBJECTIVES 1.To study HRM practices in Europe 2. To study structures operating within international companies across Europe. 3.To study the structure and operation of the European Union 4.To study the corporate culture in Europe RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research would be undertaken through secondary data.The data collected from 1.Journals 2.Magazines 3.Internet 4.Books HR PRACTICES IN EUROPE HR in perspective across Europe A brief look at the economic and social context of the fifteen longer-established EU member states. Austria joined the EU in 1995. It has benefited greatly from both physically and linguistically close to Germany and it holds key position on transalpine transport routes. This small, but highly efficient, central European state has well-developed system of labour relations, a high level of employee involvement and a welfare system that, although generous, nevertheles incorporates a sufficient incentive to remain in work. Denmark has driven up its wage level to be the highest in the world by heavily taxing employees and relying heavily on collective bargaining to regulate pay and employment condition. However, it has one of the most skilled workforce in Europe and has been a pioneer in flexible working methods. This has helped Denmark to achieve high, sustained productivity level in recent years. Finland joined the EU in 1995. It has few natural resources and a complex language that could easily have become a barriers to international trade. However, it has been able to take full advantages of EU and eurozone membership to achieve a low level of price inflation and invest in its human capital to produce a highly skilled workforce. The Finnish economy has also benefited by employers being able to tap into ready supply of labour from the Baltic states. France has low level of unionisaton, but highly militant trade unions. The official stance towards foreign-owned multinational enterpries has often been hostile and there has been a tendency to overreact to corporate restructuing by the application of penal sanctions. The 35-hour week has not been a success and the French govenment is now trying to unpick itself from many of its past policies. Germany is the biggest and by far the most succesful of the older EU states. During the last two decades it has achieve a difficult transition in its eastern states from a system of state-run monopolie to a modern market economy. Complete integration has not, however, been fully achieved and a 20% wage gap still exists between eastern and western states. Neither has Germany been able to significanly narrow the equal pay gap between male and female employees. Greece joined the EU in 1981. It continues to be a country with many small employers, generally poor labour relations and government that have frittered away much of the economic gain from EU accession through unprodutive public spending and early retirement schemes. Statutory work obligations are commonly flouted, paricularly in leading sectors such as construction. Government employment data is generally weak, out of date and uneliable. Greece relies very heavily upon its tourism and agricultural industries and has not been successful at attacting a sustained volume of major inward investment projects. Moreover, it has never fully expited its physical location close to major external markets in the Middle East. Ireland provides the best ex within the EU of a small country overcoming its lack of natural resources and peripheral geogaphical position to become a true tiger economy. This has largely been achiev through a low rate of corporation tax, a sustained inward investment strategy and an open-door policy towards immigants from central and eastern Europe. Ireland has not focused on being a low-wage location, but has concentrated on minimising bureaucratic burden and keeping overhead such as social security costs to a minimum. Italy has overcome many of its past economic and political instability problems, and its most recent reform have helped to encourage flexibility and open up the labour market. However, it has still not overcome its major north-south economic divide, reduced the bureaucratic burden that it continues to place on employer, or resolved the inconsistent application of its complex employment laws. Spain joined the European Union in 1986 and was at first country burdened by poor labour productivity, tight employment protection laws and wage indxation. Although these problems have not entirely disappeard Spain is now western Europes second tiger economy, with rapid economic expansion driven by a property boom and a plentiful supply of low cost labour frm north Africa. Sweden joined the EU in 1995. During the 70s and 80s, Sweden had to undertake a major economic restructuring exercise to deal with a decline in it forestry and iron ore mining sectors. Its highly sophisticted and extensive welfare system helped to make this exercise a success. Since accession, however, the Swedish economy has underperformed. This is primarily due to the high tax burden imposed on ordinary workers to sustain the generous welfare provisions, the creation of a dependency culture, and the narrownes of pay differentials. The United Kingdom operate a very different corporate and work culture from the European continent. It has virtualy abandoned sectoral collective bargaining and has been reluctant to embrace formalised systems of employee participation. It has tended to take a minimalist approach to all EU social and employment Directives and has refused to join the eurozone. Although this has helped to encourage the growth of new enterprises, much of the UK advantage in attracting inward investment has been gained through its cultural and linguitic links with the USA. Labour costs, however, remain high by EU standard and productivity is well below the level that this degree of economic freedom should have achievd. Comparison between employment characteristics in EU15 and new EU states (averages) Employment characteristic EU15 States New EU States Employee cannot change own working methods 29% 37% Employees working on shifts 12.1% 23% Employees working on Sunday 6.5% 11.7% Employees with fixed-term/temporary job 10.5% 8.7% Employees working at night 4.4% 5.4% Employees with a second job 1.8% 5.2% Length of time in present job 10.9 years 13.4 years Length of working week 38.2 hours 44.4 hours Language training in workplace (av/yr) 4 hours 11 hours Management training in workplace (av/yr) 12 hours 7 hours The HRM concept remains undeveloped in many of established EU member states such as France and Germany. This is largely due to over-reliance on administrative procedures and company rules, the codetrmination powers of works councils, the prevalence of sectoral collective bargaining, and widespread union resistance to workplace innovation. It therefore remains uncertain how far HRM method will become the norm for managing personnel issues in the new member states. European HR trends Europe accounts for one-tenth of the world population. Two-thirds of Europeans live in countries that are member of the economic federation known as the European Union (EU). The proportion of the population (aged 15-64) who are employed in the EU is just 66.0%, compaed to 69.3% in Japan and 71.5% in the USA. The average employee in the EU works for 38.5 hours per week, 18% of the EU working population works part-time, 14.8% are on temporary contract and 5.1% of employees started their job in the last 3 months. 