Managing Culture and Change Essay

The present scenario has made the future of organizations uncertain. Companies that are excelling in their relevant industries right now may be pushed out in the near future by upstarts with better ideas and more versatility than them. It has happened so often in the past that the only certainty is that it will keep on happening in the future. The only long term sustainable competitive advantage that organizations can hope to create is through their people, and the behaviour of these people is largely determined by the corporate culture in which they are immersed. A successful corporate culture will see the organization through the near future, but unless the organization is proactive in its bid to keep on adapting to the changing business environment, that same corporate culture may sound the death knell for the organization in the future. CORPORATE CULTURE AND PERFORMANCE The question on every entrepreneur, every CEO, and on every member of the Board of Directors’ mind since before the inception of the concept of an organization as an institution has been: how to make more money? Once this fundamental urge has been recognized one can comprehend the reason behind the actions of the above-mentioned in ensuring the success of their respective organizations, as the evidence of past decades have proved that organizational success is the key determinant of greater financial reward for them; hence stemmed the need to identify the factors that would translate into success for an organization. The idea that an organizations culture would influence its performance is hardly new. ‘Search of Excellence’, published in 1982 and authored by Waterman and Peters made the concept famous, and in 1992 in ‘Corporate Culture and Performance’, Hesket and Kotter compared various organizations and the relation of their performance within a time period with their cultures. But with increasing research being conducted on the correlation between an organizations vision and the employees’ actions, doubt is cast on the efficacy of expecting that an organizations culture will determine its performance. Instead, consensus is being established that a few core values largely determine the success or failure of organizations. SUCCESS Success of an organization can be defined differently depending on the industry in which the organization operates. An organization in a high risk industry can view success as the ability to survive all these years. Another organization may view continuing growth over and above competitors as success, while still another might seek to become the market leader in its particular industry in order for it to be considered a success. Pyramid of Organizational Development Whatever the perception an organization has, in order to be successful an organization needs to follow six steps or tasks at each level of its growth in order for it to succeed at all of those stages. It needs to determine its market niche in which it will operate, develop the product/service accordingly, acquire the relevant resources be they land labour or capital, develops a system of standardized procedures for operations, and then the same for management, and finally, develop a corporate culture that management perceives as being important to lead the firm. Before any further discussion can be carried out, corporate culture must be defined as, a structure of collective values and beliefs that work together with the systems, the organizational structure, and the employees to produce norms, which then turn into what is necessary to the organization, and the processes of getting things done – the how and the why. It is an intangible aspect of an organization that cannot be seen, touched, heard or smelt, but is present nonetheless and which ultimately determines whether that organization will succeed or not. It is the core values that were mentioned earlier, to produce the norms that determine the behaviour of the employees, which ultimately determines the productivity and thus success of the firm. The steps taken together are framed as a hierarchical model into a pyramid of organizational development that emphasizes the importance of each step for the organizations development depending on the stage of growth the organization is in at that point. The last three of the steps form the structure that will be the sustainable competitive advantage of the firm, inimitable by competitors, thus ensuring long term success for the firm. ROLES OF CORPORATE CULTURE Corporate culture by itself plays several roles in the organization. It develops a cultural identity in an employee by establishing a commitment of the employee to achieving the organizations goals and objectives. That identity serves to increase the devotion and involvement of the employee by making him/her reconcile the organizations success as his/her own. Corporate culture also uses a deductive approach to align an employee’s behaviour with acceptable norms that have been already determined by the organization so that it need not worry about policing the employee to do what is right according to the organization. Instead of the management having to interfere now the employee’s peers can bring a maverick back in line with acceptable behaviour as determined by the values of the organization. In addition to these, an organizations culture acts as a motivational tool that is more effective than managerial insistence. However, if the organization’s stated values are out of sync with the culture that is being promoted the employees will become disillusioned with the organization and its stated commitment to quality of work life as the rewards will be based on the stated values as opposed to what the prevailing organizational culture promotes. TYPES OF CORPORATE CULTURE Strong The desired roles that the culture of the organization is to play and reality may starkly differ depending on the type of culture that is prevalent in the organization. A Strong Culture is reminiscent of an organization that spends a significant amount of time and resources in communication and reinforcement by management of the values of the organization to the various employees. This is facilitated by having well-defined vision and mission statements that have been established with the help of both the top and bottom rung of the organization. In addition, these statements and their espoused values are adopted by top management and thus succeed in their task of influencing the employees by convincing them of their commitment to the organization and its value system. Weak On the other hand a Weak Culture is quite the opposite, in its lack of cultural identity and the divergence of employee behaviour and organizational goals. A weak culture also involuntarily imparts an image of punishing those employees that might be working towards organizational success, through the actions of their peers who have this weak corporate value system ingrained into them. Thus there is little allegiance to the organization and little unity inside it. Unhealthy An Unhealthy corporate culture rests on the basis that change is undesirable. In such an environment risk-taking and experimentation for the sake of innovation is frowned upon, and so the organization has to seek ideas outside the firm for better practices and approaches. This is a costly result of the politicized environment that prevails in such an organization, where decisions are made based on the power wielded by the participants and not on the value of their respective input. Adaptive The fourth type of culture in an organization is an Adaptive one which is contrary to the unhealthy culture in its regard for entrepreneurial activities. Such an organization is a proactive entity that actively seeks out innovative and experimental solutions to any issues that might have to be faced. Risk taking is encouraged to the extent that employees might be funded to bring their ideas to life, in the recognition that successful adaption to the environment through risky enterprises enable the organization to prosper over its competitors. CONFLICT IN CORPORATE CULTURE An organizations culture is influenced by the social power of relationships, more specifically, the potential loss of those relationships. This invokes cognitive dissonance in a person more than does any other action, and thus motivates us the most to make sure that such a situation does not arise. From this motivation an organizations culture is developed as a means to protect these relationships, leading to the theory of conflict resolution and culture development. Social influences in the form of formal and informal networks, family networks, relationships with leaders, and legal regulations are what determine the behaviour of a person in an organization with regards to conflict resolution. Although conflict invariably leads to closer bond in relationships than before, it can also lead to rejection or coercion by one or both party. The conflict can only be resolved when both parties either cooperate in or reject the relationship. The eventual conflict resolution results in a differing viewpoint held by the onlookers as either a matter of public discourse or of private thought, which viewpoints are shared with others depending on the closeness of their relationship. And while cooperative conflict resolutions foster greater trust and unity, competitive conflict resolution in hierarchically dominated organizations, where management often passes judgement rather than mediates, results in a chasm between formal and informal cultures that causes a drop in organizational performance. HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGERS Human Resource Management has become an increasingly important function in organizations with the findings of several researches supporting the relation between high-performance and HR practices. The recognition through these researches that the only long term sustainable competitive advantage that an organization enjoys is the capabilities of its human resource has further caused organizations to reinvent this previously neglected function as well as resulted in an increase in the perceived advantages of a strategically-focused Human Resource Department. Amongst these, cultural management is an important benefit that pertains to the development, communication, reinforcement, and change of the corporate culture to the employees. SUCCESSFUL CORPORATE CULTURE An organization’s corporate culture can either hinder or contribute to the success of a firm by influencing the behaviours and attitudes of employees with respect to the overall organizational strategy. A corporate culture that promotes behaviours that are aligned with the company’s values provides guidance to the employees with respect to the accepted norms of the organization and reinforces those peer actions that support the desired culture. The HR as the manager of the corporate culture aligns its own practices in an effort to increase commitment amongst employees towards achieving the desired vision of the organization by reaching their performance targets, and by engaging in adaptive and innovative entrepreneurial activities. A successful corporate culture is one which supports the organizations execution of its strategy, with the help of HR managers, who align the desired values of the organization with the values that are actually prevalent. While some organizations seek to prescribe specific corporate values that will lead to greater performance, it has been discovered that instead it is the fit of these values to the internal and external realities of the organization – the employees’ behaviour and the business environment – that the HR must focus on as a culturally compatible management system. To do so, the practices of the HR Management, more specifically, the staffing, training and development, incentive and payment packages, performance appraisals and job design, all become areas where HR can influence the cultural communication strategy. As a company that dedicated its existence to the production and sale of coffee, Starbucks has experience phenomenal growth to reach its current market leadership position. From generating sales of $122 million in 1993, Starbuck’s has grown to such an extent that its competitors have less outlets in all of the United States than Starbucks has in California. And the stated reason by its CEO, Howard Schultz, for this success is its people. â€Å"The way we treat our people affects the way they treat our customers and, in turn, our financial performance. † In lieu of this statement Starbucks offers good quality of work life to its employees, adopts diversity as an integral part of doing business, maintains a high standard in its production processes, develops its customers, engages in Corporate Social Responsibility, and recognizes the importance of maintaining profitability as a means of continued success. NOT-SO-SUCCESSFUL CORPORATE CULTURE Unfortunately, discovering the right fit of values that an organization can use as a component of its successful corporate strategy can become ‘the winner’s curse’ if left unmonitored, for while it is difficult to change any culture in any organization, changing a seemingly successful culture is next to impossible. No one wants to mess with a winning formula, whether due to superstition, the belief that it will weather any competition, or due to inability to accept that the environment has changed. Whatever the reason, history is replete with examples of how successful companies were brought to their knees by a more versatile competitor. The US automobile industry was indifferent of the lower-costing, higher-quality Japanese cars until it was too late, believing that the Japanese cars were just a momentary novelty. In the same way, until sales started decreasing fast Sears remained ignorant of the changes brought to the organizations environment by Wal-Mart. The McDonnell Douglas Corporation is another example of a company that failed to adapt to the changing environment, and was acquired by Boeing. Core Rigidities Inducting the use of Standard Operating Procedures as a means to increase production by cutting down on wastage of time and resources, while beneficial in producing economies of scale can be harmful to the future success of the firm as well. These procedures and routines can serve as a source of suitable solutions to any problems that might be faced, but in doing so negate the possibility of searching for knowledge and innovation outside the organization. Consequently the core competency of the firm is transformed into the core rigidity as exploration is shelved for exploitation. In addition to which, the feedback from the use of SOPs is ignored due to selective filter of already existing procedures which siphon out any corrective measures that the feedback might have been trying to highlight. This is largely due to the fact that no firm can keep changing forever. There is an absorptive capacity for every organization beyond which it is incapable of adapting to any more change. Crisis The only way to break out of such a potentially hazardous ‘advantage’ is for there to be an existence of a crisis that jolts the organization out of its routine. Some companies even try to introduce the perception of a crisis in the organization in order to stimulate innovation, such as Hewlett Packard, following the story by Sturgeon, ‘Microcosmic God’ in which Sturgeon talks of a miniature world which is introduced to numerous difficulties such as earthquakes, and droughts, and whose inhabitants are forced to either evolve or die out. While such practices might seem unethical it is disputed whether it is more advisable to let a firm fail because the leader of the organization could not bring it upon himself/herself to fool the employees for their future benefit. CONCLUSION If an organization’s successful culture eventually ends up costing the organization in the future, can it really be deemed a ‘successful’ corporate culture? Up to the limit of an organization’s absorptive capacity, a successful corporate culture should be redefined as a culture that while maintains all the characteristics as mentioned previously, is also a culture that can recognize that no matter what the fit of the organization’s culture is at present, that fit can change, and the possibility of that change should not be ignored, rather it should be actively sought out. And while it is a difficult thing to change a culture at any point, the organization should be ready to do so if it is to maintain its competitive advantage and not be replaced by a more nimble and recent competitor like Sears was by Wal-Mart. BIBLIOGRAPHY Cummings, T. G. & Worley, C. G. (2005) Organization Development and Change. USA. Thomson South-Western. Davenport, T. H. & Prusak, L. (2000) Working Knowledge. Harvard Business Press Hassard, J. & Pym, D.(1993) The Theory and Philosophy of Organizations. Routledge Hitt, M. A. , Hoskisson, R. E. & Ireland, R. D. (1998) Strategic Management: Competitiveness and Globalization. Cengage Learning Kono, T. & Clegg, S. (1998) Transformations of Corporate Culture. Walter de Gruyter Kotter, J. (1992) Corporate Culture and Performance. Free Press. Thompson, A. A. Jr. , Strickland III, A. J. & Gamble, J. E. (2006) Crafting and Executing Strategy. United States. McGraw-Hill Balkaran, L. (1995) Corporate Culture. Find Articles [Internet]. Available from [December 19, 2008] Denison, D. How your corporate culture can impact your business performance. IMD Webletter [Internet]. Available from [December 19, 2008] Flamholtz, E. & Hua, W. (2002) Strategic Organizational Development and the Bottom

