China – Geert Hofstede

4/22/13 China – Geert Hofstede THE HOFSTEDE CENTRE (index. php) GET CERTIFIED Select a Country United States in Intercultural Management and (/certification- Culture by Organisational courses. html) in comparison with the below China THE HOFSTEDE CENTRE (thehofstede-centre. html) 118 80 91 GEERT HOFSTEDE (geerthofstede. html) NATIONAL CULTURE (nationalculture. html) 66 DIMENSIONS (dimensions. html) 62 30 46 29 40 COUNTRIES (countries. html) APPLICATIONS (applications. html) 20 COURSES (interculturalmanagement-courses. html) PDI IDV China MAS UAI LTO United States ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE (organisational-culture. tml) EVENTS AND COURSES (eventscourses. html) FAQ (faq. html) What about China? If we explore the Chinese culture through the lens of the 5-D Model, we can get a good overview of the deep drivers of Chinese culture relative to other world cultures. Power distance This dimension deals with the fact that all individuals in societies are not equal – it expresses the attitude of the culture towards these inequalities amongst us. Power distance is defined as the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organisations within a country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally.At 80 China sits in the higher rankings of PDI – i. e. a society that believes that inequalities amongst people are acceptable. The subordinate-superior relationship tends to be polarized and there is no defense against power abuse by superiors. Individuals are influenced by formal authority and sanctions and are in general optimistic about people’s capacity for leadership and initiative. People should not have aspirations beyond their rank. Contact Imprint (contact. html) (imprint. html) Individualism The fundamental issue addressed by this dimension is the degree of interdependence a society maintains among its members.It has to do with whether people? s self-image is defined in terms of â€Å"I† or â€Å"We†. In I ndividualist societies people are supposed to look after themselves and their direct family only. In Collectivist societies people belong to ‘in groups’ that take care of them in exchange for loyalty. At a score of 20 China is a highly collectivist culture where people act in the interests of the group and not necessarily of themselves. In-group considerations affect hiring and promotions with closer in-groups (such as family) are getting preferential treatment.Employee commitment to the organization (but not necessarily to the people in the organization) is low. Whereas relationships with colleagues are cooperative for in-groups they are cold or even hostile to out-groups. Personal relationships prevail over task and company. Masculinity / Femininity geert-hofstede. com/china. html 1/2 4/22/13 China – Geert Hofstede A high score (masculine) on this dimension indicates that the society will be driven by competition, achievement and success, with success being def ined by the winner / best in field – a value system that starts in school and continues throughout organisational behaviour.A low score (feminine) on the dimension means that the dominant values in society are caring for others and quality of life. A feminine society is one where quality of life is the sign of success and standing out from the crowd is not admirable. The fundamental issue here is what motivates people, wanting to be the best (masculine) or liking what you do (feminine). At 66 China is a masculine society –success oriented and driven. The need to ensure success can be exemplified by the fact that many Chinese will sacrifice family and leisure priorities to work.Service people (such as hairdressers) will provide services until very late at night. Leisure time is not so important. The migrated farmer workers will leave their families behind in faraway places in order to obtain better work and pay in the cities. Another example is that Chinese students car e very much about their exam scores and ranking as this is the main criteria to achieve success or not. Uncertainty avoidance The dimension Uncertainty Avoidance has to do with the way that a society deals with the fact that the future can never be known: should we try to control the future or just let it happen?This ambiguity brings with it anxiety and different cultures have learnt to deal with this anxiety in different ways. The extent to which the members of a culture feel threatened by ambiguous or unknown situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try to avoid these is reflected in the UAI score. At 30 China has a low score on uncertainty avoidance. Truth may be relative though in the immediate social circles there is concern for Truth with a capital T and rules (but not necessarily laws) abound. None the less, adherence to laws and rules may be flexible to suit the actual situation and pragmatism is a fact of life.The Chinese are comfortable with ambiguity; the Chinese language is full of ambiguous meanings that can be difficult for Western people to follow. Chinese are adaptable and entrepreneurial. At the time of writing the majority (70% -80%) of Chinese businesses tend to be small to medium sized and family owned. Long term orientation The long term orientation dimension is closely related to the teachings of Confucius and can be interpreted as dealing with society’s search for virtue, the extent to which a society shows a pragmatic future-oriented perspective rather than a conventional historical short-term point of view.With a score of 118 China is a highly long term oriented society in which persistence and perseverance are normal. Relationships are ordered by status and the order is observed. Nice people are thrifty and sparing with resources and investment tends to be in long term projects such as real estate. Traditions can be adapted to suit new conditions. Chinese people recognize that government is by men rather than a s in the Low LTO countries by an external influence such as God or the law. Thinking ways focus on the full or no confidence, contrasting with low LTO countries that think in probabilistic ways. geert-hofstede. com/china. html 2/2

East Asia History Essay

East Asia, which covers about seventeen percent of land area of the Asia continent with China as the largest nation, began to perform as a significant factor in the world’s economy in this modern period. East Asia comprises of countries such as China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan, including the non-independent states or political units such as Vietnam, and Macao, has remarkable transformation at the turn of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. From this region rose the sites of early civilizations that later on spearheaded political, economic, and cultural contributions in the eastern Asian countries as it grew into rapid development. The ascendancy of powers particularly China, Japan, and Korea in the era of imperialism served as reminders of their once glorious life during the period of self-assertiveness away from the influence of Western countries. At the expense of evolution of powers in the West, China and Japan had enlarged into empires, however at the advent of political chaos brought by Western intrusion changed the course of their history, except for Korea, which gained influence from Japan. Obviously, western interventions had brought significant contribution in the political and social transformation of these countries, yet their cultural identity remained as they were before. The resistance and alienation to Western imperialism has made them gained global respect especially as they began to take advantage of economic opportunities created by their own initiatives and creativeness with the aid from the United States and United Nations in particular. In case of Korea, modernization was attained while being under the colony of Japan, which include infrastructure and health development (Myong Soo Cha). Likewise, these countries have proved that cultural distinctiveness does not affect modernization in the first place but rather enhances sophistication by utilizing their natural resources and abilities.

Information Technology Profession Essay

Information Technology plays an important role in today’s society. It plays the role of an enabler of social goals as well as business objectives of the organizations. IT professionals are involved in creating IT infrastructure and communication networks. Another set of IT professionals create applications that run on these IT infrastructure and network. These applications help to deliver with speed, the social programs of governments as well as enable business transactions to be conducted with accuracy, speed and ease. With the Internet access gaining popularity and the increasing volume and variety of information, the information technology has revolutionized the world with the IT professionals leading the change. IT as a profession has the primary responsibility of implementing projects and programs which can help in realizing the goals of an organization. Implementing IT requires a thorough understanding of business processes, knowledge of technologies available and working with a group of people who deliver as a team. At times, the technology bit is a small portion of the entire IT work, though a very important one. Technology roles in IT comprise of hardware and network professionals, programmers, database and storage professionals, software testers and project managers. A very important set of IT professionals are those who maintain and support the IT applications. These are people who ensure that the systems are always available for business use. Support professionals ensure the integrity and stability of the IT applications post implementation. IT requires a good educational background with some amount of proven analytical skills. IT professionals develop and mature in their careers over a period of time and so the people who are required in IT are essentially educated and intelligent people but they are not offered a fast paced career as they think they deserve. Data shows the level of declining interests in the field of computing research (Zweben, 2008). Also, the current negative perception of the job market is seen as the prime factor for the decline in the American students opting for IT as a career. There is a wide perception that the jobs in IT are endangered due to outsourcing (Murphy, 2008). This is not so. The US has the highest number of IT professionals and the only jobs outsourced are the ones which can be done by a lower level of skills. Most of the job portals offer a range of IT jobs and one should be able to gather information about various types of IT career options from job portals as well as IT organizations websites.

Autism Late Diagnoses Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Autism Late Diagnoses - Research Proposal Example As a spectrum, it means that the earlier ASD is diagnosed, the better the chances of ensuring that the risk or rate of growth of severity does not increase to certain undesirable levels. However, there continues to be records and reports of late diagnoses of ASD in most children. In relation to the Waldorf approach to developmental stages in children, one would say that if ASD was diagnosed as early as the first stage, it would give medical experts so much hope and room for improving the lives of affected children, especially in terms of their academics. Purpose of the study Based on the background to the study presented above, the researcher seeks to set out a research work that has a purpose of identifying the developmental stages from the perspective of Waldorf approach and link this to Autism Spectrum Disorder late diagnoses. ... This purpose is made with the rationale that as much as autism may be a serious health and psychological problem for children, it should not be the basis for which children should suffer or be left behind in any sense in terms of their normal development as people. This is particularly so when it comes to the academic life of the children. Unfortunately though, the chances of achieving this goal reduces significantly if diagnosis is not made as early enough as possible. While looking at the issue of late diagnosis, the impact of different cultural perspectives will be linked to any possible causes. Aim and objectives To achieve the purpose of the study, an aim has been set for the study, which has further been broken down into specific objectives to signify the specific activities and tasks the researcher should be involved in to achieve the aim. The aim is given as finding the relationship between the developmental stages and autism spectrum disorder late diagnosis. The specific obj ectives to bring about this aim are given as follows. 1. To determine how the developmental stages as given by Waldorf are perceived by different cultures in terms of religious cultures, moderate cultures and liberal cultures 2. To underscore how the perception of developmental stages according to cultural differences help in avoiding or promoting late diagnoses of ASD. 3. To ascertain how children diagnosed with late with ASD can be helped to live healthy integrated lifestyles. Significance of the study Should the aims and objectives set above be achieved, there are a number of benefits that will be derived. In the first place, an understanding on the effect of cultural differences on ASD would help in finding a common perspective grounds for the issue

