Business Inventory control Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business Inventory control - Essay Example At the same time, money which is tied in inventory can’t be used for other purposes (Dubrin, 2011, pg: 211). Because of these reasons, it is very important to monitor and keep a control over inventory. Inventory control takes all the more importance because of the following reasons (Jawahar – Lal, 2008, pg. 118): a. Demand fluctuations –Demand for an organization’s products vary from season to season. In times of fluctuating demands, inventory plays a very critical role. Insufficient inventory will lead to frequent stock-outs whereas a very high inventory will lead to huge costs for storage and maintenance of inventory. b. Uncertainty in receiving the item from the supplier – Often there can be uncertainties in receiving inventory items from the supplier. An organization should keep buffer against such uncertainties by keeping sufficient stocks of the inventory. Inventory is one of the most critical components of the order to cash conversion cycle. It is important for an organization to have a control over the inventory because the same affects the profitability of the firm considerably. A less amount of inventory will lead to stock-outs and customers being returned without the sales while a high amount of inventory on the other hand leads to high cost in storage and

UAE and Oman labour laws Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

UAE and Oman labour laws - Essay Example UAE and Oman Labour Laws UAE is the second biggest by population in the GCC and the second biggest economy of the region and transshipment hub. It is the largest gas exporter in the world. On the other hand, Oman is relatively poor in the region and relies on the mineral industry. However, nationalization is highest in this country. The GCC countries have categorized employment visa into to maid visa, farming visa, and employment visa. A common feature in the region is that farmers and housemaids are not part of the labor laws. Officials issue employment visa to establishments and companies and bases it on the size and the company’s capital. ‘Hire and fire’ is the underlying principle of GCC countries (Latham & Watkins, 2009). These countries have nevertheless failed in establishing standards for migrant workers that are intentionally acceptable. Most of the GCC countries’ labor and immigration laws are famous for enhancing and validate inhuman treatment to wards migrant workers. For instance, the Khiraj (exit permit) is a requirement for employees who want to leave the region. The employer must grant the employee permission to leave the country. This is a common practice in the region with the exception of UAE and Kuwait. The employees do not have freedom to change their jobs unless they receive permission from their present employers (Latham & Watkins, 2009). Comparison of the UAE and Oman Labor Laws Statutory Authority In the UAE Federal Law No. 8 of 1980, Regulatory Labour Law Relations govern labor matters, which are simply the Labour Laws. In this country, the Ministry of Labour is the one charged with the responsibility of dealing with labour matters. While in Oman, regulation of labour matters are by Sultan’s Decree No. 35/2003. The state recently amended the statute in October 2011 by Royal Decree No. 113/2011. Unlike the UAE, in Oman the Ministry of Manpower is in charge of labor matters (Latham & Watkins, 2009). Worki ng hours Under the UAE Labour Law, eight hours is the set maximum working hours per day for an adult employee. After five consecutive hours of work, an employee gets to have a rest break. The working week is made of six days. On the other hand, for the Oman Labour Law provides for a five-day working week. The maximum working hours in a week are 45 hours (article 68 of the Oman Labour Law) as opposed to the 48 hours in the UAE (Latham & Watkins, 2009). The daily working hours for each employee is nine hours. During the month of Ramadan, the set maximum working hours per week are 30 hours per week. This means that one has to work for only five hours per day. Contrary to this, the UAE Labour Law sets 36 hours per week as the maximum working hours during the month of Ramadan (Latham & Watkins, 2009). However, the maximum number of hours worked per day is the same for both countries. About overtime, in accordance to the Oman Labour Law the maximum overtime per day is three hours. This is because an employee only receives a total of 12 hours to work per day. The UAE Labour Law provides that overtime hours should not exceed two hours per day. The exceptions for extended overtime hours include a case where the work to be done involves prevention of the occurrence of a serious loss or accident, or removal or

