Entrepreneurial Management and Leadership Assignment

Entrepreneurial Management and Leadership - Assignment Example We can promote corporate entrepreneurship through human resource management practices, which establish relationships among employees, promotes risk acceptance, nurtures informal entrepreneurial behaviors, and matches individual employees to the job situation (ORourke 1). Additionally, strategy can also enhance corporate entrepreneurial activities by addressing all dynamics that may hinder the success of corporate entrepreneurial activities. Moreover, structure and culture can prevent corporate entrepreneurial activities by creating cultural differences and organizational differences in corporate entrepreneurial activities. The United Food Industries Corporation addresses entrepreneurship by having a vision statement, which seeks to make UFIC one of the leading Arab and International companies in the manufacturing and marketing of food products (â€Å"Deemah† 1). Moreover, the company has a research and development department, which limits the company’s operations to advancements in design, products, and style. Indeed, the company seeks to improve existing food products, and to assess new ways of producing the food products. Indeed, the company produces and markets high quality products with competitive prices to satisfy customers’ needs and trust on UFIC products (â€Å"Deemah† 1). Notably, the United Food Industries Corporation corporate strategy is open to ideas generated from different units that are not part of the corporate strategy. Corporate entrepreneurial intensity relates to how entrepreneurship varies by degree and frequency, and how this variance affects the personal well-being and corporate performance. UFIC has recorded major expansion in manufacturing a processed cheese line and a vital processing and packaging dimension to the operation (â€Å"United Group Logistics Center† 1). Specifically, UFIC took in Lactalis as a

Usefulness of structural approaches in understanding society

Usefulness of structural approaches in understanding society In this essay, we shall be discussing the 3 main structural approaches in society; Functionalism, Marxism and Feminism, and how useful they are in todays understanding of society. We shall look at the similarities and differences between each approach and critically assess them, by looking at the strengths and weaknesses for each. The key terms and concepts will be mentioned, as well as the key sociologists associated with each approach. The term sociology is defined in the dictionary as the study and classification of human societies. Overall, this is the study of people in different social groups, the way they behave, and how different parts of society influence peoples ideas and social behaviour. Belonging to a social group can affect how we see ourselves and how other people see us. Both of these factors can affect how our life works out. The main groups we tend to belong to are gender, class, ethnicity and age. The first approach we will be looking into is functionalism. This approach is a balanced, social equilibrium. A system in which there is a dynamic working balance among its interdependent parts. The ruling class benefits in every way from the operation of society, they believe in meritoctracy which basically means that they believe that they deserve to have the most powerful positions. The workers get far less than they deserve, but they do not question this due to the way they have been socialised. People are the product of social influences on them. Functionlism is closely associated with Talcott Parsons who was a key sociologist in the 1940s. This approach still provides us with a useful framework for the study of sociology today. Parsons came up with the idea that society is like a human body. Each part of the body has a function to keep it alive and healthy, just like each part of society work together and depend on each other. People are socialised into key values of society such as respect for authority and importance of family life, the result of this is value consensus. Functionalism provides good links between social institutions, it is a simple and clear approach to understand, however it completely ignors the freedom of choice. People have different values and attitudes, as well as the unequal distribution of wealth and power in a capitalist society. A Marxism view on the otherhand views conflict and division as normal features of society. Marxism is based on social class dominant ideology, just like functionalism it is a macro structure which means it is based on a larger scale. Karl Marx was around in the 19th century, he believed that a capitalist society is divided into two groups. All of societys dominant ideologies worked to favour the first group the bourgeoisie (Those with power, the owners of production) against the second group the proletariat (The workers, those without power). Marx also thought the ideologies worked to keep the power balance constant and he called this societys status quo. The relationship between the bourgeoisie and proletariat is however unequal and as such based on conflict. The majority of the population accept the inequalities of the system because of the way that dominant institutions such as religion and educstion justify the economic and social situation. Marx describes them as suffering from false class consciousness due to the fact they are not aware of their real identity, they are exploited by the bourgeoisie. Marxism is a approach which suggests that we are brainwashed by ideology; you must respect authority, if you w ork hard you will do well, you must respect the rule of law. Lois Althusser (1971) was another marxism sociologist. He believed in ideological state apparatus which is basically another term for the agencies transmitting ruling class ideology such as schools and family. A good reason for the marxism approach is that it can account for large scale change, however there are many critisms such as it emphasised too much on conflict. People choose what to do and think and are not brainwashed by ideology. It could also be argued that capitalism has now improved peoples standards of living. The fact woman are now seen as being equal to men in the work place is one result of this. Marxist feminists argued that the ratio of woman to men was directly linked to their position within a capitalist society. Thus bringing us onto discuss our final approach, feminism. Feminism is a conflict between the sexes. It also takes a macro approach to studying society. Feminist sociologists argue that women do not have equal rights to men. There are four main tendencies within feminism; liberal, radical, marxist and black. Liberal feminists look for equilibrium with men and woman, they believe people should be treated fairly and given better paid jobs etc in accordance with theyre skills and effort and not due to what sex they are. Radical feminists believe that we live in a patriarchy society, which means woman are over powered by men. They believe that we no longer need men to procreate due to new technology available. Marxist feminists also believe in patriarchy, in a capatilist society, woman are neglected certain legal rights and therefore excluded from certain areas of work compared to men. Black feminism argue that white feminists ignore the position of a black woman as they have a double disadvantage due to racism and patriarchy. Famous feminism sociologists include Ann Oakley who in 1969 registered for a PHD on womens attitudes to housework, this subject pizzled the academic establishment at the time. She is best known for her work on sex and gender, housework, childbirth and feminist social science. Ann first became interested in feminism when she herself became a subject in the 1960s becoming a mother of two and realising herself how deeply undervalued and isolating womans work in the home can be. Ann believes that we still have ongoing sex equalilty issues today, woman still earn less and have less political power and do most of the worlds menial (but important) domestic work. She also has strong beliefs that gender issues in violence and crime cause huge social problems in todays society. Suggesting that most crimes of violence are committed by men.

