Business Inteligence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business Inteligence - Essay Example Each of the categories requires a unique packaging and presentation. Furthermore, the type of targeted market differs with every category of product or service advertised in each website. Some of these include: Education Education is a two-pronged economical scope. The Cardiff city hopes to become an academic center within the region. To achieve this, the envisioned city must have strategies capable of beating other modern day academic centers such as Liverpool and London. The city must therefore have schools running and education centers from kindergarden to the university. Theses academic institutions will need accreditation by government authorities to check that they meet the standards of quality (Bogomolova, 2011). The website runs the opportunities that the education sector presents to potential investors. The most common investment opportunity in the academic sector is the setting up and management of private academic institutions. To this end, the website targets the currentl y existing universities such as Oxford and Liverpool among others to invest in the establishment of new campuses within the city. The website offers basic contact information on how interested parties conduct the transactions of obtaining land and other resources necessary for such developments. The company welcomes both local and foreign investors, thus the translation into different other languages. Additionally, the website targets potential students. The education sector primarily depends on the availability of students. Attracting students in the region becomes difficult since children school in regions where their parents reside. The company thus runs a number of other websites advertising other diverse investment opportunities with an aim of attracting as much residents into the city. This way, the basic level academic institutions are certain of pupils (Jiaming, 2008). Tertiary and university level are not much perturbed by the locality of parents. This is thus a level oppor tunity and depends on the advertisement potential of the company and the reputation of the subsequent universities that will eventually set up in the region. Visit, Meet, Invest and Shops These four are massive investment opportunities that the Cardiff and company seeks to capitalize in, the thus each have a separate website which are later translated into other three to four different languages depending on the position and locality of the target market. The Cardiff city hopes to become a number one tourist destination in the country and transform the outlook of Wales. This daunting task will require the involvement of different sector players. The company therefore runs the websites displaying the available natural attractions in the region and provides possible facelifts required in and around every one of them. The websites thus targets tycoons in England and around the world for opportunities in the unexploited hospitality industry. In conjunction to the Visit website, the Meet websites offers a platform where interested parties meet and exchange ideas. In such social gatherings, the investors make possible business contracts geared towards the development of the city. Additionally, a chance to gather all the interested participants in the project further kick starts the development project, as most of these people will require boarding facilities while touring the virgin land. Additionally, the

Meaning of Life and Literary Metaphorical Descriptions Essay Example for Free

Meaning of Life and Literary Metaphorical Descriptions Essay Stuck and chained without any tendency of where your life is headed, requires necessary effort to go through. This is the situation for the main character in Wiliam Lychacks short story, Stolpestad. Without any whereabouts of his life directions, Stolpestad come across his own life through unpleasant confrontations of his own identity loss. â€Å"This is your life, Stolpestad† Stolpestad finds that his life gone tedious, waiting towards the end of each shift, lying and giving an excuse to postpone his arrival back home to his wife and his children. Driving through the city, Stolpestad yearns after his life in the town as child. â€Å"You idle slow and lawful past the house as if to glimpse someone or something – yourself as a boy, perhaps. † Though Stolpestad is aware of the requisite in his absence back home, he decides to go to a bar. At the bar he is telling stories, spreading laughter, about his earlier predicament with shooting the suffering dog. Stolpestad seems full of confidence re-telling the story, but in the certain situation he was nervous and sensitive: â€Å"with this hope that she’s already dead- that shrill of insects in the heat and grass as you nudge her again. You push until she comes to life, her eye opening slow and black to you – you with this hope that the boy will be running any moment to you now, hollering for you to stop. † He wish the dog to already be dead, or that the boy will come hollering him to stop. This nervousness of his comes truly to life when the boy and his father are confronting him, and the surrounding noices frightens him: â€Å"It’s only a door opening – but look how jumpy you are†. Stolpestad finds this confrontation to be a very uncomfortable situations, and feel that it is a repeating element in his life, which is depicted in this paragraph: â€Å"the deja vu of a pickup truck in the driveway as you pull around the house, as if you’ve seen or imagined or been through all of this be- fore, or will be through it all again, over and over†. We can interpret this, from the fact that Stolpestad keeps running into these unpleasant situations. Putting down a suffering dog turns into an unintentional disservice to the dying dog, the boy and his father and himself. The unsuccessful execution and the survival of the suffering dog, Goliath, can be seen as a metaphor for Stolpestads life. The life of the dog Goliath and Stolpestads life are heading in the same direction, Goliaths suffering is a reflection of the suffering in Stolpestads own life. Gully is gravely injured and it is just a matter of time until its’ life will peg out, but even after what was supposed to be an easy put down, the dog remains alive. Stolpestad is neither injured or near death. Stolpestad is caught between the choices whether he shall pursue his meaning of life or leave this world behind. He is stuck as a spectator of his own life, as the dying dog Goliath is a spectator of its’ own death. The injury of the dog can also be interpreted as a simile for the environment and the town Stolpestad lives in. The Christian narrative of â€Å"David and Goliath† deals for Goliaths sake with the themes negativity and failure. The nickname â€Å"Gully† is a synonym for a sewer. That means, that the dogs name in both significances refers to something including degradation and poor environs. Goliath lies on all the trash on the families within the families’ premises and symbolizes the poor social environment that the family hails from. The family is tamped by this inadequacy in the society, which the dog and its name symbolize. The sentence: â€Å"The old tires, empty bottles, paint cans, rusty car axle, refrigerator door† exemplifies what poor environment the family is a part of. The environment of the father may also explain the cause of his ironical compliments of Stolpestads house: â€Å"He lets out a long sigh and says it’s a fine place you seem to have here†. Still this higher league of society does not fit Stolpestad, and it does not seem like he has been in this contrast to the lower league of society his whole life, which also may cause the sympathy he has for the boy. The boy can be interpreted as an illusion of Stolpestad as a child. In the early beginning of the short story, Stolpestad is driving around soulless, looking for something – possibly himself as a child, and after the meeting with the boy, he quickly conceives comprehension of his life situation. This may be caused of Stolpestads own youth, that may have been difficult, but he still may miss: â€Å"Back to all the turns you were born, your whole life spent along the same sad streets† The kind of narrator being used in the story is a â€Å"second person narrator† who writes to a certain â€Å"you†. Our â€Å"you†, who our narrator directs itself to is the main character of the story, Stolpestad. Though it is Stolpestad the narrator direct itself to, the reader feels like being spoken to, when this narrative perspective is being used: †Was toward the end of your shift†. This way a text involves and affects its reader in a whole other level. It is hard to judge whether the narrator is an actual figure or totally absent throughout the story. The narrator does not specifically appear throughout the story, but certain things point to the narrators’ appearance: †away we go†. Still it is doubtful and unknown, who the narrator may be, as the short story does not give an unequivocal explanation of who the narrator might be. The language is both embossed of slang and then the more literary metaphorical descriptions. This shows, how the narrator has authority of changing the style when it fits him. Therefore it is a mixture of the lower style and a formal literary style. Stolpestad is living a life that just passes by, without him taking any action, and therefore he feels like his whole life just consists of continuous repetitions. He is living in the same surroundings as he did in his youth and during his childhood so therefore his external rams haven’t changed, though he has become older. Therefore everything feels recognizable and boring for him. With the description from a second person narrator, who sees Stolpestad from an external perspective, we can connect this to the interpretation of him as a passive individual. He is not even in possession of the authority to tell his own story, but is having it told by another narrator interfering and judging him negatively. Here as well he stands without influence, but may passively let the narrator relate his story, while he himself will have to be a spectator to his own life. So do not just let life pass you by.

Macbeth :: essays research papers

The Blood Theme in Macbeth One of the themes in the tragedy of Macbeth is that of blood. Macbeth is known for his skills as a warrior and his mercilessness that is shown in his killing of MacDonwald. This warrior mentality quickly spreads into his life, and he begins to make killing a habit. When he is told in a prophecy that he shall be king, Macbeth takes it upon himself to murder Duncan, king of Scotland. After this murder he begins to see visions of blood on his hands, blood nothing could remove. As Macbeth becomes more ambitious, he also begins to kill more people to get the power that he wants. The theme of blood is shown throughout the play, and is a problem that Macbeth finds harder and harder to rid himself of after each killing. At the beginning of the play Macbeth is an esteemed member of the army, probably the greatest fighter in all of Scotland. He gets word that a rebellious tribe led by MacDonwald is defeating the Scots. He â€Å"single-handedly† defeats the rebels and â€Å"unseamed him (MacDonwald) from the nave to th’ chops.† With this Macbeth earns great respect among his peers, and even the king. On his way home from war three witches tell him his future. â€Å"All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor! All Hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!† Macbeth was already thane of Glamis, and wondered why they would say that he would be Thane of Cawdor or even king, so he blew it off as tomfoolery, and impossible. However, he was later told by the king that because of his valiant fighting against MacDonwald that he was to be given the title of the Thane of Cawdor. All this makes him think again of the witches prophecies, and he wonders if indeed he could be king. The desire for power began to consume Macbeth and his wife, and this ambition caused all of the bloody events that were to follow. Macbeth began to want the kingship that Duncan had more and more. Together Macbeth and his wife Lady Macbeth plotted to hurry Macbeth’s reign, by killing Duncan themselves. At night Macbeth gains access to Duncan’s sleeping quarters, kills the guards, and stabs King Duncan to death. After the murder, Macbeth is clearly shaken, and can hardly believe what he has done.