An Evaluation Of The Impacts Of Tourism Tourism Essay

An Evaluation Of The Impacts Of Tourism Tourism Essay In this project I would like to take a look at the relationship between tourism and the people living in popular tourist locations; specifically the deep impact tourism has on local culture. This topic interests me as although I have never visited the global south myself, many of my friends and acquaintances travel there frequently for vacations. Tourism is sure to have many effects on these destination type communities. I know that many of these destinations are in poorer areas of the world. Some significant effects that tourism has on these areas manifest themselves economically, socially and culturally. Though tourism may create jobs and stimulate the local economy there are some downsides to tourism and aspects of the influx of visitors that may be harmful to local cultures. In my research paper I will analyze the benefits that tourism has on local economies in relation to the social and cultural impact on the community. I hope to evaluate just how beneficial potentially short-te rm economic stimulus is in the face of potential harm to the economy in the long term, local people and local culture. I will discuss this topic globally but with a focus on Southeast Asia and specifically India. My paper will emphasize the important question: is vacationing in a third world country potentially unethical? Or does the stimulus to a developing countrys economy justify the social and cultural implications of tourism and the development that tourism brings in the area. Looking at the ethical issues surrounding this will also be an important factor in determining whether the cultural impacts of tourism is acceptable or justifiable by the economic benefits. In my opinion, although tourism does support economic growth in many communities there is deep and irreversible cultural impact. In Tourism in Destination Communities Shalini Singh looks at an idea by Jafar Jafari the author of Encyclopedia of Tourism. Jafari created the consolidated platforms of tourism. One of Jafaris four platforms is advocacy- that is to say that tourism is capable of economic good. Another platform, the cautionary platform, emphasizes the importance of noting the complex interactions at the local level. The other two platforms are Adaptancy (which is described as pro community tourism) and Knowledge based which is a holistic treatment for community-based tourism (Jafari cited in Singh 2003). Singh and S.W. Boyd (26-30) discuss relationships between tourism and destination communities in terms of win-win, win-lose, lose-win or lose-lose paradigms (Carter and Lowman, 1944; Nepal, 2000). Examples of win-win situations do exist and this indicates that tourism can indeed be economically beneficial to a destination community. The example given by Boyd and Singh is that of Ayers rock (Uluru) wh ich is one of Australias most famous tourist attractions. Although Australia is not a country typically considered to be part of the global south I believe this example is relevant as the aboriginal communities in the area could easily be marginalized and exploited by tourism. The community however takes an active role by defining their relationship with tourism as having control and choice. (Mercer cited in S.W. Boyd and S. Singh: 1994:37). The community participates by providing educational services, which allows them to convey that the religious and cultural significance of Uluru is something to be respected. (Wells, cited in S.W. Boyd and S. Singh 1996:37). The local businesses in the area benefit and are owned by the people of the aboriginal community. This example is congruent to Jafaris platforms of Advocacy and Adaptancy and it shows tourism in this scenario as pro community and capable of economic good. As this situation is economically beneficial to this area, without comp romising or de-valuing the local culture, it is an excellent means of development. Another example where the local community benefits is the win-lose situation, a very salient example being Cuba. The community benefits economically, although mass tourism does not. This is achieved through policies and marketing that emphasizes quality tourism by restricting the number and type of tourists (high spenders, low numbers). The tourism is marketed for exclusivity and affluence and this is done through selective marketing and catering the services towards wealthier people. Cubas tourism industrys markets strategically to target Canadian snowbirds who also take long-term vacations in Florida (Peters 2002:4). Their vacationing for long periods of time in a US location and their ability to spend US currency indicates their affluence. Another strategy is the development of golf courses in the area. Miguel Figueras, a tourism ministry economist and advisor in Cuba, says that golf is a feature t hat can attract higher spending tourists (Peters 2002:5). Strategic tourism planning allows a country to tap into the wealth of the global norths wealthiest tourists allowing maximum economic benefit without mass sharing of what they have to offer. However there are many situations in which local economies lose. This is especially common in coastal-resort based tourism along the Mediterranean coast. These developments only offer short term economic gain and result in long term loss in terms of the community as well as the environment. Although tourism does create many jobs, including direct employment (jobs in hotels and restaurants), indirect employment (jobs not a result of direct tourist spending- such as laundries and banking), and induced employment (jobs created in the community as a result of increased income of members in the community) the majority of jobs are seasonal and part time (D. Ioannides 2003). In addition often much of the money spent by tourists leaves the country. The majority of the money spent by tourists on their vacations goes towards their travel costs and their accommodations. This means the money leaves the country and goes to airlines and transnational corporations who run hotel chains. This can res ult in a good portion of local people sharing their surroundings with tourists without ever actually seeing or experiencing any economic benefits themselves (Krotz 1996:215). Although tourist spending may add an influx of foreign currency to an economy, as well as create a bigger market in terms of demands for goods, which in theory can lower prices, it is important to consider that while tourism receipts rise, agriculture output declines (James Mack, Tourism and the Economy). This is a result of fewer people working in the agricultural sector. In that case the net profit of tourism is actually less than it initially seems, once the loss from agriculture is taken into account. Although some economic benefits resulting from tourism are apparent, there are definite burdens placed upon the destination community. A very prominent challenge is the residents view of visitors and their relationship with them, as outlined by M. Fagence (Tourism and Local Society and Culture). Residents have a negative attitude towards tourists if they do not see immediate and clear economic benefits of their presence, especially in the form of jobs and income. Contrary to James Macks theory that the tourists create a larger market for goods, thus lowering the prices, residents blame tourists for a rise in the price of goods. In a qualitative study by Neha Kala (2008) findings show that tourists are also seen as the cause of increased criminal activity and reduced moral standards by the host community. This is where we have to consider tourism beyond the impacts to the economy. In communities with rich traditional backgrounds some residents see the influence of visiting tourists as compromising to traditional values, as the affluent lifestyles of visitors can be appealing and seductive to the younger generations in the area. The influx of visitors brings the possibility of sometimes unwelcome social or cultural change. In Rajasthan traditional elders often scold children for speaking to tourists. (Joseph 2007:204). Locals see tourism as an exporter of Western lifestyle. (Kala: 2008) Across India, Western dress is popular amongst young males who wear jeans, shirts and baseball caps. (Joseph 2007:211). This is the result of many youth trying to emulate Western tourists (Kala: 2008). Some facets of Western lifestyle however not only replace traditional culture, but also are directly contradictory to them. A priest in Pushkar was quoted in India Today saying The youth here find the openness in foreign girls too tempting. (Joseph 2007:211) This problem is amplified if the host community does not recognize that the behaviour of most tourists are atypical to how the y normally behave and that the behaviours displayed by tourists are reserved for times of recreation, and are not the tourists usual behaviour or even their usual moral standards. Most concerning of M. Fagences findings are that residents blame tourists for reducing the significance of local culture by trivializing and making a commodity of it. In an article by Rosaleen Duffy this idea of culture as a commodity is expanded on. Duffy outlines how tourists are often looking for an authentic cultural experience; however what is considered authentic is nearly always defined by the tourist, resulting in the tourist not really looking for cultural understanding but to serve some other self-serving purpose. Tourists conceptualize their travel stories in a way that assists them in narrating their self-identity. Tourists travel as a means to escape, to broaden the mind, or for self discovery. An illustration of Duffys view that our society uses travel for self-defining and self-narrating purposes, as well as a means to understand culture and for self discovery is the popular movie Eat Pray Love, starring Julia Roberts. In the movie, Liz sets outs after her divorce to e xperience the culture in Italy, India and then Bali. The trailer includes many consecutive images of Liz eating authentic Italian pizza, praying in an old stony temple, touching a painted elephant, brightly coloured flowers being thrown at an Indian wedding, and biking through farmland past villagers carrying baskets on their heads. Liz in the movie is desperate to marvel at something and this is the very notion that Duffy presents in her research as motives that are a felt need for respite from the exigencies of modern life, and/or as authentic projects of self-discovery. In her article, Duffy cites Urry (1994:236-238) who argues that tourism can be reduced to the consumption of signs, images and texts. Evidence that tourism is the consumption of pre-conceived images is in Hillary Brenhouses article (July 22nd, 2010- prior to the release of the movie) where she describes recent vacation packages marketed by luxury hotels and spas to recreate the transformative Eat Pray Love journey . By defining an entire culture into consumable signs and images, tourists participate in the further manifestation of orientalism created by the tourism industry reinforcing images that create a sense of placelessness and even timelessness (Dann, 1996b: 125, cited in Duffy). A demonstration of tourists being consumers of discourses of placelessness and timelessness is the popular tourist destination Rajasthan, in India. The two most marketed marquees of Rajasthan are Royal and Colourful. (Henderson 2007:72). These are the two main features the tourists are looking to consume when they visit. These discourses are prominent in the naming of different locations of the province by tourists and tourism industry. Jaipur is referred to as the Pink City and Jodhpur is known as the Blue City. Royalty links Rajasthan back to the past. Medieval India is romanticized and guests will experience an encounter with a royal past. In this way the Authentic Rajasthan experience is reduced to a few signs and symbols. The most prominent example of a marketing of placelessness and timelessness is the Chokhi Dhani Resort. Located throughout the province of Rajasthan with a few locations elsewhere in western India, this resort is chaired by a NRI (Non-Resident Indian) statione d in Dubai. The Government of India heralds the chain of Chokhi Dhanis as Indias most innovative Tourism Project (official website). The resort is described as a Five-star village resort and includes fifty-five Royal cottages and eight Haveli suites, Havelis being the traditional residences of local royalty. This ethnic village includes conference rooms, spa, fitness, and accepts all major credit cards. What we can conclude from this is that the desire of foreign tourists to experience a sense of timelessness and placelessness is understood and capitalized on. Although this may be trivializing of local culture and history it is important to consider here that many locals are directly participating- and in a way heritage tourism gives them a type of ownership. The foreigners desire to see something that they preconceive as authentic is understood and cashed in on. Most respondents of Kalas study agreed that tourism encourages the mass production of pseudo-traditional arts and that ma ny non-traditional artisans are attracted to this work. This propagates tourists misconceptions because these traditional arts often bought as souvenirs allow the tourist to physically carry the discourse home with them. In some ways however this type of activity increases a communitys sense of pride. The revitalization of some traditional arts such as dance and the propagation of traditional fairs are deemed to be a positive effect of tourism. An example of this is festival of Teej; tourists interest in the festival ensures that every year it continues to be extravagant. Tourists also have a positive effect on the up keeping of historical and religious heritage sites as a result of tourist interest in them. (Kala: 2008) A preserved site is the Ghats in Pushkar, a Hindu pilgrimage site. An increase in popularity of eastern spirituality in the Western world brings many tourists here. Although this creates some inconvenience for Hindu devotees, ownership is taken through religious rhe toric aimed at tourists. Many signs around the Ghats include instructions about how tourists should and should not behave in this place of religious significance. The local priests, similar to the aboriginals at Ulurru, define the significance of this site. However concerned the priests are for the sanctity of the area they are still willing to commodify the religious experience and often perform simplified prayer service or puja for western tourists at four times the price of a native pilgrim. (Joseph: 2007) Although this active role is taken by the locals, religious devotees, and the government, the culture and tradition here is still made available to a consumer for a price. The government protecting the area for the economic benefit can also be seen as the ultimate commodification. This puts a sticker price on the countrys religion, culture and history. Nothing indicates ownership more than putting a price on ones belonging. Although many of these destinations are places of esca pe for tourists, and tourism may introduce some economic benefits to the local area. I believe that the degradation and trivialization of the local culture that ensues is not worth the price. It is however important to remember that as residents of the global north we are poor judges of what is truly beneficial to these regions.

Handwriting: More than Just Ink [Graphology] Essay -- essays research

Handwriting analysis is also known as graphology. Graphology is defined as the study of handwriting, especially as used to infer a person's character. The interest in handwriting as an expression of personality is as old as the practice itself. â€Å"Chinese philosophers have been fascinated with handwriting since ancient times and have been especially interested in the distinct styles of calligraphy produced by different writers† (Sackheim,1990, p. xv-xvi). The first methodical attempts to study handwriting took place in Italy in the beginning of the seventeenth century. Alderisius Prosper published in Bologna a study called Ideographia. Camillo Baldo soon after tried making a formal recording which presented a way for judging the nature of a writer from his letters. These were all lost. But they obviously attracted readers. It became practiced from â€Å"castle to castle† by people trying to make money from handwriting interpretations (Roman, 1952, p.3). The sur prising thing about graphology that is not all about handwriting analysis. â€Å"Graphology is the study of the graphic movement; it is not simply ‘handwriting analysis† (McNichol and Nelson, 1991, p. 23). This is why graphologists can also study doodles, drawings, sculptures, and paintings to infer a person’s character and the physical, mental, and emotional states of the subject. These creations are called brain prints. These reveal who we are, how we think, feel and behave. These mind x-rays are very evident in handwriting since we for the most part don’t think about how we write. Graphology is a good way to loosely judge people, who they truly might be. Whenever we take a write utensil and begin writing, much of what we’re doing comes naturally. This is an unconscious act. But there are times when we’ll change how we write certain letters because we like the other way of writing it more. This is a conscious effort. Both of these can be analyzed. The latter can be analyzed just as well as the former because it is a conscious effort of trying to change unconsciously to a certain trait. The style of the changed letter seems appealing because the characteristic does, unconsciously or consciously (McNichol et al, 1991). There are the fixed traits: IQ, aptitudes, temperament, and identity. And there are unfixed traits: ability... ...tremendously. I found out who the people around me are according to graphology. And it made me pick up on certain characteristics of myself that perhaps I need to change. If I change them in writing, eventually they will change in real life if I make that effort (McNichol et al , 1991) Bibliography Greasley, P. (2000). Handwriting analysis and personality assessment: the creative use of analogy, symbolism, and metaphor. European Psychologist., 5(1), 44-51. Koehler, Derek J., and Roy N. King. "Illusory Correlations in Graphological Inference." Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied Vol. 6.4 (2000): 336-348. Roman, K. (1952). Handwriting: a key to personality. New York: Pantheon Books, Inc. Santoli, O. (1989). How to read handwriting. New York: Crown Publishers, Inc. McNichol, A., & Nelson, J. (1991). Handwriting analysis putting it to work for you. Chicago: Contemporary Books, Inc. Sackheim, K. (1990). Handwriting analysis and the employee selection process. Westport, CT: Quorum Books, Inc. Handwriting: More than Just Ink [Graphology] Essay -- essays research Handwriting analysis is also known as graphology. Graphology is defined as the study of handwriting, especially as used to infer a person's character. The interest in handwriting as an expression of personality is as old as the practice itself. â€Å"Chinese philosophers have been fascinated with handwriting since ancient times and have been especially interested in the distinct styles of calligraphy produced by different writers† (Sackheim,1990, p. xv-xvi). The first methodical attempts to study handwriting took place in Italy in the beginning of the seventeenth century. Alderisius Prosper published in Bologna a study called Ideographia. Camillo Baldo soon after tried making a formal recording which presented a way for judging the nature of a writer from his letters. These were all lost. But they obviously attracted readers. It became practiced from â€Å"castle to castle† by people trying to make money from handwriting interpretations (Roman, 1952, p.3). The sur prising thing about graphology that is not all about handwriting analysis. â€Å"Graphology is the study of the graphic movement; it is not simply ‘handwriting analysis† (McNichol and Nelson, 1991, p. 23). This is why graphologists can also study doodles, drawings, sculptures, and paintings to infer a person’s character and the physical, mental, and emotional states of the subject. These creations are called brain prints. These reveal who we are, how we think, feel and behave. These mind x-rays are very evident in handwriting since we for the most part don’t think about how we write. Graphology is a good way to loosely judge people, who they truly might be. Whenever we take a write utensil and begin writing, much of what we’re doing comes naturally. This is an unconscious act. But there are times when we’ll change how we write certain letters because we like the other way of writing it more. This is a conscious effort. Both of these can be analyzed. The latter can be analyzed just as well as the former because it is a conscious effort of trying to change unconsciously to a certain trait. The style of the changed letter seems appealing because the characteristic does, unconsciously or consciously (McNichol et al, 1991). There are the fixed traits: IQ, aptitudes, temperament, and identity. And there are unfixed traits: ability... ...tremendously. I found out who the people around me are according to graphology. And it made me pick up on certain characteristics of myself that perhaps I need to change. If I change them in writing, eventually they will change in real life if I make that effort (McNichol et al , 1991) Bibliography Greasley, P. (2000). Handwriting analysis and personality assessment: the creative use of analogy, symbolism, and metaphor. European Psychologist., 5(1), 44-51. Koehler, Derek J., and Roy N. King. "Illusory Correlations in Graphological Inference." Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied Vol. 6.4 (2000): 336-348. Roman, K. (1952). Handwriting: a key to personality. New York: Pantheon Books, Inc. Santoli, O. (1989). How to read handwriting. New York: Crown Publishers, Inc. McNichol, A., & Nelson, J. (1991). Handwriting analysis putting it to work for you. Chicago: Contemporary Books, Inc. Sackheim, K. (1990). Handwriting analysis and the employee selection process. Westport, CT: Quorum Books, Inc.