Quentin Tarentino Essay -- Auteur Quentin Tarentino Films Movies Essay

Quentin Tarentino   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Throughout the many years the film industry has grown, a certain type of filmmaker immerged, known as an auteur. An auteur, usually a director, has a strong personal style and exercises creative control over his or her works. Quentin Tarentino, for example, has proven himself to be an auteur in various ways. Quentin Tarentino worked for four years as a clerk in a Los Angeles video store, where he made his feature directorial and screenwriting debut of Reservoir Dogs, and where he further expanded his great knowledge of film. Tarentino’s personal style incorporates a lot of well thought out violence, swearing, repetitive casting, and many other filming techniques. In looking at Reservoir Dogs, Jackie Brown, and Pulp Fiction by Quentin Tarentino, we see the visual and stylistic similarities between the films that mark Quentin Tarentino as an auteur, and find that these similarities are shown through the intense violence, similar casting, and unique filming of each of these movie s.    Reservoir Dogs, shot in 1992, relays a story about a mastermind mob-boss, Joe, who assembles a gang of high-end criminals to pull off a jewelry store heist. As the movie begins, it becomes completely clear that the plan went wrong which forces the survivors, who meet in a warehouse, to try and figure out which one of them is a police informant. The crew, which consists of Mr. White, a veteran, Mr. Orange, the wounded â€Å"informant†, Mr. Pink, a squabbling criminal, Mr. Blonde, a crazy ex-con, and Nice Guy Eddie, Joe’s son. Eventually, all the criminals meet in the warehouse, and it all ends in a bloody Mexican standoff. Quentin Tarentino set this film within the heist genre of other films perfectly, yet managed to completely change around the way a heist is normally shot. This movie is completely exclusive to the other heist movies that have been filmed due to the way it is shot in reverse, with the story unfolding as the characters meet in the warehouse. Whereas othe r heist films are straightforward from the beginning. Throughout this film, the amount of violence runs rampant. For example, at the beginning of the movie Mr. Orange is being taken to the warehouse with a bullet in his stomach and stays with that bullet in his stomach throughout the whole movie, while he screams and passes out from all the pain. Another example of the intense violence that o... ...d it leads one to. Tarentino uses the tracking shots in his movies as a stylistic element to build up the suspense of a scene and to show the paranoia of the actors fulfilling the role. Although not explored, Tarentino uses the swearing of the gangsters/criminals to further display their roles in each movie. Yet, the actors and actresses that did not act as a criminal tended not to curse at all, which can be found interesting. To further extend Quentin Tarentino’s role as an auteur, he repeatedly uses the same actors, actresses, and objects in each movie. The characters in each movie learn that a life of crime leads to death and/or other bad situations. The audience learns that swearing is good, drugs are good, and movie cuts are cool. Just kidding. The audience learns that thinking before one’s actions and leading a clean lifestyle, will lengthen one’s life. In looking at Reservoir Dogs, Jackie Brown, and Pulp Fiction by Quentin Tarentino, we see the visual and stylistic comparisons between the films that portray Quentin Tarentino as an auteur, and find that these comparisons are advocated through the severe violence, similar casting, and unique filming of each of these movies.