But everyman has his price Essay

‘ But everyman has his price.’ Show the part that corruption plays in the action of A Man for All Seasons. The statement ‘everyman has his price’ suggests that all humans are capable of being corrupted. Humans then succumb to certain temptations: greed, power, deception, bribery, betrayal and self-interest. Often men fall prey to such temptations in search of material comfort at the expense of spiritual comfort. More himself comments upon these temptations in the text: â€Å"But since in fact we see that avarice, anger, envy, pride, sloth, trust and stupidity commonly profit far beyond humility, charity, fortitude, justice and thought and have to choose, to be human at all† He says that not to succumb to these, would make one a hero or at least more than a common man. More did not aim to live up to being a hero, but he stood by his moral codes and did not succumb to such temptations. Throughout the play, attempts are made to corrupt More. Such attempts to corrupt morals and religious beliefs occur mainly because of the Kings desire to remarry. Henry married his brothers widow which was disallowed by the Catholic Church-however the Pope eventually gave dispensation for the marriage of Henry and Catherine to take place. Now Henry wants a divorce, to enable him to marry Anne Boleyn and to secure an heir. This creates a dilemma and the King wants the backing of More, which we see when Henry is speaking with More â€Å"Touching this matter of my divorce, Thomas; have you thought of it since we last talked† Up until this time the Catholic Church had predominated in society and nobody had questioned its authority. Martin Luther and John Calvin were two of the primary instigators, who started a movement against the Catholic Church, because they hated the Churches ‘sale of indulgences’. For his stand Martin Luther was excommunicated from the Catholic Church in 1521. He then set up his own Church, which, in 1529 was renamed, from Lutherans to Protestants, when they protested against attempts to limit their teachings. In this respect it suited Henry’s present needs to side with the reformation, to gain his divorce and thereby making himself head of the Church of England, enabling him to become his own authority. The only reason why the King needs Mores support in his divorce is because More is honest and people recognise this honesty and integrity: â€Å"Because you are honest, what’s more you’re known to be honest† Henry attempts to use the power of kingship to persuade More to agree with him, â€Å"I have no wife†¦and those that say she is my wife are not only liars†¦but traitors† The power he has means that if someone were to oppose him, he would simply dispose of them. Henry uses the word traitor because traitors are executed. All this fails to persuade More, his moral stand is too strong. He is trying to emphasise what a good king he is by showing what he is doing is for his country. â€Å"†¦And all the Popes back to St. Peter, shall not become between me and my duty† He is, on one hand, witty, pleasant and a man of elegant appearance, but he is also self-opinionated, brutal and corrupt. As he has little success persuading More with these tactics, he tries to convince More that the original marriage was sinful: â€Å"Thomas, Thomas, does a man need a Pope to tell him when he’s sinned. It was a sin, Thomas, I admit it, I repent†¦.† He further tries to convince More by reasoning that all the sons Catherine has borne have, have died and this has been his punishment. Henrys argument insinuates that God has punished him, and therefore the Pope was wrong for allowing the union. â€Å"†¦It was no marriage; she was my brothers widow. Leviticus: thou shalt no uncover the nakedness of thy brothers’ wife† Which uses Biblical text to provide further evidence that the Pope was wrong. More was a devout Catholic and believed the Pope to be a direct descendant of Peter, Christ’s disciple and therefore the Popes authority went without question â€Å"†¦The theory is that he is also the Vicar of God, the descendant of St. Peter, our only link with God† â€Å"†¦The King in Parliament cannot bestow the supremacy of the Church because it is a spiritual supremacy.† Although More may sympathise with the kings argument we understand from what he says his devotion to the Church and Catholicism. Henry tries to challenge Mores belief saying this is a ‘tenuous link’. More clarifies his position further â€Å"†¦Why it’s a theory yes, you can’t see it, can’t touch it†¦But what matters to me is not whether its true or not but that I believe it to be true†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , thus showing he cannot disobey Rome. More will not break his principals, although in the end he leads his family into poverty. Alice and Margaret want More to agree with the King and to forget his principles. Their reason for this is for their family safety. Alice tries to convince her husband to capitulate with the King â€Å"You can fit the cap to anyone you want† and accuses him of being ‘cruel’ to the household. More asks Alice to remove his chain: â€Å"Hell’s fire-God’s blood and body no!† â€Å"†¦Is this wisdom to betray your ability, abandon practice, forget your station and your duty to your kin and behave like a printed book!† Alice is scared of loosing her position and becoming a pauper and because of this she tries to corrupt More. More is only human and Alice only wants her husband to do what she feels is best for the family and the country therefore she will not remove the chain. More, though, is acting like ‘a printed book’ and he will not accept bribes or money from the Church. Margaret knows that Sir Thomas is going to resign anyway and to show her love and respect for her father, she removes the chain although she knows it will lead to her poverty. More feels it necessary to resign because it was his way of resisting severing the connection with Rome and Chapuys encourages Mores resignation saying he could not believe that More ‘will allow himself to be associated with the recent actions of King Henry’. More too, does not want to be associated with the corrupted King. Chapuys is not really interested in Mores moral stance; his concern is for the furtherance of Spain. (Catherine is Spanish and a divorce would sever Spanish interests in England). When he mentions that Northumberland and Yorkshire are ready to resist I deduce his intentions are political and not concerned with Mores moral integrity. When Chapuys tells More: ‘Beyond that point, Sir Thomas, one is not merely ‘compromised,’ one is in truth corrupted,† he is using verbal bribery to ensure his resignation. More will not go against his principals; he does not want to stand trial for treason. He is careful not to accept any bribes. Chapuys brings a letter from Charles 1st, which More refuses to accept as it could be seen as an allegiance with Spain. More feels that if he were to take money offered by the Bishops, the King would have more evidence against him. â€Å"If the King takes that matter any further, with me or the Church, it will be very bad, if I even appear to have been in the pay of the Church† Other characters also appear to corrupt, often in their attempts to please the King. Cromwell is a very corruptive character. He shows allegiance to the King – but only for his personal satisfaction: â€Å"Sir Thomas is going to be a slippery fish, Richard; we need a net with a fine mesh† Cromwell is being corruptive in trying to discredit More. Cromwell uses metaphors â€Å"Raising the storm† and â€Å"to come out of harbour† to accuse More of causing conflict in standing by his morals. The common man also refers to social movement as ‘canals’ and â€Å"Against the current of their times.† This movement is also shown with the River Thames used as a waterway that takes the characters along. This metaphor again is used by the Boatman to show how More is getting deeper into his position and the feud is getting heavy, ‘silt’, but More is trying to keep straight: â€Å"There’s a channel there getting deeper all the time† Cromwell is trying to set More up so that he can be more acquainted with the King. He accuses More for using God to â€Å"provide a noble motive for his frivolous self conceit.† Cromwell asks Rich to help, but Norfolk defends More because he has realised that Cromwell is only trying to corrupt him and his family, therefore Norfolk wants nothing to do with this. Norfolk consequently is not corrupt, he just does not have a strong moral code to abide by. Wolsey, however, tries to persuade More to support him in getting Henry’s marriage to Catherine annulled. Again More adheres to his moral code, taking care not to criticise the King or say anything that would put him in danger: â€Å"A dispensation was given so that the King might marry Queen Catherine, for states reasons. Now we are to ask the Pope to-dispense with his dispensation, also for sate reasons?† Wolsey’s corruption is not for his personal gain. Catherine has been unable to bear Henry a son, and Wolsey feels that for the sake of the Royal succession, Henry should remarry so that he may have an heir. â€Å"The King needs a son†¦let him die without an heir and we’ll have them back again† (referring to the War of the Roses). Wolsey feels that ‘certain measures perhaps regrettable, perhaps not-there is much in the Church that needs reformation Thomas-alright, regrettable! But necessary, to get us an heir!† therefore he justifies his corruption (if you can justify corruption) because it ultimately would benefit the country. More answers this: â€Å"When statesmen forsake their own private conscience for the sake of their own public duties†¦they lead their country by short route to chaos† More does not agree with Wolsey and even these reasons are unacceptable. Of all the character in the play, More is the only one who does not succumb to corruption. It would have been the easy option for More agree and comply with the King, but the strength of his religious and personal morals meant more to him. He was respected for these attributes and did not want to loose this. He also felt that ultimately God was his judge. This play is about political dalliance rather than fast moving action, â€Å"The interval started early in the year 1530 and it’s now the middle of May 1532.Two years.† It is about corruptive persuasion that More resists and ultimately leads to his execution. This is shown at the beginning of act 2: The political dalliance of the play is instigated by More not giving in to coercion, persuasion or even temptation. Ultimately, according to his own definition, More is a hero: â€Å"If we lived in a State where virtue was profitable, common sense would make us good, and greed would make us saintly. And we’d live like animals or angels in the happy land that needs no heroes.† He lived up to his rules and the rules of his religion, however unhappy he has made those around him. ‘Everyman has his price’ except More, or was it his life that was the price he had to pay?