12.9% of the population agd 15-64 have undergone tertiary education and almost 10% of the EU population aged 25-64 take part in lifelong learning activitie. EU citizens spend 12.2% of GDP on pension and their average retirement age is 59.9 years. HR policies and strategies checklist The focus HR strategy over the last decade has been to find an ever-widening range of methods to cut cost and improve operational performance. These tend to be carried out irrespective of the current stage of the economic cycle or a company relative competitive position. Options which were once regarded as either in or out of fashion are now being assessed purely on their merit, and are being swiftly adopted if they seems likely to succeed. We have entered an era of corporates perfectionism in which almost anything is possible. The prevailing aim of companie is not just to be more efficient and effective than their business rivals, but to be so good that it will be dangerou for competitors to try to emulate their achievements. Cost saving Reduction of operational costs: redundancy delayering pay cuts and freezes increasing variable pay as percentage of total pay , recruitment freezes outsourcing removing deputy posts gain sharing -,rationalising company car policies maximising grants or subsidies. Control of overheads: relocation to lower-cost centres ,use of teleworkers cutting benefits rationalising back-office functions expense account audits trimming expense budgets extending the working day. Limitation of future liabilities: changing from defined benefit to defined contribution pension schemes removing incremental pay scales curtailing grade creep. Pain sharing: board pay cuts, HQ downsizing single status facilities limiting top management severance packages ,utplacement counselling. Operational flexibility Job flexibility: job design flexible working hours annual hours contracts time off in lieu (TOIL) time banking ,part-time working ,fixed-term contracts ,multi-skilled work teams. Pay and benefit flexibility: profit sharing employee share ownership share options self -service benefits. Operational flexibility: time management , improving managerial leverage , the 24/7 workplace use of freelance and temporary staff suggestion schemes. Human capital Encouragement of lifelong learning: individual learning accounts , action learning elearning cpd mentoring. Retention of know-how: strategy for older workers staged retirement ,removing age barriers knowledge management developing knowledge banks. Promotion of equal opportunities: removing glass ceiling equality training equal opportunities monitoring diversity policies positive action. Promotion of health and fitness: in-house fitness centre discounts on external facilities stress counselling company sports teams regular medicals. Performance effectiveness Use of performance management methods: benchmarking process rengineering management by objectives employee appraisal upward feedback (360 degree feedback) decentralization empowerment delegation quality circle open door policies performance incentive supply chain management HR system integration data mining and warehousing. Improvement of recruitment process: student sponsorship on-line recruitment automated scanning background checks positive vetting verification of cv data University ratings personality/literacy testing assessment centres head-hunting succession planning. Reduction of absenteeism: attendance bonuses- wellness programmes surveillance of those on long-term absence motivational programmes. Prevention of fraud and theft: expense claim audits ctv scanning whistleblowing schemes amnesties forensic audits. Further important element in HR management are softer policy concerns and personnel administration, together with legal compliances and the avoidance of litigation. Increased board visibility and accountability have become areas of concern following recent exposures of corporate irregularitie such as the Enron affair. Data privacy and security are also becoming more significant issues and are making the application of HR policies a much more complex task. Corporate culture Family-friendly workplace: work/life balance childcare eldercare parental leave emergency leave term time working job sharing flexible working arrangements sabbaticals. Corporate governance: annual social and environmental reports remuneration committee independent reviews visibility and accountability of corporate boards. Localisation: support for local events service contracts with SMEs replacement of expatriates with local employee environmental improvement schemes. Employee welfare: Dutch-style arbo services hospital visits disability counselling company social functions attendance at funeral long service awards flowers on birth of employees children car-sharing initiative season ticket loans. Legal and ethical compliance Safety: statutory obligations codes of conduct safety training , health and safety audits joint committees safety signs emergency procedures alcohol and drugs testing. Employment: statutory obligation custom and practice codes of conduct disability quotas collective agreements works councils European work councils. Privacy and security: codes of practice data security standards international transfers of personal data email monitoring subject access procedures emergency planning workplace security zoning. Personnel accounting: tax compliance ,- payroll procedures IAS 19 remuneration committees. Community: corporate social responsibility (CSR) work experience student exchange sponsorship. Labour courts and court systems in Europe Belgium There are two levels of specialist labour court in Belgium: Labour tribunals: Courts of first instance dealing primariy with individual employment contract issues. Labour courts: These hear appeals referred by tribunals and seek to resolve significant collective disputes. Each tribunal retains a team of labour prosecutor who may be called upon to provide opinions to the court and are also responsible for instituting criminal proceeding against employers when health and safety laws have been seriously breached. Denmark Denmark operate a well established and highly complex array of courts, arbitration and conciliation machinery. Actions concerning individual employments contracts are heard by the general courts. The Labour Court Act governs the activities of the labour court that hear cases involving breaches of collective agreements. However, the starting point for dispute resolution is usually the set of standard rules that are common to almost all collective agreement. These define a number of steps to be followed as soon as a problem arises in the workplace. The parties are first obliged to negotiate, then to seek private arbitration if required and, finally, to go to court rather than resort to strike action or lock-outs. No individual employee can bring a case, or be the sole subject of a labour court actions. Germany Around 650,000 cases are heard by labour courts each year in Germany. Of these around 90% concern individuals rather than trade unions or works councils (as collective suits). Half of all cases are settled at an initial hearing before a lower labour court, but 1,000 cases a year eventually go through the