Gladwell

Essay I : Gladwell argues that success is not the result of innate talent, but of practice and of being in the right place at the right time. Critically evaluate this argument. Malcolm Gladwel Analyses in his latest book Outliers , the circumstances that made some people successful . He shows another aspect of their self-made rise to success. Gladwell gives the definition of an outlier as an unusual person ‘classed differently from a main or related body’ (2008:3), in other words out of the ordinary.He argues that success is not in any case a matter of talent, but of practice, of social status, culture, and of being in the right place at the right time. The aims of this essay is to evaluate whether Gladwell’s argument are true, and how reliable are the evidence used to support his arguments. I will critically evaluate, and identify the type of evidence used by the author, which sometime tend to be unconvincing. This essay is organised into two great section. Each section present arguments and evidence used by Gladwell , an evaluation of these , and finally other examples and comparisons.The first section will argue about the fact that success is not the result of innate abilities but of practice. It will be illustrated through examples of the ‘10,000-Hour rules’, were individuals allocate a certain amount of time to become an expert. However Gladwell insist on the fact that practice is not the only way to become succeful, as being at the right place in the right time is important as well. Thus, the second section will present five arguments that support this idea. Firstly I will argue about the relative age effect through the examples of hockey players.Secondly, the demographical advantage will be presented through the example of ‘the seventy-five richest people’ and the example of successful American businessmen. Thirdly, I will talk about the family background argument with the example of the ‘entitlement (2 008:105). Finally, I will present the argument of Ethnicity through the example of minority law student at the university of Michigan. Gladwell present the correlation between innate talent and practice through examples stories. Indeed, the first example from his argument is the one considering the three group of violinist.The thirds group appears as the elite one because of the amount of practice allocated according to K. Anders Ericsson. The example of Mozart is then presented by showing the amount of time he have been practicing to become a prodigy. For those two examples he uses evidence from psychology studies and conclude that there is a ‘ten thousand hours’(2008:40) rule to become successful. Furthermore he uses approximations to confirm his argument, as he noted ‘ what’s ten years? It’s roughly what it takes to put in ten thousand hours of practice [†¦] the magic number of greatness’ (2008:41).This approximation is without any dou bt perplexing. Gladwell gives further exceptional example to defend his theory. Among them the example of the Beatles who practiced ten years before becoming very famous , which is again another confirmation of the ‘ ten thousands hours’ theory. To summarise, Gladwell pretends that there is no such thing as innate talent , but the a rule of ten thousands hours to become an expect. Galton (Cited in Ericsson, Krampe and Clemens, 1993) argues that eminent performance is determined by innate capacity and genetics, through his example of the human body.Gladwell is in fact choosing his evidence according to his opinion, which is actually not very objective. He uses Ericsson’s study of 1990 as evidence, whereas three year later the same author argued that sufficient amount of experience and practice does not lead to greatness (Ericsson, Krampe and Clemens; 1993). Moreover, the idea of ten thousands hours cannot be verified universally. Some individuals might need more t ime to reach the level of an expert, as well as the amount of time may differ according to the field involved.According to Gladwell practice is not the only way to achieve greatness, opportunities, timing and backgrounds are also important. Gladwell argues that talent , hard work and passion are not enough to be successful. Another element is also important. To be born in the right time. Indeed, Gladwell supports this argument by giving the example of the relative age effect in hockey player in Canada. According to Roger Barnsley study, players who were born after January ( entry cutoff age for hockey class) ‘have had the benefit of critical extra month of maturity’ (2008:24).Gladwell does not show good reference about Roger Barnsley, as he relates the author study to an approximate date; He noted: ‘It wasn’t until the mid-1980s that [†¦] Roger Barnsley first drew the attention to the phenomenon of relative age. ’ (2008:21). The reader is not ab le to verify the reference properly. At the end of the book, Gladwell give the reference of a review about Roger Barnsley published in 2001. In 2011 Gibbs, Jarvis and Dufur argues that being a small kid increase the performance as they have to work twice as hard as the one born after the cutoff date.Moreover, youngest people are more are more successful at university as the cutoff maginalise them and let them focus more on studies (Billari & Pellizzari,2008). Here we can see that Gladwell is not using actual references. Knowing the creation date of a source is important as this help verify the currency of the evidence. Another example of the unknown provenance of Gladwell’s evidence, is the table that shows ’the seventy-five richest people in human history’ (2008:56). There is now reference for this table.From a critical point of view, nothing shows that there are actually seventy-five richest people in the human history. The ranking of rich Americans (2008:62), does not show any provenance. Gladwell pretends that those people were born in a strategic time that allowed them to be ready for certain period of growth, which will then lead them to success. His argument is strong, as real facts witness it; however the evidence used is not accurate. Gladwell show the difference between children from a poor family background and the middle-class children through Annette Lareau’study.Again, no date is shown as a reference. Moreover, he supports his argument that middle-class children are more asserted in society than poor children, through an anecdote. He gives the story of two children behaving differently in a doctor interview. Gladwell emphasizes on their names and personalities to support his argument. He noted that ‘Alex Williams is better off than Katie Brindle because he’s wealthier and because he goes to better school, but also because [†¦] the sense of entitlement that he has been taught is an attitude perfectly s uited to succeeding in the modern world. (2008:108). This anecdote is unfortunately making Gladwell’s argument unconvincing. Comparing two random and unknown individuals cannot persuade any critical reader those richer individuals are better than the others. Furthermore, to stay on the same aspect, Gladwell justify Alex Williams’ position, not because of his racial attributes as being white, but because of his ‘cultural advantage’(2008:108). When considering the population of the United States for instance, no big difference exists between black and white people as they live in the same country, with the same nationality.An implicit meaning, that white people are better than black people, could be understood by a critical reader. It will no longer be a matter of ‘cultural advantage’, but a matter of ethnicity. Michigan minority Law students are another example of Gladwell’s assumptions of Ethnicity reasons. He noted that in law studies white student are better than minority students (2008:85), with no origin of this information. He quotes Richard Lempert who wrote his study in 2000. The date of this reference is unfortunately unreliable when comparing the year of Outliers’ publication (2008).I have examined in this essay the arguments and evidence used by Gladwell in his book Ouliers (2008), to support the fact that success is not the result of innate talent, but of practice and of being in the right place at the right time. For that I initially examined the relationship between innate talent and practice through Gladwell’s believes of the ‘Ten Thousands hours’ practice to succeed. But also, by projecting and comparing this theory with a universal point of view. I then moved the second part of Gladwell’s argument which is about timing, opportunities and backgrounds; as being in the right place at the right time.I considered the examples of the hockey players with the aspect of the relative age; then I argued about the demographical advantages, being born in a strategic period of growth; family background was ten presented as being another explanation of success; and finally the aspect of ethnicity. We have seen so far that Gladwell is using acceptable arguments. However , the types of evidence he uses are not accurate. Indeed, the use of anecdote, tables without any reference would not persuade the reader.Moreover his generalizations of assumptions are not convincing, and leave perplexed any critical reader who might not find this book useful as a reference. To my point of view, practice and opportunities are very important to be successful. However, innate talent is vital, as individuals have defences in capacities. Some people would be better in certain field, whereas others would not be gifted. Passion and motivation will then come to guide skilled individuals to the road of expertise, and maybe if the opportunities arises, to the road of success. Referen ces: Gladwell, M. (2008).Outliers Ericsson, K. Ander. ; Krampe, Ralf Th. ; Tesch-Romer, Clemens. (1993). The Role Of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance. Psychological Review, vol. 100, issue 3, pp. 363 Bedard, K and Dhuey, E, (2006). The persistence of early childhood maturity: international evidence of long run age effects, Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 121, issue 4, pp. 1437-1472 Musch, J and Grondin, S, (2001). Unequal competition as an impediment to personal development: a review of the relative age effect in sport, Developmental Review, vol. 21, issue 2, pp. 147-167 Gibbs,B.G. ; Jarvis,J. A. ; Dufur, M. J. (2011). The rise of the underdog? The relative age effect reversal among Canadian-born NHL hockey players: A reply to Nolan and Howell. International Review for the Sociology of Sport. [Online]. Available at: http://irs. sagepub. com/content/early/2011/08/19/1012690211414343. abstract [ Accessed 27 november 2012] Billari, F. C. ; Pellizzari, M . (2008). The Younger, the Better? Relative Age Effects at University. Journal of Population Economics, 2012, 25 (2), 697-739. [ Online ]. Available at : http://ftp. iza. org/dp3795. pdf [ Accessed 27 november 2012]