Themes in the Crucible

Jacob Fallin Mrs. James English III 22 November 2010 Themes in The Crucible In my essay I’m going to be talking about the themes in The Crucible. â€Å"Saving your image is not worth the lives of innocent people. † Danforth did not want to postpone the hanging because he doesn’t want to look weak in Salem. So to look powerful he showed no mercy, didn’t not postpone the hangings, and so people with respect him in all ways. â€Å"Lies may be truth, and truth may be lies. † Said by John Proctor, innocent persons knew the truth while Abigail said that they were working with the devil.So who is going to believe who? That is what happens danforth does not believe the innocent, but the liers. â€Å"It’s better to fail with honor than succeed as a fraud. † John Proctor died knowing the truth while Abigail ran away from the innocent lives that she took from good people and she did that with her life of lies, and gets away from everything that h appened to all the innocent people that died for telling the truth and not doing witchcraft but was accused for it and then was hanged if did not confess.Jacob2 â€Å"When good men do nothing, evil can triumph. † If people in Salem said that Abigail and the other girls were lying they could have had a chance for the innocent to live. But only one person stood up for himself and the innocent [John Proctor] and he was hanged for not confessing to witchcraft which he was innocent but since he said â€Å"I am not with god. † â€Å"A lie told often enough becomes the truth. †Abigail and all the other girls, which said the same thing over and over again that was â€Å"so and so used witchcraft† and Judge Danforth believed Abigail and all the other girls which caused several death of innocent people like Corey Giles who was pressed to death they did that cause, so it soon became the truth to the court. Whoever was accused was going to get hanged unless the confe ssed and there were a few that did confess, and will be remembered by being known for doing witchcraft but the ones that didn’t confess were hanged, the last two people that hanged and did not confess was Rebecca Nurse ,and John Proctor. One error can lead up to many errors. † It all started because of Abigail and John's relationship, that’s when the witch trials and hangings occurred. All of this could have not started if John had not had the affair with Abigail and gave her hope that they would one day be together and she still though that john and her would soon be together because his wife was accused.

Philosophy Personal Statement Writing Strategies Essay Example

Philosophy Personal Statement Writing Strategies Essay Example Philosophy Personal Statement Writing Strategies Essay Philosophy Personal Statement Writing Strategies Essay A personal statement is an admission test that every individual has to go through while applying to a university to pursue advance studies. It provides a perfect opportunity to the individual to outshine other intelligent candidates and secure a place in the academia of his choice. It helps you to sell yourself to the academy and demonstrate to the officers of the board of admission that you are a committed and a best suited candidate. During the admission seasons, hundreds of applications are sent to the universities and only a handful of those applications are accepted. It is obvious that they have limited seats in every department. An appealing philosophy personal statement is the only thing that can help you maximize your chances of securing a limited seat in the philosophy department. Writing an appealing statement surely seems a bit daunting to each one of us. However, with a little planning, preparation and devotion you can carry out this bit daunting task easily. Take a brief look at the following strategies for writing engaging and winning personal statements. Before your being jotting down letters in your statement, it is essential that you first take note of important elements that need to be inserted in it. These elements include your inspiration for choosing the field of philosophy, future aspiration, work experience related to the field, traits and details of your personal skills. Also, list down all the key points you wish to discuss in the statement. After completing your first rough draft, ask someone to go through the statement carefully and give you their honest feedback. The introduction will discuss what influenced you to engage in this complex field. Not many individuals these days go for this field so why you want to study or explore this field. Discuss why you are so interested in exploring it. Tell them what aspects of the philosophy subject intrigue you most. Remember that a winning personal statement should provide the admission committee your education background. It should discuss your characteristics and distinctive qualities. Explain them why you are so passionate about this field and provide supporting evidence of your passion for it. Remember that when you will ask to come for an interview you may probably be asked to answer some questions which are taken from the personal statement. Therefore make sure that you don’t include anything in the statement that you wouldn’t feel convenient discussing during the interview. Also make sure that you don’t fill the empty spaces in the statement with irrelevant details for the sake of meeting the length requirement. If you feel that you might not be able to cope with the word count, describe some of your traits or skills in more detail. However, ensure that the details provided in it are to the point and germane.

A Sweet Story About Marmalade

A Sweet Story About Marmalade A Sweet Story About Marmalade A Sweet Story About Marmalade By Sharon The other day I was watching the last episode of the Parkinson Show (a UK talk show), when Michael Caine told a story about the origin of the word marmalade. The word refers to a jelly like preserve, usually made of citrus fruits, in which bits of the fruit and rind are suspended. According to Michael Caine, the name comes into the English language via Mary Queen of Scots, who was visiting a French speaking country and fell ill. Marmalade was one of the dishes they brought to tempt her palate and the phrase she overheard constantly was Maam est malade (Madam is ill) which gave the name marmalade (and which, incidentally) is a great way to remember the correct spelling of the word. So I set out to find out if this could be true. Disappointingly, the etymological dictionaries tell a different tale. The word marmalade meant quince jam and comes into English via French and Portuguese, deriving from marmelo meaning quince. Further back, the origin is Latin and Greek, from terms meaning honey-apple, which was the fruit resulting from the grafting of an apple onto a quince. The mystery is solved, but I cant help preferring Michael Caines version. 😉 Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 English Grammar Rules You Should Know45 Synonyms for â€Å"Old† and â€Å"Old-Fashioned†Epidemic vs. Pandemic vs. Endemic

Eyeteeth

Eyeteeth Eyeteeth Eyeteeth By Maeve Maddox In this morning’s paper, I read the following in a guest column written by a recent college graduate: I [won’t] deny knowing people who skipped college and ended up with the sorts of careers most grads would cut their eyeteeth for. The writer’s meaning was that â€Å"most grads† would envy the â€Å"sorts of careers† attained by some of the people â€Å"who skipped college.† This young writer has mixed up his â€Å"eyeteeth† expressions. The idiom he was reaching for is â€Å"to give one’s eye teeth for.† First, a definition of eyetooth: â€Å"a canine tooth, especially, of the upper jaw.† According to a note in the OED, eyeteeth probably derive their name from â€Å"the fact that the roots of the upper canines extend close to the floor of the eye socket.† Because the eyeteeth are the latest to emerge in the human child–the first set at about 16 months and the second set at about the age of 12 years–they have become a symbol of maturity and wisdom. I suspect that their usefulness in tearing meat makes them something to be valued as well. To say that a person is willing to â€Å"give his eyeteeth† in exchange for some benefit is to indicate the intensity of the person’s desire for that benefit: To get 25 percent of the market and knock off Ford? I’d give my eyeteeth. –Iacocca, Google eBook, 2011. I’d give my eyeteeth to see more of their work onstage. –Marya Hornbacher,  Minnesota Playlist There is an expression â€Å"to cut one’s eyeteeth.† Literally, it means to have your eyeteeth come in. Figuratively, it means to pass from babyhood to youth. It can also mean, â€Å"to acquire initial practice or experience in a particular sphere of activity.† For example: The new White House social secretary is Bess Clements Abell, a graduate in political science from the University of Kentucky, who cut eyeteeth on big-league politics as the daughter of a former governor and senator. [I] cut my eyeteeth in many a cover band and managed to continue drumming through good days and bad. –Steve Scarpelli, The Sun Kings More frequently, the idea of gaining experience prior to becoming a master at one’s craft is expressed as â€Å"to cut one’s teeth†: It has been 30 years since Edi Truell cut his teeth as a trainee with a Wall Street bank. Rookie prosecutors cut teeth on DUI, misdemeanor cases Students cut their teeth during rural clinical placement. Bottom line: to give one’s eyeteeth for: to exchange something precious for something even more precious to cut one’s eyeteeth: to gain experience Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Congratulations on or for?50 Synonyms for â€Å"Idea†Using "zeitgeist" Coherently

Branding for Starbucks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Branding for Starbucks - Essay Example The need is to comprehend how Starbucks can reflect a positive demeanor about its own self and how this shall happen within the related settings, as are available to Starbucks at the present. Since I am heading the brand development concerns at Starbucks, I will make sure that the values upon which Starbucks was initially formed are adhered to at all times, and that there are no exceptions to this ideology under any circumstance or situation that arises whatsoever (Marques, 2008). I will ensure that its values are clearly spelled out to its employees, located all over the world so that their attitudes and actions are in line with what the business expects of them. Also, these will be communicated to the customers globally since Starbucks’ management regimes will keep on telling the world through their actions and behaviors. When these values will be communicated, a sense of optimism shall come about with Starbucks which remains a significant proposition, and more so within the changing dynamics of the business world today. The core messages that shall be sent from the realms of Starbucks remain strongly attached to its philosophy of coming about with something solid for the sake of the company. This means that the selling propositions will be based on what Starbucks is offering all over the world as a whole and the different regions in meticulous. It will give a good idea as to what the Starbucks’ customers can expect in the form of end user satisfaction (Rippin, 2007).