Nurse in Vietnam Essay

Today, we have lost a legacy. Malcolm X was one of the greatest and most influential African Americans the world has ever known. He did so much to make us feel connected with our African American heritage. He would say the things we were thinking but were too afraid to say ourselves. He taught us to stand up for ourselves and our rights as black men. Who knew that a troubled young boy would become a powerful and educated leader? As a young troubled maker doing prison time, it was during his ten years in prison that he educated himself as well as introducing himself to the Nation of Islam teachings. After serving a couple of prison stints he even became a minister of numerous temples in Boston, Philadelphia and New York. He also started a newspaper titled â€Å"Muhammad Speaks† which touched on controversial views about his idea that blacks were superior. He became second in command to Elijah Muhammad but they butted heads and ended up going their own ways. Elijah stuck to his ideas of Nation of Islam, while Malcolm X focused on what true Islam taught. He felt that the Civil Rights Movement had the Blacks begging the whites for freedom, and he was not a fan of begging. He instead advocated black power and black consciousness even if it resulted in violence. He had several speeches, including â€Å"Black Man’s History,† â€Å"The Black Revolution,† and â€Å"Gods Judgment of White America† ( also known as â€Å" The chicken Come Home to Roost). These speeches he gave during the Nation of Islam. When he was transitioning to true Islam he gave â€Å"The Ballot or the Bullet.† After his transition to True Islam he gave a speech at Ford Auditorium. Today at 3:10 PM we were gathered at the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem to which him address the Organization of Afro-American Unity when three of Elijah  Muhammad’s follower brutally killed Malcolm X. They shot him 15 times at point blank range. He was pronounced dead on the arrival at Columbia Presbylerian Hospital shortly thereafter. He was 39 years old. The three men convicted of the assassination of Malcolm X were members of the National of Islam: Talmandge Hayer, Norm 3X Butler, and Thomas 15X Johnson. After Malcolm X’s death in 1965, his bestselling book The Autobiography of Malcolm X popularized his ideas, particularly among black youth, and laid the foundation for the Black Power Movement of the late 1960’s and 1970’s. References www.tru.tv.com Malcolm X By Walter Bell www.biography.com

Contract Scenario

Recently, Danny Davidson sold a family home to his friends Paul and Priscilla Peterson whereby entering into a $250,000 verbal agreement for the purchase of new home. However, Danny neglected to tell Paul and Priscilla about Ned the neighbor and the emerging dispute pertaining to the boundaries of the south property. Once the purchase was final the Petersons proceeded to invest an estimate of $65,000 for landscaping as well as implementing a new Italian bathtub in the bathroom.As the Peterson’s proceed to upgrade their new home cracks developed in the new tile whereby causing the bathroom floor to sink because of a landscaping issue with the soil on the property. Subsequently, a breach of contract emerged whereby causing the Peterson’s to file a suit against their friend. Valid or Invalid Contract â€Å"According to Kubasek, et al, legally binding contract must include the necessary elements â€Å"such as,† legal object, capacity along with consideration (2012, p. 306).However, in the scenario the couple entered a verbal agreement with a friend for the purchase of the home â€Å"thereby,† contingent on the information provided by a friend. The consideration estimated $250,000 for the purchase of the home. Nevertheless, neither of the entities were minors or endured some form of mental illness or legally intoxicated whereby indicating that each party was in complete capacity entering the aspects of a verbal agreement. Consequently, the contract was legally binding because the instrument met the necessary elements of the legal object, consideration, and capacity renders the validity of the contract enforceable.Breach and Statue of Fraud Conversely, the agreement between Danny and the couple lacked the elements of genuine assent because of a failure to disclose pertinent information pertaining to the neighbor’s boundary dispute along with the existing issues with the soil. Danny misrepresented as well as withheld information â⠂¬Å"in order,† to sell the house to the Petersons. Although the contract was valid â€Å"yet,† the Peterson’s suit claiming breach of contract lacked the aspects of genuine assent. When entering a contractual agreement each entity should enter freely.â€Å"Sometimes,† to obtain acceptance the offeror will implement improper measures â€Å"such as,† misrepresenting or non-disclosure of pertinent information employing undue influence, fraud as well as duress. Under these circumstances the offeree can implement the enforceable agreement defense â€Å"especially,† if the agreement lacks genuine assent (Kubasek, et al, 2012, p. 306). â€Å"According to,† the Statues of Fraud implementing a verbal agreement serves as a violation whereby assuming that the contractual agreement was not in writing nor filed or recorded. Agreements pertaining to the sale of land must be in writing.The rationale is because without a paper trail the agreement is n on-existent (Kubasek, et al, 2012, p. 408). Although a written agreement does not incur specific requirements â€Å"however,† the individual’s names, address along with the object and terms of the contract, consideration, and signature of each entity are the necessary elements for developing a valid contract (Kubasek, et al, 2012, p. 411). Defenses and Remedies Assuming that the couple would order a property inspection Danny made the decision to withhold pertinent information pertaining to the issues with the soil.Even though an inspection was not performed â€Å"but,† this does not explicate rationale of Danny’s choice for non-disclosure of his dispute with Ned the neighbor’s boundary issues on the south side of the property. To rectify the situations pertaining to the soil and property dispute Danny could order a land surveyor along with providing a reimbursement to his friends for the incurring damages. Perhaps if Danny chooses these options cou ld mend a long- time relationship along with eliminating a possible legal battle.â€Å"On the other hand,† the Petersons could take an alternate route by pursing legal recourse for breach of contract whereby making it necessary to terminate both the relationship as well as the verbal agreement without seeking any other damages Nevertheless, it would look as if the entities are leaving money on the table by ending the contractual relationship without pursuing further damages. Even though litigations are costly â€Å"however,† the parties perceive that termination serves as means of relational retaliation (Wilkerson-Roger & Hoffman, 2010, p. 1044). Trial or ADRSeveral measures can assist with resolving the Davidson and Peterson dispute involves implementing alternate dispute resolution measures â€Å"including,† litigation. Conversely, measures to resolve ongoing disputes emerge in various forms along with employing a third party to make decision in difficult situ ations through mediation and negotiations. Implementing these particular measures decreases the cost of legalities. Moreover, negotiations, and mediations are quick and fair whereby allowing each entity to part in the process of decision-making ultimately saving the relationship.Furthermore, relationships tend to deteriorate because of the cost and time spent in litigation. Contract Administration and Recommendations Clearly, the Petersons and Danny Davidson did not adhere to the principles of the contract creation. Even though the party’s main focus was on the contracts creation â€Å"however,† the parties did not secure the central functions, and definitions as well as compliance, and functional details of the agreement. Hence, the legalities of the agreement would not have been a concern for the Statues of Fraud if the parties were entering into a written contract.As a consultant, to remedy the situation between the Petersons and Danny Davidson would require the neg otiating of a new sales contract for the house. In addition to, creating new a legal contract that is valid and enforceable provides a future evidence of an existing agreement. Conclusion The aspects of verbal and oral contracts are not always recognized or enforceable even if the essential elements are visible. Nevertheless, entering a verbal contract should be put into words that indicated the agreements conditional terms along with the signatures of the parties involved provides visible evidence of an existing contract.