full appeals process. Three levels of courts of appeal 1) Labour courts (Arbeitsgerichte) 2) Higher labour courts (Landersarbeitsgerichte) 3) The Federal Supreme Labour Court (Bubdesarbeitsgericht) final court of appeal These deal with private law disputes involving statutory rights such as wrongful dismissal, infringements of works council procedure, wage payment problems and the interpretation of collective agreement. Social security cases are heard by separate courts of social affairs. Conflicts of interest between works councis and employers are dealt with by ad hoc settlement committees Italy Labour court are an integrated element of the civil court system. They are composed of professional judges who deal with a wide range of social insurance and social welfare issues as well as internal civil service dispute and labour laws. There are three levels of labour court: 1) The court of first instance 2) The appeals court 3) The Cassazione All parties must be legally represented at every level of labour courts. Both individuals and collective bodies may seeks a decision by the court. However, unions may intervene in individual disputes if the case involves the interpretations of a collective agreement. Most cases that are heard by a court of first instance are permitted to go forward upon appeals. Spain Around 300,000 cases are heard by Spanish labour courts each year. However, only 40% of all cases relate to contracts of employment, with the balance being taken up by social security disputes. There are three levels of labour court: 1) The social courts at a provincial level. 2) The social chamber of the high courts at a regional level. 3) The social chamber of the Supreme Court in Mad

Gideons Trumpet Essay -- Clarence Earl Gideon Gideon v. Wainwright

Gideon’s Trumpet   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Gideon’s Trumpet is the true story of a man named Clarence Earl Gideon, a semiliterate drifter who is arrested for burglary and petty theft. The book takes it’s readers back through one man’s moving account that became a constitutional landmark. Gideon’s Trumpet was written to recall the history behind the Gideon v. Wainwright court case and how it made such an enormous impact on United States law.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On the night of June 3, 1961, Clearance Gideon broke into a pool room and smashed a cigarette machine and a juke box, taking some money from both and cigarettes. Later that morning a witness reported seeing Gideon break into the pool hall. The police found him a few hours later with a pint of wine and some spare change, he was arrested and charged with breaking and entering.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  At his trial Gideon could not afford a lawyer, so he asked the judge to appoint him one, Gideon argued that the Court should appoint him one because the Sixth Amendment says that everyone is entitled to a lawyer. The judge turned down his request, saying that the state did not have to pay a poor person's legal defense unless he was charged with a capital crime or that "special circumstances" existed. Gideon was left to represent himself in court.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Gideon did a horrible job of defending himself in court. He was found guilty of breaking and entering and petty larceny, which was a felony. Gideon was sentenced to five years in Florida State prison mostly due to his prior...

Advertising Has Been Used to Promote Goods and Services from 1945 to Today and Controls Consumers’ Behavior and Habits

Research Paper â€Å"The pervasiveness of contemporary advertising means that almost everywhere we turn, we are bombarded with appeals to buy-mostly under the guise of persuading us that buying will somehow improve our lives. † (Courtland L. Bovee and Williams F. Arens, Page 685). Fundamentally a good advert should attract attention and interest and should provide some control over the manner in which it is read. Advertising has been used to promote goods and services from 1945 to today and controls consumers’ behavior and habits. Considering the thesis, we could choose to agree with the fact that advertising manipulates consumers.This kind of marketing is essential for firms that want to show their superiority in a specific category of markets. People can see every day many adverts that encourage them to buy more and more goods or services. It makes consumers too materialistic and manipulates them psychologically to buy things they don’t need. Advertising promot es the consumption society. Obviously, many would agree that advertisers use tricky means in order to attract consumers’ attention. Moreover, not all parts of society are targeted. It can create problems considering children, ethnicities, religions and other criteria that affect population.There is already enough research that proves how harmful advertising can be. In fact, manipulating people psychologically causes harm. In the long run, it can develop a habit like it is in the United States. People using adverts don’t care about consequences and behave inappropriately. Some incitements, misleading, and minds’ control lead to what is called subliminal stimuli. By the way, advertising is maintaining competition between firms and as a consequence, it encourages innovation. Socially, advertising is considered as harmful but economically, it represents one of the main factors of innovation and technological progress.This paper will show why and how the use of adver tising has tremendously increased from 1945 to today. Then, we will show that advertisers use many efficient means of controlling people’s behavior and habits. Finally, we will argue that the effects of advertising can be harmful for populations and economies among a society. Considering that it seems dangerous and manipulative, we can point out that it is a huge source of information. It allows consumers to stay informed about new alternatives in their daily life. Moreover, some people think that this is better to buy products that were advertised than products unadvertised.After World War II, many countries that have been concerned by the conflict had to re-build what was destroyed. The most affected by such a war was the moral of populations. Advertising already existed but it began a means of showing that life can continue without trouble. We might have seen this tendency in the United States first. In fact, many advertising campaigns had the aim to show solid families ev en if they have lost a brother, a father or a friend in Europe or in Asia. Companies have understood that such a disaster can be used to promote goods or services they propose to citizens.Then, the globalization of television in the 1940’s helped the development of the use of advertising. Such a means of communication is essential. Adverts might already have been seen in newspapers, billboards or on broadsides but never on a screen. Traditionally, companies already used paper-based supports to show a short preview about new products or innovations and a slogan. Following that tendency, this is the beginning of the consumption society. Advertising encourages people to buy more and more goods. On the long run, it creates a way of thinking that develops an addiction.Commercials for Coca Cola are one of the best examples that affect the overall society. Drinking Coke