Freshman English Paper Oliver Sacks

English Wednesday April 4, 2012 â€Å"Perspective Matters† As children, we learn that there are five human senses: sight, sound, taste, smell, and touch. Upon reflection and memory, I realize that sight is always listed first in the list of senses. It may just be a reflex or a habit to do so, or maybe it’s just human nature to place high emphasis on sight. Sight is taken for granted by most of us, and when we encounter non-sighted individuals, we have an emotional and physical reaction that we’re relieved the non-sighted cannot see.Reading Oliver Sacks’ case â€Å"To See and Not See†, about a man named Virgil, gives me a new and interesting perspective on blindness. I have a friend who is partially deaf. She and I communicate with visual cues and our communication is helped by the fact that she can hear some sound and can read lips. In contrast, I cannot say I have had an occasion to spend time with a non-sighted person. While reading about Virgil, however, I felt that I was given an opportunity to learn about the life of someone who lives in a world of only four senses.Virgil was born with sight, he briefly lost it at the age of 3 while ill, and at age 6 developed cataracts which blocked his vision and made him functionally blind. The life he lived was a modest one. He â€Å"had a steady job and an identity, was self-supporting, had friends, read Braille papers and books†¦ Life was limited but stable in its way. † (112) He accepted his blindness as simply part of his existence; Virgil’s life was imbued with passivity. At the age of 47, Virgil became re-acquainted with an old girlfriend named Amy. Their relationship evolved into a committed one within 3 years.With Amy’s insistent encouragement, Virgil assented to have surgery to remove one of the cataracts, despite his family’s misgivings over the disruption to his already stable life and identity as someone who is blind. There is a distillatio n of Virgil’s state of being; as I see it, his life is not his own, other people are making choices for him, and he is not asserting himself. Amy and his mother have strong opinions about if he should live with sight or without sight. Virgil himself sits, waiting for them to make a decision about his destiny.And so began Virgil’s passive journey into seeing – again. Virgil’s situation is not unlike Greg’s from Sacks’ case â€Å"The Last Hippie. † While Virgil was about to regain his vision, Greg, by contrast, was losing his; the result of a stealthy tumor slowly stealing his sight. But Greg, like Virgil, initially had concerns when confronted by his differently sighted future. For Greg, he accepted the explanation of his swami about the loss of his vision being due to â€Å"a deeper spirituality, an inner light. † He was â€Å"an illuminate,† a great honor. 43) This explanation pacified him about his vision, as it also b rought him to a deeper spirituality. Despite their concerns, both Greg and Virgil came to accept their destiny being written by other people in their lives. Amy brought Virgil to her ophthalmologist who reviewed his case and ascertained that the old diagnosis of retinitis pigmentosa may not have been accurate and he agreed to operate. Before the surgery, Virgil â€Å"could still see light and dark, the direction from which light came, and the shadow of a hand in front of his eyes†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (108) Dr.Hamlin did the cataract removal on his right eye, inserted a new lens implant and after the bandage came off, Virgil could see but only after hearing the surgeon speak to him to attract his attention. The first thing that Virgil saw was not concrete or a firm image, but light, motions and colors. This was only a brief indication of the tangled web of sight that was ahead. Sacks states: â€Å"Everyone, Virgil included, expected something much simpler. A man opens his eyes, light ente rs and falls on the retina: he sees. though there had been a careful surgical discussion of the operation and possible postsurgical complications, there was little discussion or preparation for the neurological and psychological difficulties that Virgil might encounter. † (115) While reading about Virgil, I have to come reflect more upon myself and the sense of sight. Very recently, I was diagnosed with early-onset glaucoma. I received this news from my doctor with heightened emotion and anxiety about what I would do if I lost my vision. I am lucky that my doctor immediately did a procedure to stop the progression of the glaucoma and keep my vision at its current state.I try to put myself in Virgil’s place and have become more empathetic to him and his particular circumstance. I think of my friend who is partially deaf; she says she wouldn’t change it for anything; it is who she is. Is Virgil conflicted about his identity now that he can see? When Dr. Sacks meets Virgil, Sacks is struck by the way he acted; that Virgil was exhibiting behavior of someone who looks but does not grasp the full picture. He is â€Å"mentally blind† or the definition of agnosic – the partial or total inability to recognize objects or persons by use of the appropriate sense – in Virgil’s case, the sense of sight.For example, he sees in pieces: notices facial features, not a composed face. Virgil still continues to use the actions of a blind person for everyday living, having Amy, now his wife, to establish lines for him to walk from room to room in their house. He even says he finds walking â€Å"scary† and â€Å"confusing† without touch, without his cane. (120) Virgil is dealing with being disrupted by massive changes: having surgery and getting married. The confusion he feels about walking without his cane is understandable.The cane was his support for a basic of life; another aspect that is taken for granted, putting on e foot in front of another. Virgil’s independence is being encroached upon and there is an erosion of confidence in his abilities that were part of his identity as a sightless person. Additional aspects of his new life were just as jumbled, as disconnected. Virgil couldn’t identify his cat and dog without touching them while visually investigating them. He’s confused by distances, light, sizes, angles and perspectives. Sacks says that â€Å"Virgil was blinded for a minute, until he put on a pair of dark-green sunglasses.Even ordinary daylight, he said, was too bright for him, too glary, he felt that he saw best in quite subdued light. † (131) During the initial testing Sacks’ conducted with Virgil, they went to a zoo for an outing. Virgil was only able to make out an animal by either the way it moved or by specific visual features, such as height. His heightened sense of hearing was noticed when he heard the lions roaring in the distance. He had a request to touch an animal, and was able to examine a statue of an ape. When he touched the statue, â€Å"he had an air of assurance that he had never shown when examining anything by sight†¦. emanding that he renounce all that came easily to him, that he sense the world in a way incredibly difficult for him and alien. † (132-33) Virgil’s non-sighted and sighted worlds joined briefly in the moment when it became apparent he could visually identify more features of the ape only after touching the statue. In Virgil’s journey to see again, he appears to be finding his way by adapting his skills from his past life to his current existence. There must have been a necessity to do so, so as to bridge the gap and to glue together who he was with who he is, and who he is going to be.Otherwise, I could see the confusion, disruption and erosion of independence would become overwhelming to Virgil and could therefore stymie any potential for improvement after the upcomi ng second surgery. Virgil was experiencing periods of severe visual fatigue and spontaneous distorted vision. The fatigue was understandable; his visual system was weak and unstable, not yet practiced and strong. The periods of distorted vision that lasted for hours or days were not as easy to understand, and therefore more of a worry.The continuation of the distorted vision became apparent with displays of what Sacks calls psychic blindness: â€Å"speaking of seeing while in fact appearing blind and showing no visual behavior whatever. † (136) He exhibited another type of withdrawal of sight, emotional, as well. When his family came to town for his wedding, Virgil began to need Amy to lead him around due to blurred vision. His family did oppose the surgery and despite the verity even then they did not believe he could see. Virgil’s emotional withdrawal of sight only ended after his family left post-wedding.Virgil was treated by his family as his former self instead of as his current self; his past passivity returned and he gave them what they wanted: Virgil as a blind man. His current visual identity must have felt threatened. Due to Virgil’s unpracticed and weak visual state, â€Å"that either neural overload or identity conflict might just push him over it. † (138) After the surgery on Virgil’s left eye revealed that his acuity was the same as the right eye, there was some improvement but not as much as had been hoped for. He was able to focus somewhat better and was able to go back to work after the 2 months since the first surgery.Massage therapy was different for him now that he could see his clients. In order to do his job comfortably, he had to close his eyes and function as a non-sighted person. This experience for Virgil made him revert to functioning as blind rather than sighted, continuing his identity confusion. His continuing experiences for the next few months were memorable: experiencing the holidays with sigh t, seeing his family and home in Kentucky, seeing the ballet with Amy. He interacted with his family while exhibiting visual behaviors, a big step towards change for Virgil. The change was arrested by his becoming critically ill with pneumonia.The result of the illness was lack of oxygen to brain, and Virgil’s vision was receding. He acted as though he could see even when he couldn’t; by reaching for things but saying he could not see. Sacks indicates â€Å"This condition – called implicit sight – occurs if the visual parts of the cerebral cortex are knocked out, but the visual centers in the subcortex remain intact. † (146) At this point for Virgil, he is now experiencing even more change; after his health improves and he leaves the hospital, he is attached to an oxygen tank which leaves him unable to work, and therefore having to move from his home.Of course, these changes have an effect on Virgil’s visual and emotional states, as they wou ld on anyone. Virgil is now blind – again. Even though Virgil has rare moments of minimal sight, he has returned to functioning as a non-sighted person. After the all too-human reaction of rage, Virgil himself has expressed an acceptance of his visual situation. Sacks notes, â€Å"Virgil for his part, maintains philosophically, ‘These things happen. ’† (151) As Virgil says, things do happen. My friend lost her hearing as a toddler; I will be losing my vision and prepare myself for this inevitable future.All of us deal with these stages of life and envelop them into ourselves, our identities. There are different definitions of perspective: point of view; representation of objects as they might appear to the eye; a mental view or prospect. To apply them all to Virgil is to see him as he should be seen, without a need to change him and to accept him with and without sight. Works Cited Sacks, Oliver. An Anthropologist on Mars: Seven Paradoxical Tales. New York : Vintage, 1996. Print. —. â€Å"The Last Hippie. † An Anthropologist on Mars: Seven Paradoxical Tales. New York: Vintage, 1996. 42 – 76. Print.