Effective Privatization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Effective Privatization - Essay Example (Yarrow 1999, 157-168) Transfer f ownership makes credible the fact that the firm does not have limitless government backing (although governments do bail out even private companies from time to time) for example it bailed out the rail companies and rail track because transport is vital to the economy. (Vickers 1991) Selling assets at a fair price leaves government wealth unaltered. If prospects f tougher treatment in the future lead to productivity improvements in state firms the government becomes better off when the productivity improves not when (or if) the firm is sold. (Chang 1992, 31-32) Many privatised firms now face intense competition often from abroad. However, natural monopolies have aquired a new framework f regulation. This has favoured price capping, administered by independent regularity agencies (quangoes) and subject to periodic review. (Shirley 1999, 115-136) Increasingly, the UK has been driven to regulate not merely conduct but structure. This presupposes that some parts f a natural monopoly can be hived off and become suitable for competition. In practice, this has usually been down stream activities in a vertically related industry i.e. union f firms at different production stages in the same industry. (Vickers 1991) To as Recent privatisations include 1British Rail (now taken back into public ownership as a not for profit organisation) 2 British Air Ways 3 Air Traffic Control 4 British Steel 5 British Gas 6 British Telecom 7 The Water Companies 8 And most Power Companies To assess the effects f the present governments nationalisation policy we would have to take in to consideration the fact that we have a socialist government, one f whose key beliefs is that public ownership is the better way to run the country, although this government does not appear to be as hard line in that respect as previous Labour Governments. (Stiglitz 1994, 307-323) Arguments for Privatisation 1 Opening up production and consumption to market forces, increase competition, economic efficiency and consumer choice 2 Breaking down monopolies into more competitive industries and introduces competition into the goods market 3 Enables the privatised firms to compete for finance on the private capital markets both home and abroad 4 Ensures that firms become accountable to their shareholders and their desire for profit 5 Ensures that businesses are run on commercial rather than political grounds 6 Reduces the burden on the governments finances to support nationalised industries Arguments against Privatisation 1 Privatisation may simply create private sector monopolies with high barriers to new firms entering the industry. There are a number f reasons why these might exist; (a)The existing firm has significant economies f scale that new firms cannot compete as in the case f natural monopolies (b) The start up costs for new firms are prohibitive 2 Privatised firms make decisions based on commercial profit maximising grounds. Nationalised firms make decisions in the public interest. If the government want to focus on poverty reduction and development then

Balancing College Studies with Work and Family Demands Essay

Balancing College Studies with Work and Family Demands - Essay Example In addition, the school program is not friendly for the student. For instance the school schedule lacks breaks in-between lessons. Although I am almost getting used to the school program, home duties are also becoming increasingly stressing. In addition, the lecturers give us insufficient time to complete the assignments. This denies us time to research and analyze the questions appropriately. The entire school program also contributes to the stress that we face as college students. The school management created the school’s program without considering the interests of the student. For instance, the distribution of lessons is not student friendly. It stresses me to have two consecutive lessons without a break in-between the lessons. The lecturers do not consider that we have been from another class and hence we need to relax before going to the next class. The school curriculum is also a major cause of stress and needs to be restructured. The current curriculum does not incorp orate modern student’s needs hence contributing to stress. For instance, students in modern age prefer short-term goals and objectives while the curriculum is characterized by long-term goals and objectives. Despite the presence of stress in my academic life, I am determined to achieve my objectives of academic excellence. This requires that I should have effective strategies of dealing with stress resulting from my school life. The first strategy that I consider effective, is acknowledging the problem. This acceptance induces my abilities to search for an appropriate solution to the problem. After accepting and identifying the problems, I am in an excellent position to find the solution to the problem. Secondly, I rank the three problems according to their needs of urgency and long-term implication. For instance assignments are first while school curriculum problems lies in the bottom of the list. Thirdly, I require developing a positive attitude that I can solve the problem s successfully. Having a positive attitude towards the problem enables me to tackle a problem successfully. To eliminate the problems associated with assignments, I first consider them beneficial to my studies and course. In addition, I consider the unbalanced schedule as a motivation to work hard. The final approach to the problem is applying the actual solution to the problem. This involves a systematic application of solution strategies to the problems. I cope with stress resulting from assignment by completing them in time. Sharing my solutions with other students also acts as part of the solution. Weekly Schedule My week starts on a Monday morning at 6 AM. After doing my routine bathing and dressing, I peruse through my course books to familiarize with the previous work. Identifying and devising solutions for different causes of stress enables me to accomplish my weekly program. This also gives me a chance to establish if there is any urgent assignments, pending or unsolved pro blems. I then write my days schedule in my diary according to available tasks and time. I also look at the school timetable to ensure that it is in line with my day’s schedule. After taking my breakfast, I go to the bus stop where our school bus waits for the students. We usually spend the first few moments sharing our experiences for the weekend. After getting into the school compound I spend the remaining time talking with my friends concerning the lessons and the overall school life.

Merger, Acquisition, and International Strategies Essay - 8

Merger, Acquisition, and International Strategies - Essay Example Although Merger and Acquisitions have numerous advantages, the fact that they are faced with numerous challenges and risks is indisputable. This essay will compare a company that has no history of merger and another that has pursued international market after a merger relationship. Economists have delved into market research in order to explain the reason why some companies choose to enter into merges or opt to purchase other companies while others remain adamant to do so. According to Swam and Casy (2012), merger and acquisition involves the transfer of all assets and liabilities to the new company that is formed or to the purchasing company. From this statement, it is clear that the process involves the inheritance of all qualities of the companies so acquired, which points to the need for caution when considering the option. There has been a lot of emphasis on the many risks that a company must be prepared to encounter while considering either a merger or an acquisition. Therefore, the motives of acquiring, being acquired or even merging with another company must be clear and worth during the course of such a transition. In the US, the law provides regulations to govern mergers and acquisition in order to protect the welfare of the shareholders from the ris k of this process. Choose two (2) public corporations in an industry with which you are familiar – one (1) that has acquired another company and operates internationally and one (1) that does not have a history of mergers and acquisitions and operates solely within the U.S Although numerous companies in US have combined in a merger and acquisition process, there is evidence that some companies have remained reluctant to this kind of business strategy. For instance, Bright House Networks has exhibited no history of combining its assets with any other

Annotation - The Tale of Genji Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Annotation - The Tale of Genji - Article Example The novel shows how the Lotus Sutra entered Japan on her way from China in the early 9th century thus becomes tied to the courts nobles (Murasaki 67). Tale of Genji is a thrilling novel, which follows the life of a charming and handsome courtier from his childhood numerous adventures to renewed success and exile. It focuses on the painful death of his dearest companion called Murasaki and his son’s closest friend Kashiwagi betrayal. At long run, the novel shifts its attention to Genji’s descendants after his death caused by the devastation after his new wife becoming a nun. The novel revolves around certain themes, which emanates from the characters such as Genji in the novel. The novel depicts the theme of society from the elite group of aristocrats who are more interested in their own leisure because of the location of the emperor at their centre, thus creating a vast society. The aristocrats after obsessions by the breeding and rankings they would sensitized on nature’s beauty through the music pleasures and warm clothing (Murasaki 102). This depicts by Heian courtiers who knew little about the outside world form their capital and less cared. They considered as common people almost becoming sub humans because they rarely or never travelled at all. In the novel, there existed five court ranks with the top three ranks being high court nobles while the fourth and the fifth ranks being the provincial governor class. These classes often sneered at because of its courtified behavior and its lower rank. This depicted the theme of society existed with Murasaki being a Fujiwara and the governor of Echizen daughter. The provincial governors in the novel did well financially, but they considered the three-year duty tour to the provinces to be virtual exile. The Heian trips to the provincial capitals and the religious pilgrimages were the only undertaken travel by the Aristocrats. This act of the Heian Aristocrats lack of

Merger, Acquisition, and International Strategies Essay - 8

Merger, Acquisition, and International Strategies - Essay Example Although Merger and Acquisitions have numerous advantages, the fact that they are faced with numerous challenges and risks is indisputable. This essay will compare a company that has no history of merger and another that has pursued international market after a merger relationship. Economists have delved into market research in order to explain the reason why some companies choose to enter into merges or opt to purchase other companies while others remain adamant to do so. According to Swam and Casy (2012), merger and acquisition involves the transfer of all assets and liabilities to the new company that is formed or to the purchasing company. From this statement, it is clear that the process involves the inheritance of all qualities of the companies so acquired, which points to the need for caution when considering the option. There has been a lot of emphasis on the many risks that a company must be prepared to encounter while considering either a merger or an acquisition. Therefore, the motives of acquiring, being acquired or even merging with another company must be clear and worth during the course of such a transition. In the US, the law provides regulations to govern mergers and acquisition in order to protect the welfare of the shareholders from the ris k of this process. Choose two (2) public corporations in an industry with which you are familiar – one (1) that has acquired another company and operates internationally and one (1) that does not have a history of mergers and acquisitions and operates solely within the U.S Although numerous companies in US have combined in a merger and acquisition process, there is evidence that some companies have remained reluctant to this kind of business strategy. For instance, Bright House Networks has exhibited no history of combining its assets with any other

Capital Budgeting Statistics Project Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5250 words