The Social Contract Theory of John Locke Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

The Social Contract Theory of John Locke - Essay Example ding, social contract hypothesis is rightly connected with advanced good and political hypothesis and is given its first full work and barrier by Thomas Hobbes. John Locke argued for the case that men are by nature free and equivalent against cases that God had made all individuals normally subject to a ruler. He contended that individuals have rights, for example, the privilege to life, freedom, and property that have an establishment autonomous of the laws of any specific culture. Locke utilized the case that men are normally free and equivalent as a major aspect of the support for comprehension true blue political government (Elahi, n.d.). It is due to the fact that the aftereffect of a social contract where individuals in the condition of nature restrictively exchange some of their rights to the administration so as to better guarantee the steady, agreeable delight in their lives, freedom, and property. Since governments exist by the assent of the individuals with a specific end goal to ensure the privileges of the individuals and advance the general population great, governments that neglect to do as such can be opposed and supplanted with new governments (Boucher & Kelly, 1994). Locke is hence additionally vital for his barrier of the privilege of unrest. Locke likewise protects the guideline of lions share standard and the division of administrative and official forces. In his Letter Concerning Toleration, the philosopher denied that pressure ought to be accustomed to convey individuals to (what the ruler accepts is) the genuine religion furthermore denied that chapels ought to have any coercive control over their individuals (Locke, 1963). Locke expounded on these subjects in his later political compositions, for example, the Second Letter on Toleration and Third Letter on Toleration. Essentially, the most focal idea in Lockes political reasoning is his hypothesis of regular law and characteristic rights (Boucher & Kelly, 1994). The normal law idea

Operations planning & control Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Operations planning & control - Case Study Example eport aims to analyse the case of the Ringinglow farm in terms of operational capacity and planning issues, and based on the findings to recommend the next steps to Fred and Gillan Giles. In order to increase returns on assets and to achieve the extra sales targets Gillian has decided to increase the number of farm visitors by 35 per cent through all the opening months in 2015. However, before making a final decision, it is necessary to analyze the demand for farm visits and the capacities. According to the information given in the case study, the number of visitors on weekend (Saturday and Sundays) is two times higher than on workdays. Therefore, it is possible to calculate the peak demand in 2014 and 2015 on a monthly basis. The data shows that the peak month in the Ringinglow farm is August (4258 visitors in 2014). Then, average weekly demand on Aug 2014 was 1064,5 visitors/week (=4258/4). On Saturdays or Sundays (August 2014) an average number of visitors was approximately 354 visitors per day (1/3 of 1064). Assuming that in 2015, the number of far visitors will increase by 35 per cent, during a peak month in August 2015, an average number of visitors will be 5748. The average weekly demand on August 2015 should be approximately 1437 visitors per week (=5748/4). On Saturdays or Sundays (August 2015) an average number of visitors was approximately 479 visitors per day (1/3 of 1437).Therefore, the pattern of farm visitors’ attendance is over 479 people on the peak day (Saturday or Sunday). As it has been identified in the case study, the parking capacity is 45 car spaces, and 6 spaces for 40-seater coaches. Assuming that the number of visitors arriving in one car will be 4, it is possible to say that the maximum car parking capacity is 180 people, and 240 people by coaches. Therefore, the maximum capacity of car parking per day is 420 people. Taking into consideration the fact that the forecasted number of visitors for 2015 during peak season in peak days

Presentism and Human Sacrifice in the Aztec Empire Essay

Presentism and Human Sacrifice in the Aztec Empire - Essay Example Among many other distinguishing features, the practice of human sacrifice is a custom that the Aztecs are known for. The sacrifices, which were made for ritualistic and religious purposes have assumed centrality in many contemporary academic debates. It is thus pertinent to discuss and analyze whether it is indeed accurate to judge the practices of the Mesoamerican period using the parameters of contemporary moralities. In Discovering the Global Past, the authors Wiesner, Wheeler, Doeringer and Curtis seek to study the Aztec culture from the perspective of the European colonizers as well as those of the indigenous Aztec people. The historical and ethnographic accounts of Bernardino de Sahagun are particularly important in this regard. In the section titled ‘Aztec accounts of temples, palaces, and games related to Bernadino de Sahagun’, the work shows how the Aztec ritual of human sacrifice had a complex logic of its own, and was not a practice of meaningless violence as it is often portrayed to be (Wiesner). The Aztecs believed that human life was sustained by a continuous sacrifice made by the gods. They used the term tonacayotl for this purpose, which roughly translates into ‘the necessary spiritual bodily sacrifice’ on earth. ... Sahagun’s accounts show that the lofty temple-pyramids of the Aztecs served as the site for these sacrifices. Unbiased historical research has also shown that it is incorrect to assume that the only the common folk were victimized as a result of this practice. Such a claim can be refuted at many levels, the primary being the fact that slaves in the Aztec empire, who constituted the majority of those who were offered for sacrifice, were not determined by birth. Rather, they could be people from any social rank who had committed anything unlawful. In fact, there is evidence to believe that the people embraced and incorporated the custom in their lives quite willingly. Historical accounts also how that the Aztec rulers sacrificed their own blood to ensure the well-being of their subjects. The six parts to each chapter in Discovering the Global Past reflect an attempt to consider multifarious historical events and periods in a systematic, pedagogic manner. There is also a thorough investigation of the root causes of the cultural bias which has become an almost intrinsic part of most models of historical study regarding the Native American civilizations. Most of the colonial accounts of the Aztec empire were formulated during the years of the siege of Tenochtitlan by the Spaniards under the leadership of  Hernan Cortes. Perhaps it can be argued that the racism of the European colonizers, triggered by religious orthodoxy, was the first governing cause which shaped the colonial impulse. The flawed academic approach of presentism, too, can be attributed to certain kind of racism, and an inability to understand or appreciate other cultures. Presentism which labeled the Aztec ritual of human sacrifices as inhuman and barbaric

The impact of privatisation on port efficiency Coursework

The impact of privatisation on port efficiency - Coursework Example For instance, at a macroeconomic level, port efficiency has been discovered to be an integral element in determining a country’s global competitiveness and trade prospects because it make exportation cheaper and thus, making the country’s products competitive in international markets (Culline, 2010; Park and De 2004). For this reason, governments are recognising the imperativeness of port efficiency both at the macro and micro economic levels and have started taking radical measures such as privatisation to improve their performance. This literature review examines the impact of privatisation on the efficiency of ports by examining empirical evidence and theoretical framework. In academic studies, the concept of efficiency has been used to evaluate the performance. In port literature, Wang and Knox (2011); Talley (2009) discusses three types of port efficiency, which include technical, overall and allocative efficiency. Technical efficiency is achieving the greatest productivity at the least cost possible while allocative efficiency is the production of goods and services that are demanded by customers. On the other hand, overall efficiency is the efficiency achieved when both allocative and technical efficiency are maximised and exist. For the purpose of this literature, all types of efficiency will be considered to determine the impact privatisation has on the efficiency of ports. According to Baird (2002), public ports are perceived to be inefficient because they are managed by government hierarchies and thus, suffer from disincentivisation, lack of clarity in operational responsibility and corporate objectives, goals displacement and excessive ministerial intervention (Demirel, Cullinane and Haralambides, 2011). Thus, as much as the role of the public in management of port facilities is inevitable and remains significant, it is imperative to recognise that privatisation of port facilities helps overcome the limitations of traditional,

Social Fashion Application Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Social Fashion Application - Coursework Example The essay "Social Fashion Application" concerns the design and fashion. This section covers prototyping and storyboarding as the participatory design techniques which provides an opportunity for the designers and users to work together during the development period. The benefits of such an approach include: a) Requirements are likely to be more accurate thus improving the system quality, b) Can help avoid certain costly application features which users might not be in need of, c) Helps improve the acceptance level of the product. A prototype refers to an application which is rapidly implemented and constitutes only a small section of the expected functionality of the full application. It is intended to help elicit for requirements by giving the involved team a chance to get early feedback relating to their ideas. Other than freezing system requirements before design or coding activities can continue, a throwaway prototype should be built to understand the requirements. The developmen t of the prototype will be based on the requirements known at present. Use of the developed prototype gives the clients an opportunity to actually â€Å"feel† the application. Prototyping would be ideal for a large application as this one because of the absence of an existing system to help in establishing the requirements. The prototype will not be a complete system and will not contain most of the details. It will just give a system which has overall functionality. Other than the active involvement of users during development .and providing an opportunity for the identification of difficult or confusing functions, exposure of end users to the built software prototype also provides an avenue for identification and correction of errors at an earlier stage thus avoiding rework at later dates. However, this approach has the risk of increasing an application’s complexity as the scope of the application can go beyond the initial plans The reason why the prototype model wou ld be appropriate for the Social Fashion Application is that the targeted users need to interact a lot with the desired application. The web interfaces in this application, requires a great level of interaction with the targeted users. Building an application which requires limited training and able to support ease of use among users would take a lot of time in case the development team ignores this model. Story Boards Storyboarding refers to a reiterative and interaction design method which employs a set of pictures or sketches in demonstrating the end to end solution towards a given task scenario. (CRM, 2006) Storyboarding is helpful in exploring potential experiences prior to investing in software development and as well as understanding the human context within which the application will be used. It can be useful in discovering the best design approach being that it is an earlier process thus reducing the development cost (What are Story Boards Good for?) The storyboards can be better alternatives compared to use cases, user stories or task scenarios because the preparation of any of the documents can always be frustrating then possibly end in a software product that is not satisfactory. Also, they can be used to complete the any of the business requirements documents mentioned above. Stories work effectively in the software world for being able to help the