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Essay on Roman constitution essays In the course of ancient history many nations rose and fell and many forms of government were tried. Some were successful, some were a terrible failure, and others were just sufficient. The Greek historian Polybius believed that the constitution and government of Rome at the time of the Hannibalic War was by far the best of any form of government ever set up by any other nation (Polybius pg. 311). The Hannibalic War took place from 218-201 B.C., Polybius (205-118 B.C.) was writing in the second century B.C. (quotationspage.com/author.php?author=Polybius). To Polybius the greatness of Romes government was that it combined three forms of government; aristocracy, monarchy, and democracy and utilized the best aspects of each while each had some form of a check and balance on the others to help curb the vices of each (Polybius pg. 317). Polybius believed Rome had set up a balanced constitution that had advantages over any others, but he did not foresee the political and social pressu res that led to the downfall of the Roman republic. Roman government consisted of two consuls, the Senate, and the people. Consuls were an elected office. The people were represented by an assembly and elected tribunes, of which there were originally two to match the two consuls. There were other magistracies in the Roman government, but they are not necessary to mention for this paper. The Senate was made up of the men who had held consulship, been tribune, or held any other magistracies (Shelton pg. 207). Once a man was a member of the Senate he was so for life (Shelton pg. 207). The consul, the people and the Senate represent the three kinds of governments (monarchy, democracy and aristocracy) that Polybius believed balanced Romes constitution and set it apart from others (Polybius pg. 311). For Polybius the Roman constitution, its form of government, carried out by three branches, was so interdependent and checked and...

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The Buddha Shakyamuni was born in the 6th century BC in the area which is known today as Nepal. During his 80 year lifetime, he developed a philosophy which he claimed would lead its followers towards an enlightenment. Buddhism is commonly called a religion however; it differs from the usual definition of a religion in that it has no divine being and is based on logical reasoning and observation rather than spiritual faith. At the core of Buddhist philosophy is the Buddha's enumeration of Four Noble Truths: Dukkha (suffering), Samudaya (origin of suffering), Nirodha (cessation of suffering), and Magga(path to cessation of suffering). These Four Noble Truths form a logically consistent set of rules, or somewhat of a law, upon which the whole Buddhist religion is based. In order to fully understand the Four Noble Truths, it is necessary to investigate the Buddhist view of the individual and its makeup. In some respects, the manner in which Buddhism deals with the mind/body problem is much more advanced than most religious views, and closer to science's understanding of the mind and body. Rather than postulating the existence of an eternal soul with no physical manifestation, the Buddha taught that the person is really a collection of five skandhas or aggregates. These include rupa (matter), vedana (sensations), sanna (perceptions), samkhara (mental formations), and vijnana (consciousness). The aggregate of matter encompasses all tangible aspects of the world. The aggregate of sensations is akin to the process of sensory input; e.g., the activation of retinal cells in the eye. Vedana does not include the process of perception, however; the act of perceiving the senses, i.e., recognition of external sensations, is within the realm of the sanna. Buddha classified mental activities (samkhara), i.e., ideas and thoughts, as being disparate from the state of mental consciousness (vijnana). Consciousness, in the Buddhist view, is th... Free Essays on Noble Truths In Buddhism Free Essays on Noble Truths In Buddhism The Buddha Shakyamuni was born in the 6th century BC in the area which is known today as Nepal. During his 80 year lifetime, he developed a philosophy which he claimed would lead its followers towards an enlightenment. Buddhism is commonly called a religion however; it differs from the usual definition of a religion in that it has no divine being and is based on logical reasoning and observation rather than spiritual faith. At the core of Buddhist philosophy is the Buddha's enumeration of Four Noble Truths: Dukkha (suffering), Samudaya (origin of suffering), Nirodha (cessation of suffering), and Magga(path to cessation of suffering). These Four Noble Truths form a logically consistent set of rules, or somewhat of a law, upon which the whole Buddhist religion is based. In order to fully understand the Four Noble Truths, it is necessary to investigate the Buddhist view of the individual and its makeup. In some respects, the manner in which Buddhism deals with the mind/body problem is much more advanced than most religious views, and closer to science's understanding of the mind and body. Rather than postulating the existence of an eternal soul with no physical manifestation, the Buddha taught that the person is really a collection of five skandhas or aggregates. These include rupa (matter), vedana (sensations), sanna (perceptions), samkhara (mental formations), and vijnana (consciousness). The aggregate of matter encompasses all tangible aspects of the world. The aggregate of sensations is akin to the process of sensory input; e.g., the activation of retinal cells in the eye. Vedana does not include the process of perception, however; the act of perceiving the senses, i.e., recognition of external sensations, is within the realm of the sanna. Buddha classified mental activities (samkhara), i.e., ideas and thoughts, as being disparate from the state of mental consciousness (vijnana). Consciousness, in the Buddhist view, is th...

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Discover the Earliest English Dream Poem The Dream of the Rood is the earliest English dream poem to be found in written form. The Dream of the Rood is an explicitly Christian poem that attempts to appeal to Anglo-Saxons from a pagan culture. Origins and History of The Dream of the Rood The poem was first discovered on the Ruthwell Cross, a large, stone carving dating to the early eighth century. Eighteen verses of The Dream of the Rood were carved into the cross in runic lettering. This was all that was known of the work to scholars until the complete poem was discovered in 1822 in northern Italy in the 10th-century Vercelli Book. Content of the Poem In The Dream of the Rood, an unknown poet dreams that he encounters a beautiful tree. It is the rood, or cross, on which Jesus Christ was crucified. It is gloriously decorated with gold and gems, but the poet can discern ancient wounds. The rood tells the poet how it had been forced to be the instrument of Christs death, describing how it, too, experienced the nails and spear thrusts along with the Savior. The rood goes on to explain that the cross was once an instrument of torture and death, and is now the dazzling sign of mankinds redemption. It charges the poet to tell of his vision to all men so that they, too, might be redeemed of sin. Historical Significance The poem has been the subject of literary and historical study for generations and has been interpreted in a variety of ways. The Dream of the Rood also provides a valuable window into early Christian England. The dream vision uses strong images of Christ in order to reach members of the Anglo-Saxon warrior culture, who valued strength above humility. This may have been a deliberate strategy to convert pagans to Christianity. It also reflects how the image of Jesus was adapted to suit different cultures. Source Glenn, Jonathan. The Dream of the Rood. Teresa Glenn, Lightspill, 2016.

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Flying on a Full Service Airline as Opposed Low Fair Discount Carrier - Term Paper Example The airline is home to more than 35000 employees who are the backbone of the airline company. The employees are provided with friendly working environment to help them deliver the best services to the customers. Southwest Airlines has further strengthened itself by acquiring the Air Tran Airways in 2011. The mission of the company has been to deliver the best quality services to its customers at low price which has enabled the airline to grab a large market share. Executive Summary of Marketing Plan The marketing strategy is an important aspect for the company to launch a new product. The marketing strategy involves factors like target market which hold the key to success for the new airline in the competitive airline industry. It gives the airline company the leverage to target the desired market. Competitor description and the analysis of direct and indirect competitors is also an important part of a marketing plan. The strategy followed by the competitors and its weakness can prov ide the airline company advantage. ... Pricing strategy can make customers opt for the company’s product or reject it for being expensive. The right method to implement a pricing strategy is to make the product valuable in terms of its price. The implementation plan finally needs to take place considering all the marketing strategy factors. A proper analysis of these factors can provide better knowledge to the Southwest Airline Company regarding the launch of its new full service airline. Description of Target Market A group of people who are looked upon by the company as the customers which can fit in the marketing strategy adopted by the company can be termed as the target market. Target market is the most essential component to a company’s marketing plan. Southwest Airlines marketing plan largely depends on the 4 P’s of marketing mix and the target market to decide the success of its new product. Target market can be segmented into the following four parts: Geographic Segmentation Southwest Airline can segment its desired target market based on the nation, state, region, country, etc. to which a customer belongs. The airline company then can decide whether it wants to function in selected geographic regions or across every geographic area. The airline has to accordingly develop its product or service (Kotler & Armstrong, 2008, p.173). Demographic Segmentation Demographic segmentation is another variable which divides the target market based on the factors like age, religion, gender, family, etc. This segmentation can prove to be a boon for the airline company as it is easily measurable and can be used to select the target market for its new product or service. Psychographic Segmentation This segmentation can help the airline company to divide the customers on the