Cause of Action Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cause of Action - Essay Example Rob and Bunny Sherman and the tort law seems to be one of the most essential laws concerning the personal injury suffered by Rob Jr. As Mr. Bunny wants to bring suit against the Church of the Divine Light which caused personal injury his son by intentional torts, false imprisonment etc of Rob Jr., the best legal move will be in this line. There is vital evidence about Rob Jr. being tricked, falsely imprisoned, mentally threatened, psychologically oppressed, and illegally compelled to demand money from his parents. All these harassments and mental as well as personal injury suffered by plaintiff’s son indicate the possibility of taking civil action on the law of tort, undue influence, coercion, holding a person against his will etc. Also, legal action can be taken, on expert recommendation, against the Church of the Divine Light which is not an organized or registered church. The cause of action in the given case includes suing against Mr. Tom Marsden who was responsible for the civil wrongdoing against the plaintiff’s son and the law of torts serves best in this case. The case under discussion provides cause of action relating to law of tort, especially, intentional tort. â€Å"An intentional tort is any deliberate interference with a legally recognized interest, such as the rights to bodily integrity, emotional tranquility, dominion over property, seclusion from public scrutiny, and freedom from confinement or deception. These interests are violated by the intentional torts of assault, battery, trespass, false imprisonment, invasion of privacy, conversion, misrepresentation, and fraud.† (Tort Law) http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Tort+Law Significantly, four objectives are served by this law of torts. Thus, Mr. Rob can seek compensation for the injuries his son has suffered by the culpable action of the defendant.

Business Cannot Afford to Stand Still Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Business Cannot Afford to Stand Still - Essay Example The businesses around the world are witnessing changes in the demographic situations and thus are bound to modify their business marketing strategies around the changing character of the populations. Page (2010) contends that there exist a great variety of factors that influence the way the organizations operate. It is evident that factors like unemployment, old age, economic downturns have made the people change their buying patterns. Thus the businesses around the world need to adapt to such changes and prepare themselves to serve the people better.It is within the last two decades that the social and cultural perspectives have changed drastically. The perspectives relate to the aspects like concerns over environment and a healthy lifestyle. This led to changes in environment policies of the companies. For example, the plastic bags could not used as freely as earlier. This gave birth to the recyclable packing material in the form of bio degradable bags manufacturing (Page 2010).Pri or to creation of business plans, it becomes important to study the external environment of the forces. The investigation of the social, legal, economic and political environments exercise influence over the businesses. These environment scan is also important to know the competitors plans. The forces behind the changes are themselves continually monitored and thus are found to be in a state of change. The social factors are associated with behavioral patterns and thus change the character of the fashions and lifestyles.

Managing Human Resources Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Managing Human Resources - Essay Example Since I'm holding the position of Human Resources Director for National Lewis and Clark Corporation (NL&C) I had to check the employee's responsibilities. I always had to be in contact with my colleagues and subordinates. The Human Resource department is the heart and soul of any organization or company or firm. After joining the company I noticed that though the company has implemented the salary-sharing plan, the salary was much lesser when compared to national averages. Furthermore they hired candidates who were less experienced and less trained to higher positions. I later found that due to lawsuits filed against them by previous employees, to fill those positions they hires the inexperienced candidates. The employees should work as team and there should be no place for jealousy and complacency. HRM would involve going beyond an agreement to add 'women's issues' to the research agenda, to recognition of the gendered character of employment relations and of work itself. The employees of the company were facing many difficulties. Due to accidents and some ailing factors employees were unable to perform up to the mark. I suggested the company to follow the rules of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). According to the

Project Managment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Project Managment - Essay Example The activities follow a systematic order according to priority needs while coordination among them is profusely maintained. Distributing the tasks among the project staff is important as this will simplify the activities. Once it is done, collection of articles is conducted in order to proceed for sorting them out. Managing articles is more essential than photo collection as articles are undoubtedly the main focus of the magazine. The project manager (PM) should depend on the shortest time. This will make him organize and systematize activities for a successful and early completion of the project. Besides, coordination among the people in the project is important and the PM should motivate his team for it. Both CPA and WBS frameworks are important for a project. However, WBS as a top-down model can assess only from the top management point of view that may ignore activities happened at lower levels. But CPA is adequate in detailing the activities. Circle and arrow diagram also aptly shows the project details. Significance: WBS, OBS and CPA are essential frameworks that help the project manager to explain people involved in the project about the project details. It is the responsibility of the project management team under the PM to do a WBS or CPA. The University magazine project contains top-down and bottom-up approaches for identifying and organizing the project activities. CPA framework studied the critical issues of the project and prioritized the tasks accordingly. WBS and OBS frameworks are adopted in order to break the project down into smaller segments. The University magazine project adopts CPA, WBS and OBS tools for proper planning and scheduling. These tools divide the project into different smaller segments, which results in speedy development of the project. The new project is expected to update the standard of the university magazine to a

Knowledge is generated through the interaction of critical and Essay - 1

Knowledge is generated through the interaction of critical and creative thinking. Evaluate this statement in two areas of knowledge - Essay Example Knowledge management is an important part of life, and without knowledge it is difficult for an individual to survive in this world of such cut throat competition. Individuals constantly need to strive for knowledge and also need to understand the different ways of attaining knowledge and also the different areas of knowledge. In my opinion, the statement â€Å"Knowledge is generated through the interaction of critical and creative thinking† is a true statement. Critical thinking can be defined as giving a reflective statement by assessing the thoughts and efforts of other individuals or processes. Critical thinking allows one to think from many perspectives and then arrive at a conclusion. When one is in the phase of thinking critically, many new types of knowledge may be experienced by the individual in justifying their critical thoughts and opinions. Critical thinking can be applied to all disciplines of knowledge areas. The disciplines can be science, math and even history. All areas need critical reviews and evaluations to be conducted for justifications. Critical thinking can be a challenging task and it can prove to be a strong learning experience for the individuals. Science has many new inventions and innovations that have been invented for the use of mankind. With each new invention, there is a history as to how the product or service came into being (Preece, 310). If we take the example of Newton, he invented the science of physics. He invented the law of motion and other such laws in the field of physics. Such knowledge was invented through observation, critical thinking and investigation of events that were unfolding in front of him. This is the way how individuals learn new knowledge and come upon new inventions. The process of critical thinking consists of understanding the assumptions that are associated with any situation or statement, then the arguments present need to be reviewed and

Term examinations Essay Example for Free

Term examinations Essay In comparison to end of term examinations, teaching students by continuous assessments is better. In most primary, secondary and tertiary forms of education, the latter method of evaluating students is used. This form is most common and is used in most parts of the world due to many reasons. Continuous assessment is a more accurate method of evaluating students. This method is more appropriate in higher education as it ensures students study and go through lectures and notes if not every day at home, then very regularly as doing bad in any quiz or test may affect their grades or overall marks. Due to this, students actually go through the notes they take often to do well. This helps them remember and at the end they don’t have to cram just before the final exam like they would have to if they only had to sit for end of term examinations. In other cases, many students may also have a psychological problem of giving exams. Due to this they may do badly in their exams even though they may know their subject very well. They may be brilliant in class, participate well, attend all lectures but even then in the end of term exams they may not do well. This can be due to a phobia of examinations or simply the pressure of last minute studying. Due to this, taking tests or quizzes throughout the term, semester or year along with class participation is a better method of evaluating a student. At the same time, last minute cramming right before the finals may ensure that students do well in the term end exams. However, if students memorize right before their exams they may not remember what they learnt later as they may have been under too much pressure and stress while studying in the end. Even though they get the grades, they do not remember what they learnt afterwards and then cannot use it later in life. Therefore what they studied becomes useless since they cannot utilize what they learnt in their lives. Many students may also not have the capability to memorize. This means they will not do well in term end exams as they will not be able to memorize and will not be able to write in the exam. Many students also lack conversational and presentation skills. These skills are necessary in life especially at work. Thus, these skills need to be developed and enhanced. These can neither be developed nor enhanced if only term end examinations are taken. To bring about this development, teachers have to take continuous presentations etc in order to help students converse and communicate. In this manner as well, continuous assessment is better than term end examinations. Thus due to such reasons, I think continuous assessment is a better way of teaching as it helps students grasp more knowledge and utilize it later. This method also enhances certain skills which will surely help the students in finding better opportunities in their future.