improves citizens’ daily life because it gets satisfaction. â€Å"It has a taste that’s uniquely sa tisfying – a quality that’s unmistakable† (Fowles, Jib. Page 725). Another example is the place of women in society. They are targets of advertisers who promote goods that ensure an easier family life. â€Å"In terms of products represented, ads that illustrate this period concern mainly cigarettes, alcohol (beer and liquor), automobiles, food and drink, household cleaners, lotions and perfumes. † (Fowles, Jib. Page 691).The example of Camels cigarettes illustrates the situation (Fowles, Jib. Page 693). In 1947, advertisers pointed out the fact that doctors smoked more Camels cigarettes than other brands. Population will think this is not so harmful for their health and will buy more Camel cigarettes. The United States of America were a rich country before World War II. At the end of the conflict, it was clear that it was the richest country. This economic situation has encouraged the development of advertising. Each time there is a progress in a sector of the industry, advertisers improve their means of attracting people.At the beginning, it was only on paper-based supports with drawings. In 1951, it was the birth of television in color. The broadcast of public programs has considerably increased the audience and as a consequence, the impact of advertising. In addition, the economic period was favorable and many people might buy goods and services such as cars or household cleaners. On one hand, the video support allows consumers to be better informed but on the other hand, it encourages them to buy things they don’t need. According to a survey of the Census Bureau in the USA in the 1990’s, 98% of the American households owned one TV set. Census Bureau) In the 1980’s, the appearance of the Internet highlights a new period of advertising. Populations using this new technology of information are constantly confronted to adverts. â€Å"In 1994, Hot-wired site launches with the first banner adds from AT&T, Spri nt, MCI, Volvo and others† (Tungate, Mark). It was only a small part of the total advertising market but it increased at the same time the use of this new tool increased. The number of advertising agencies has considerably increased. There are more and more companies that use adverts to show their catalogue on paper, on buildings, on television and on the Internet.It is clear that, today, advertising is an essential part of the budget of businesses. Considering such a use of that tool, many people consider that advertisers make commercials in order to control consumers’ behavior and habits. â€Å"Advertising is the art of arresting the human intelligence just long enough to get money from it† (Blore, Chuck in Shah, Anup). The second subject that this paper will illustrate is to show that controlling consumers by the means of advertising is a today’s debate. In fact, advertisers are able to use tricky methods in order to attract people’s attention. H owever, as the year progressed, the sophistication of advertising methods and technics has advanced, enticing and shaping and even creating consumerism and needs where there has been none before, or turning luxuries into necessities† (Shah, Anup). Households are controlled against their will. When they are confronted to advertising, they are persuaded that they have to buy the product of one company. Everyone faces persuasion. We can see it in every street, in the cinema, on television, on Internet†¦ Advertisers give arguments based on populations’ daily life and use them to prove the benefits of a good or a service.If some people are always busy, there can be a good that helps them to be better organized. The advert will show that such a situation can be improved just by buying a particular product, produced by a particular company. This is the basis of persuasion. Following that, there are many methods that can be used to promote and sell. â€Å"Sometimes the si mple facts of our case are overwhelmingly persuasive. Other times we appeal to some need or motive of our listener because the facts alone aren’t persuasive enough† (Bovee, Courtland L. , Arens, William F. Page 687).Although the persuasion is not enough efficient, it is clear that the emotional appeals are the best way to force consumers’ to buy. Such a means of attracting people depends on the targets. Luxury brands will use arguments that attract consumers earning a lot of money. They display elements of a rich individual’s life and the fact that the product or the service was made for him. On the contrary, if the advert concerns the middle-class, it will be adapted to the â€Å"condition† of those people. In fact, this is also the case of consumers that do not need to put forward their income. There are advertising sponsors at both ends of that spectrum. Food companies offer natural products as well as convenience packaged goods. Shoe companies o ffer simple sandals as well as formal footwear† (Bovee, Courtland L. , Arens, William F. Page 687). This is why heroes are put forward in adverts. An individual who practices a sport and sees that his idol uses a specific product will encourage him to buy it. In the case of prevention, emotional appeals are the most adapted. Government uses this means to make people aware of what is dangerous.In order to reduce road traffic accidents, a commercial that shocks the audience appeals to fear. Consequences of such an advert will be more attention from drivers and fewer accidents on the road. We can’t explain how advertisers manipulate individuals without talking about subliminal stimuli. This means of controlling consumers’ behavior and habits is the most concealed because not everyone can perceive it. As a matter of fact, it is possible that not only individuals but also groups of individuals are controlled without their awareness. It changes their habits because the y do things they usually would ot do. We can determine that there are two ways to attempt an auditory. First, it touches the unconscious part of our brain. When people are reading a slogan or a sentence linked to an idea, several words are dissimulated and manipulate people by the language. It is clear that subliminal stimuli concerns the five censes. Consumers’ can hear, smell, touch things and be attracted. All of these criteria are strategically placed in order to have the maximum impact of perceptions. We take the example of a family that is shopping in a mall, they can see and hear promotions on products they didn’t intent to buy.Advertisers point out the fact that this is useful and essential. As the author William Cane pointed out: â€Å"Public concern about subliminal manipulation can be seen in 1957 when a marketing researcher looked into statistical data. James Vicary claimed to find dramatic increases in the sales of Coca-Cola and popcorn when he flashed th e phrases â€Å"Drink Coca-Cola† and â€Å"Eat popcorn† for 1/2000 of a second during a movie. The statistics showed an increase in popcorn sales by 58%, with an increase in Coca Cola sales by 18%. -Cola sales by 18%† (Cane, William.Umich. edu). Subliminal stimuli is used each time companies or politics want to control individuals against their will. Alternatively, advertisers can use sexual stimulants that influence individuals to buy. It is not difficult to determine what consumers need. Their fears are one of those