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E-Commerce in the Job Placement Industry - Research Paper Example People waste so much of their time applying for jobs, attempting to be interviewed by going to offices, only to incur expenses they should not have incurred in the first place. American Online writer, O’Donnell, J.T. (2012) reported that the average time it takes the unemployed to find a job is 7 months while most job hunters give up looking for one within 5 months. This project seeks to provide a way for the many who are unemployed in the USA to avoid unnecessary cost of job seeking while increasing their chances of finding the right work, at the right place, according to their qualifications and acceptable options, and within less than 5 months. It involves disclosure of an E-commerce System that does not charge any amount to applicants before he or she lands a job. But it will earn after the job applicant finally gets accepted into an acceptable employment. The problem of unemployment should become a good opportunity for such an E-commerce business to flourish by successful ly finding the right person for the right jobs. Most of the work will entail staying at home, using the computer to voluntarily join the Placement Office which will be called Special Order Services for Job Seekers or SOS JobS. Its purpose is to invite, qualify, communicate, educate, guide, search the right work for each job seeker, have communications with the potential employers, refer those found qualified, and then collect from people who got successfully employed. There is a logical process to succeed in this business. Through diligence, both applicant and employer should be happier as a result of services rendered by the Placement Office for both the employer and the potential applicants. The hypotheses are twofold. First, job placement services online offer mere opportunities with substantial services to know what and where the job openings are, but minimal services to facilitate the job seeker’s effort to successfully get employed within a short period of time, e.g. le ss than 5 months. Second, the entry of SOS JobS, the more thorough job placement services will logically make it easier for employers to find the right person for the right work. And the job seekers facilitated by the management information system of SOS JobS will realize faster employment. Literature Review Minelli, Mark, and Breckon, Donald (2009, p.127) clearly stated that the number of online placement businesses for job seekers has been growing. However, the process of allowing people to find their work has a common standard. The management information system proposed in this paper is very different because of multiple services not offered for free at online job placement businesses and far less commitment on the part of the job placement services online to get the needed work for a person who needs work. Instead, the applicant is told where to apply for job openings. And then the actual next step is just to bid the applicant good luck. O’Deonnell, J.T. (2012) identified five explanations why people in the USA find it hard to be employed within months or unemployment. (1) A candidate for work wants higher pay or presents himself as overqualified. (2) The choice of location wherein that candidate is willing to live disqualifies him. Job openings may be elsewhere. (3) The skills in searching for work may be poor. (4) No network or referrals was laid out to expedite the discovery of that candidate.  

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London Borough of Merton Council Essay The organization that I am researching is the London Borough of Merton Council. This organization is of interest to me as my father works in the building as head of Planning and Public Protection. He will be my main contact point in the Council as he has worked as head of IT Services in his previous Council. The work done in the council I also find interesting. The Council is situated in the South of London in Merton Civic Centre. The Councils IT infrastructure has recently been upgraded as part of Downing Streets E-Government plan. A variety of systems were upgraded and new solutions introduced as part of this. The responsibilities of the council are outlined in this statement taken from the Merton Borough Council Website1: commits the Council to provide clear leadership to the community in partnership with residents, businesses, the voluntary sector and other organizations; support the active involvement of the public in the decision-making process; take decisions efficiently and effectively; identify clearly those responsible for decision making and hold them to account; and improve the delivery of services to the community. The council must provide services for the entire borough of Merton, some 168,470 residents. The Council provides services to the residents and businesses of Merton in four departments: Education, Leisure and Libraries This department is involved in working with schools, libraries and youth to maintain a high level of achievement in the area. It also evaluates the Leisure facilities in the area and relates them to other departments. It also works to ensure equality of opportunity for all through the services it provides, its commitment to inclusion and its contribution to the social and economic regeneration of the borough Environmental Services. The Environmental Services department is the largest in the council and aims to maintain and improve the local environment and economy of the Borough through the delivery of quality services and through regeneration and partnership initiatives. Its services are wide ranging, affecting everyone living in, working in or travelling through the Borough. It is involved in many areas, for example regulation, which includes development control, building control, environmental health and trading standards, highway licensing and parking enforcement, and environmental maintenance which includes refuse collection, street cleaning and highway maintenance. Financial Services The Finance Department provides the Councils Financial Management Framework. It rigorously manages the councils budget to help managers control expenditure in their relative department. The Finance Department also collects all monies from residents and businesses and tries to make these payment methods more accessible using the Internet, Merton Link and the Call Centre facility. The Department also strives to make the financial documents of the council easier to understand and read. Housing and Social Services. The Housing and Social Services department is responsible for the management of housing solutions in the area and Social care for residents. Its responsibilities range from the allocation and management of Council Housing waiting lists to evaluating and inspecting Childcare services in the borough. Merton has recently been examining ways to make access to services easier for all its customers. It has also been looking at improving links with its suppliers, agencies, central government and other organisations it has to work with. The aim is to build services around the needs of the customers, with improved responsiveness and quality. In order to achieve this goal, Merton will make full use of information technology (IT) to deliver services seamlessly and at times to suit the needs of the citizen. Within the next four years customers will be able to access services through the Internet, digital televisions, and mobile phones, as well as walk-in and telephone customer contact centres. This project will be called e-merton, and will run from now to 2005. The e-merton project is designed to provide access to services electronically, and will help Merton meet the Governments target of having all services available electronically by 2005. However, the Council recognises that personal contact will still be necessary to meet the diverse needs of customers. Also, the Council will ensure that nobody is excluded from receiving modern service delivery due to their status, special needs or location. The IT system within the council spans the whole organization and every Council Officer has their own workstation. The workstations are used for E-Mail communication and personal management as well as general typing duties. The Council also owns large industrial drawing scanners for the input of development and architectural drawings for Building Control (Planning) applications. Digital cameras are also used for working in the field and providing evidence for Environmental Services investigations. The area of the council I shall be focusing on in my study is a new Council Benefits and Building controls system recently installed by a St. Albans IT company. The system covers the whole of these areas from paying council tax online to scanning and cataloguing architectural drawings for building plans, covering three departments in the council. I shall be studying the installation of the new system, problems, training etc and the evaluation of the system by users. My contact within the council, my father, will provide extremely good links with IT department administrators and to documents relating to the recent installation and evaluation of the solution.