Capital Budgeting - Statistics Project Example One of the most important considerations for an investment and financing decision will be proper asset-liability management. Companies will have to face a severe asset-liability mismatch if the long-term requirements are funded by the short-term sources of funds. Such a mismatch will lead to an interest risk thereby enhancing the interest burden of the firm and a liquidity risk with the short-term funds being help up in long-term projects. Whenever a business firm plans to invest in a long-term project, it needs to assess the benefits that can be reaped out from that particular long-term investment and come to a conclusion whether that particular investment is profitable for the business or not. The entire process of assessing a proposed long-term investment and coming to a conclusion whether it is worth investing or not is termed as "Capital Budgeting." The ultimate goal of any individual or a firm's maximization of profits or rate of returns - in other words market value of one's investments. Thus, investment management is an ongoing process which needs to be constantly monitored by way of information as this may affect the value of securities or rate of returns of such securities. ... c. Estimate of future profitability and growth and the reliability of such expectations. d. Translation of all these estimates into valuation of the company and the securities. The global financial markets now-a-days are getting more integrated, and people and firms are entering into more and more cross - border financial deals. In order to make these transactions feasible, a system for determination of the amount and method of payment of the underlying financial flows is needed. Since the domestic currencies of the parties involved will be different, the flows will take place in some mutually acceptable currency. All the relevant transaction taking place would hence be on account of international trade in goods or services, or due to acquisition or liquidation of financial assets, or because of creation or repayment of international credit. Measurement of Total risk Undoubtedly, all the modern forms of risk quantification find their origins in Risk is associated with the dispersion in the likely outcomes. Dispersion refers to variability. If an asset's return has no variability, it has no risk. An investor analyzing a series of returns on an investment over a period of years needs to know something about the variability of its returns or in other words the assets' total risk1. There are different ways to measure variability of returns. The range of the returns, i.e. the difference between the highest possible rate of return and the lowest possible rate of return is one measure, but the range is based on only two extreme values. The variance of an asset's rate of return can be found as the sum of the squared deviation of each possible rate of return from the expected rate of return

Just War Theory Essay Example for Free

Just War Theory Essay The Just War theory consists of 6 rules, which have to be obeyed when fighting at war against another country. The six rules are that war must be a last resort, those who are attacked deserve it, promote good over evil, the right amount of force must be applied, civilian death have to be avoided and the war must be started and controlled by the government. Wars such as the one in Afghanistan, do not in many ways follow this theory. The war does not in any ways promote good over evil and civilian death are never avoided, as many innocent civilians are killed when getting caught in the middle of cross-fires etc. I will conduct a case study on the Iraq war, further on in this essay. If I was able to add one extra agreement to the Just War theory, I would add that violence should always be kept to a minimum. I think this because violence causes the world’s most deaths in society today. This, in my opinion, is completely wrong and unacceptable as people should be able to live in a safe and free society, but this is never possible as you always have to be watching around you, as with some cases, you don’t know actually who to trust. To conduct a case study on the Iraq war, you would need to study the background history leading up to the start of the war in 2002-2003. Tony Blair (ex-prime minister) believed that Iraq were making nuclear weapons to lock themselves in a nuclear arms race, which could have potentially caused devastating consequences for the region and the wider world in general. This accusation caused the British and US forces to move in and declare a war with Iraq. British government believed that Iraq should not be allowed to develop nuclear weapons, and this is why Blair confronted Saddam Hussain (Iraq leader) to try to find out facts, and this ended in Blair declaring war with Iraq. Several years on now, in 2010, we now have a clear understanding that there was never any nuclear weapons out in Iraq, and in my opinion, we are fighting a war which was never ours and we are losing people in our country and society which lives should have never been lost in the first place. Shouldn’t we be only at war to help benefit our country? This is why some people send accusations and believe that Tony Blair is the one to blame for our British soldiers losing their lives out in Iraq. When you come down to think about it, the Just War theory comes into effect at only one point in the Iraq war. ‘War is started and controlled by the government’ comes into effect as the British government started the war and are still controlling it, 8 years after war was declared. The point that was never followed was ‘those who are attacked deserve it’. I believe this because in my opinion, we are in Iraq and we are attacking for no reason, as there is nothing which could benefit our country in any way. The Iraq war also does not promote good over evil, as in my opinion, how can going to war, ever promote good? Wouldn’t going to war be a bad thing and God would be against it? But on the other hand, the good of society would never go to war in the first place; you would only see evil at war. War should be avoided, using whatever ways possible.