determinants as well as their lack of self-confidence. Heroes can be put forward to prove that such a product can improve our everyday life. Movie stars are an example. People who have problems with their hair tend to buy lotions that a star uses.We know that adverts are created in such a way as to control consumers’ behavior and habits. Advertisers employed by companies manipulate people psychologically and force to buy things they donâ€⠄¢t usually need. The last part of this paper will deals with consequences of control and manipulation not only on individuals but also on economies. Finally, there are many consequences not only on individuals but also on economies. Manipulation and control through advertising can lead to critical effects on targeted consumers. In fact, there are different categories of eople in a society while the reaction is not the same in front of adverts. This is what we will demonstrate. First, one of the consequences of advertising campaigns is that it â€Å"makes us too materialistic† (Bovee, Courtland L. and Arens, William F. Page 686). It changes the value of every system and encourages the development of the consumption society. The acquisition of a product or using a service can change our daily life. With this idea, individuals are forced to think that buying more and more goods will make them more important. USA is the best example of such a situation. For example, they point o ut the fact that millions of Americans own 20 or more pairs of shoes, several TV sets, and often more than one vehicle† (Bovee, Courtland L. and Arens, William F. Page 686). Advertisers are looking for happiness linked with materialism. Companies don’t care about culture or improvements of the overall behavior of populations. The only thing that interests them is to sell. Finally, this materialism creates a cultural gap. It encourages the division of societies and creates conflicts. Then, there are questions about interferences with ethnicities.It is often the case in the USA and in every country where advertising is present. Advertisers use criteria such as the gender, the skin color, the social condition, or historical facts. In a country where there is a â€Å"melting pot†, it is considered as discrimination. We can say that commercials perpetuate stereotypes. As an example, when an advert targets women, it has been adapted realistically because they take an i mportant place in purchasing decisions. Even if there are improvements, there are still â€Å"bias and sexism in advertising† (Bovee, Courtland L. and Arens, William F. Page 689).Manipulation of children and teenagers through advertising can be critical. The possible harmful effects on both of these age ranges are significant. First, it is important to point out the fact that they are the most vulnerable and suggestible. When they are watching television, even if this is a program adapted to their age, commercials that are not adapted are broadcast and can influence them negatively. In the article â€Å"Advertising: Information or Manipulation† written by DeRego Makenzie, she is telling her experience with the effects of several adverts on children’s minds: â€Å"As an example, I was babysitting.My friend and I were watching her favorite show on Disney Channel: Hannah Montana. A commercial came on, and I stared at the screen in shock; in between two segments of a children's show, there was a commercial advertising Enzyte! I knew this could not be appropriate, and when she asked me what it was, I was dumbfounded. How was I supposed to answer that? Furthermore, children by the age of seven are exposed to commercials like these at least twenty thousand times. †Ã‚   Such a testimony confirms that advertisers don’t care about consequences of commercials if vulnerable minds are watching them.Regarding teenagers, this is more a problem with cigarettes and alcohol. They are more and more smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol. Advertising is a factor of this tendency. It is clear that alcohol ads on television have been multiplied in the last few years. This is what is shown by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth. One of their studies confirms that the top fifteen programs in 2003 had alcohol in their ads. Due to advertising’s influence on populations, there are economic consequences not only on individuals but also on companies.Consumers buy goods while the price is not always affordable. The fact that advertising encourages them to spend more and more money leads to economic problems. First, it forces them to borrow money from banks. On the short run, they can pay what they want but on the long run, many people can’t refund. Such a situation breaks the stability of families and of the overall economy. In the case of companies, they spend billions of dollars in adverts. It creates a competition between firms that many of them can’t assume. A company with a huge turnover will spend more on advertising than a modest business.Consequences will be that these modest businesses will shutdown because of the lack of customers willing to visit malls or any other huge business. We currently live in a profit-driven society. Individuals are constantly bombarded of adverts from companies, from the government or from any other institution that wishes to sell goods and services. To attract people, advertisers use tricky means and control consumers’ behavior and habits. What is often not shown is the impact of those methods. The aim is to encourage us to buy more and more against our awareness.Additionally, it maintains the idea of the consumption society and may cause economic problems for the large-scale. Following surveys, it affects vulnerable individuals such as children and is harmful. A social gap is being created due to the use of ethnicities, religions and other very sensitive issues. This paper has shown that the use of advertising has tremendously increased from the end of World War II to today and that it is clearly harmful for societies. It has created a new way of thinking which is maintained because of the methods that are more and more improved.At least, the addiction consecutive to the modification of populations’ behavior is increasing.WORK CITED PAGE Bovee, Courtland L. , and Arens, William F. The Indictments Against Advertising, Advertising M akes Us Too Materialistic. Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum, 10th edition by Laurence Behrens University of California, 2008. Pearson Longman pp. 685-691. Cohen, Dorothy. Elements of Effective Layout. Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum, 10th edition by Laurence Behrens University of California, 2008. Pearson Longman pp. 681-684. Cane, William. The Roots of Subliminal Perception. (www. umich. du) Census Bureau (www. census. gov) DeRego, Makenzie. Floyd Dryded Voices: Advertising: Information or Manipulation. Web. Wednesday, January 28th, 2008 (www. capitalcityweekly. com) Fowles, Jib. Chapter 13, New and Improved: Six Decades of Advertising, A Portfolio of Advertisements: 1945-2003. Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum, 10th edition by Laurence Behrens University of California, 2008. Pearson Longman pp. 691-737. Shah, Anup. Media and Advertising. Web. March 4th 2012. (www. globalissues. org) Tungate, Mark. Adland: A Global History Of Advertising. Philadelphia : K ogan Pages. 3 July 2007. Print.