HIV/AIDS And Stigma | Essay

HIV/AIDS And Stigma | Essay HIV/AIDS is one of the challenges to human life and dignity. It affects all levels of society and has a massive impact on global economic and social development, (Rowden, 2009). Studies have been conducted on its impact on human life and how it could be controlled. This review was conducted by exploring literature from a variety of sources for published articles on HIV/AIDS and its stigma. Literature from research covering a period of 8 years from 2002-2010 was extracted from Assia, PubMed, Sage, British Medical Journal, Cochrane and Absco-host, and reviewed for the study, objectives, methodology and key findings. Relevant books, journals, documents and reports from organisations such as UNAIDS, and the World Bank were also reviewed. Both qualitative and quantitative data was used to present the information. Despite facing a lot of criticism on its top-down approach, the biomedical model remains the dominant concept in health and illness. Its credibility lies on its scientific methods and expert knowledge used to diagnose or understand illness and treatment. This model views the body as a machine composed of different parts working together for it to function. If one part is not functioning properly, the aim is to find what is wrong with it through diagnosis and fix it by prescribing medicine, (Taylor Hawley 2010:12). Focus is therefore restricted to the physical illness of an individuals body and the scientific understanding of disease, making the approach heavily based on pharmacology. While pharmacology is beneficial in the treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS, it is criticised for promoting the privilege of the biomedical model, further enhancing undermining of alternative approaches to health and healing. The biomedical approach may be inappropriate to some communities and create fe elings of helplessness and vulnerability therefore affecting the success of the intervention. (Global Health Watch, 2008, Farmer, 1999). Lay concepts of health and illness are diverse and complex than those of the medical model. They focus on peoples experiences of health and illness in relation to their overall life experiences and are embedded within local social and cultural structures. Unlike in the biomedical approach, indigenous approaches seek to heal the whole person by linking the illness with the persons social and economic background, (Taylor, 2003). However critics of this model argue that lay concepts are difficult to evidence and research hence they remain marginalised and scarcely recognised as legitimate knowledge, (Taylor Hawley, 2010:13). On the contrary, Taylor, (2003) argues that lay perspective is crucial knowledge for public health as it identifies roots of illnesses for possible long term prevention and treatment for the larger population as compare to individually focused interventions. Influence of power systems such as the dominance of the medical model hinder progress on preventions and treatment of diseases such as HIV/AIDS and stigma as they govern relationships between health structures and lay people. Goffman, (1990), and Parker and Aggleton, (2003),s theories of stigma in helping us to understand how stigma is constructed and its influence in peoples lives view stigma and discrimination as functional systems which maintain boundaries between those in power and those without. Through such power, social inequalities are developed leading to creation of social norms. These formulate stigma by governing interactions between people and reinforce power structures that serve to maintain control of the powerless, (Farmer, 2005). Both theories have been widely used in HIV related stigma to highlight how prejudice, negative attitudes, abuse and maltreatment directed towards PLWHA have hindered the progress of prevention and treatment. Research highlights that stigma and discrimination in health care settings deriving from social power imbalances contribute a great deal in keeping people away from accessing HIV/AIDS treatment and care. Patients felt greatly affected by health workers feeling uncomfortable with them and treating them in an inferior manner. In Tanzania, some discriminatory and stigmatised practices such as gossiping about patients HIVs status, neglect, verbal abuse, testing and disclosing HIVs status without consent were noted, (D.C Synergy, 2005). Similarly in India, health workers were disclosing patients HIV status to their families without patients consent, (Mahedra et, al, 2007). Harassment, avoiding and isolation of HIV-positive patients and testing without counselling are common features of stigmatisation in most studies. Some health workers wore protective clothing even if there was no physical contact during interactions. Fear of being identified as infected with HIV also influenced people t o prolong testing for HIV and only accessed services when their illness was at an advanced stage, (Bond and Aggleton, 2002; Kinsler et al, 2007; Varga et al 2006; Kalichman and Simbayi, 2003). In Zambia, HIV-positive health workers were hiding their HIV status from their colleagues in fear of being stigmatised, (Dieleman et al, 2007). While most of the literature on HIV/AIDS and access to health services is negative, there is evidence of the value of supportive and de-stigmatising HIV services in some parts of the globe. Brazil has been hailed as a model by PLWHA. They reported supportive inclusive structural systems that create healthy environments that promote active participation of different groups in society and the government, (Caltado, 2008). In South Africa where most people believe in traditional healing, Aids Activism has made a positive significance in HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment by translating and mediating the biomedical approach within local ideological frameworks which are easily understood and acted on by the locals, (Colvin, Robins, 2010). Literature reveals that collaboration between lay perspectives and biomedical approach is essential for successful control of HIV/AIDS and stigma. There is no cure for AIDS but Anti-retrovirals (ARVs) can prolong life by lowering levels of HIV in the body therefore delaying the process between HIV and AIDS, (Robin, 2009). Although ARVs are now readily available in most countries, numbers of newly infected people are rising. According to the World Bank, 60 million people are living with HIV/AIDS worldwide. Access to treatment has increased dramatically but for every 100 people on treatment, 250 become newly infected, (World Bank, 2010). As such, pressure is now rising on the effectiveness of only relying on the biomedical approach for treatment and care of HIV/AIDS. While lay perspectives are considered effective, this cannot be confirmed as true with HIV/AIDS care. In South Africa, despite people heavily relying on traditional healing approaches, HIV prevalence continued to rise. Significance towards effective control of the epidemic has been noted with the increase in accessibility of ARVs, (Colvin, 2009). In the UNAIDS Report On The Global AIDS Epidemic 2010, in 7 countries, five of them in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, HIV incidences increased by more than 25% between 2001 and 2009. Sub Saharan Africa, although still remaining the most highly affected by the epidemic, figures either stabilised or showed signs of decline owing to positive behaviour due to increased services that are embedded in local culture. The report affirms that stigma and discrimination, lack of access to services and bad laws can make the epidemic worse, (UNAIDS, 2010). Due to the challenges presented by HIV/AIDS to global public health, Baum. (2008:241) calls for collective participation of all sectors in the fight against this deadly disease. She asserts that community level mobilisation where there is partnership between lay people and structures is the effective way of combating HIV/AIDS and stigma. This is further supported by Farmer, (1999:90), who does not condone the dominance of the biomedical perspective in health and healing. He believes that lay people have a significant role in the process of health improvements and emphasises on the importance understanding lay peoples experiences as essential knowledge for successful interventions. He holds that health care services should be accessible to PLWHA without fear of being stigmatised. Educating health care professionals about the impact of stigma on patients and policies that encourage inclusion of PLWHA in decisions that affect their lives are some of the key factors of effectively tackli ng the epidemic. Parker and Aggleton, (2003) also claim collective participation between lay people and health structures as key to successful anti-stigma services. Relationships between health structures and PLWHA could also be improved by engaging lay people through advocacy. The Greater Involvement of PLWHA, (GIPA) principle emphasises the need for involvement of PLWHA at all levels in combating HIV/AIDS because they understand their situation better. Therefore their voices could be heard well if their needs were presented by people in the same situation, (UNAIDS, 2007). In the Zambia study, professionals living with HIV/AIDS are in a better position to advocate for people accessing services. Baum, (2008:550) affirms that advocacy involving public health practitioners is an effective way of influencing structural barriers in public health. Literature has highlighted the contested nature of concepts of health and healing underpinning access to services providing treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS and its stigma. The biomedical approach conceptualises health and illness through science and expertise with focus on the individual. Lay concepts view health and healing as embedded within local social and cultural structures and therefore seek to address public health for a wider population. Literature suggests that neither approach in isolation is effective in prevention and care for HIV/AIDS. Arguments have centred on the importance of collaboration of the models. Therefore there is need for intervention programmes to develop holistic approaches that are underpinned by the two models but it is also important to understanding each of the concepts in its own right.

Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago Company

Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago Company I have been employed with the Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago Company Limited (TSTT) for the past fourteen years. TSTT was historically, the single provider of telecommunications services in Trinidad and Tobago until the mid 1990s when, pursuant to a World Trade Organisation Agreement in 1997 on Basic Telecommunications, 69 countries agreed to liberalise their telecommunications sectors and to open their domestic markets to foreign companies. This agreement resulted in the entry of several competitors in Trinidad and Tobagos telecommunications market thereby ending TSTTs monopoly status. Against this backdrop, TSTT which provided primarily fixed line, mobile and internet services, engaged Goulet Telecom International Inc. to examine the impact of globalization on its operations. Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats Analysis (SWOT) Gregory G. Dess, G.T. Lumpkin, Alan B. Eisner (2007) Strategic Management Text and Cases, 3rd ed. , New York, McGraw-Hill Irwin states One of the most basic techniques for analysing firm and industry conditions is SWOT analysis. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. SWOT analysis provides a framework for analyzing these four elements of a companys internal and external environment. It provides raw material-a basic listing of conditions both inside and surrounding your company. The strengths and weaknesses portion of SWOT refers to the internal conditions of a firm-where your firm excels (strengths) and where it may be lacking relative to competitors (weaknesses). Opportunities and threats are environmental condition external to the firm. Opportunities and threats are also present in the competitive environment among firms competing for the same customers.(p 49) An analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for TSTT in a competitive environment is highlighted, at Appendix A. Strengths One of the major strength of TSTT is its human resource capital and in particular, the leadership and experience of its executive management team which has steered the Company through the process of liberalisation in 2006, to its current position of sustained profitability. The strength of the Company is reflected in the leadership skills and managerial acumen of the executive team who ensured that the Company retained significant market share since the liberalisation of the sector. Management of TSTT have become more strategic in their thinking and in their of way developing new and innovative technology. TSTT are also developing the intellectual capacity of the workforce through e-learning, training and development program and courses. The strength of the Companys human resource capital is also reflected in the Companys middle management and Senior and Junior Staff employees who have successfully implemented the Companys strategic initiatives such as the deployment on new customer services such as Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) and BLINK Broadband. Weaknesses One of the major weaknesses which have been identified at TSTT is its poor network infrastructure and aged plant which has occasionally resulted in the delivery of poor customer service to its subscribers in many instances customers are made to wait for as long as a year to have their phones repaired especially if it is cable related issue. TSTTs aged outside plant has also had an impact on the Companys ability to provide new services such as IPTV to some of its customers due to the unavailability of upgraded plant facilities in certain areas of the country. As a result of the aged plant facilities, the Company has not rolled outits IPTV service throughout the country, thereby precluding it from effectively competing with FLOW, the dominant Cable TV provider which services the entire country. Another weakness is that TSTT was only able to focus on customer service when it was faced with competition, only then did the prices of the companys goods and services were reduced. Opportunities TSTT has sought to capitalize on by its foray into the entertainment sector through the provision of IPTV, a new service which it now provides in selected areas in Trinidad. The IPTV product which is branded Blink Entertainmentis a digital television service which, instead of delivering content through traditional broadcast and cable formats, is received by the viewer using internet protocol technology. TSTT, like many of the worlds major telecommunications providers is exploring IPTV as a new revenue opportunity from its existing and potential subscriber base and as a defensive measure against encroachment from competitors such as FLOW, a conventional cable television provider which now provides internet and voice services. Another new market which TSTT has sought to penetrate is the security services sector with the launch of its Blink Vigilance Security Service. This product which was launched on November 3rd 2009 (along with Blink Entertainment) is a wireless security surveillance system which TSTT offers to both commercial and residential subscribers. Trinidad and Tobago Guardian Newspapers, November 4th 2009 stated The opportunity to pursue this strategic initiative is as a result of the growing criminal activity in Trinidad and Tobago which has driven a demand for security services a point which was made by Dennis Gordon, Vice President, Organisational Risk and Security Services at the launch of the product. TSTT provides the infrastructure used by security companies to operate their business, its entrance into the security services sector provides an excellent opportunity for the Company to increase its revenue streams and maintain its viability in a competitive telecommunications market. The provision of these two new services, Blink TV and Blink Vigilance are therefore two examples of how TSTT has created new opportunities for itself based on consumer needs and changes in the social environment. Threats One of the most significant threats faced by TSTT was that provided by its competitors in the mobile services market as a result of the deregulation of the telecommunications sector in 2006. As a consequence of the liberalisation of the market, Digicel, began offering mobile service which for the first time gave the population of Trinidad and Tobago a choice of wireless providers. The introduction of Digicel into the Sector was expected to remove substantial market share from TSTT which had previously enjoyed monopoly status. TSTT Financial Reports stated The extent of the threat posed to TSTT by its main competitor is reflected in the Companys financial results in the immediate aftermath of Digicels entry into the market. In the financial year 2006 to 2007, TSTT suffered a financial loss of TT $122 M as compared to the financial year 2005 to 2006 where it made a profit of $261 million. Likewise, FLOW, a Company that had traditionally provided only Cable TV service, became in May of 2008, the first Triple Playprovider of telecommunications services in Trinidad with its offering of Cable TV, Broadband and Landline Voice Services to the population at large. As a result of FLOWs strategic initiatives, TSTT is now faced with an additional threat to its revenue streams in the Broadband and Landline Voice sectors. PEST ANALYSIS TSTTs PEST analysis focuses on the following factors, Political, Economic, Social and Technological scan of the macro-environment in which the organisation operates. The political environment as it presently relates to TSTT is one of uncertainty. This has been mainly as a result of the change in government of Trinidad and Tobago on 24 May 2010 the board of directors resigned since they were politically appointed and to date no board has been appointed. This has result in the capital expenditure budget for the various departments not being past. To this extent certain activities have been at a stand-still such as the cut-over of new infrastructure in Penal, Fyzabad areas which would allow the company to provide a more efficient and reliable telephone service to the people living in these areas. TSTT has also been impacted by economic factors from the environment with the liberalisation of the telecommunications market TSTT has not given an increase in salary to its junior and senior staff workforce. Due to the liberalisation of the market as stated before this has resulted in TSTT loosing part its customer base to its competitor resulting in a decrease in the companys profit margins in 2005-2006 of TT$122m. TSTT has been a socially responsible organisation, sponsoring local sporting activities and teams, TSTT has been and still is the main sponsor for the Soca Warriors Trinidad and Tobagos national football team. Through its Employee Wellness Program various initiatives have been made available to employees such as Domestic and Substance Abuse Programs. Recently, due to the outbreak in the H1N1 virus TSTT has taken the initiative to bring-in at the various work locations, personnel from the Ministry of Health to immunize staff against the virus and other illnesses. Among the social and cultural events covered by TSTTs Employee Relations department are Thanksgiving prayer meetings at the end of the last year and start of the new-year, Employees calypso competition, secretarys day, Sports and Family day, Emancipation and Indian arrival day activities etc. These are undertaken to allow the various levels staff in this multi-cultural, racial country to interact as one and enjoy the social, cultural and sporting activities. It fosters a culture of trust, harmony and cooperation between the hierarchical levels in the organisation. These activities also encourage or motivate both customers and employees to buy-in to the policies of the company and encourage loyalty. Through the use of innovation, research and development TSTT has been able to develop new technologies which would allow it to maintain its competitive advantage in the face of competition. This can particularly be seen through the companys use of technology to penetrate new markets such as the provisioning of Internet Protocol Television and residential and business security and alarm systems. Industry Attractiveness In determining Industry Attractiveness, the issue of Competition must be taken into consideration, as this will have an impact on the threat of new entrants and competitive rivalry within the market from FLOW and Digicel. TSTT no longer enjoys being a monopoly but now has to share its market with other competitors. Buyers would also have more bargaining power since they have a wider variety from which to choose as a consequence of the liberalisation of the telecommunications market as a result consumers are more likely to purchase where they can get value for their money. TSTT also has to compete against substitute goods and services, for example customers may not purchase their mobile phones from TSTT but from its competitor. The customer may simple pay TSTT for the use of the service of being attached to its network, therefore the company loses on it sale of mobile phone. Suppliers of TSTT would also have bargaining power as to what price they charge you for their goods since they can sell the same goods to your competitors and it you want to maintain competitive advantage over your competitors you would want to enjoy first market advantage and market leadership by providing new and innovation technology to your customers before your competitors. (See Appendix B) STAKEHOLDER ANALYSIS Stakeholder Analysis is necessary because it provides information indicating the level of influence and expectations of the various stakeholders within the environment. As it relates to the Companys (TSTT) relationship with its employees and the representative Union a great deal of mistrust exists between this group and Management. In addition during times of industrial unrest it is alleged that the Union is able to influence workers to either work-to-rule or down tools. With regards to the customers, if customers are not satisfied with the quality or price, the opening-up of the Telecommunications Sector could cause customers and have caused customers to migrate to other service providers. Customers feel that they can getting better service for their money have chosen to migrate to Digicel or FLOW where they believe they are getting better value for their money. The management group needs to understand, in addition to managing, emphasis needs to be placed on effective Leadership and to an extent leadership by example. Over the past seven years junior and senior staff employees have not received a salary increase while management level continue to be paid incentives on a yearly basis for meeting their set objectives. This has left employees feeling disenchanted and de-motivated with management. (See Appendix C) Assessment of TSTTs position Having assessed the SWOT elements that TSTT is faced with in its internal and external environment since the advent of competition, one may conclude that the organisation has been able to maintain its position as the dominant entity Trinidad and Tobago telecommunications sector. This has been facilitated by the leadership of the executive management team which has taken strategic initiatives such as the investment of over $700 million in new technology in order to address the weakness associated with the Companys aged plant. This investment has also given TSTT a competitive advantage in the IPTV and Security services market as the Company has exploited the opportunities in its external environment to create new revenue streams for itself. Porters five forces can be seen through the threat of potential entrants in this case FLOW and Digicel, since TSTT no longer exist in a monopolistic market customers have bargaining power and this was seen when TSTT had to reduce its prices to be more competitive. Suppliers in this case also bargaining power with more than one telecommunications company to sell mobile telephones so they are able to bargain as to which telecommunications company what to sell them and at what price. Competitive rivalry is evident when TSTT promotes it mobile phones at reduced prices and the competitor Digicel also reduces its prices in order to compete with TSTT. The financial results of TSTT since the liberalisation of the market therefore supports the proposition that the organisation has been able to manage the threats posed by its competitors as evidenced by its after tax profits since 2006. In this type of arrangement, emphasis is being placed on maintaining Strengths, exploring and analyzing Opportunities, improving or outsourcing Weaknesses and identifying, developing and implementing Plans to overcome Threats this is the strategic direction of the company. Conclusion Through strategic planning and implementation TSTT was successfully able to maintain its leadership position in the telecommunications market in Trinidad and Tobago in a liberalised, global market. The organisation was able to convert its weaknesses into strengths and threats in to opportunity to maintains competitive advantage. Though its leadership and strategic management, innovative strategies and technologies were developed allowing for training and development of staff thereby providing opportunities for staff to be promoted within the organisation.