Critical analysis the business environment of Mr. and Mrs. Yates Essay

Critical analysis the business environment of Mr. and Mrs. Yates Grocery stores - Essay Example They do not hold the store in selling popular products but rather have developed a distinct business differentiation by targeting that population which likes to buy European food items. This gives them a slightly different target market than the other grocery stores and super markets in the vicinity. The grocery stores are medium sized; the profits are dependent upon the number of sales made each day as they cannot be dependent upon a huge variety and array of products as there is limited space in the stores. The Yates believe that they are providing a service rather than just selling grocery to their customers; they believe in being knowledgeable about the grocery they are selling and they are well versed in their specification so that they can provide ample and astute guidance to their customers. In-spite of these fine aspects, the Yates have been suffering huge losses and mismanagement problems, this report struggles to identify the cause of these problems and offer solutions. We are going to analyze the operations, information, and quality management problems that the company is facing. For this we first need to establish what these concepts are: Operations management: Operations management is a branch of management that deals in overseeing and refining the business processes so that they incorporate optimization of resources (minimum use of resources and maximum output) and also make them apt at meeting customer needs. It concerns constructing new processes and redesigning old ones to make them more efficient and optimal. Information management: This concerns the collection and management of information from all the sources available; sorting useful information from the clutter and utilizing it in time to ensure the efficient and effective management of resources. Quality management: Quality management is ensured in any organization by catering to the following aspects: Quality planning Quality control Quality assurance Quality improvement If the organizat ion is adhering to these four aspects, not only in their product/services but also in all their processes and procedures, and ensuring continuous improvement, only then is it a quality organization. Now, this report will aim to find the discrepancies in the Yates grocery stores related to these concepts. The first tools being utilized to analyze the grocery store is: 1. PESTLE Analysis: The environment in which a business operates can be very dynamic and unpredictable; it contains the following aspects: 1.1. Political: The free trade policies that are being adopted by governments are a great benefit to the Yates as they have to import international food items. These no tariff policies greatly reduce the cost of the products. Any change in these policies will be a threat to the Yates. All businesses have to adhere by the rules and regulations established by the government for the working of a business, they include: agreements, MOU’s, charters etc. They are very important and have to be managed in order to maintain smooth running of the business (Kerzner 2009, p. 65-92). 1.2. Economical: Economic factors are a great concern for the Yates as they impact the buying behaviors of customers directly. The recent recession is a great example of how economy affects businesses. If the buying power of people reduces, they give priority to the necessities and do not divulge in unnecessary items such as foreign food

A critical appraisal and evaluation of the constraints and legal Dissertation

A critical appraisal and evaluation of the constraints and legal protections for foreign investment - Dissertation Example It is for this reason that states and international communities strive towards organizing transactions with the objective of extracting the maximum from foreign investments. Moreover, states and businesses aim at protecting their investments because of the fact that foreign investment is characterized with the internal and external movement of capital turnover and exploitation. Many developing countries believe that foreign investment is an urgent need for achieving economic growth and adopting better technology in their production processes. Developed nations can exploit their technical expertise by investing their capital in developing countries and thus make optimum use of the resources available in these countries. But this need cannot be effectively achieved unless an appropriate environment is created for foreign investments. This implies that foreign investments cannot be made efficient unless a stable process is applied to carry out actions and transactions in a suitably crea ted environment that is free from fear and uncertainty. Additionally, such needs require the implementation of the initial provisions in terms of the existence of such circumstances in order to effectively deal with hurdles that could result in scaled investments and contractions. This is necessary in order to alleviate the intensity of such problems, which is possible only if a legal framework is determined in carrying out the required operations. This paper aims at achieving this goal by examining the varied constraints that obstruct or prevent the smooth flow of foreign capital. It is also important to examine and search for protective measures in terms of legal security for domestic investments. This is best done by balancing conflicting commercial interests independently and without bias and without violating the legitimate rights of the contracting parties. In considering the given perspectives, a critical appraisal and evaluation of the constraints and legal protections for f oreign investment will be made by making a descriptive and analytical appraisal of different issues. The paper will first analyze the phenomenon of foreign investment in terms of legal and economic concepts. Next, an investigation will be done of the emergence and the development of the phenomenon of foreign investment. Finally, the role of foreign investment in the development of trade and the economics in different countries will be discussed. An acknowledged belief in regard to foreign investments is that the advantages accruing from them depend on how they are dealt with by the host country. Researchers have made qualified propositions to the effect that properly regulated foreign investments have the potential to create economic growth, employment, technology advancements, skilled manpower, market accessibility and development of the economy. It is necessary to balance the negativities of foreign investments with their positive effects by adopting applicable systems of control and taxation. Thus, it can be said that foreign investments can be good or bad for any economy, depending on how they are dealt with. This viewpoint is being increasingly accepted in many countries. It is believed in this regard that foreign investments are indispensable for the development and growth of developing economies, no growth is possible without foreign inflow of capital, foreign investments bring efficient ways of managing resources, technologies, competition and accessibility to international markets. Developing countries are not being forced by any entities to seek foreign investments but their governments need them. The private sector is