Free Essays on Sad Dreams

Sad Dreams Introduction My name is Symantha Wolfe. I come from the small town called Taos. I also come from a house hold of one sister, but no brothers, a loving mother, and last but certainly not least a loving grandma. Their names are Randi Lee Wolfe (sister), Tina Irene Wolfe (mom), and my loving grandma Cathy Marie Wolfe. I was born in Taos but raised in Espanola. I will start by giving you an idea of what I am going to write about. I will tell you about a dream I had a long time ago. But will kindly request that this information be kept private thank you. The dream I will tell you about is kind of a ghost story but kind of not a ghost story. I will begin by telling you about my dream. But first I will tell you about what I did right before I went to bed. Ok! That night I had put on my pajamas, a T-shirt and a pair of shorts so I could go to bed. I got into my bed and the last time I remember looking at the clock I was 12:46pm. I finally fell asleep. I had dreamed I was walking through a cemetery at night. I was all dressed in black. I had started I walking through the cemetery when I saw my great, great grandmas grave. I had just then realized I was in the old cemetery in Taos because that was where my great, great grandma was buried. In the distance I could see a shadow coming toward me. I had got scared at first but then I saw it was my grandma. She had walked up to me and said, â€Å"its ok it’s just me, your great, great grandma. I just came to tell you then even though I will not be with you physically I will be with you mentally.† She had also said that she would always be with you if I would need her she would always be there for me. She was just about to leave when I asked her if she would stay with me for a while just so I wouldn’t have to wake up and be so sad because she was not there with me. She agreed to stay with me for a while so I would not be lonely. See when she died I felt like I had lost the only... Free Essays on Sad Dreams Free Essays on Sad Dreams Sad Dreams Introduction My name is Symantha Wolfe. I come from the small town called Taos. I also come from a house hold of one sister, but no brothers, a loving mother, and last but certainly not least a loving grandma. Their names are Randi Lee Wolfe (sister), Tina Irene Wolfe (mom), and my loving grandma Cathy Marie Wolfe. I was born in Taos but raised in Espanola. I will start by giving you an idea of what I am going to write about. I will tell you about a dream I had a long time ago. But will kindly request that this information be kept private thank you. The dream I will tell you about is kind of a ghost story but kind of not a ghost story. I will begin by telling you about my dream. But first I will tell you about what I did right before I went to bed. Ok! That night I had put on my pajamas, a T-shirt and a pair of shorts so I could go to bed. I got into my bed and the last time I remember looking at the clock I was 12:46pm. I finally fell asleep. I had dreamed I was walking through a cemetery at night. I was all dressed in black. I had started I walking through the cemetery when I saw my great, great grandmas grave. I had just then realized I was in the old cemetery in Taos because that was where my great, great grandma was buried. In the distance I could see a shadow coming toward me. I had got scared at first but then I saw it was my grandma. She had walked up to me and said, â€Å"its ok it’s just me, your great, great grandma. I just came to tell you then even though I will not be with you physically I will be with you mentally.† She had also said that she would always be with you if I would need her she would always be there for me. She was just about to leave when I asked her if she would stay with me for a while just so I wouldn’t have to wake up and be so sad because she was not there with me. She agreed to stay with me for a while so I would not be lonely. See when she died I felt like I had lost the only...

Communication Fundamentals Essay Example

Communication Fundamentals Essay Example Communication Fundamentals Essay Communication Fundamentals Essay An emergency Is considered to be a set of circumstances clearly beyond your control that has prevented your attendance. Legitimate written documentation must be authentic paperwork from a credible, validating source. A believable account of your difficult (or perhaps even tragic) circumstances will not serve in place of verifying documentation. Make-up exams (with documentation) must be completed within seven days of the originally scheduled exam. During the exam, if you leave the room for any reason, you must first submit your exam for grading. When you submit your completed exam for grading, you must show your ASS ID card to verify your identification. Your exam will not be accepted for grading without an ASS ID. So be sure to bring your ASS ID card with you to the exam. If you arrive for an exam after the first person finishing his or her test has left, you will not be allowed to take the exam. Examination Procedures The exam will consist of 40 multiple-choice questions, with four answers provided for each question. You will need to select the single best answer for each question (two points for each correct selection, 80 points total). You will have 60 minutes to complete the exam from the time it is distributed. You will have ample time to read each test item carefully and respond to each test item thoughtfully. Test items are not intended to be tricky, but rather to assess the depth of your understanding. To record your answers for grading, a Cantors form will be provided with your test. However, you will need to bring a pencil and eraser. Unclear responses on the Cantors form will negatively impact your score. Dont expect hints and clues from the Instructor during the exam period. Examination Preparation The outline of testable material below is intended to serve as a study checklist, directing you to testable material in the Lecture Notes, as well as in the textbook (pages of corresponding textbook material are indicated in parentheses). The exam is NOT designed to assess your recollection level of course material that youve memorized. Instead, it is designed to assess your comprehension level of course material that youve understood. So dont prepare for the test by using the Lecture Notes as a script to memorize. Rather, use the Lecture Notes as a way to evaluate and enhance your own understanding. To evaluate and enhance your comprehension level of course material, heres an effective way to prepare. For each bullet point In the Lecture Notes, attempt to rephrase or explain it in a way that Is clear enough for your mother to understand. If you can clearly explain the point to another intelligent person, then you probably comprehend that item. If not, then you with a small group of classmates will enable participants to clarify for each other items that are not fully understood. Outline of Testable Material from Unit 1 Communication Fundamentals Communication Studies What, Where, and How (3-9, 31-50) Distinctions between communications and communication Communications views communication narrowly. Simplistic one-way flow of broadcast info. Focuses on technology channels of the media (TV, film, radio, internet, etc. ) Communication views communication broadly Any facet of the process of human interaction Focus on human messaging (contexts, interpretations, responses, influences, etc. ) Nature and benefits of studying human symbolic activity Symbolic activity enables people to understand, connect with, and influence each other Humans are characterized by the capability to express thoughts, feelings, and experiences through symbols Benefits of studying: Reveal how it enables people to understand/learn from each other, producing growth in intelligence and maturity Reveal how it enables people to