Strengths and weaknesses of situational leadership model

Strengths and weaknesses of situational leadership model According to situational leadership models in general, leaders should adopt different leadership approaches depending on the situations that they encounter. Leadership competencies which work in one given situation may not be effective under different circumstances (Graef, 1983). In other words, other factors must be taken into account when deciding which leadership style to use in a given situation. Therefore, successful leaders can be characterised as those who are able to adjust their leadership styles according to situations which warrant their intervention. The Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Model is built on the concept using follower maturity as the key issue which affects adjustment in leadership styles.  [1]  Follower maturity, which defines the readiness of followers to perform in a given situation, is based on two major factors the ability and confidence in performing the tasks. Four leadership styles which emerge from this two-by-two matrix model (see Table 1) are Participating, Selling, Telling and Delegating. All these four leadership styles have varying levels in terms of follower ability and confidence. Table 1: Hersey-Blanchard Situational Table Leadership Model High PARTICIPATING STYLE Followers are capable but Relationship Behaviourunwilling and not confident SELLING STYLE Followers are unable but willing and confident DELEGATING STYLE Followers are capable, willing and confident TELLING STYLE Followers are unable, unwilling and not confident Low Task Behaviour Low High Managers who are keen to use the Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Model must first fully understand or be able to assess/gauge the level of maturity of its subordinates with reference to their readiness or commitment to perform their job tasks.  [2]   Based on the case analysis presented and the leadership model depicted in the table above, it can be concluded that John Terrill had adopted the Delegating Leadership Style in dealing with the situation at DGI Internationals Technical Services division. Delegating Leadership Style Looking at the two-by-two matrix, the Delegating Leadership Style is described as Low Task, Low Relationship, whereby intervention from managers is kept to a minimum with the assumption that the subordinates are able, willing and confident of accomplishing the tasks at hand. Managers who adopt this style of leadership will allow their followers or subordinates to take responsibility for their assigned tasks with minimal supervision from them. In the case of DGI Internationals Technical Services division, John Terrill practiced the delegating style based on the profile of the team in his division. Since it was stated that all 20 of his subordinates are engineers who are highly paid and best educated, it can be deduced that this group of employees are high performers in their area of expertise within the organization. Management will not be willing to pay them highly if they do not possess high level of job maturity, which refers to their job capabilities and confidence in accomplishing their tasks as engineers. Based on their aptitude and the fact that the engineers requested top management to stop making them spend too much time on writing reports, Terrill was able to gauge that the employees possess high capabilities of performing their tasks and are also willing and confident to do their job provided that they were given the opportunity and time needed to accomplish their tasks. The engineers did not need much prompting and directions from him to take on new initiatives which help contribute to their productivity. Terrills delegating style can be further identified when he promised to stay off the engineers backs and also make sure that top management did the same. This indicates that Terrill will not interfere much with the daily tasks of the engineers because he believes the engineers know what are expected of them, what they are supposed to do and do not need much direction from Terrill to accomplish their tasks. Strengths of Delegating Style This style of leadership empowers followers to be responsible for their own actions and decisions. For example, the engineers are given high autonomy in completing their tasks with minimal supervision by Terrill. For mature followers who have high level of job readiness, this leadership style will give them a great sense of accomplishment which acts as motivator to give their best and increase productivity (Hersey and Blanchard, 1988). In this case, the engineers are able to concentrate on accomplishing their tasks and productivity of the division will improve. Empowerment allows for a certain degree of independence which promotes accountability and creativity in individuals. A leader who is able to delegate his authority in terms of job accomplishment will have time to focus on other strategic matters. Followers of this leadership style will feel more trusted and will build a closer working relationship with the leaders and foster better team work. Inadvertently, it will be easier for Terrill to turn around the department because his engineers will have more respect for him and will not hesitate to help him achieve their goals. Weaknesses of Delegating Style Measurement of job readiness is subjective and based on several factors, mainly job ability and job confidence (Hambleton et al., 1977(. However, if a leader wrongly gauged the job readiness of his followers and leave it to them to accomplish certain tasks, he may not achieve the desired results at the end of the day. This style of leadership is open to abuse. Followers may be able, willing and confident to perform the tasks but they may also take advantage of the low intervention from their managers so that the tasks may not be completed on time or productivity is not up to par as expected. A leader is able to delegate the tasks to his followers but accountability of the job still lies with the leader. To sum up, job delegation should be a gradual process until the leader is satisfied and confident that the tasks can be accomplished with minor supervision. However, in the real world, there is no single leadership style that can be applied in all situations. Effective leaders should be able to adjust their leadership styles according to the situation at hand. Leaders who are able to adopt different styles based on what is required of them will be most successful. Question 2 What do you think was John Terrills source of power? Do you think it is effective? The concept of power can be defined in varying ways but generally power is regarded as the ability to influence, affect and mobilize the attitudes and behaviour of others. The term power, authority, domination and control are often used interchangeably as there is a thin line separating their meanings (Pheby, 2004). However, power is not exclusive to only managers and leaders as opposed to authority which comes with certain legitimate positions. Power is able to shape ones actions and behaviour; thus, it can be maintained that decision making can be influenced with the existence of power sources in a system. In an organizational context, power is directly related to hierarchy or structure and legitimacy which come with positions. The ability of those in higher ranking positions to influence their subordinates is driven by power. It is an element which is able to shape managers and followers, and is the key underlying factor for leadership effectiveness. In fact, one of its most important functions is to build interdependency between leaders and followers. Ogden et al. (2006) entails that power need not have goal compatibility but only dependence. Researchers French and Raven (1959) had studied the sources of power and successfully listed them in five distinct forms. The five bases of power in organizations which are able to affect success in leadership are described as follows: Category Source of power Description POSITIONAL POWER Legitimate power This source of power usually comes with specific roles and positions in organisations. This power is also embedded in formal job descriptions that are mutually agreed to by employees in an organisation. Generally, people holding higher position are able to exert more organisational power compared to those in lower ranking jobs. Reward power Normally associated with the formal authority to allocate organisational rewards to employees. This type of power can weaken if the reward is no longer perceived as valuable by the receiver. Coercive power The person holding this power is able to impose punishment. In organisations, punishments can be in the form of reprimand, disciplinary action, suspension, demotion, dismissal, etc. Coercive power is usually associated with authority and can be used as a coercion tool at the workplace. PERSONAL POWER Expert power The ability to influence based on a persons knowledge, skills and expertise which originates from within an individual. This type of power is normally acquired by experts in certain fields. May not necessarily linked to position or authority in an organisation. Referent power An individual with referent power is looked upon as a role model by others. The individual usually possesses a charm, appeal, charisma or admirable qualities which others want to identify with. These five sources of power can be broadly categorised into positional power and personal power. Positional power refers to external power which is vested in an individuals formal role, position or authority. Legitimate power, reward power and coercion power fall in this category. On the other hand, expert power and referent power can be grouped as personal power because they involve internal or personal traits which belong to individuals. In DGI Internationals case study, John Terrill applied a combination of both position and personal powers to solve the problem faced by his subordinates in the Technical Services division. 1. Positional power Being appointed as the head of Technical Services Division clearly indicated that John Terrill held legitimate power over the department. As the new boss to a team of highly paid and skilled engineers, it can be assumed that John Terrill himself possessed quality traits which made top management at DGI International very confident that he can turn the non-performing department around. Terrill first demonstrated his legitimate power during his meeting with the engineers. First, he cleverly gained the engineers confidence by showing great concern for their welfare. Then he exerted his legitimate power by demanding to know the reasons for their lack of productivity and factors which hamper their expected performance. His ability to influence the engineers to voice out their grievances which affected their performance showed that he was successful in getting to the root of the departments productivity problem. In this case, Terrill did not use any reward or coercive power because he did not impose any reward or punishment in getting to the root of the problem and then making sure that his engineers would carry out their tasks after that. He used empathy and diplomacy as a leader by exerting his influence to make them follow his instructions. Terrill also exercised his authority when he issued immediate order for reports to be sent to his office instead of the headquarters as warranted by top management. He was well aware that his orders were against top managements instructions, but he was not afraid to use the legitimate power vested in his position to stand by his decision to keep the management off the engineers backs as promised. 2. Personal power The top managements concern about the low productivity further showed the importance placed on his team. Terrill understood that his team of engineers is crucial to the organisations growth since they are the best educated and highly paid employees in the company. From this profile alone, Terrill knew that his division held a lot of expertise required in the manufacturing of refinery equipment. Knowledge and skills of the engineers are highly valued by the organisation, which was why they were never reprimanded for their lack of productivity before. In other words, the engineers have expert power which made them indispensable to the company. Terrills source of expert power was also derived from the engineers knowledge and skills. He could anticipate that top management would agree to his recommendation that management should not bog down the engineers with daily reports because their engineering expertise is a critical resource in meeting the companys production objectives, whereas internal reports are only administrative requirements. In this example, Terrill obviously used the divisions expert power to negotiate with top management to stay out of their way so that they can carry out their engineering work as expected, and hopefully increase productivity as expected of them. Terrill seemed to have gained support from his engineers because they cheered him when he was about to meet top management to fight for their cause. If he successfully gets top management to agree with his plight, he will undoubtedly build his referent power and be admired for his charm and charisma in carrying out his task as their leader. It can be summarized that Terrill effectively used his legitimate power to influence his engineers to confide in him about problems that they faced which hampered productivity of the division. Terrill also successfully exercised the divisions expert power to ensure top management did not impose trivial matters (such as writing internal daily reports) which consume much of the engineers time so that they could concentrate on accomplishing their engineering tasks. Question 3 Henry Mintzbergs research indicates that diverse manager activities can be organized into ten roles. Identify two of these roles that John Terrill performed in carrying out his duty. According to Henry Mintzberg (2004), based on his research on the various activities of managers in a business setting, the roles of managers can be classified into ten types as depicted in the following table: CATEGORY ROLE ACTIVITY Interpersonal Figurehead Perform duties which are symbolic and ceremonial. Regarded as symbol of authority. Leader Directing, motivating, training, advising, influencing, encouraging, promoting development of others. Liaison In charge of internal and external information links. Engage in exchange of information. Informational Monitor Process and assess information. Maintain information and contacts. Disseminator Transmit information to other via phone calls, memos, notes, etc. Spokesman Representing organisation to outsiders in public relations capacity. Decisional Entrepreneur Project initiation, business identification and leads for opportunities. Disturbance Handler Handles internal crises and conflicts involving employees, and also external changes. Resource Allocator Responsible for allocation and sets priority for organisational resources via budgets, etc. Negotiator Negotiates with suppliers, unions, etc. Through his research, Mintzberg (1973) also managed to conclude that all the above ten roles fall into three broad categories which are