Cross Cultural Awareness And Preparation Of Expatriates Management Essay

Cross Cultural Awareness And Preparation Of Expatriates Management Essay The integration of world markets has resulted in an outstanding growth of multinational businesses and these corporations have emerged as an important form of foreign investment. As the organizations grow by virtue of investing in foreign countries, the need to manage, coordinate, control and integrate the foreign operations of their subsidiaries with those of the parent company increases to a large extent. To achieve the objectives of the company, parent companies in the home country usually send expatriate employees to host countries as corporate representatives and ambassadors. Firstly, the paper will focus on the importance cross-cultural awareness in preparing successful expatriates for overseas activities. Through examining the literature (comparison of Hofstede and Trompenaars cultural dimensions) this paper will examine how cultural awareness is important in developing successful expatriates. Moreover, the differences in Malaysian and American culture that can create hindranc e in a successful expatriate venture will be analyzed. Finally, it will argue the importance of training and orientation in terms of preparing expatriates for foreign assignments. Literature Review There have been number of researches done on the relationship between cultural distance and adjustment of expatriate, with some arguing that sending expatriates to a same culture is almost similar to sending them to different culture. The studies conducted by those scholars found that there is no or positive relationship between cultural distance and expatriate adjustment. The results of a report by Jan Selmer suggests that although there is a significant between-group difference in cultural distance, that the American expatriates perceive Canada as more culturally similar to America than Germany, no significant inter-group differences are detected for general adjustment, interaction adjustment, work adjustment and psychological adjustment (Selmer, 2007). It could be argued that American expatriates sent to Canada do not experience any cultural differences because those differences are not expected. It has been found from studies that respondents from similar cultures such as U.S. when assigned as expatriates are not keen to report adjustment problems as compare to expatriates which are assigned to more dissimilar cultures, such as China (Forster, 1997). The result given by Forster reflected that the degree of cultural strangeness does not seem to have any correlation with the result of the foreign assignment. Similarly, it has been reported that the Japanese multinational corporations have experienced that their expatriates appear to adjust about the same in different countries, regardless of their degree of cultural similarity to Japan (Peterson, 1996). In contrast to the above findings, there are many researches on expatriate adjustment that lead to the conclusion that cultures which are more dissimilar to the expatriate culture present bigger challenges and result in greater adjustment difficulties (Ward Kennedy, 1992). It has been found that found that U. S. expatriates are more likely to experience greater cultural barriers in Southeast Asia (India and Pakistan), the Middle-East, North Africa, East Africa and Liberia in the areas of job satisfaction, stress and anxiety, and quality of life standards such as housing, food, and health care (Torbià ¶rn, 1982). Furthermore, a report by Tung suggests that American expatriates express higher levels of dissatisfaction with their expatriation experiences in Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia than in other world regions since the culture in those areas are most dissimilar (Tung, 1982). Black and Stephens measures this correlation between the cultural distance and expatriate adj ustment using self-report from 220 business expatriates, whose results showed negative correlations (Black Stephens, 1989). Hofstede Cultural Dimensions The study conducted on IBM employees in 53 countries by Hofstede is generally referred as Hofstede Cultural Dimensions. By using standard statistical analysis of large data sets, he was able to define patterns of similarities and differences among the respondents. The theory formulated by using the gathered data states that world cultures differ along consistent fundamental dimensions. Power-distance It refers to the degree to which the members of the organizations and institutions which are less powerful accepting and expecting that power is distributed unequally (Hofstede, 1991). It represents inequality (more versus less) which is defined from below not from above. Hofstede suggests that societys level of inequality is fully endorsed by the followers as much as by the leaders. Collectivism vs. individualism This dimension refers to the degree to which individuals are integrated into groups (Hofstede, 1991). On one side we see individualist approach in societies where the relationships between individuals are loose, where everyone is expected to look after him/herself and his/her immediate family. But on the other side which is referred as collectivism, there are societies in which people from birth onwards are integrated into strong, cohesive in-groups, often extended families (with uncles, aunts and grandparents) which continue protecting them in exchange for unquestioning loyalty (Hofstede, 1991). Femininity vs. Masculinity The third dimension describe by Hofstede is masculinity (MAS) versus its opposite, femininity. This refers to the distribution of roles between the genders in a society and it is also a fundamental issue for any society to which a range of solutions are found (Hofstede, 1991). The two main results that were found out by Hofstede on his study on IBM were, first, womens values differ less among societies than mens values; second, mens values from one country to another contain a dimension from very assertive and competitive and maximally different from womens values on the one side, to modest and caring and similar to womens values on the other. Uncertainty avoidance The main purpose of uncertainty avoidance index is that it deals with a societys tolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity; ultimately referring to the mans search for Truth (Hofstede, 1991). It refers to the extent to which the members of the society are programmed to feel uncomfortable or comfortable in unstructured situations. The situations which are novel, surprising and unknown, different from usual are referred as uncertain situations (Hofstede, 1991). Long- vs. short-term orientation This is the fifth dimension that was added after the initial four dimensions were developed by Hofstede. It was developed by a study conducted among students in 23 countries around the world, using a questionnaire designed by Chinese scholars (Bond, 2002). The results of this study revealed that the values associated with Long Term Orientation are thrift and perseverance and the values associated with Short Term Orientation are respect for tradition, fulfilling social obligations, and protecting ones face (Hofstede, 1991). Applause and Criticism of Hofstede Theory There are many researchers that are of the opinion that a survey is not an appropriate instrument for accurately determining and measuring cultural disparity. It is mostly apparent when the variable being measured is a value which culturally sensitive and subjective (Schwartz 1999). Perhaps this is the most popular criticism that was made on Hofstedes study and it says that Hofstede assumes that the domestic population is a homogenous whole. It also states that Hofstede tends to ignore the importance of community, and the variations of the community influences (Dorfman and Howell 1988). McSweeney argues that nations are not the proper units of analysis as cultures are not necessarily bounded by bordersm (McSweeney, 2000). It is also proved from recent research that culture is in fact fragmented across groups. There is also a criticism that the study revolves around one company cannot possibly provide information on the entire cultural system of a country (Graves 1986). It is also believed by some researchers have claimed that the study is too old to be of any modern value, particularly with todays rapidly changing global environments, internationalization and convergence. It has been argued that during the time of Hofstedes study there was very little work on culture. There was demand for such kind of work and therefore, Hofstedes work met demand for guidance. Trompenaars Cultural Dimensions Fons Trompenaars, a Dutch culturalist who is renowned for his work on international culture and Charles Hampden-Turner, a dilemma enthusiast classified seven dimensions of cultures. Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner (1997) categorized cultures as a mix of behavioral and value patterns. The research emphasize on the cultural dimensions of business executives. As a result of their research, seven value dimensions were established Universalism vs. Particularism The dimension of universalism is about finding broad and general rules. If any issue arises and there is no rule that fits, it finds the best rule. On the other hand, Particularism is about finding exceptions. The judgment of cases on its own merits rather than forcing an existing rule in case where no rules fit. Analyzing vs. Integrating The decomposition to find the detail is analyzing. It assumes that people who look at the big picture as being out of touch with reality. Integrating refers to bringing the things together to build the big picture. Individualism vs. Collectivism Individualism is about the rights of the individual. It seeks to let each person grow or fail on their own, and sees group-focus as denuding the individual of their inalienable rights. Collectivism is about the rights of the group or society. It seeks to put the family, group, company and country before the individual. It sees individualism as selfish and short-sighted (Trompenaars and Turner, 2000). Inner-directed vs. Outer-directed The approach that what we think in our head is the most powerful tool and that considered ideas and intuitive approaches are the best way. On the other hand, outer-directed is seeking data in the outer world. It assumes that we will live in a world and should form our decisions on information available to us (Trompenaars and Turner, 2000). Time as sequence vs. Time as synchronization The approach towards time as sequence and sees events as separate items in time, sequence one after another. It finds order in a serried array of actions that happen one after the other. Whereas, time as synchronization approaches the events in parallel and synchronized together (Trompenaars and Turner, 2000). Achieved status vs. Ascribed status The gain of status through performance is achieved status. In this it is assumed that individuals and organizations earn and lose their status every day, and that other approaches are recipes for failure. Gaining status through means of seniority is referred as ascribed status (Trompenaars and Turner, 2000). Equality vs. Hierarchy The approach that all people have equal status and have equal rights, irrespective of birth or other gift is referred as equality. Whereas, hierarchy is about people being superior to others when few are in charge and others obey through the scalar chain of command (Trompenaars and Turner, 2000). Applause and Criticism of Trompenaars and Turner Theory The work done by Trompenaars and Turner is regarded as one of the best in its field but at the same time there has been some criticism of Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner. One of their critics is Hofstede, who claims that the theory of Trompenaars is not supported by his database. Hofstede (1996) argues that a result of correlation and factor analysis at the country level, there are only two dimensions that could be identified and both of them are correlated with his Individualism dimension. This criticism by Hofstede was accepted by Turner Trompenaars (1997) and two contrasting lists of assumptions attributed to Hofstedes work and their own were presented by them. It is also been debated that Trompenaars and Turner didnt develop the dimensions from statistical data, but created their own collection instrument for the data they considered relevant Data derived from questionnaires is based on a limited number of questions by which underlying values were explained. Another notable criti cism is that the data is only selectively documented i.e. it is not to be considered scientific work. Also, the data (not all) is not freely available, it is owned by his company. The difference in the two works (Hofstedes and Trompenaars tuner) is that Hofstedes approach appears to be about the analysis of the variables of national culture, whereas Trompenaars and Turner are more involved in the process of cultural creation. It is also widely believed that there were very valuable dimensions that were added by Trompenaars and Turner. Hofstede and Trompenaars Turner and Preparation of Expatriate Challenges faced by Expatriates (Malaysian and American Culture) The globalization of world has made many international organizations to expand their business globally. Barto and Martin (1998) refer to globalization process a worldwide integration strategy where the purpose involves at developing relatively standardized products with global appeals, as well as rationalizing operations throughout the world. In order to achieve the objectives, organizations are required to send their designate representatives for overseas assignments in order to maintain the standards of their products or services abroad. A study was conducted in Malaysia to examine the issues faced by American expatriates working in Malaysia (Tahir Ismail, 2007). Attitudes of Malaysians Difficulties faced in understanding the indirect and non-confrontational behavior of Malaysians Malaysians misconception towards Mat Salleh Custom and Religion Problems in understanding the dress code of the locals Being cautious over religious issues Addressing Social Status: Difficulty in addressing names of Malaysians according to social status Gender Issues in Expatriation: Preconceived ideas about western women expatriates Malaysian Working Habit Difficulty in complying with the working pace High level of bureaucracy hinders job implementation Cross-cultural Training: Unavailability of a Structured Cross-Cultural Training program Importance of Training and Orientation The extent to which expatriates fail to achieve the expected outcomes of a foreign assignment is due to different reasons such as language problems, lack of effective knowledge transfer between the home and the host country (Tung, 1987), lack of personality skills for the expatriate to understand the cross-cultural interactions, shortage of technical abilities for the work to be done, lack of motivation or the expatriate may have difficulties to understand and adapt to either the physical or the cultural differences in the environment (Littrell et al., 2006). Companies use a variety of methods to teach expatriates cross-cultural skills, aimed at facilitating interactions with a foreign culture. Didactic Training This type of raining is most often provided in informal briefings, which can be given in a classical lecture form or with less structured methods such as casual conversations with experts. It is the most common and more than two thirds of all multinational corporations offer didactic training in the form of informal briefings to their expatriates before deployment abroad (Brewster, 1995). This kind of training provides factual information regarding working and living conditions as well as cultural aspects of the host country. Experiential Training This training is conveyed using a number of methods including, not only, practical exercises, workshops and simulations, but also more genuine concepts such as look-see visits to the host country (Caligiuri et al., 2001). The arrangement of look-see trips can provide a first real experience of the country for the expatriate and sometimes his or her family giving them opportunity to meet people in the new country and get a view of the new environment and the workplace. The planning of these trips should be properly done in order to be effective they need to be well planned, which can make them costly. Brewster (1995) argues that these are designed to give the expatriate a positive view; they may not show the true picture of the host country (Brewster, 1995). Language Training Teaching expatriates the language and/or the business language of the host country is part of the language training. Tung (1981) suggests that while fluency can take months or even years to attain there are still benefits of using this training method. This technique is often used and is an effective way of preparing an expatriate to speed up the adjustment process. Although fluency in the native language is not achieved, the ability to enter into informal discussions, use common courtesies and show cultural empathy can help to facilitate adaptation to the host culture. Cultural Awareness Training The ultimate objective of cultural awareness training is to give the expatriate insight about the culture and cultural differences, by teaching awareness about the home culture. There are different training activities that are included such as self-awareness building and value ranking charts, but the goals can also be reached with more culture-general approaches, such as simulation games and perceptual exercises (Grove Torbià ¶rn, 1985). Methods such as role-plays and self-assessments can be a good way of building self awareness, which translates into acceptance of oneself and an ability to adapt to the host culture. Conclusions In reviewing various cultural theories presented by different authors, it is obvious that culture plays a vital role in doing business globally. Companies that look to expand their operations globally must understand the host culture in depth and cross-cultural dimensions developed by Hofstede and Trompenaars Turner are of great help in this field. Also, organizations wishing to go global by investing in foreign countries, there is always a growing need to manage, coordinate, control and integrate the foreign operations and therefore, the importance of expatriates cannot be ignored. However, it is also found out that preparing expatriates is a great challenge and organizations invest lot of resources to prepare and train them for foreign assignments. Finally, the type of training and orientation provided to the expatriates is plays a significant importance in the successful fulfillment of overseas assignment.

economy of power :: essays research papers

15 The economy of power ‘I would like to suggest another way to go further towards a new economy of power relations, a way which is more empirical, more directly related to our present situation, and which implies more relations between theory and practice. Michel Foucault, 1982 Beyond the repressive hypothesis: Power as power/knowledge Foucault never attempts any (impossible) definition of power. At best, he gives a definition of power relations in an essay published in 1982: ‘The exercise of power is not simply a relationship between partners, individual or collective; it is a way in which certain actions modify others. Which is to say, of course, that something called Power, with or without a capital letter, which is assumed to exist universally in a concentrated or diffused form, does not exist.’ Therefore, Foucauldian definition of power is drawn in opposition with the  « repressive hypothesis  » (Foucault, 1971) which holds that there is a transcendental reason which can be exercised independently of any power relationship. Precisely because it is transcendental, reason is then universally compelling. It can limit the political power field and has therefore a role in opposing domination (ie when political power goes beyond its rights). Foucault draws the genealogy of this hypothesis advocating two reasons for its appearance in history(Dreyfus and Rabinow, 1982:130). On a first hand, because of what he calls the  « speaker’s benefit  », the mere fact that, by advocating such a hypothesis, the speaker places himself out of power and within truth. However, this is not the main argument of Foucault as he must recognise that, not as an archaeologist but as a genealogist, he is himself in a field of power relations. On a second hand, because: ‘modern power is tolerable on the condition that it masks itself–which it has done very effectively. If truth is outside of and opposed to power, then the speaker’s benefit is merely an incidental plus. But if truth and 16 power are not external to each other, as Foucault will obviously maintain, then the speaker’s benefit and associated ploys are among the essential ways in which power operates. It masks itself by producing a discourse, seemingly opposed to it but really part of a larger deployment of modern power.’ An additional, more technical, reason should be added, which is that talking about a transcendental reason means falling again in the contradictions of modernity (see part 1). Therefore, Foucault prefers considering rationality as  « a kind of rationality  » and study how several kinds of rationalities could emerge in history (see part 2). However, considering the emergence of a kind of rationality presupposes that the field of possible knowledge is tightly