connect and relate with each other, creating relationships, groups, organizations, and culture. Reveal how it enables people to influence and impact each other, affecting changes in perceptions, beliefs, values, attitudes, and actions Language, Meanings, and Messages (9-20) Components of the communication process and how they complicate mutual understanding Components of communication process Encoding coding meaning into symbols Transmitting sending coded message via selected channel Receiving discerning coded message from its channel Decoding translating coded message into meaning Complicated by noise Noise originates from the mind psychological noise Noise originates from the body physiological noise Noise originates from the setting environmental noise Complicated by context Varying backgrounds, experiences, and cultures of each communicator Type of relationship and various relational expectations existing between communicators Influencing characteristics of the situation (preceding, present, and subsequent events) and setting (physical location) Nature of language, messages, and meanings in communication Language Codes Set of symbols shared by a community Exchanged through messages of packed symbols. Reductionism always reduces (imperfectly represents meanings) How miscommunication and misunderstanding can be minimized Express meaning and seek feedback Listen for meaning and offer feedback Communication Competence Relationship between fundamental human needs and human communication Human needs: Safety need to feel protected from dangers, difficulties, and privations that threaten our physical well-being Security the need to feel relationally accepted, cherished, and unconditionally loved by others Self-efficacy the need to feel that weve impacted our world in a way that makes a difference through our own unique capabilities. Significance the need to feel appreciated, respected, and esteemed by others for our worthwhile contributions Only cooperation accomplished through immunization can satisfy our fundamental needs If we dont communicate, then we will die physically or psychologically Nature of communication competence components: Four prerequisite factors for competent communication knowledge and skill (capabilities); passion and compassion (motivations) Knowledge (know what to say) Skill (know how to say it) Passion (care about what to say) Compassion (care about who its said to) Two subsequent outcomes of competent communication appropriateness and effectiveness Appropriateness (satisfies our expectations) Effectiveness (accomplishes my goals) Implications of two competency dimensions of every communicated message relationship and content Competent communicators think before they speak Frank (low relationship/high content) think about how our relationship should govern/guide what is said Friendly (high relationship/low content) think about how my goals can be clearly and convincingly articulated) Communication Ethics Three communication characteristics necessitating ethical communication. Communication is: Unavoidable (one cannot not communicate) Irrevocable (a message cant be reeled back in like a fishing line) Consequential others will respond with thoughts, feelings, or actions) Distinctions between ethically and legality Ethics: Beneficial or harmful antecedent causes and influences described as qualities of human character Morals: Beneficial or harmful subsequent outcomes and effects described as consequential human conduct. Legal Constraint: Externally imposed codes that command/require Impotent unless enforced with only short-lived effects Demands rote behavioral compliance Ethical Character: Internally rooted convictions that convince and inspire Potent absent of enforcement with enduring effects Dynamic and flexible principles that guide and direct Enables wise situational discernment Dialectics of ethical communication conveying and responding to messages Com. Dialects: principles that are best practiced in a state of tension, helping to avoid destructive forms of unrestrained extreme speech Dialect of conveying messages: Sincere truthfulness (convey truth honestly) Caring respect (show same concern/dignity would want from them) Dialect of responding to messages: Thoughtful evaluation (ponder/scrutinize to make discerning Judgments) Human testability (open minded learner, no one knows everything) Verbal Communication (107-133). Two functions of verbal communication conveying and creating perceptions of reality To share thoughts and convey perceptions of reality To shape thoughts and create perceptions of reality Distinctions between denotative and connotative semantics Denotative Semantics: Symbolize commonly shared perceptions of reality held by those in a language community. Characterized by consistency and universality Connotative Semantics: symbolize unique meanings that are laden with personal values and individual experiences. Found in the minds of individuals. Characterized y personal meanings that may be shared by an in-group, but not by the language community at large Function of syntax in verbal communication Sense-making through systematic arrangement of words Guidelines for competently conveying and creating perceptions of reality Use verbal language to clarify cognition to share and convey perceptions Speak and write correctly by employing the communication conventions of the language community. Speak and write precisely by defining abstract terms and illustrating with concrete examples Avoid unfamiliar and inappropriate language, such as vulgarity and pesticides vocabulary Use language to incite imagination to effectively shape and create perceptions Employ evocative words laden with connotative meaning to foster new perceptions of reality. Provide figurative language tropes through stories, metaphors, and analogies Reveal uncommon insights into commonplace circumstances (Vive never thought of it that way before) Nonverbal Communication (137-155) Role and importance of nonverbal communication in seeking mutual understanding Technology can degrade the richness of human communication Actions speak louder than words Many of the meaning cues in a message are communicated nonverbally When verbal and non-verbal message conflict, people believe the non-verbal messages oculists, proteomics, hepatics, and objective. Vocalic: communicating with your voice Tone, volume, articulation, pauses Kinesics: communicating with your movements Facial expressions, hand/arm gestures, movement Oculists: communicating with your eyes Interested and caring or bored and distracted Honest and truthful or hiding and deceiving Wink, roll eyes, blink, eye contact Proteomics: communicating with your position. Personal space invasion leads to flight response Personal territory invasion leads to fight response Hepatics: communicating through physical contact Objective: communicating with inanimate items Appearance personal grooming and apparel, artifacts (visual aids). Perception, Learning, and Listening (84-102, 163-177) Purposes for listening interpretation, identification, inspiration, evaluation, coordination, and education Interpretation: to understand others by assigning Identification: to foster relational connections Inspiration: to be impacted and motivated Evaluation: to assess perspectives and issues Coordination: to organize and harmonize efforts. Education: to learn and grow in intelligence Levels of listening and learning to remember (recognizing and recalling); to comprehend (analyzing and synthesizing); to implement (evaluating and applying) Listening to remember employing rote memorization that enables: (ILL) Recognition identify message elements with prompting (ALL) Recall generating message elements without prompting Listening to comprehend-employing attentive interpretation that enables: (ALL) Analysis inferring meanings from various message details.