The Lies My Teacher Told Me and People’s History of the United States E

There is a logical saying in society one should take to heart; that line being, â€Å"Don’t believe everything you read.† Just because a text is written and published does not means it is always accurate. Historical facts, similar to words whispered in the child’s game, â€Å"telephone,† are easily transformed into different facts, either adding or subtracting certain details from the story. James Loewen, in The Lies My Teacher Told Me, reveals how much history has been changed by textbook writes so that students studying the textbooks can understand and connect to the information. In Howard Zinn’s, People’s History of the United States, the author recounts historical tales through the point of view of the common people. Mainstream media, as proven by Loewen and Zinn, often pollutes and dilutes history to make the information sound better and more easily understood for the society. First of all, the accounts of Zinn and Loewen are quite different that what textbooks and mainstream media tell children. As mentioned previously, Zinn’s People’s History of the United States conveys the narrative of the travels of Columbus and the beginnings of slavery and racism through the eyes of the common or native people. This point of view enlightens the reader, who most likely believes that Columbus was a good and benevolent American hero, to that fact that Columbus â€Å"sailed the ocean blue† out of greedy and self-glorification. In reality, Columbus caused pain, suffering, and death because of his greedy; he captured natives for their ability to perform hard labor and information on where to find riches, primarily gold (Zinn, Ch. 1). The heroic adventures, as portrayed in society, melt down to be the acts of a greedy man who sought glory for himself b... ... and food we had an equal share† (Ch. 4, A3). White servants, although for the most part did receive all the aspects of the portion of the contract referring to time in service, they received the bare minimum of the necessities. Clearly then, one can see the necessity to read/see more then one perspective on historical events is crucial. One cannot rely on one description alone because the information may or may not be the complete truth. The author may leave out, embellish, or be uninformed of certain details, which leaves the reader at a disadvantage is he/ reads only one passage. Works Cited Loewen, James W. Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong. Second. New York, New York: Touchstone, 1997. Print. Zinn, Howard. A People's History of the United State. Fifth. New York, New York: Harper Collins, 2010. Print.

In Patagonia Summary :: essays research papers

In Patagonia is one of the more interesting books that I've read lately. It's the only book that I know of that crosses theives with archaeology. It is mainly a collection of Bruce Chatwin's logs and descriptions of his travels in the South American frontier in the late 70's and early 80's (during the Cold War), filled also with short stories and vignettes. Some of them are true, though some mix the facts with fiction. Chatwin leaves these stories hanging and ties most of them back together in the end. Chatwin tells of the lives of the people in Patagonia with much detail. He goes into much detail describing the poor Welsh, Scottish, English, and Italian farmers. Since farmers make up most of Patagonia's workforce, Chatwin stays with quite a few them and learns about the culture, history, and heritage of Patagonia. Many of the generous people he lodges with were outcasts or exiled from their own country and told him the fascinating stories of their own lives and how they came to be in Patagonia. They also tell the riveting stories of the rich Patagonian borderland, where theives and criminals run wild. One such pair of criminals was Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. They committed all sorts of crimes including larceny and murder (though Butch Cassidy never killed a man until late in his crooked career). After committing many crimes in Utah, they travelled down to South America to avoid the law. In Patagonia also depicts the captivating history of the Archaeological findings and the many discoveries that have been made in parts of South America. The book starts off with a remenisence of Chatwin playing with his grandmother's "brontosaurus skin". This is what sparked his desire to search the South Americas. The English sailor Charley Milward had found it originally. Then he reported it to a major archaeologist at that time by the name of Florentino Ameghino. In the end, the skin turns out to not be the skin of a brontosaurus, but rather a Mylodon.

Discuss Media Influences On Prosocial Behaviour Essay

Pro-social behaviours are actions which aim to help others. For example, helping, sharing and caring for others. It seems as though the media can have a positive effect on individuals. It can have an influence on pro-social behaviour, and there are different explanations which help us to understand how the media does it. Being exposed to pro-social behaviour is one way in which the media can have a positive effect on people. Essentially, this explanation argues that when people are exposed to pro-social behaviour on TV and other sources of the media, they then become influenced by it. For example, if a character in a TV programme does something helpful, this explanation would argue that the person, who is exposed to this pro-social behaviour, would be affected by what they are seeing and this would then mean that they will copy that pro-social behaviour and also become helpful in real life. Greenberg carried out an analysis of popular children’s programmes in the US and found that there were an equivalent number of pro-social and antisocial acts. This shows us that the media does provide us with pro-social acts and it also shows us that we are exposed to these pro-social behaviours even though at times we may not be aware of it. Woodard carried out a research which showed that 77% of children’s programmes in the US contained pro-social messages. So, according to this explanation, anyone, who watches these children’s programmes, would be exposed to the pro-social acts and then they would copy the pro social acts and display them in real life situations. However, having said that, this research is ethnocentric as it was carried out in the US. This means that we cannot generalise the results to the rest of the population as it is culturally biased. For example, in other parts of the world, children may only be exposed to antisocial behaviour in TV programmes and yet they still behave in a pro-social way. This, therefore, raises the question as to whether or not the media can actually have a positive effect on individuals who are being exposed to pro-social behaviour-it might just be the person’s personality that is causing them to show pro-social behaviours rather than the media influencing that person. One strength of this explanation is the fact it is realistic to an extent. For example, it seems realistic that if a child is exposed to pro-social acts on TV, they would then get influenced by what they are seeing, and this would then lead them into copying that pro social behaviour. There has been a lot cases where children, who have watched programmes such as Bob the builder, have copied what they have seen in these programmes and then used what they have witnessed to help their friends and families to solve a problem. Another strength of this explanation is the fact that it can have a positive effect on parenting as this explanation can help parents to understand that what their children are watching can influence the way in which they behave. For example, parents may become cautious about what their children are watching on TV- they may encourage their children to watch TV programmes which contain more pro-social acts and less antisocial behaviours and this could potentially mean that their children may display more pro-social behaviours later on life.

People Who Are Making a Difference in the World

PEOPLE WHO ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD Thurday 12/03/09 1. I’m Bob Doughty. 2. And I’m Barbara Klein with EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. Today we tell about five individuals around the world who are making a difference. They are making the world a better place by helping people in special ways. 1. Our first individual who is making a difference is a refugee from Burma. Thousands of people flee Burma each year to escape poverty, oppression and civil war. Many of them choose to stay in Thailand. Cynthia Maung is a Burmese doctor who operates a small public health center near the Thai border with Burma.She is making a difference in her community by providing services that are not available to most people in this area. 2. Many people are waiting at the public health center. Mothers and their children wait in line to get vaccines to protect them against diseases. In another line, parents with newborn babies wait for documents that show their babies were born i n Thailand. The documents take the place of birth certificates. Thai officials do not recognize these people because they are refugees. But Doctor Cynthia Maung does. 1.Doctor Cynthia, as she is called, fled Burma in nineteen eighty-eight after a military campaign against people who demonstrated for democracy and justice. She says she joined with the demonstrators. She says people started disappearing or fleeing to the border when Burma’s military seized power. She decided to settle near the border to work for political change. 2. In a small building, Cynthia Maung started performing operations and helping women give birth. She cleaned her instruments in a rice cooker. She also trained young volunteer health workers.Today, those workers treat people for landmine injuries and many diseases. Her health care center receives donations of money from non-governmental organizations and foreign governments, including the United States. 1. Doctor Cynthia makes a little money go a long way. Each year, one hundred fifty thousand people come for treatment. Those who can, pay less than one dollar. 2. Doctor Cynthia lives next to the health center. She says the workers there do not only treat diseases. They also educate young people who go back and support health activities in their communities.For example, the center trains volunteer health workers who go back to work in the ethnic Karen and other areas of Burma. Some of the volunteers are former patients who are now helping others. Doctor Cynthia says young people should be taught not to feel like victims. Instead, she says, they should see themselves as people who can change and improve their situation. 1. Theary Seng is a human rights activist working to heal her country, Cambodia. As a child, she lived through the rule of the Khmer Rouge during the nineteen seventies.During four years in power, the Khmer Rouge was responsible for the deaths of at least one million, five hundred thousand Cambodians. Theary Sengâ €™s parents were among those killed. After the fall of the Khmer Rouge, she escaped to Thailand and then went to the United States. She attended law school and became a lawyer. 1. Now, Theary Seng is back in Cambodia, supporting human rights as the head of the Center for Social Development. She is a critic of corruption and abuse wherever it exists — in Cambodia and around the world.At a recent demonstration in Phnom Penh, she attempted to leave flowers to honor those killed in the civil war in the Darfur area of Sudan. But Cambodian government officials prevented her from doing so. 2. Theary Seng takes a special interest in the Khmer Rouge Tribunal. The court is starting to take legal action against former Khmer Rouge leaders for their crimes. She serves as an official representative for the victims. 1. She also has a television show. It seeks to find the country’s next generation of young leaders.Theary Seng says her work is not to do anything big but to be a com mon citizen in her homeland where she suffered in the past. THEARY SENG: â€Å"And now, I’m taking that suffering, and shaping it into hope, and trying to work with individuals who had not the time and space to heal that I’ve had. † 1. William Saydee is making a difference in his country, Liberia. In Monrovia, the capital, the sound of typing mixes with the sound of cars in the street. Mister Saydee is a clergyman and former accountant. (SOUND) He now works as a typist and teacher. He is teaching unemployed Liberians how to type.The students do not pay him anything. One of the students is Isaiah Thomas. He says he is learning to type because he wants to work for an international company. 2. William Saydee says he wants to help young people gain a skill to succeed. He says it is the best he can do to help Liberia re-build after years of civil war. Mister Saydee earns money by typing contracts and other documents, like resumes. A resume is a list of a personâ€⠄¢s education and work experience. It can be useful when a person is looking for a job. (MUSIC) 1. Comic book artist Robert Walker is making a difference in New York City.He uses his art to help people understand the disease AIDS. Many children and even adults in the United States enjoy reading comic books. Superheroes in comic books have unusual abilities. They use their abilities to help people and save the world. Like most superheroes, Mister Walker’s characters have special powers. For example, one superhero can see in the dark. One can lift more than three hundred tons. Another can come back from the dead. Also, like most superheroes, his characters have to deal with trouble. These superheroes all have H. I. V. , the virus that causes AIDS.Mister Walker says some members of his family died of AIDS when he was a child. That gave him the idea to create a comic book called â€Å"O Men. † It includes nine characters living with H. I. V. The characters are men and wome n who represent different races and socio-economic groups. They also were infected with the virus in different ways. Mister Walker says he wanted to fight depressing images connected with the disease. ROBERT WALKER: â€Å"It’s not a black disease. It’s not a white disease. It’s not a gay disease. It’s a disease of humanity that lacks awareness. † 1.Gerry Gladston is the co-owner of Midtown Comics in New York City. He says many comic books have important political, social and educational messages. Mister Walker spoke to many H. I. V. and AIDS organizations in researching his comic book. He says he wanted to make the stories realistic as well as factual. 2. Yohannes Gebregiorgis is an Ethiopian-American who returned to the land of his birth to make a difference. Yohannes, as he is known, became an American citizen many years ago. But he gave up his life as a children’s librarian in San Francisco, California.Yohannes says he was concerned that Ethiopian children had no books. He said most schools in Ethiopia do not have libraries. There are almost no children’s books in any of Ethiopia’s many languages. So Yohannes started the Donkey Mobile Library to provide children with their first books. His group brings books to children who have none. YOHANNES GEBREGIORGIS: â€Å"Most kids we have noticed holding a book upside down. We have taken pictures of those kids. But later on we find out that those kids learn how to use the book, how to flip the pages and to look at the pictures and then gradually to read the stories in the book. 1. More donkey mobile libraries are planned, with money from groups in the United States. Donated English-language books have begun arriving in Ethiopia. Also, Yohannes has established a publishing company to produce books in languages that local children can read. His first book was published in three languages. It is a re-telling of an old folk story about, what do you think? A boy a nd his favorite animal — a donkey! 2. In the beginning, children came to the mobile library mainly because of the donkeys. But Yohannes discovered that what really excited the children was the books.He dreams about taking his donkey mobile libraries to more Ethiopian towns and villages. After all, there are millions of other children who want to learn to read. 1. This program was written by VOA correspondents and adapted by Shelley Gollust. Our producer was Mario Ritter. I’m Bob Doughty. 2. And I’m Barbara Klein. You can download audio and read scripts on our Web site, voaspecialenglish. com. Join us again next week for EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. http://blog. 360. yahoo. com/blog-Z3b93Sw5dKiGLDSLftiVYk1BXzLWCwAr3Q–;_ylt=AkizEO6ZhqbgHK3F3A9hoyK0AOJ3? cq=1