Human Capital Management Essay Example for Free

Human Capital Management Essay â€Å"It is important for HR Management in managing the knowledge capital of an organization and aligning it with organization’s strategic plan†. Critically assess the strategic role of HCM and challenges of managing the knowledge capital in an organization that you are familiar. The organization that I would like to choose is Jabatan Pelajaran Negeri Terengganu (JPNT). JPNT consists of more than 400 workforce and this agency is responsible for administrative and policy executioner of Ministry of Education in the whole Terengganu. In JPNT, there is a small unit of Human Resource Department and this department has 20 staffs. However, until the last day of my service there, the HR department did not establish any single policy about human capital management. Therefore I will attempt to answer this question while recommending what should be done by JPNT to succeed in maximizing their human capital. Before we discuss further the strategic role of HCM and challenges that had to be overcome by HCM specialist, let us look at the technical definition of this question. Knowledge capital is defined by Business Dictionary as the â€Å"know how† that results from the experience, information, knowledge, learning, and skills of the employees of an organization. Of all the factors of production, knowledge capital creates the longest lasting competitive advantage. It may consist entirely of technical information or may reside in the actual experience or skills acquired by the individuals (BusinessDictionary. com 2012) . Knowledge capital is an essential component of human capital. Human Capital is defined by (Baron and Armstrong 2007) as the knowledge, skills, abilities and capacity to develop and innovate possessed by people in the organization. This is one of the attributes of the intellectual capital. Intellectual capital is defined by the same author as the stocks and flows of knowledge available to an organization. It is categorized into three categories namely human capital, social capital and organizational capital. These capitals are usually combined with the physical resources which are the financial and physical assets for the purpose of value creation to the firm. As cited by (Sveiby 1998)Tom Stewart who in his June 1991 article Brain Power How Intellectual Capital Is Becoming Americas Most Valuable Asset, proposed the importance of intellectual capital to the management agenda. He defined intellectual capital in his article as: the sum of everything everybody in your company knows that gives you a competitive edge in the market place. Knowledge Management consists of managerial activities that focus on the development and control of knowledge in an organization to fulfill organizational objectives. (Sveiby 1998) Therefore it means that the integration of all management activities that focus on development and control of knowledge is what we call as knowledge management. Challenges of managing knowledge capital in JPNT will be diffused together as I explained about the role of HCM in the organization. Knowledge management is defined as the process of storing and sharing the wisdom, understanding and expertise accumulated in an organization about its processes, techniques and operations (Baron and Armstrong 2007). Therefore, the data that should be synthesized and acquired should explain the organization’s activity for instance the achievement of the employees in knowledge sharing among them and ensure that the knowledge is maximized in terms of its usage. Everybody must share their skill, knowledge and experience without any malicious intentions for the purpose of maximizing the performance of JPNT. However, it brings challenges to HR specialist in JPNT as it is not a culture of sharing. Some of the staffs afraid to share their know how because they thought that by doing so, it might jeopardized their career envelopment in the future. HR specialist overcomes this by implementing a fair assessment indicator to measure their performance without favoritism, nepotism and biasness. In my opinion, the most important attributes that distinguish Human Resource (HR) with Human Capital Management is the element of the workers as assets. As discussed by (Baron and Armstrong 2007) human capital theory emphasized on regarding people as assets of the organization, and investment in people will generate long run return. Scarborough and Elias noted that human capital theory is similar to physical capital theory but they differ in terms of the reference for human capital theory is made to people and skills while in physical capital theory reference is made to plant and equipments. Both emphasized on value creations to firm. Thus by applying this theory, JPNT needs to redefine the cost associated with training and development and career progression as the investment that will create value for the agency. Staff that undergoes training must be ensured that the new skills matched with their job description and the staff is using that new knowledge in order to effectively execute their job. For instance, the weekly training is not supposed to be done by the JPNT if on the purpose of fulfilling the quotas of training hours. Remuneration is not under JPNT’s jurisdictions however JPNT can recommend the salary of their staff to PSD (Public Service Department). Accepting staff as the asset of the organization will be mutually benefit to both parties involved. On the employee’s part, they will be feeling more motivated, appreciated thus will contribute better in their performances. As for the organization, it will boost the overall organization’s performance, decrease turnover rate, absenteeism and other negative behavior of the staffs. However this theory is not agreed by some scholar for instance Davenport(1999). Davenport argued that worker must not be treated as assets because of three main reasons. The first reason is workers cannot be brought, sold and replaced by their owner. Secondly, the principle of this theory is unacceptable and inappropriate in practice is because workers cannot be owned by the firm as the firm owned plants and machines. Lastly, there is not absolute way of calculating human value-no convincing method of attaching financial value to human resources. Therefore, treating workers sorely based on assets can create drawback to the organization. The interpretation of this concept should be made carefully and it should match with the objective of the organization. It is also not an easy task to convince the top management since the culture of bureaucracy is very strong in JPNT. The next part, I will discuss about the strategic role of HCM. HCM’s role as stated in the book Human Capital Management by Baron and Armstrong, HCM acts as business partner of the firm. Secondly, they are also responsible in developing, analyzing and using business data. Thirdly, they are also responsible for enhancing job engagement and commitment, fourthly, they are responsible to build ‘Business Case’ and lastly, they are also responsible for engaging with the other function of the organization. (Baron and Armstrong 2007)These points will be elaborated one by one in below. For the first one HCM acts as the business partner with the top management of the organization. This concept was introduced by Ulrich in 1998 where the author proposed that HR specialist should be share responsibility with management people to run the business. They must have the ability to understand and exploit opportunities and HR specialist themselves must understand how their role could help in achieving the objective of the organizations. Ulrich suggested that in order for the organization to create value, HR professionals must carry out their responsibility as strategic partners, administrative experts, employees’ advocates and as driver of changes. This can be done through strategy execution, improved planning by thorough discussion on how the firm should be organized to carry out the strategies. HR engagement with operating and marketing function is essentials in ensuring that all of their initiatives will become successful by answering the following issues- whether the initiatives is best aligned with strategy implementations, they make selection based on priority, and lastly the evaluations of the initiatives should be indicate positive linkage to business result. HR specialist must act as employee advocate, human capital developer, functional expert, strategic partner and lastly as leader in terms of HR function. However, the premise â€Å"HCM act as business partner† did not agreed by all practitioners. Tim Miller and Alex Wilson reported by Smethurst(2005) and Pickard(2005) are the examples of the top management who disagree with this premise. Convincing the top management will not going to be easy. Still HCM emphasized on the importance of evaluation of what had been happen within the organization and it also provides basis for value adding strategist. Therefore, according to this theory, HCM in this case the HR specialist in the human resource department should work together with the top management of JPNT in ensuring the creation of value to the firm. The value that we meant here is creating competitive human capital that at the end of the day this human capital will be able to serve successfully to their customers thus deliver excellence business service for the organizations. Secondly, HR is responsible to develop, analyze and use human capital data. The measurements that must be developed by HR should be able to measure issues relating to workforce, capable of measuring the levels and trends in performance achieved by both individual and business, can measure the impact of HR policies and practices on business performance or what Mercer HR Consulting called as â€Å"Business Impact Modeling†. It is also expected that HR should be able in building an effective measurement to measure the effectiveness of line manager in applying HR policies and the measurement tools should be able to measure the effectiveness of HR function (Baron and Armstrong 2007). The workforce matrix should provide data which allows the business to measure the key characteristics of the people it employs. Understanding the relationship between workforce matrix and people management is very important because the workforce matrix focus on the influences business performance and show the business of what need to be done to improved the added value from human capital resources. Therefore, HR cannot simply gain data without proper implementations of specific procedures and standards because gaining accurate data will never be easy. The data accuracy will show the current situation and trends of human capital within the organizations. In JPNT, the typical tool to measure the human capital is Key Performance Indicator (KPI) in human resource department reflect the organizational goal. They matched the number of training and types of training according to the need of the staff. Therefore KPI’s adopt by Human Resource department is quantifiable; they are defined in terms of the feedback that they gain through exit training survey. This KPI however is not emphasized on skills retention that the staff gained on the training. They are not focus workers as the assets of an organization; therefore, I think there are a lot of improvement needs to be carried out to improve this measurement method. Next, is on the aspect of measuring the overall performance. Human Resource department use Balance Score Card that is developed by Beatty et. Al (2005) to measure them. Balance Score Card highlighted four important aspects which are customer perspectives, internal perspectives, innovations and learning perspectives and lastly the financial perspectives. This scorecard focuses on balanced representation and analysis of data. In HR, four dimensions are being highlighted which are HR competencies, its practices, systems and deliverables. On the aspect of financial performance, the HR department always runs cost benefit analysis to choose the best trainer to train their staff or just simply using the internal sources that they have. Productivity is measure when the training course that undergo by the staff is beneficial and the new knowledge are continuously used by the staff. The operational impact or effectiveness is measure for instance creation of successful training course to the staff and when the staff perceived such programs contribute to their career developments. Lastly, is in terms of customer service. Through continuous training programs, the staffs become more skillful in treating the customers thus more of them will be delighted. Measuring the impact of HR policies and practices are one of the toughest roles of HR specialist. This is because it is hard to determine â€Å"causation†-what actions or factors that are specially cause the performance (Baron and Armstrong 2007). Genome II is a model that was developed by National Building Society proved statistically that the more committed the employee, the happier the customer will. Genome project had focus on recruitment and retention, deeper understanding of the commitment of the employees, reward system that is more transparent and flexible, increase the effectiveness of the execution on the first line management, promotes recognitions, and develop a culture where both managers and their subordinates demonstrate right behaviors. Focus area of GenomeII could act as a benchmark to be applied in JPNT. Effectiveness of the line manager could be improved with the intervention HCM (Bohlander and Snell 2010). Guidance, help and further training is available in case where they need them. With this, it was hoped that line managers can carry out their people management responsibilities effectively. For instance if the line manager of JPNT encounter any unsolved problem or the problem is not routine, they can always refers to HCM specialist to guide them. Human resource should be measure to indicate whether they are executing their role and meet the target of their department. Tsui and Gomez-Mejia (1998) cited in (Baron and Armstrong 2007) had clarified the distinction between process criteria- how well things are done and output criteria- the effectiveness of the end result. To distinguish them, ‘utility approach’ by Boudreau(1998) can be applied. Beside this approach, HR performances can also be measured using points suggested by Likierman (2005) that the budget allocation is in line with HR objectives- means HR has a say in changes in implementing the strategy, analyze and interpret the reason behind it, comparing internal and external benchmarking, enhance the usage face to face discussion to gain the feedback, and lastly the measurement should not expect to measure something that is impossible, and they should be noted that many problems just being mitigated, instead of being solved, and this is harmful to the JPNT. Another important role of HCM is in the terms of promoting job engagement and commitment. Job engagement happens when people are willing to commit to their work and willing to perform excellently in their job. Hay Group defined engage performance as a result that is stimulated by employee’s enthusiasm for their work and direct it to the success of the organizations. On the other hand, organizational commitment is defined as the recognition of goals and values of the organization, a sense of belonging to the organization and willingness to contribute effort for the organization (Baron and Armstrong 2007). Organization commitment and job engagement can be created by JPNT if JPNT set a great place to work, HR people promotes positive discretionary behavior, create excellence total reward policy and constantly measure job engagement and commitments. JPNT should provide conductive working environment- comfortable in nature, ergonomics, make sure that the job prospect is parallel with training, appraisal, and the superior staff should take care of the welfare of their subordinates. JPNT can adopt the criteria suggested by The Sunday Times in identifying the best 100 companies which are leadership of senior management level, good relation with their superiors, have the opportunities of personal growth and developments, balanced work-life issues, cooperativeness between colleagues, my company- the way JPNT treats its staff and lastly the fair deal- pay and benefits are provided to all, without nepotism and biasness. The superior should also act in discretion manner; it means that not everything must be solved black and white. For instance, if one of the subordinates absent for their work with a concrete reason, the superior should not punish he or her. Reward is categorized into two which are transactional reward (tangible reward-the pay and benefits) and relational reward (intangible reward-learning and development and work environment). That is the responsibility of HR to create the best reward model that can motivate their employees in the future. The tangible reward is easily to be copied by the competitors as everyone have the capability to pay and gives benefit for instance dental plan, but the intangible reward it harder to be imitated thus increase the chances of sustaining the firm’s competitive advantages. Next, another role for HR professionals is as strategist. Strategist here means HR professional should be able to address long term issues related to management and development of people and the employment relationships. This role is clearly demonstrated when HR professional are being regarded as business partner- they have the persuasion power to influence the top managers to develop business strategies that are maximizing the potential of human capital. (Baron and Armstrong 2007) As we discussed earlier, people are the assets of the organizations, thus they are one of the resource to achieve and sustain competitive advantage of JPNT HCM is also responsible to develop a good business case. Baron and Armstrong 2007) As I discussed previously, HR specialist should be able to persuade top management, a good business case can act as one of the convincing evidences on why the top management should agree to HR specialist’s proposals. The case should show how the purposed course will add value in terms of income will exceed the cost or by executing the proposal, it will yield positive return on investments (Bohlander and Snell 2010). The business case should present on how the available human capital data will impact on key areas of organization’s operation, show how it will the proposal will increase the business competitive edge, or presenting a successful pilot projects to be implemented to the entire organization, the proposal can be implemented without much hassles, it will also able to enhance the employer’s brand by promoting JPNT as the best place to work and lastly the points, data are presented in neat manner, simple and easy to understand. Challenges for managing knowledge are knowledge acquisition, knowledge modeling, knowledge retrieval, knowledge reuse and knowledge maintenance. In JPNT it is hard to get the information needed and turn the information to become useable. For instance, it is hard to transform the tacit knowledge to become explicit knowledge, to identify the gaps in knowledge, and difficult to acquire and integrate the knowledge that is cross departmental and different expertise. Therefore, it is important for the HR specialist in JPNT to be able to create an approach that is able to integrate all knowledge in the organization so that it can be benefited to all. On the top of that, knowledge modeling is also can be another obstacle for HR specialist in managing knowledge capital in the organization. The challenge that is faced by JPNT HR specialist is how to use the knowledge available in solving problems because knowledge possessed by staffs are varies from one another (Bhojaraju 2005). To overcome this, HR departments had introduce mentor and protege program. As a conclusion, the roles that are played by HCM are indeed complex and requires HR specialists to be able to multitasking, possessed multidisciplinary of knowledge and wide range of skills to execute their roles perfectly thus enable them to overcome the challenges of managing knowledge capital in JPNT. Top managements should also give full cooperation in favor of HCM so that the utilization of knowledge capital in JPNT could be maximized.