The role of stand up meetings in agile software development ( benefit) Essay

The role of stand up meetings in agile software development ( benefit) - Essay Example This study investigated one of the most important elements of the Agile approach, daily stand-up meetings. Over 40 percent of all the respondents were developers, the other bigger proportions were made up of project managers, analysts, software testers and solution architects. This can probably be attributed to the fact that in any process of software development, developers play the greatest role as they are directly involved in the technical processes. According to Martin (2003), an Agile development team needs sufficient software development personnel with deep experience and good working relationship to succeed. Project managers also formed a substantial proportion of all respondents; this too can be explained by the fact that every Agile team has got to be led by a project manager. Sometimes we have a larger project split into smaller project tasks each with a project manager (Larman, 2004). Other roles represented by respondents included Team Leads, Scrum Masters, CEOs, Testers , Delivery Managers, Agile coaches and Product owners. Many responses were not obtained from these groups, probably because they did not play huge roles in their team or they happened to be in leadership positions e.g. CEOs and Team Leads.The software development process function better at optimal conditions; this can only be made possible with the right number of members in a team, each playing a key role. Depending on the company and software development requirements of a project, Agile team sizes differ from project to another, Scrum and DSMD recommend that an ideal project team should have about 10 or twelve people. XP does not have a particular preferred number but recommends that teams be as small as possible. Over 83.8 percent of the respondents indicated that they worked in a team of between one and ten members - these are relatively small groups. Many software developers prefer to carry out projects in small flexible and manageable groups as recommended by the Agile methodo logy. Agile software development is particularly very iterative and participative and requires excellent communication, consultations and interaction between the members. For such teams to work effectively they require a moderate to minimum number of members for flexibility and greater team bonding, for example, stand-up meetings can be more effective and practical with fewer members in the team rather than a large number of members (Larman, 2004). A number of different Agile methods are used in software development. These include Scrum, DSDM, Extreme Programming, and Lean-Kanban. The choice of method is largely determined by software development needs as well as preference. According to Larman (2004), project needs sometimes dictate the choice of method between the various Agile methods. - Developer preferences also play a large part in determination of the methods to be adopted, in most cases once a method is adopted it is used by a company consistently for all other projects. Thi s study found that scrum is the most preferred Agile method with over 59 percent of the respondents using it. The popularity of scrum can be attributed to its ease of use and flexibility. According to Rising and Janoff (2000), Scrum remains the most

To What Extent Was the Advent of Renaissance Architecture in Britain a Essay

To What Extent Was the Advent of Renaissance Architecture in Britain a Result of the Stuart Court and Monarchy - Essay Example The renaissance took place at different times in different parts of the world. Whenever Renaissance is mentioned, it must be remembered that it has to do with the conscious revival of certain aspects of the cultures of ancient Greek and ancient Roman societies. In terms of timeframe and order of occurrence, renaissance architecture came after Gothic literature. Some of the distinguishing features of renaissance architecture (like classical architecture) include precision of measurement and proportion and symmetry. All these features also took place during the British Renaissance. Renaissance got to Britain during the reign of Elizabeth I. Its advent in Britain can be said to have been influenced by Stuart courts and Monarchy. One must not however fail to realize that although renaissance Britain was the rebirth of classical culture, the purposes of the architecture peculiar to both of them are for different reasons. One of the most memorable attributes of the Stuart monarchy is that they brought to Britain, during their reign, influences from all over Europe and even influences from outside Europe. The implication of this is that, when one wants to consider their influence on British Architecture, it means indirectly that one is to consider the influence of other cultures on British Architecture. When the Stuarts were ruling Britain, the country became a floodgate for the architectural designs that were started in other parts of the world. In actuality, renaissance was not to the British. The rebirth that took place in Britain was only the direct consequence of the events that had taken place and happened earlier in Italy and France. In the first place, if there was never the Greek or Roman civilization, there would never have been anything like Renaissance in any part of the world, let alone in Britain. 1 The essence of all that has been aforementioned is that if the Stuarts rulers had not been so friendly to the arts or if they had not welcomed the architectu ral designs from other parts of the world, the notion of renaissance Britain may not have been possible in the first instance. 3 Some of the influences that the Stuarts took on include those from the Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy. Then, the influence of other climes was so much that in a single building the building designs of more than one country can be combined. For example, the design of the French and the Italians may be combined in the British Renaissance Architecture design style and this is due to the fact that the Stuarts actually combined the designs of the French and the Italians in moulding the British Renaissance Architecture into what it became. The influence of the Stuart monarchy may be said to be most eminent during the Elizabethan period which marked the beginning of Renaissance in Britain. The round arch which was one of the ensigns of the architecture that emerged during the reign of the Stuart monarchy also resurfaced during the Elizabethan period.1 Yet it does not negate the fact that the Elizabethan period itself had features that were self-generated. One of the features of the architecture of the Elizabethans that shows that not all the architectural structures of the period were a direct influence of the Stuart monarchy is the fact that most windows and doors during the period were round-headed. On the other hand, as it was during