Invictus

The movie Invictus taught a lesson of reconciliation, forgiveness, and unity. It was mainly based on one of many Nelson Mandela achievements which was to unite South Africa with the game of Rugby. Invictus took place in 1995, when South Africa was divided into black ands whites. Nelson Mandela was released from prison after 27 years and was elected as the first black President of South Africa. Mandela who was played by Morgan Freeman join forces with Pienaar; Matt Damon’s character, who was also the captain of South Africa’s rugby team; Springboks.The both of them worked together to try and win the World Cup championship and inspire South Africa, even when Pienaar was faced with much backlash from his team and family. Many of the whites in this movie and as well as those black supporters of Mandela, expected that Mandela as President would be an excellent outlet for revenge for those who were brutalized, humiliated and oppressed under the years of apartheid. However, Ne lson Mandela was different, he had overcome the prejudice and hate and did not succumb to such attitude, he didn’t allow it.He know that such actions wouldn’t benefit his country. Nelson was a leader, he was about reconstructing South Africa into a better nation. He went into office with a goal of reconciliation, which began with forgiveness. He first offered jobs to all those who were employed by the previous president, even those same ones who helped imprisoned him. The sport of Rugby, and the Springboks in general were considered symbols and a constant reminder of apartheid to the blacks of South Africa.They wanted to disband the team and start fresh, but Nelson Mandela felt that such actions would only hurt his country more that it already was. So with the help of him and his encouragement the Springboks remained South Africa’s national team, and with his order they helped coached various clinics throughout the country. Eventually Rugby, was South Africaâ₠¬â„¢s national. And when South Africa finally made it to the World cup, their entire country, both black and white, young and old, rich and poor cheered them on.Over all the movie was enjoyable. Morgan Freeman as Mandela and Matt Damon as Pienaar playing the role of a mentor and a motivational coach to his team and his family; the both of them coming together for one cause of uniting everyone, was an inspiring story. However, as far as the rugby scenes being shot, I felt that the action on the field was a little off. I really don’t know much about this sport to well and quite don’t understand the game itself but to me they just didn’t look the part.This movie had taught me and informed me more of Mandela and his actions in this light. It showed me how sports can also unify people. With forgiveness in your heart, as well as determination things are possible. We see the bond between Mandela and Pienaar, who were faced with obstacles but yet they succeeded at their goal. We see the relationship between Nelson Mandela’s security team. We see the Rugby team, majority white, reaching out to their community. And most of all we see the nation of South Africa rallying as one. Overall good movie with good elements.