Compare two or more poems that convey different impressions about town life Essay Example for Free

Compare two or more poems that convey different impressions about town life Essay Compare two or more poems that convey different impressions about town life. Compare their purposes and techniques in writing these poems. In this essay I will analyse and discuss the similarities and differences of four poems, all about relating to life in London: Symphony In Yellow by Oscar Wilde, Composed Upon Westminster Bridge by William Wordsworth, London by William Blake, and Conveyancing by Thomas Hood. I will aim to focus on the techniques used by the poets and the overall effect the poet is trying to create. I will later illustrate the similarities and differences between the poems and how they convey comparable impressions of London. In the late 18th and 19th century, the country life was seen to be peaceful and calm, and London in general was seen as a busy and hectic atmosphere. Oscar Wilde was born in 1854 and grew up in an intellectually bustling Irish household. His inspirations of London came when he visited the city, in order of fulfilling his dream of becoming famous. I would expect an idealistic impression of London from Wilde, as he looks up upon London and believes that it is the place in which he will gain a successful career. William Wordsworth was brought up in the Lake District where he became extremely familiar of the exquisiteness of the surroundings. In his poems, I would expect Wordsworth to revolve around nature and to capture the inner beauty that the environment creates. William Blake was an imaginative poet who had visionary experiences for the supernatural. I expect that in his poems, the images created would be of an abnormal presence or enclosing a lack of liveliness and presenting a disturbed situation. Thomas Hood was brought up in a part of London which was not so wealthy, and where the citizens were not as well off than other parts of London. Later in his life, he was left to roam the streets of London, a time when he spent most of his life in solitary. This leads to me believing that Hood would write his poems about the different areas of the city, and what London basically comprises of. Also, I think believe that his poetry would have meaning that links in with the passing of time, as Hood spent a lot of his life watching the time go by. Composed Upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802 is a petrachan sonnet, not written about love, but one in which eulogises the view over West Minster Bridge. William Wordsworth is describing the view because he is inspired it and the feelings surrounding the beauty of the view. It is similar to Symphony in Yellow because it is an idealistic view of the surroundings; it also has a beautiful, tranquil impression of city life. The poem is set in the early morning, which gives a special sort of radiance to the city. It gives an impression of a clean and refreshed setting that is virtually seen as shiny and new. It beauty is enhanced by introducing the dazzling sun. The poem is different to Conveyancing as it is more peaceful and calming. Later in the day it would be more tense, more rushing, and lots of hustle and bustle. Wordsworths impression is based on London at a time of the morning where everything is asleep, and the time when nature invades a man-made scene. He uses antiquated words such as, doth, and ne-er which gives a sense of the city being more special, The city now doth. Wordsworth also uses similes such as, like a garment, wear the beauty of the morning, suggests that the morning is the striking part, like a garment cloaking the reality of the city. It is a covering, a beautiful faà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ade that is only temporary while the morning lasts. The word steep means to be saturated in. The sun is completely saturating the hill; never did it more beautifully shine until it shone onto the buildings. The power of the sun if infusing all buildings with light. The effect given is that of the sheer radiance of sun, which is saturating everything. The metaphor, That mighty heart relates towards the human body; the heart, being the main organ, is at the centre. The heart pumps resources around and therefore gives life and feeds the rest of the city. Everything centres around the city, while country is a life-giving organ. Touching and majesty in line 3 suggests awe and wonder, the poet is emotionally moved by the sight. It is a graceful and elegant sight that holds certain power that allows it to come across as commanding and reveal an impressive nature. It is to be looked upon, and it forces you to be humble upon its present. The beauty of the morning; silent, bare, Ships, towers, domes, theatres and temples lie. This list helps to construct the landscape as well as to create an image of all the buildings in the distant. It fills in the readers knowledge of the actual physical features that lay in the city, which help to understand the overall image created by filling in more detail to it. Bright and glittering implies a sense that the buildings are treasures, like jewels all glittering as the sun is shimmering through. Never did sun more beautifully steep contains alliteration, which produces sibilant sounds. This contributes to a tranquil feeling, certainly not an aggressive sound. It creates a restful atmosphere, and with the aid of soft consonants such as s a smooth dreamy effect is created. Neer saw I, never felt, a calm so deep! This repetition disrupts the flow and draws attention to the fine feeling he has. Quite a spontaneous feeling is illustrated by adding as it goes along; it is a personal attempt to record feelings. The river glideth at his own sweet will, is a form of personification that infuses the river with a sense of life. The personality of the river is amiable and sweet natured, it is a sentimental way of making it a positive feature. Dear God! The abrupt exclamation jolts the poem in attempt to suddenly articulate his feelings. It is quite a conversational line that recreates the experience of personal thought and emotion. The poem Conveyancing is a ballad that uses comedy to portray a bustling picture of life in London. Conveyancing is a general term for moving things from one place to another, which is exactly what this poem is about. It is a ballad, which tells a story, and is characterized by stanzas of four lines that rhyme alternately. The poem has a regular rhythm/rhyme scheme throughout, and regular syllables to help people sing it fluently. It is a version of a comedy poem with a punch that portrays London as a place of trade, poverty and stealing. The word Bustling suggests light-hearted action. Hood is being affectionate towards London but critical also, no one ever stops. It suggests that the city is too busy, and life is always on the go, loco-motion! Machine or man, or caravan, implies that people are always busy making and taking money. It also means that you can practically have anything if you pay for it. There is a lot of mention about the actual people in the city, and what happens in their life. Also, how they make an impact on how the city looks at a stereotypical perspective. There is talk about gambling, people getting drunk, and journalists. There are also jokes about horses being out of condition, Then if you like a single horse, This age is quite a cab-age. This suggests the poverty and scarcity in the city. Perched up to behind, at last to find, Your dinner is all dickey! This is being critical of the cafes in London, and also of the standard of food that is served there. There is a satirical tone that is brought in throughout the poem, whence the positive and negative aspects are shown. Some of the words are italicised, this defines a certain emphasis on words that create a constant rhythm going. There are a lot of references to transport such as steam, train and horses. This adds to the impression of a fast-paced moving environment. Symphony in Yellow is a poem where Wilde picks out dimensions of a scene that he is describing. There is far less activity in this poem than Conveyancing, and more of a tranquil atmosphere. The humans are not dominant impressions unlike Conveyancing. Symphony in Yellow is more about the nature and the soothing tone of the country. Crawls like a yellow butterfly, is associating with meadows and peace. It adds to the calm and relaxed mood of the poem. The thick fog hangs along the quay. This quote shows the fact that for is not just described as a dismal and depressing feature, but as elegant and enhancing. There are signs of trees and vegetation, The yellow leaves begin to fade. Also, And flutter from the Temple elms. Again, this enhances the nature prospect and the beauty of the poem. Pale green Thames, is another dazzling luxury, which brings colour to the scene. Wildes Symphony in Yellow is a simple image-based soporyphic poem. It is written in a very idealistic motion, painting a misleading portrait. It is more artistic that accurate. The poem is rather like Composed Upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802 as it is an idealistic view of London, taking into account the nature and character of the city instead of focusing on man-made features.