Children’s Functional Health Pattern Essay

Toddlers believe rules are absolute and behave out of fear of punishment. The toddler will respond with good behavior for positive feedback. These  values and beliefs are learned. Preschoolers frequently express their values by stating who or what they like or what they want to be when they grow up. Preschoolers receive modeling of values from involved adults, peers, as they develop their morality. School-Age children’s values come from religion, cultural, and parental values influences. These factors shape a child’s moral development, and concept of right and wrong. School-age children are able to make decisions related to moral and ethical issues. Parents may cater to their toddler when they are misbehaving, giving them more attention when they are bad than when they are good. This make the toddler believe that behaving badly gets their parents attention. Parents need to remember to reward good behavior, and to emphasize rewards for acceptable behavior and minimizing attention for unwanted behavior. Parents may not have firm and established rules, making it confusing for the toddler to distinguish right from wrong. Peers or inappropriate content on television can negatively influence preschooler’s values and beliefs. Parents may have a poor morals and value system themselves, inadvertently teaching their preschoolers the same behaviors. School-age children may bend to peer pressure to gain the acceptance of their peers. School-Age children may cheat due a desire to win, or pressure from their parents and peers to be great. Short Answer Questions Address the following based on the above assessment findings. Expected answers will be 1-2 paragraphs in length. Cite and reference outside sources used. 1) Compare and contrast identified similarities as well as differences in  expected assessment across the childhood age groups. Across the stages of development from toddler up to school age children there is a significant difference in the amount of guidance needed and the amount independence required. The differences are evident when examining how each developmental phase interacts and responds within each health assessment pattern. Toddler and preschool children need more structure and routine, whether it’s brushing their teeth or bedtime rituals. School-aged children, on the other hand, require more independence and trust in decisions while still being guided and reassured as the develop their own sense of identity. There are similarities as amongst the age groups as well, such as all of the children moving towards a state of autonomy and the ability to express themselves adequately and be heard by either their parents, their peers, or both. Additionally, all of the different age groups have the need for a structured and healthy home environment in order to grow and develop. 2) Summarize how a nurse would handle physical assessments, examinations, education, and communication differently with children versus adults. Consider spirituality and cultural differences in your answer. When the nurse is caring for a child, the nurse must remember that they are essentially caring for the child and the parent (Jarvis, 2012). For a nurse, the assessment, examination and interaction with a child patient offers its own set of challenges and requires a different approach from that of an adult. When dealing the toddler and preschooler, the nurse should visit with the parent first, letting the child size the nurse up. The nurse can assess child on how they interact and react to the parent and the nurse. This allows the child to see that the caregiver has accepted and trusts the nurse. For the toddler and the preschooler, the parent will be providing most, if not all of the health history. When beginning the physical assessment on the child, move slow and approach them slowly while seeming happy and unthreatening. The nurse should allow the child to hold instruments, like a stethoscope, during the physical exam to help them feel like they are involved in their own care. Having parents there add security and support for children, and also can help with the ease of assessing the  child without them realizing that they are being assessed. With children of each stage of development, the nurse must be cognizant of verbal and non-verbal cues provided by the child. The nurse should be mindful that there could be cultural and/or spiritual considerations to take into account, like when undressing a child of the opposite sex. The nurse needs to ensure that the caregiver and the child feel comfortable. With both children and adults, assessment should start with least invasive and progress leaving most invasive last. School-Age children should be assed like either children or adults depending on their developmental age. Adult assessment can be more direct than that of a child. Ask adults open ended questions, listen to their complaints, and educate as needed. References Current Nursing. (2012). Theory of Psychosocial Development: Erik H. Erikson. Retrieved From http://currentnursing.com/nursing_theory/theory_of_psychosocial_development.html Edelman, C., Kudzma, E., Mandle, C. (2010). Health Promotion throughout the Life Span [VitalSource Bookshelf version]. Retrieved from http://pageburstls.elsevier.com/books /9780323056625 Jarvis, C. (2012). Physical Examination and Health Assessment [VitalSource Bookshelf version]. Retrieved from http://pageburstls.elsevier.com/books/978-1-4377-0151-7

Hate Hurts, How Children Learn and Unlearn Prejudice

You know there is hate and prejudice out there in the world, but sometimes you try to live your life pretending it’s not, just as long as it is not affection you or your family. It was surprising to me to see how early children notice differences in each other. Even children are already using (race) in some rudimentary way at six months (Stern, Larosa pg. 18). It’s amazing to hear about Dr. Phyllis Katz’s experiment. We know babies pay attention to their surroundings, and the people in it. Just didn’t realize how closely. In her experiment it showed how a six month old baby got bored looking at the same pictures of the same faces, and then got interested when a face of a different color was introduced. These differences help babies form a secure knowledge of themselves as entities separate from others (Stern, Larosa pg 18). I was very shocked by how ignorant one parent was about prejudice. She says â€Å"It’s something I thought he didn’t notice†¦ that wouldn’t be part of his consciousness†¦ I sort of wanted him to be colorblind. † Clearly children are NOT color – blind. Unless they are taught to appreciate differences, their views can be quite early (Stern, Larosa pg. 27). With teenagers things get a little harder. They are torn between being a child and a young adult. You want to be sure they are not doing things they shouldn’t, but you don’t want to pry into their lives too much. They are trying to be independent from you, and do and make their own decisions. Parents of teenagers in our society must learn to listen to what their offspring are saying, especially what they are saying to one another (Stern, Larosa pg. 9). This book gives you so many heart breaking examples of how children have treated other children so wrong with hatred and prejudice. It also has given examples of how these children over came those hardships; it just would have been nice to hear more of the good instead of the bad. After reading this book, it makes you wake up and realize you can’t live your life as if hate and prejudice isn’t out there. We as a society must teach our children that differences should ot be a threat, but that differences are what make the world go around. It seems that hate and prejudice has plagued our country for the entirety of it’s existence. You can go back and look in history books and find it almost any where in history. This is an issue that bears much consideration because it is not going away by itself. We were created equal in the sight of God, and when everyone recognizes that to be fact and teaches their children, then maybe we will be well on our way to a peaceful existence.

Psychology Journal Article Review Essay

Has the influence of others ever affected your decision making skills, or made you question yourself about the decision you made? In the aim to test whether or not pressure from a group of people affects a persons’ ability to conform. Psychologist Solomon E Asch decided to conduct an experiment to justify his theory. Asch gathered college students in groups of eight to ten where they were told that he was only studying visual perception. They were then given a simple line judgment task where the answer was made very obvious. The task was to decide which one of the lines on the right was identical to the line on the left. This was done over and over again for about eighteen times. However the trick in the experiment was that out of all the students in the group only one student was the one being tested. The rest of the students were instructed to provide incorrect answers to twelve out of the eighteen times they were asked about the lines. Purposely, Asch made sure that the person being experimented sat next-to-the-last person in each group to provide his answer so that he would hear most of the other incorrect answers before giving his own. They then would see if the individual would keep their choice or just conform to everybody else’s decision just because the majority of the group agreed to it. After the experiment Asch found out that thirty-seven out of fifty students that were being experimented on conformed to the majority’s decision at least once. However, fourteen of the fifty students conformed more than six times during the assessment. Asch being very bothered by these results stated â€Å"The tendency to conformity in our society is so strong that reasonably intelligent and well-meaning young people are willing to call white black. This is a matter of concern. It raises questions about our ways of education and about the values that guide our conduct. † ( McLeod, S. A. (2007) Simply Psychology [On-line] UK: Available: http://www. simplypsychology. pwp. blueyonder. co. uk/ Accessed: January 17, 2010). After the experiment when the subjects were being asked why they conformed to the answer some of them said that because they did really think that the other answers were correct. Another reason was that they just went along with everybody else’s same opinion because they did were basically afraid of being different of being thought of as dumb or unusual by the rest of his peers. Due to this Asch came to conclude that people conform for two main reasons one because the individual wants to be liked by the group or maybe because you believe that since you are doing the something different than the rest that they are better informed than you. Asch found out that the aspect that influences conformity is the size of the opposite people having the different opinion than you. He concluded that it is hard to sustain what you see versus something that nobody else sees. Pressure given by the expressed thoughts and opinions of other people can lead to change and alterations successfully making you see almost nothing. Alteration meaning changing your perception about the way the lines were being viewed in order to match with everybody else. In this assessment the independent variable were all the different students that were being tested with the same people in the room, these same students being there provided the same answers to the question sixteen out of eighteen times. The dependant variable was the test being taken and how many wrong answers were being provided for the subject of the experiment to see. In my opinion these results would have been different if we had paid more attention to the kind of people that were being analyzed. For example a person having a high self esteem versus someone having no self esteem at all which then would rapidly make them change their decision. This experiment could have been conducted better if they would have taken these factors in mind or if they would have just tested a similar group of people. Here you might have had people that will most likely listen to other people and then you have the people that are not afraid to be different . I think this experiment showed the correct by just a few people not conforming to everybody else’s choices because there are a very few people like that out in the world today . I think that these results will not really apply to other participants in other places at other experimental times because as stated before maybe not all the subject being tested might have the same mentality to change their answers that quick to be accepted by everyone else. This experiment however has a well contribution to the field of psychology explaining conformity and the different ways that pressure from people has an impact on you. In my cased I believe that everyone should read this experiment and that future edition of ext book should reference this experiment because it would be a great discussion topic and would bring up a good subject to talk about within our peers. This experiment has an impact in what our society is going thru today I believe we have a lot of individuals that are scared to be different I think this takes part greatly on the media and what he have seen growing up. Many people believe that always conforming to what everybody else is used to is always the right thing but what justifies this? Who has the right to say what is right is right and just because the majority of people believe this way it shouldn’t be the same you think. We shouldn’t have to format our minds to somebody else’s. That is the whole idea everyone is different in their own individual way which is what makes each and every one of us if not this world would be such a boring place. As reading about this experiment it’s silly but what came to mind was the show how wasn’t to be a millionaire. In that show which I believe you a bit reference on there is choices you have when you don’t know the answer to a question one of the choices is to ask the audience then the audience votes and obviously the contestant picks the answer they got the most votes. Then it is up to the individual to choose the answer that he thinks it is right nine out ten times the answer that the audience picks is correct which in this case this experiment would not justify the situation. Then we can ask is the individual doubting himself is he afraid to be different? Or in this matter is it not important whether or not they want to be different because there in money involved on the line. Different situations can alter your decision and decision making skills depending on the situation you are in and whether or not you choose to be different in that particular situation. Whether or not you choose to be different should be your decision and not a group of people. Knowing who you are plays big role in this case and if it is hard for you to find the right path then I think that it is better that you find it on your own first before asking someone else for advice and that is how you will find your true self which will then tell you apart from everybody else.