External analysis soffee culture Essay

1.0 Introduction: – For an organization to survive and grow, they must have strong build strategy. Strategy is defined as a tool to assist organizations to achieve its long-term goals Hubbard, Rice & Beamish (2010). These goals are the prime reason for an organization to exist and strategies are developed to achieve these goals. Fig. 1.1- ESC model for strategy development Hubbard, Pocknee and Taylor’s (1996), explains the strategy making process via ESC model. Fig 1.1 shows the ESC (Environment, Strategy & Capabilities) model to describe the strategy making process for an organization. Strategies are made keeping a number of factors in consideration. Environment stands for Macro and industry based environment and factors that effect the operation of an organization. Environment is discussed more in detail in later part of this report. Business strategies are made considering the interest of stakeholders, company’s mission and value statement and values of the organizations. Capabilities for an organization are their resources, staff, economy of working and systems available for an organization to work in. This section is also discussed in details in this report. Also, to make effective strategies companies need to generate and gather information, analyze that information, process and implement those chosen strategies. Hubbard, Rice & Beamish (2010) explains that final part of strategy implementation is to review and monitor the strategies to find the gaps in results and fill those gaps accordingly to improve company performance. 2.0. Macro Environment Analysis Hubbard, Rice, Beamish (2010), explains that all the factors outside the organization that effect the business are studied under external environment analysis. These factors effect the strategy formulations, vision and mission planning and future organizational business. Environment analysis comprises of two major elements i.e. Macro environment analysis and Industry environment. Macro environment includes all the broad forces that surround and effect the organization and are as follows:- 2.1 Economic Dimension:- Economic dimension of an organization is the overall financial condition of the economy where organization is operating. Most important economic factors for an organization is GDP, inflation rates, exchange rates, taxation rates and wages rates. These factors define the economic dimension of an organization. Example: – Starbucks business in US during Global Financial Crisis During GFC, Starbucks was forced to pay more for its resources and to cover these additional expenses; company was forced to increase its product prices. But with the rise in interest rates and less borrowing/spending power of customers in the market, Starbucks had no option other than bearing the costs itself without increasing the prices. This additional burden forced Starbucks to close 600 stores in July 2008 (page 151, Howard Schultz, 2011). This example clearly explains the effect of Economic conditions on an organization when low purchasing power of customers lead to less demand and its effect on an organization. 2.2 Political/Legal Dimension: – This refers to the government regulations of business and its general effect, relationship with it. Its important for an organization as it defines what the organization can do and what they cannot. Customs, policies, regulations of a particular country affects the business of a international organization. 2.3 Technological Dimension: – This factor defines the resources available to operate its business in a country. It defined how an organization can convert its resources into products and services. Technology is applied with the discretion of the organization but its availability and form depends on the general environment. 2.4 Socio cultural: – Socio cultural dimensions include the culture, social effect and trends, customs, values and demographic patterns and trends in a particular demographic area. This includes the patterns people are used to and defined the future for the company with respect to its products. Example: – Starbucks in planning to expand its business in Asian countries and is planning to change 5000 year old tea-drinking culture into coffee culture (Ed Liston, 2011). Asian countries have a strong culture of consuming tea and have significant medicinal beliefs as well. Starbucks is planning to expand its business in these countries directly challenging the socio cultural dimension (page 296-305, Howard Schultz, 2011). This strategy can have mixed effects on the business. It’s a direct competition between old traditional beliefs and habits v/s young coffee drinking generation. There are no significant results available on the topic, but will be an interesting topic to work. This strategy can affect Starbucks business dramatically. 2.5 Sustainability: – It’s a new trend mostly visible in developed countries to develop sustainable business practices to address environmental issues. Companies are expected to follow guidelines, to develop their sustainable image. This includes fair work practices, focus towards general environmental damages, deforestation, ecological concerns etc. Example: – Starbucks fostering Sustainability Starbucks tag their stores as green and try to design the stores with recyclable products, reused cabinets, natural colors, and efficient lights. Company’s agricultural methods are organic, using no petrochemical based fertilizers and insecticides, and they are beneficial to the environment and water (page 317-321, Howard Schultz, 2011). Starbucks also offers 10% discount if customers bring their own coffee mugs (page 161-165, Howard Schultz, 2011). Starbucks has been busy promoting their environment involvement by developing new environmental strategies and by minimizing their carbon footprint (Starbucks Website). 3.0 Industry Analysis/ Porter’s five forces Analysis: – Fig. 1.3 – Porter’s Five Forces Model Industry analysis is used to determine the factors that influence the profitability of an organization. As shown in fig 1.3, industry analysis consists of five main forces. Porter (2008) describes these forces as the main drivers of profitability for an organization Fig 1.3. 3.1 Competitors/ Threat of new entrants: – For an organization, competitors are those individuals or groups that can reduce the revenue or can share the revenue. New or existing organizations that compete for their business, survival and growth are termed as competitors. It can be from existing market players or new entrants to the market. Mostly organizations compete for customers, revenue but competition can also be for the resources as labor/staff, new technology or patents to ensure future revenue growth. 3.2 Suppliers: – In a producing industry, suppliers play an important role by providing resources to an industry to offer services/products to the customers. This depends on the industry-supplier relationship. If suppliers are strong, they can offer resources at a higher price to get the profit share in the organization and vice versa. Thus, in a industry its very important to have consistent and reliable suppliers. Example: – Starbucks coffee bean suppliers Starbuck buys its coffee from East Africa, Arabian Peninsula, Southeast Asia and Latin America. Starbucks has its approved suppliers list and to be part of that list, suppliers have to undergo a series of tests and pass some checklists. Once Starbucks approves their supplier, the company helps the suppliers to grow coffee sustainably (page 317-318, Howard Schultz, 2011). Starbucks helps their suppliers by providing knowledge, help, funds and trainings. This helps to develop the strong relationship with the suppliers and also ensures the quality of the harvest. Thus in this case both suppliers and the industry are in win-win situation. 3.3 Bargaining power of buyers: – Porter (2008) explains that if the buying power of buyer is strong, that implies that the buyer has more options to choose from and the industry has more competition. 3.4 Substitutes: – Porter (2008) explains that if the products/services of different business or company can satisfy the needs of the customers, depicts that there is a substitute available to the customers. It leads to the competition in terms of price, quality and added values to the products. 3.5 Industry Rivalry: – In a traditional economic model, if there is rivalry among the organizations in the industry, then it drives profits to zero. But there is not perfect competition and in this case companies thrive to take competitive edge over other companies. A firm can switch costs, reduce product cost, increase add on values, offer better customers service to gain the competitive edge. Example: – Starbucks competitive edge Starbucks markets their sustainable and green approach towards environment (page 147-148 & 317-318, Howard Schultz, 2011). In this modern era, with more educated groups emerging, Starbucks is attracting more educated customers. With its initiative towards green earth and working for environmental issues, customers are supporting the brand and thus Starbucks is earning reputation and revenues. The above-mentioned example is in relation with Philip Kotler’s (2001), strategy of Marketing and is proving worth full for Starbucks. 4.0 Resources, Capabilities and Creation Of Values Fig. 1.4- Resource, Capabilities and Creation of Value According to resource-based view to develop the competitive advantage over other companies, organization must have resources and capabilities that are the best in the market. In fig. 1.4, Hubbard, Rice & Beamish (2010), explains that for an organizations there are four necessary conditions to pioneer the market. These conditions are outlined as below: – 4.1 Resources: – Resources are the main factor that decides the organization’s future. Hubbard, Rice & Beamish (2010), have used VRIO/VRINE model to describe these resources better and resources must be: – Valuable: – Organization should monitor the market and its customers carefully and must have the resources to deliver the value to the customer. Customer needs are volatile in nature and keep changing, thus organizations must enhance and upgrade their resources according to the demand. Rare: – Resources of an organization should be rare and hard to imitate by the competitors. These rare resources provide a competitive edge to the organization and must be scarce to some degree of demand in the market. Inimitable: – Resources should not be easily inimitable, and should be sophisticated to imitate. It’s hard to keep inimitable resources in technological sector as long as the technology is a patent. Non-Substitutable: – Resources should be non substitutable, i.e. there cannot be any substitute to the particular resource. Organized: – Resources of an organization should be arranged and organized according to their requirement. They should be readily available when and where required and should be properly deployed as per requirement to deliver the best quality to the customers. Exploitable: – Resources should be readily accessible and available to different sectors across the organization to transform them to add value to the customers. Capabilities: – Capabilities stand for the organization’s ability to convert the available resources to customer value. It’s the ability of an organization to utilize its resources in an efficient manner. Organizations should have dynamic capabilities so that they can manage their knowledge, learn from them and also brings out new innovations as per requirement. Example: – Starbucks Logistics Chain: – As mentioned above Starbucks gets its coffee beans from East Africa, Arabian Peninsula, Southeast Asia and Latin America. Different regions specialize in different blend of coffee. A perfect coffee is not just a single origin, but is a mix of different beans. Starbucks has the capability to gather beans from different regions and make a perfect blend to deliver across all its stores worldwide. Its not easy to document this capability and thus not easily imitable. This is a competitive edge that Starbuck has over its competitors to pick, mix and deliver the beans faster than any other competitor in the market. Organizations should monitor and review their operations to check the purpose of the operation. Capabilities should be valuable to the customers, they should be rare, and difficult to imitate by competitors, specific to the organization and should be better than the competitors in the market. In order to manage the capabilities organizations should exercise their capabilities across their business. These above discussed conditions should work in closely coordinated manner to develop a competitive edge over its customers and should bring better value for the customers. For example Starbucks have strong inbound logistics that in relation to Porter’s value creating activity is a competitive edge to create customer value. 5.0 Bibliography: – Hubbard, Pocknee and Taylor’s (1996), â€Å"Practical Australian Strategy†, Ch. 5, Prentice Hall Australia, Sydney. Hubbard, G. & Beamish, P. (2011). â€Å"Strategic management: Thinking, analysis and action†, 4th ed., Pearson Education: Australia. Hubbard, Rice, & Beamish, (2011), â€Å" Strategic Management: Thinking, Analysis and Action†, 4th ed., Pearson Education, Australia. Michael E. Porter (2008), â€Å"The Five Competitive Forces that Shape Strategy†, Harvard Business Review, p.86-104, Harvard Business Publication, Boston, USA. Ed Liston (2011), â€Å" What is more popular: Coffee or Tea†, Blog on www. Stockriters. Com, Viewed on 05th Jan’12. Kotler Philip (2001),† A Framework for Marketing Management†, Prentice-Hall, Inc. 1997, Pearson Education Company, New Jersey, USA. Starbucks website viewed on 4th Jan’12, http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/business/news-starbucks-contribution-sustainability. Howard Schultz & Joanne Gordon (2011), â€Å"Onwards: How Starbucks Fought for its life without losing its soul†, John Willey & Sons, United Kingdom.

Biography of Pancho Villa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Biography of Pancho Villa - Essay Example Villa was notorious for his short temper and cruelty, particularly towards women.   His Indian heritage gave him a deep knowledge of the land, making him a excellent guerilla fighter. He was drafted into the 14th  Calvary Regiment in 1903. He deserted and joined the revolutionary forces of Francisco Madero in 1910. (Becker). After Madero’s ouster, Villa escaped to the United States in 1912.   By the end of 1914, he returned to Mexico, formed the Division del Norte and joined the revolution against Victoriano Huerta, along with other revolutionaries such as  Venustiano Carranza  and  Emiliano Zapata. He also served as provisional governor of Chihuahua in 1913-1914. Villa was often in conflict with other military groups and even fought with U.S. troops from 1916 to 1917. In 1920, Villa was given a pardon in return for stopping his independent military activities.   (Biography.com). On July 20, 1923, Villa was driving past the intersection of Benito Juà ¡rez and Gabino Barreda in Maturana, when he was assassinated and killed instantly. Villa is remembered for fighting for the causes of the poor and his opposition to foreign exploitation of his country.