Operations Strategy Case Study of Factory

Operations Strategy Case Study of Factory Consultants Report |  An Operational Review  of  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The Factory† Contents (Jump to) 1. Executive Summary 2. Introduction 3. Strategic Review 4. Operational Issues 4.1 Processes 4.2 Plant/Equipment 4.3 Customers 4.4 Contractors/Supply Chain 4.5 Personnel 4.6 Environmental 4.7 Market/Competitors 5. Recommendations 6. Further Recommendations 7. Conclusion 8. Bibliography 9. Appendices 1.  Executive Summary This Report has identified the Pea Factory (the Factory)’s operations strategy as focusing on producing quality products, on time and satisfying the bespoke requirements of its customers. It achieves this through its quality controlled operational processes and procedures. Unfortunately these processes and procedures are not without problems, which are categorised under the following headings; processes, personnel, environmental, plant/machinery and market/competition. Problems encountered with quality issues can be addressed by carrying out a review of the whole process using qualitative and quantitative methods, applying benchmarking techniques and reviewing the whole system and applying total quality management methodology. The introduction of computerisation into the administrative process would eliminate human error and remove communication problems within the control room. It may also provide the opportunity of reducing costs (over a period), with the removal of personnel. The supply chain is a fundamental area for focus, as this is crucial for the survival of the business. Ensuring the supply chain is running smoothly is not only an extremely difficult thing to achieve and it can also be extremely costly. The management team need to focus on maintaining good relations with all suppliers, contractors and subcontractors. Many of the issues, such as lack of capacity, the requirement for additional equipment, increased market share etc could easily be improved with the acquisition of a competitor. This needs serious consideration, although it obviously requires investment by the parent company. In the meantime however, by implementing the recommendations in this report, the Factory can and will move closer to achieving sustainable competitive advantage and improving productivity, whilst reducing costs. 2.  Introduction This Report has been commissioned to provide an operational review of â€Å"The Pea Factory† (the Factory). The operations strategy will be identified together with an analytical review being carried out on the operational problems facing the Factory. Areas such as; how the entire process is controlled, the use and maintenance of the equipment, the focus on the customers’ needs and the use of quality control amongst other areas. The Report will also make recommendations for improvements to the operation, which will eliminate many of the problems highlighted. For instance, the introduction of a computerisation into the control room to monitor the process from start to finish would remove many of the timing and communication issues experienced. In undertaking the research for this report there were a number of other aspects of the operation that were identified, which would benefit from improvement and they are also contained within this report. 3.  Strategic Review In order to complete a strategic review of the Factory, it is necessary to first understand what is meant by the term operations strategy. According to Slack et al1], it is; â€Å"the total pattern of decisions and actions which set the role, objectives and activities of the operation so that they contribute to and support the organisation’s business strategy.† In order to develop an operations strategy, the operations manager has to consider a number of factors such as the needs of customers, as well as what the competition are doing. According to Porter(2); â€Å"an organisation should aim to achieve sustainable competitive advantage† The Factory achieves this by focusing on their customer requirements and by producing a quality product, in a timely fashion and at a reasonable cost. The ability to adapt and be flexible in its approach to its customer’s demands is an important feature in the organisation’s strategy. The Factory concentrates on its core competencies (that of the production of frozen vegetables) rather than diversifying into other products such as pizzas, pies and other products. Specialisation is key to the strategy. Whilst sufficient information is known about the Factory’s operations strategy, little is known about the Group’s strategy, and how the Factory’s operations strategy fits with it, other than to say that they are specialist food producers. 4.  Operational Issues A review of the processes and procedures of the Factory using a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis was undertaken (see Appendix 1 attached). This identified several operational problem areas, which have been grouped under the following headings; processes, plant/equipment, customers, contractors/supply chain, personnel, environmental and market/competitors. 4.1  Processes The operation’s process is coordinated from the control room. Unfortunately the control systems used are manual ones, with any change in process being amended on â€Å"the board†, this manual process could lead to errors, miscommunication and time delays. With the limited daily processing capacity, even if there was greater demand, the organisation would not be able to cope. Further, there is little room for error with the tight time line from picking to blanching. Quality issues with stock held in quarantine, and bulk peas needing to be run though the Sortex colour sorter, several times, results in wasted time and cost. 4.2  Plant/Equipment The extensive use of expensive machinery means that the organisation’s overheads are high with costly down time through failure (particularly unplanned). This has a detrimental effect of the Factory’s ability to achieve its targets and to fulfil orders, costing the organisation both time and money. 4.3  Customers Tailor made packaging for its customers may have a negative effect on the cost base. Satisfying the customer’s needs is an important aspect of the organisations strategy, but the question needs to be asked, as what cost? In order to answer this question, detailed financial information would be required for analysis. 4.4  Contractors/Supply Chain The use of so many contractors in various parts of the process does lead to problems such as communication, control and quality. Differing yields and size containers results in identification and storage difficulties. Using multiple storage contractors could result in missing stock and lack of quality control. This could result in down time and ultimately affect the quality of the product. 4.5  Personnel Fluctuating staff levels at different times of the year causes particular problems for the organisation. The need to train and re-train new staff results in delays and errors. Lack of communication causes costly delays. Such seasonal work may not be entirely satisfying thereby creating problems with lack of job satisfaction, and therefore lack of attention to detail. 4.6  Environmental Environmental issues are a major headache. The weather clearly impacts on the production of the pea crop. The varying weather patterns create uncertainty and scheduling issues. The crop rotation cycle also restricts the level of produce provided in any given region at any given time. This limiting factor can result in not enough of the product being available. 4.7  Market/Competitors An analysis of the competitive environment reveals that there is at least one privately owned competitor who is using aggressive pricing in the market. There is also the issue of the major retailers controlling the market. If one of the retailers decides to stop using the Factory then this will negatively impact the level of profitability and sustainability of the business. All of these issues need to be addressed immediately and the recommendations for doing so are highlighted in the next section. 5. Recommendations All operation managers experience difficulties and this is certainly the case at the Factory. In order to achieve operational effectiveness, Slack et al (3), agrees that there should be; â€Å"Smooth customer flow, a clean, well-designed environment, sufficient goods to satisfy demand, sufficient staff to serve customers, appropriate quality of service, a continuous stream of ideas to improve its operations†. What better way to measure a smooth customer flow than to introduce a computerised system which will track the stock, deliveries and all the processes from start to finish. This would require significant investment, but would have the benefit of eliminating human error and reducing overhead (by reducing the number of staff required to fulfil the function). Whilst this would affect staff morale, a programme of empowerment should be implemented combined with a reward scheme or performance measurement which would motivate the staff to achieve their individual and the organisation’s goals. A Total Quality Management (TQM) process should be implemented, the characteristics of which are; â€Å"meeting the needs and expectations of customers, covering all parts of the organisation, including every person in the organisation, examining all costs which are elated to quality, especially failure costs, getting things right first time, developing systems and procedures which support quality and improvement, developing a continuous process of improvement†.4] Using a process flow chart (similar to that shown in Appendix 2) would help to clearly identify what happens during the operations process and therefore show up the problem areas. Input-output analysis could be undertaken. Further analysis could be carried out using scatter diagrams, cause-effect diagrams and Pareto5] diagrams. The issue of the limited daily processing capacity could be improved with the purchase of additional equipment. Additional quality checks should be introduced into the process in order to eliminate time wasting through re-sorting the product, and the down time of equipment. This could be done through benchmarking or other continuous improvement mechanisms. According to Deming the PDCA6] (plan, do, check, act) cycle should be used, alternatively business process re-engineering which has been very popular recently. That is: â€Å"the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in the critical, contemporary measures of performance, such as cost, quality, service and speed.†7] Although this has been criticised as being the latest fad, as well as being an excuse for removing personnel and it could ultimately result in the loss of essential experience from the Factory. Additional preventative maintenance should be scheduled which would help resolve part of the issue of the unplanned downtime. The employment of an additional maintenance person would also speed up the process. The issue of bespoke packaging of the product for the customer should be debated within [2]the management team. If uniform packaging is introduced, this could result in a reduction in costs. However this needs to be [3]carefully weighed up against the customer needs and ultimately deciding not to purchase from the Factory. A customer quality survey could be conducted in order to ascertain the possible effect of this suggestion. The supply chain is also a critical area for the Factory to keep tight control on. According to Waller8]; â€Å"The supply chain is a complex network of suppliers, manufacturers and distributors whose ultimate objective is to provide goods and services to the client in a timely manner. The reliability of this supply chain depends on all the people in the network, plus the reliability of all the equipment employed including transportation vehicles, sophisticated machines and computer based information systems.† The use of contractors is a major issue that needs to be addressed. Formal contracts should be drawn up setting out the conditions of the relationship (if it has not already been done); with penalties for missing certain key targets being made. Consideration should be given to the Factory acquiring its own transportation, storage and packaging facilities. By focusing on the JIT (just-in-time) approach within the operation, it may further improve and simplify matters, as, according to Slack et al9]; â€Å"JIT is a disciplined approach to improving overall productivity and eliminating waste. It provides for the cost effective production and delivery of only the necessary quantity of parts at the right quality, at the right time and place, while using a minimum amount of facilities, equipment, materials and human resources. JIT is dependent on the balance between the supplier’s flexibility and the user’s flexibility.† The need to keep a close eye on inventory is essential for the Factory, and to keep it as low as possible, thereby freeing up essential funds for other areas of the business. The Factory needs to address all of these issues as a matter of urgency. Some of the recommendations identified here would involve capital investment. Therefore, further analysis would need to be undertaken once the necessary financial information is available, in order to present a robust business case to the parent company. The Factory needs to; â€Å"secure essential increases in productivity (which) requires the combined efforts of all functions. The increased use of technology has resulted in maintenance making a major contribution to the effective efforts in most business†1]0) In addition to the problem areas identified above, there are other areas that could be improved in the future, and these are mentioned in the following section. 6.  Further Recommendations Purchasing is an area that is significant to the business, as Slack et al1]1)suggests: â€Å"purchasing at the right time and in the right quantity can impact on the operations performance in terms of delivery, speed, delivery reliability and flexibility.† A separate review of the purchasing process and department should be initiated at some stage. Undertaking a financial review may also identify further improvements or reductions within the business (environmental, taxes, transportation and fuel costs). Using forecasting tools such as qualitative and quantitative methods to more accurately predict risks, time horizons, and economic indicators could also identify further areas to improve. Other problem areas that may be addressed include the environmental influences on the Factory. It should be possible to produce product all year using the poly-urethane tunnels that are seen in the countryside. The use of such tunnels would extend the growing period and lifecycle and allow pea production to take place all year, without the peaks and troughs that are currently happening. Further, if the organisation wanted full control of its entire process, then perhaps it should consider the acquisition of land to produce the product itself. Finally, in terms of the competition, we already know that one competitor is privately owned. In order to achieve transformational growth, rather than organic growth and consequently achieve many of the objectives identified above, the organisation should acquire this competitor. There would, of course, be issues with the merger of another organisation into its current business, but the increase in market share, the ability to produce more products and the access to additional equipment that this would bring, would seem to be an obvious answer to many of the problems. A thorough business case would have to be submitted to the parent company to qualify and quantify this proposal. 7.  Conclusion The operations strategy of the Factory is aimed at producing quality goods, on time and to their customer’s exacting requirements. This is achieved at the Factory, but at what cost? A thorough review of the Factory has revealed a number of areas that can be improved. Areas such as by identifying the process through the use of flow charts, then any weaknesses can be readily identified. The three quality checks that are currently undertaken is insufficient to prevent quality issues occurring, therefore additional checks should be implemented. Computerising the operations process would eliminate communication problems and speed up the process together with reducing costs. Focusing on JIT and TQM would enhance the process further. Not forgetting staff morale. Their input is critical in ensuring the process runs smoothly, whether it is the manual or computerised method. Including reward schemes and introducing empowerment is a means of involving the staff in the process and in achieving the goals and objectives of the organisation. If the parent company is willing to invest further, then transformational growth can be achieved by acquiring a competitor, land, a haulage company and by producing its own packaging. In order for the parent company to consider this, a business case would need to be produced, justifying the recommendation. The Factory has a great number of strengths, not least of which is its; location, quality product and specialist knowledge, however, by addressing its operational weaknesses and threats, it is possible to achieve sustainable competitive advantage and to continue to achieve its operational strategy, goals and objectives. 8.  Bibliography Cheng TCE, Podolsky S (1993) Just in Time Manufacturing, Chapman Hall (Pages 21 – 175) Fitzsimmons JA, Sullivan RS (1982) Service Operations Management: McGraw Hill (Pages 7 – 25) Hill, Terry. (2002) Operations Management Strategic Context and Analysis, Basingstoke: Palgrave (pages 184-547) Johnston, R. Clark, G. (2001) Service Operations Management, Harlow: FT/Prentice Hall (pages 25 73) Johnston R, Chambers S, Harland C, Hanson A, Slack N (1997) Cases in Operations Management: Financial Times, Pitman Publishing 2nd Ed (Pages 5 – 503) Lowson, R. (2002) Strategic Operations Management The New Competitive Advantage: London, Routledge (Pages 5 158) Muhlemann, A. Oakland, J Lockyer, K. (1992) Production and Operations Management, 6th Ed, Harlow: FT/Prentice Hall (Pages 63-150) Slack, N. Chambers, S. Johnston, R. (2004) Operations Management, Ed 4, Harlow, Pearson Education (pages 5 798) Sutherland, J. Canwell, D. (2004) Key Concepts in Operations Management, Basingstoke: Palgrave (Pages 19 117) Taylor, D. Brunt, D. (2001) Manufacturing Operations and Supply Chain Management, London: Thomson Learning (Pages 5 37) Waller, D.L. (2003), Operations Management: a supply chain approach, London, Thomson Learning (pages 88 595) Wild, R (2002) Operations Management, London: Continuum (Pages 17 187) www.cips.org [emailprotected] Appendices Appendix 1 – SWOT Analysis Appendix 2 – Flow Chart of the Factory Pea Production Process [1]Slack N, Chambers S, Johnston R (2004) Operations Management Ed 4, Harlow Pearson Education p77 Michael Porter from Lowson R (2002) Strategic Operations Management The New Competitive Advantage, London, Routledge, page 29 [4]4,5, 6, 7 From Slack et al p695-696 [5] [6] [7] [2] [3] [8] Deming from Wild, Operations Management p 636 [9] Slack et al p548 [1]10 Hill T, (2002) operations Management – Strategic Context and Analysis, Basingstoke, Palgrave p184 [1]11 Slack et al p478