China Is Going to Become the Next Superpower Assignment

China Is Going to Become the Next Superpower - Assignment Example Before embarking a discussion specifically in a China-centric context, it will be really pragmatic to delineate the salient characteristics of a superpowerFirst and foremost, a superpower always has a robust and stable economy that is sufficient enough to churn out the resources for its fast-expanding ambitions. A superpower is also backed by a strong army, navy and air force that could well do the job of projecting it as a power throughout the world. A superpower also needs to have a strong and well-developed culture that is worthy of extending the requisite philosophical and ideological influences, that well demark and define the approach and strategy of that superpower. Geography can certainly play role in consolidating and encouraging the superpower status of a country, as it did in the case of the erstwhile USSR and the USA. A country that has a vast sea and land area under its control is mostly not only endowed with abundant and rich natural resources but does also enjoy a dist inct tactical advantage in the case of a war. If one takes into consideration the contemporary economic and military power of China and the other related attributes like culture, geography and the like, no doubt China qualifies to be an ideal candidate for becoming the superpower of the future (Mahtaney 7).  Also, not only the Chinese goods are flooding the Western markets, but rather China has emerged as a manufacturing hub for the entire world. China also has embarked on an ambitious plan to modernize its military. It goes without saying that in the recent times, China’s sway in the world affairs has increased over time and China is doing its best to gain a strategic edge not only over its rivals in Asia but also over the Western powers (Mahtaney 4). All these facts constitute a good reason as to why China is poised to achieve a superpower status in the future. China’s Economy In the last three decades, China’s economic growth has been quietly impressive and the nation does seem to have the potential to sustain this growth in the times to come. Simply speaking, China has one big population that not only serves the purpose of creating a big and lucrative domestic market but also extends to China ready access to cost-effective and affordable labor. Not to mention that China is a country endowed with ample natural resources and big sea and land area, which further contribute to and facilitate its economic growth. It was Deng Xiaoping who introduced economic reforms in China in the late 70s. Since the introduction of these reforms, the Chinese economy has developed spectacularly. In the period 1979-1993, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of China registered an average growth rate of 9.3 percent (Cass, Williams & Barker 91). It was indeed a great achievement, going by the fact that in the same time period, the average growth rate of the entire world stood at 2.6 percent (Cass, Williams & Barker 91).  

Performance measurement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Performance measurement - Essay Example In a broader perspective, the role of performance management system is to provide a fundamental bloc for enhancing total quality management (Besanko, Dranove, Shanley & Schaefer, 2010). Organizations that employ performance management systems are those that wish to establish the individual, departmental, and organizational performance in a bid to enhancing management to achieve organizational goals. Amongst the personal experiences with performance measurement is during the recent visit by auditors. The auditors aimed at ensuring that every employee in the organization had not only complied with the requirements of the firm but had also placed in extra efforts to ensure customer satisfaction in addition to growing shareholders’ value. The auditors found out that most employees in the organization would go an extra mile to call the clients in order to offer advisory services with respect to the organization. Being in the Accounting and Finance Department, the auditors wanted to know how the organization was complying with the Accounting Standards as provided for by the IAS and IFRS. Their advice to the department was the need to keep updating financial and accounting data in a bid to ensure that there was accountability and transparency in reporting the same concepts and

Accounting for Manager Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Accounting for Manager - Essay Example If the management expects the revenue to be $700000, then it must not accept the proposal of the landlord as this will increase the annual rent payment to $45500 which is more than the fixed annual rent of $40000. The company can accept the order as this will result in a profit of $400000. This is because the fixed costs remain fixed irrespective of the size of production (National Council on Economic Education, n.d.; Mankiw, 2008, P274). If the order size is 12000 units, the company must not accept the offer as this will result in a loss of $492000. The company has to spend an additional amount of $900000 as fixed costs because of an increase in the total capacity. This is because the fixed costs increase with the increase in the total capacity of the business The maximum order size that the company can accept is 100000 units. This is because beyond this capacity the fixed cost of the company doubles. For producing even one unit beyond the total capacity the company has to incur the total amount of fixed expense as this cannot be adjusted with the number of units produced. The costs have been allocated as direct and indirect costs. Direct costs include the cost of materials and labor cost that can be directly related to the product whereas indirect costs are the costs that cannot be directly identified with the product. The costs relating to general services are apportioned based on sales volume and the costs of the computer department are allocated based on the use. From this the operational income of the Tree division has been calculated as $480000. The net investment of the division is $1600000. This gives a return of 30% on the investment. The performance evaluation can be done using Variance analysis, EVA and return earned on investment. To earn profits the business has to be managed efficiently. ROI is an important tool for evaluating the

Business Enterprise and Cultural Enrichment Essay

Business Enterprise and Cultural Enrichment - Essay Example A number of impacts are realized when businesses participate in the championing of beneficial and beneficial cultural practices. Cultural enrichment influences positively on the growth of the business if the business offers its best with regard to the cultures of its surrounding. However, not all cultures practiced in the surrounding of business premises will create an enabling environment. Managers and other senior personnel should investigate and re-evaluate the implications of a single cultural practice before arriving at decisions of determining whether resources of the business are to be used in popularizing and sensitizing clients concerning the culture (Schumacher, 2011). Cultures that communicate information, which dissuades people from consuming certain brands constituting the business’ stock, should be avoided since their effects are counterproductive. If such cultures are popularized, the business will realize loses that may put the enterprises’ future in hig her risks that may lead to closure, relocation, or even retrenchment some of its workers (Schumacher, 2011). A business enterprise can input towards improving and retaining certain cultures in many ways. For instance, through carrying out campaigns geared towards instilling public awareness. This can be done by public address systems mounted on vehicles that go around imparting information into the people. On these vehicles, renowned cultural icons (traditional artists) must be given top priority to talk to the public about the business and the need for culture and its existence (Schumacher, 2011). Additionally, the business can contribute to cultural growth by selling of music enriched with the sounds from cultural, musical instruments. Businesses like those of fashioning designing should sell garments that do not discriminate the culture of the people. For example, a business selling clothing in a region where scarves make the order of the day should include this in their stock. P rojects geared towards improving and enriching the culture of the people should be investigated by the business so as to identify with the achievements brought to the people by such programs. The business should also contribute intensively to the planting of crops that are used to praise and adore the lord almighty for instance. The business can also come up with laws that do not discriminate workers. Such laws should be consistence with the people’s cultural practices, and they should also create a homely working environment by boosting performance and other merits in the duties and assignments to be accomplished (Schumacher, 2011). Performances of the employees are directly influenced by the kind of working environment created by their employers or organizations; hence it is the obligation of the business to meet employees’ needs. Besides other requirements, employees deserve rules that are friendly to their cultural practices in order for them to deliver accordingly . The approach towards work can be compromised if the employee has to sacrifice many of his cultural practices for the sake of work. Society has other ceremonies that call for the participation of every person who is part of it. On such days, the business is compelled to disobeying the demands of the community; otherwise, it might experience a reduction in sales (Schumacher, 2011). Some cultures determine or dictate how a business enterprise within them