Identify Teams Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Identify Teams - Essay Example The organization of the teams and other defining aspects will be tackled in this paper. This team is based in Indianapolis in the Indiana state. The team focuses on ensuring that people in its community have access to outstanding paint products and services. Unlike other teams in this field, these painters intend to provide services that are outstanding and diverse. This team is comprised of 26 individuals with the president being the team leader. Members of the team are experts in painting, construction and are sourced from the society. The 26 members have related as well as diverse competencies in terms of career. The executive of the team is responsible for primary decision making with decisions being passed down to other members (Robinson & Green, 2011). This is an established leadership team with an affiliation of Denver painting Company. The team is responsible for ensuring that clients in its community which is Colorado have the access to commercial, residential and industrial painting staining services. The team works closely with a real estate agents, homeowners, property and facility managers, architects and general contractors. The goals of the team surround the provision of remarkable printing services, especially those designed by Denver painter. The leadership team consists of three individuals with Scott Bergman being the founder and the team leader of the group. The other member are, a senior estimator and project manager named John Ramirez and Ryan Wunderlich in the same profession of John (Robinson & Green, 2011). The three individuals forming the members of the organization were sourced from the society. Painting contractor USA comprises of several teams whose purpose is to ensure that ranges and firms within the entire nation have access to agricultural painting. One of the painting teams of this organization proves to be an outstanding contributor in the community through agricultural painting. The team consists of about

Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words - 2

Law - Essay Example 2001). Section 230(1) of the Employment Rights Act 1996 defines an employee as someone working under a contract of employment. However, the statute does not clearly define the essential elements of the contract of employment. This deficiency thus resulted into constructions of various tests for determining whether someone is an employee or not. Amongst the outlined essential elements to be satisfied before categorizing a worker as either an independent contractor or an employee is whether the particular worker has to sign a contract of employment with the employer prior to the commencement of the contract. In cases whereby the individual begins to execute the contract without legally recognized documentations (contract of employment), handling of cases such as breach of contract, becomes much difficult, especially when either party presents the case in a court of law (Lord, M. 2009). It is also worth noting that some employees or independent contractors like working on a personal level but this depends on the nature of the work involved. Additionally, it has to be determined whether there has to be a mutuality of obligation between the two parties. A mutuality of obligation refers to a well-set procedure of work or relationship between the employee and the employer or between the contractor and his or her client (Smith, J. D., 2003). An employer should avail work to the employee at all the times, as specified by their contract of employment. Consequently, the employee should complete any work assigned to him or her by the employer at the specified period of the contract. This thus, forms a mutual obligation between the employer and the employee. On the other hand, mutual obligation occurs between a contractor and his or her client when the client supplies exactly the amount of work specified by the contract of employment and the contractor finishes the work within the specified (Welker, R. F., 2002).

Court Observation Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Court Observation - Term Paper Example Wilbur case. In presenting its opinion, the district court observed that the direction related to alibi was inconsistent the president set in Mullaney v. Wilbur case because it did not require for defendant to do anything, such as assuming proof of burden. During the proceeding, it was held that Maryland had directly considered that alibi in itself was not an assenting defense in State v. Grady, 276 Md. 178, 345 A.2d 436 (1975). The final issue was not presented before a jury, however, and the attorney noted that they only took into it consideration to show that Maryland offered effect to Mullaney. The district court established that manslaughter instruction on its facial view did not conform with the values articulated in Mullaney v. Wilbur precedent case, but it affirmed that, as presented in State v. Evans, 278 Md. 197, 362 A.2d 629 (1976), the issuing of the instruction was a risk-free mistake because there was no proof to support an instruction as to manslaughter in any circumstance, apart from that of murder (Hengel, 234). However, in every case where the attendance of the defendant at the commission of the transgression is necessary to his conviction, the state has to establish such a fact beyond any reasonable doubt. The jury ought not to assume that an accused person is responsible just because he is being impeached and that criminal allegations have been preferred against him (Hengel, 240). The district judge established that the decedent and the accused could as well have renewed their earlier squabble, which occurred the very evening of the shooting in question. Moreover, the judge observed that the quarrel occurred in a dance hall where there was a huge crowd of people who might be used as witnesses. The district court noted that while it did not imply that there was no proof of murder in the state trial, it did not think that an

Search for Extraterrestrial Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Search for Extraterrestrial Life - Essay Example Forrest Gump even likens life to a box of chocolates! This gives us a lasting notion that it is very difficult to define life in a single dictionary meaning. There are efforts that try to delineate life from non-life to give us a clear perspective. In fact, the only planet that is capable of supporting life is the big blue one we are living in right now. What does earth possess that other planets, stars and cosmic bodies don't Is there yet an undiscovered life outside of earth Gradually, we can try and analyze the answers to these questions through an intense exploration of life and its characteristics. There are no definite properties of life. Authors have tried and listed ten or more observable properties that seem to adhere to the principles of physics, chemistry and mathematics. Harold J Morowitz pointed out six features on what life is simply based on. Living things are capable of "(1) reproduction; (2) growth; (3) metabolism; (4) movement; (5) responsiveness; and (6) adaptation" (242). It is indeed likely that these six characteristics are possessed by all living things because plants and animals reproduce following the law that reproduction only occurs within a species. Inanimate rocks do not reproduce instead they split up or break down to make smaller pieces. Even the littlest bacterium has a mechanism of splitting itself or combinatorial joining with another bacterium. Special plants can reproduce by budding their leaves to produce another organism separate from the original. Certainly, reproduction will not make sense if the progenies do not develop into a mature individ ual so it is very certain that development should follow. With growth, there is differentiation of the different cells into the supposed make-up of the whole organism. Every structure corresponds to its specific function. For example, the human eyes will develop into something capable of seeing and the legs into resilient limbs capable of running and balancing the whole body. Metabolism is defined as the "totality of an organism's chemical processes" (Campbell 83). This is a fusion of the chemical, physical and biological processes that occur within the organism to sustain life. In animals, this can include the digestion of food that would later be converted to energy, the breathing process, and the blood flow along the veins and arteries. For plants though, metabolism can be observed in the production of food from light energy termed as photosynthesis. Movement is a property is visibly manifested in animals and hardly noticeable in plants. This property can easily be misinterpreted because movement is not exclusive to living things. While animals move about freely to search for food, plants on the other hand make their own food so movement is unnecessary except for internal processes such as the exchange of food within cells. All living things also share the same property of responsiveness to a certain stimuli. This can be used as a mechanism of defense or a simple reaction to a chemical attractant. This property is very important for the living organism's to respond to the different changes in the environment. Lastly, living organisms that have the ability to reproduce, develop, move, use up energy and respond to the environment must learn how to adapt in various conditions to allow them to survive in

Nuclear Plants and Their Impact on the Environment Essay

Nuclear Plants and Their Impact on the Environment - Essay Example Accidents from nuclear reactors in the late 1970s and early 1980s led to end to the initial rapid growth in nuclear power capacity. These comprised the 1979 Three Mile Island accident (USA) and the 1986 Chernobyl disaster (Ukraine) (Cracolice & Peters, 1997). In 2011, a hard-hitting tsunami led the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant to leak, resulting in hydrogen gas explosions and partial meltdowns. In order to caution the immediate populations from the adverse effects of the disasters, the Ukraine government enacted a 30 kilometers no-settlement policy around the Chernobyl power plant while the Japanese government implemented a 20 kilometers cautionary zone around the Fukushima I plant (Hoeve & Jacobson, 2012; Bennett, Bouville, Hall, Savkin & Storm, 2000).Radioactive DecayUsed up nuclear fuel from uranium-235 and plutonium-239 nuclear fission contains more than 100 carcinogenic radionuclide isotopes such as strontium-90, iodine-131 and caesium-137, and includes some of the most long- lived transuranic elements such as americium-241 and isotopes of plutonium. Disposal of these wastes in engineered facilities, or repositories, located deep underground in suitable geologic formations is currently the best disposal solution fronted (Cracolice & Peters, 1997).Nuclear Accidents and ConcernsDebate over the reliability, durability and quality maintenance of old nuclear installations has emerged following leakage of radioactive water in over twenty US nuclear power plants. Tritium is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen that emits a low-energy beta particle. It may be present in water emanating from a nuclear plant (Casas et al, 2004; Cracolice & Peters, 1997). The main concern over tritium is the high possibility of its entry into drinking water, in addition to the subsequent presence in crops that depend on tritium-contaminated waters. Uranium is mainly mined for use in nuclear power plants. The 1979 Church Rock uranium mill spill in New Mexico led to the flow of over 1,0 00 tons.

What are the features and issues of a B-Corporation Essay

What are the features and issues of a B-Corporation - Essay Example The corporation can chose from the particular public benefit; to promote arts, protecting or revamping environment, science or knowledge advancement, improving human health, enhancing economic opportunity for persons and society besides the ordinary business course of jobs creation. The B corporation must establish an additionally purpose to create a general public benefits. Public benefit can be a material positive effects on society as well as the environment with regard to the third party standard assessment as well as the operations of the B-corporation. With respect to Warby Parker Corporation, it has ensured public benefit via the donations. In conjunction with VisionSpring, the Corporation sells the glasses and sunglasses. The public benefit is ensured by its program of donation where for every pair of Warby Parker glasses bought, Warby Parker Company pays for the production of a pair of eyeglasses donated to the VisionSpring, an NGO. The VisionSpring thus sell to consumers or firms directly or indirectly. This donation program has ensured that the public interest is served by benefiting the visually impaired persons that buys these glasses at cheaper prices (Korhan 78). Warby Parker has been successful and has saved on cots of operation based on online business approach and delivery cab done in a day as well making it possible to test your eyegl ass online by downloading a photo. The donation has been impactful as by the July 2013, it had distributed over 500,000 to marginalize and the less fortunate groups. This is beneficial as people freely benefit from such arrangements and hence meets the purpose standards set for them. This program has really contributed to the social and economic development. In terms of social development, donations that are channeled through VisionSpring NGO has ensured the Special needs students and other visually impaired individual can execute their activities without challenges