The Cause of Macbeths Destruction in William Shakespeares Macbeth Ess

The Cause of Macbeth's Destruction in William Shakespeare's Macbeth      Ã‚   In William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Macbeth was a well-respected man of noble birth, but his fortune was reversed after he turned to darkness. He plummeted endlessly into a chasm of evil until his corrupt life was ended on the edge of Macduff's blade. Whose actions opened up the path of darkness to Macbeth? Whose actions led to Macbeth's demise? The answer is threefold. The weird sisters set Macbeth's fate into motion. Lady Macbeth goaded her husband towards the acts of evil that doomed him. Macbeth himself made the choices that cemented his dreadful end. The weird sisters, Lady Macbeth, and Macbeth himself all served to bring about Macbeth's downfall.    The weird sisters where a malevolent trio that were bent on destroying Macbeth. They initiated the series of events that destroyed Macbeth and tormented the land of Scotland. With the prophetic greeting, "All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be King hereafter", the weird sisters gave Macbeth the confidence to fulfill his scheme of regicide (Shakespeare 184). Without the sisters' prophecy that his plans would succeed, Macbeth may never had the temerity to assassinate the King of Scotland and force his way to the throne. Without the confirmation of the witches, Macbeth would have remained an honorable thane and would have averted the path of darkness. Besides simply initiating Macbeth's destruction, the weird sisters helped cement it. An apparition summoned by the weird sisters told Macbeth, "Be bloody, bold, and resolute, laugh to scorn / the power of man, for none of woman born / shall harm Macbeth" (Shakespeare 226). This prophecy gave Macbeth a sense of security because all me n are ... ...beth, the weird sisters plotted and initiated the downfall of Macbeth. Lady Macbeth helped move along the process of her husband's damnation. The flaw-filled Macbeth chose a path marked with signs of evil, murder, and mayhem. All parties contributed their own integral elements to the downfall of Macbeth. All were partly to blame for the climatic downfall of the treacherous Macbeth. All were responsible for spreading that most ruinous peculiarity known as evil.       Sources Consulted:    Schlegel, August Wilhelm.   Criticism on Shakespeare s Tragedies . A Course  Ã‚  Ã‚   of Lectures on   Shakespeare, William.   Tragedy of Macbeth . Ed. Barbara Mowat and Paul  Ã‚   Warstine. New York: Washington Press, 1992.  Ã‚  Ã‚   Shakespeare, William. Macbeth. New York: Penguin Books, 1987 Wills, Gary. Witches & Jesuits. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995.  

The Horror of Alcoholism Essay -- Alcohol Drinking Alcoholic Essays

The Horror of Alcoholism Alcoholism is a baffling and powerful disease. It affects all people from all walks of life. It has been medically proven and recognized by most of society as a disease. However, for some people who either have not been affected or just do not have any knowledge of the disease, it is considered more as a weakness of character. Alcoholism has many effects, on the alcoholic them self, towards their family and friends, and on their health, on their spouse and children, mentally and physically, but the good thing is there is help out there for all of these people. Alcohol is the most widely used and abused drug in the U.S. today. It is found in all beers, wines, and whiskeys. The alcohol in all these drinks is the same, only the percentage of alcohol and the flavor of the drinks are different. From a chemist point of view, alcohol would be seen as ethyl alcohol or ethanol (Berger 17). Alcoholism is a condition in which individuals drink alcohol regularly and to excess. They continue to drink alcohol even thought this results in serious harm to their physical and mental health (Berger 11). Alcoholics are compulsive drinkers, individuals who cannot keep their drinking under control. Alcoholics intend to have only one or two drinks, but find it impossible to stop and end up drinking more. Once the start, alcoholics will almost always drink themselves to drunkenness (Berger 19). "Alcoholism does not necessarily mean getting drunk every day" (Berger 11). The American Medical Association states:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Alcoholism is a disease that can be arrested but not   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   cured. One of the symptoms is an uncontrollable desire   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   to drink. Alcoholism is a progressive disease. As long .. ...cember 1997.   CD-ROM. Outline Thesis Statement: Alcoholism has many effects, on the alcoholic them self, towards their family and friends, and on their health, on their spouse and children, mentally and physically, but the good thing is there is help out there for all of these people. I.  Ã‚  Ã‚   Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A. Hook   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   B. Thesis II.  Ã‚   Alcoholic   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A. Effects of the alcoholic   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   1. Towards family   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2. Towards friends   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   B. Effects on health III.   Family   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A. Effects on spouse   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   1. Mentally   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     2. Physically   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   B. Effects on children   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   1. Mentally   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2. Physically IV.   Help   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A. For the alcoholic   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   B. For the spouse   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   C. For the children V.  Ã‚   Conclusion