interlinked. To illustrate the point, all three interpersonal roles Figurehead, Leader and Liaison provide information. Informational roles Monitor, Disseminator and Spokesperson process the information and act as a link to all the managerial roles. Meanwhile, the decisional roles make decision on how to deliver the information to other parties. All these ten roles can be applied to any managerial situation depending on the requirement of the circumstances. Based on Mintzbergs theory, in the DGI Internationals case, John Terrill played the roles of Liaison and Negotiator. Liaison John Terrill applied his interpersonal skills excellently when he first approached the engineers to seek information on their current problems which affected their productivity. During his meeting, he played his role as a liaison or intermediary between the engineers and top management. He did not reprimand the engineers for the poor performance of the Technical Services division without first finding out the cause of their low contribution to productivity; instead, he offered to resolve the conflict by trying to get to the root of the problem and find a lasting solution that will help them to increase their output in the organisation. His openness may have encouraged the engineers to confide in him even though he was new to the organisation. Terrill also successfully executed this role by openly showing his concern for the staffs welfare. Perhaps this helped open up the communication channel between him and the engineers because they feel that Terrill was acting in their interests. After that, the engineers willingly voice out their grouses and complaints when Terrill asked them point blank as to why the division was not performing as expected. His networking skills were clearly demonstrated when he empathised with the engineers and responded positively that engineers in the Technical Services division should not be tied down with paperwork if top management expected them to be more productive. Instead, they should be allowed to focus more on accomplishing their engineering tasks. In his liaison role, Terrill tried to maintain positive relationship with the engineers and not take sides with the top management by using any form of coercion on his team. His objective was to turn around the division and increase the engineers productivity. Therefore, he carefully played his role by offering them a possible solution. Using the power vested in his position as the manager of the team coupled with the mandate given by top management to solve the productivity issue, Terrill issued an order which was against the wish of company management. To illustrate, while the company management requires that the engineers turned in daily reports to headquarters, Terrill ordered them to turn in the reports to his office instead. However, Terrill had anticipated a showdown with top management and had already thought up a plan to back up his actions. He had proven that while the engineers were asked to turn in daily reports, actually nobody in top management would need the report dai ly because for three weeks, nobody in headquarters enquired about the missing daily reports. Negotiator In solving the low productivity issue of the Technical Services division, Terrill also played the role of a negotiator. This role was demonstrated during his first management meeting with the engineers. He explained to them the managements concern for the low productivity of the division despite being the highest paid and best educated group within the organisations. He also asked them to voice out their grouses and the possible reasons for their non-performance. When he found out that the engineers were demotivated by the amount of daily reporting that they had to do instead of focussing on their engineering tasks, Terrill asked the engineers to carry out their engineering duties like they were supposed to and increase the divisions productivity while he took care of the daily report generation problem with top management. He convinced them that he would stay out of their way and get the top management off their backs so that the engineers can accomplish their tasks as expected. Wit h Terrill at the helm of the division, the engineers are able to concentrate on their primary tasks and not worry about other petty issues. The engineers were also confident that Terrill will be able to prove a point to top management by keeping the daily reports in his office, and they seemed to have supported his actions. During the showdown with top management in the presidents office, Terrill displayed his negotiation skills by informing top management that the main reason for Technical Services divisions low output was that the engineers were more occupied with writing daily reports than actually doing their engineering tasks. He successfully proved his point by showing top management that the high stack of report produced over the last three weeks were not read by anyone because no one asked to look at them. He evidently showed them that the amount of time spent on writing the report had gone to waste, and that the precious time should be spent by the engineers to accomplish other important engineering duties. He then suggested that management do away with the daily report and one brief report from his office on a monthly basis is sufficient. In conclusion, managers are involved in a myriad of activities when performing the managerial functions. These activities can be clustered into broad categories and identified into roles. By understanding these managerial roles, managers will be able to discharge their duties more efficiently and effectively. Question 4 Do you think gender makes a difference when it comes to leadership style? Use example(s) and literatures to support your stand. Gender is a socially constructed concept of men and women which varies according to cultures, societies, social classes and even periods in history (FAO, 1997). It is sometimes misunderstood as being biologically determined and solely related to the sexual characteristics of men and women. However, according to Bravo-Baumann (2000) gender relations involves how society determines the rights and responsibilities of women and men. Traditionally, the roles of women are mostly confined to household-related chores and nurturing of family. Many cultures across the globe regarded women as the weaker sex with limited roles to play in the social system. In some countries, women are even denied access to education, rights to freedom, and in extreme cases are relegated to subordinate status (Bass et al, 1971). However, with the rise of movements towards equality in gender in the modern world, more societies have begun to change their mindsets and accept the fact that women also have roles to play in the development of the society and economy (Inglehart and Noris, 2003). The last several decades have witnessed the emergence of women holding managerial roles in organizations. Although men still hold the fort, more women are seen entering the workforce with an increasingly number of them being promoted to high managerial positions (Druskat, 1994). However, many women nowadays earn their organisations mandate and are appointed as CEOs and MDs of companies. Currently, some countries are headed by female premiers and presidents, for example Australia and New Zealand. These show that women are fast being recognized in their roles as capable leaders. As a result of the increase in female leadership roles, there have been a string of researches aimed at studying the leadership styles and behaviour differences between men and women leaders (Statham, 1987; Carless, 1998; Davidson Ferrario, 1992; Van Engen et al., 2001). Some researchers failed to find disparities in leadership styles between men and women (Pounder and Coleman, 2002; Van Eagen, Van der Leedeen Willemsen, 2001). Even though there are varying outcomes from these researches, a majority of the research results agreed that differences in leadership styles definitely exist among male and female leaders. Conceptually, due to the differences in nature and characteristics of men and women, there are bound to be distinct features which affect their leadership styles. It is generally accepted that the leadership styles of men and women vary because of differences in behaviour of men and women which are shaped by society and culture (Eagley, Wood and Diekman, 2000). Women in leadership roles were seen to be more collaborative, less hierarchical and more cooperative, caring and promoting self-worth of others (Helgesen, 1990; Book, 2000; Rosener, 1995). In contrast, due to the masculine nature of men as perceived by societies, male leaderships tend to be more assertive, aggressive, controlling and confident (Eagley et al., 2000). The above findings are further supported by a study by Eagly, Karau and Johnson (1992) on leadership styles among school principals supported this notion. From the study, it was concluded that: Female principals are more task-oriented compared to male principals. In the role as school principal which requires more interpersonal ability, women display greater task-orientation. However, in male dominated roles, men will appear to be more task oriented (Eagley and Jonhson, 1990). Female principals are also more democratic or participative while male principals adopted a more autocratic or directive approach. Due to social values, experience and thoughts associated with feminine characteristics (Goldberger, Clinchy, Belenky and Tarule, 1987), women leaders generally use the soft approach when dealing with others. Hence, women naturally develop leadership styles that are more democratic and participative. Male leaders, on the other hand, adopted stronger approaches which are consistent with natural dominating and controlling characteristics of men. Differences in leadership styles have an impact on the effectiveness and direction of an organization. Leaders must be able to adopt different approaches when confronted with varying circumstances because not all situations will warrant the same types of actions. Hence, leaders are most successful and effective when they can evaluate a situation accurately and act according to the requirements of the situation instead of generally applying the same form of leadership across all circumstances (Fiedler, 1951). Leadership styles can also be affected by external factors such as the nature of work, business environment, organizational culture and industry structure. To illustrate the point that gender differences in leadership styles do exist (Kanter, 1991), we will take a closer look at Transformational (largely associated with women leaders) and Transactional (dominant in male leaders). The following table highlights the differences in the two types of leadership:  [3]   Transformational Leadership Transactional Leadership * Leaders motivate their followers by arousing their emotions and acting beyond the framework of exchange relations. * Leaders are proactive and help form new aspirations and expectations of followers. * Leaders are differentiated by their ability to inspire and provide individual consideration, stimulation and influence to followers. * Leaders help in creating learning opportunities and stimulate their followers to find solutions to their problems. * Leaders develop emotional bonds with their followers using their management and rhetorical skills and great visions. * Leaders encourage followers to strive for their goals beyond self-interest. * Leaders are conscious of the relationship between reward and effort. * Leadership is responsive with high orientation to solve present issues. * Leaders control the actions of their followers by depending on reward, inducement, punishment and sanction. * Leaders use rewards to encourage their followers to achieve desired results. * Leaders reinforce behaviour of followers for successful execution of plan. Source : http://leadershipchamps.wordpress.com Introduced by James MacGregor Burns (1978), the transformational leadership concept defines an approach which encourages positive and valuable changes in performance and morale of followers based upon the behaviours and characteristics of leaders. Transformational leaders brought about changes in organizations by inspiring, motivating and sometimes acting as role models for employees to identify with (Bass, 1985). By being role models, such leaders will encourage employees to develop skills which could help them enhance their productivity. Transformational leadership style is often displayed by women leaders since women have innate nurturing ability (Kornives, 1991; Ross, 1990). This style can be effective in less-hierarchical organizations such as schools or retail outlets. In male dominated settings such as the military, transformational leadership may not be preferred. On the other hand, transactional leadership style is more visible in traditional organizational settings where male leaders are dominant (Rosener, 1990). Transactional approach values desired results in exchange for rewards, motivations or punishments; thus, transactional leaders will stress on higher productivity and offer rewards (or punishment) as motivation ( Burns, 1978). In conclusion, there are differences in leadership styles by gender. Women leaders generally tend to adopt a softer approach such as democratic and participative. These styles involve relationship with followers through understanding of their emotions and building the self-worth through motivation, aspiration and encouragement. Women leaders try to stimulate the working environment and develop confidence through empowerment (Burke, 1986). In contrast, men display more traditional leadership characteristics such as assertive, controlling, aggressive and dominating. However, the above differences do not limit men and women to any one leadership style. Regardless of gender, successful and effective leaders will find their preferred leadership style, that can be a blend of gender-specific roles, which is most suitable to the situation that they are in. Question 5 If you were the president of DGI International, would you recommend modifications in John Terrills leadership style that you would like him to adopt? Do you think it will be possible for John Terrill to make necessary changes? Why? In the DGI International case study, John Terrill adopted the Delegating Leadership Style (Hersey and Blanchard, 1982) based on the assumption that the team of engineers in the division that he was heading has high level of job readiness or maturity owing to the fact that they are the highest paid and best educated employees within the organization. Also, the statement made by Terrill that he will stay off the engineers back and get top management to stay off their backs too indicates that he will not interfere much with the engineers daily tasks. This indication further supports the notion that the team of engineers is able, willing and confident to accomplish their tasks without much direction or supervision from Terrill. Terrill was hired by DGI International to turn around a non-performing division. When he decided to adopt the delegating style, he must have based his decision on solid grounds highest paid and best educated group of engineers must have possess