My Community Service Award Essay

Every individual desires to be recognized. It is a nice feeling that people around you are happy to what you are doing and even give a recognition that will definitely make the awardee motivated to do better in every endeavor that he is going to do in the future. This kind of once in a lifetime recognition has come to my life unexpectedly. It is truly a great experience that cannot be bought by money. This event is so close to my heart that until I become old, I will not stop telling my grandkids about the honor which the community coalition has given me. Each year, community coalition called Building a Better Bensalem Together has a luncheon and I was given Bensalem’s community service award of the year in 2007. My heart pounds very fast as I receive the award and I do not know at that time where to put the happiness that I feel. It is indeed a surprise because I really lend my hand without any expectations to be recognized because all I want to do is to help. The award I received was from the Mayor of my township Bensalem, PA. As a recognized awardee, it makes me really feel fulfilled and happy. I am glad that people see my worth as a volunteer in our community coalition. Although I have experienced tough times during the service that makes me down sometimes yet it paves away when I see everything is in place. Moreover, as a young individual, I tend to see myself helping my community. In my point of view, lending a hand is a good act of love to others. It is a great feeling that you make other people happy. I never withhold myself in serving my community because for me it is a privilege that not all people are given the chance to do so. In addition, I have been volunteering for our community coalition called Building a Better Bensalem Together for 7 years. Throughout those years of serving, I learned to communicate and deal with various kinds of people from different walks of life. Although at the start it was a bit difficult because I have to adjust with different personalities and characters yet these make me more dedicated to learn the crop. I started to love this kind of service of our community coalition and never tired of doing good to others. Thus, this opportunity developed my patience and concern for the betterment of my community. Another thing I learned from volunteering is that, it develops my leadership as an individual. When I worked with the community coalition, I have the chance to make decisions for the betterment of the community and conducted some activities and projects that were also successful and have contributed to the progress and development of my community. In addition, as I search myself, I discovered that my growth in leadership have improved my common sense especially when making decisions for the community. Well, many people might laugh of what I say but that is the fact. Even though how good a person is in leading people but without common sense in performing the activities, it is still nothing. Common sense is very important in leading people because it is a practical intelligence and tact in behavior. Common sense is a product of individual experience gained through contact with practical problems of life and through lessons derived from success and failure. Furthermore, every time I deal with people, I always remind myself to be kind and polite and take things easy. If ever we encounter some dilemmas in the community coalition, I always welcome suggestions from my co-workers and then present my options of what to do however I never impose my ideas to them because I want to see one by one working hand-in-hand for the benefit of everyone. In conclusion, I would I say that giving your time and effort in helping others is a noble and right thing to do. I am happy that I have undergone this kind of experience because it makes me a better person and a chance to experience of receiving an award from honorable Mayor of PA. Everyone dreams of it I guess and I am fortunate and blessed enough to be chosen as one.

Study carefully the following extract from The Social Contract, and the painting The Lictors Returning to Brutus The Bodies of his Sons

Both Rousseau and David's philosophy have the same idea where David was influenced by Rousseau to a great extent. However, they have presented their ideas in different medium whereby one was on the written form whereas the other one was on the visual form. Therefore, this essay will prove their ideas in different ways which they are explored by Rousseau and David. Rousseau constructed the social contract was to solve the question of freedom, and his solution to this problem was the construction of the civil state. In other words, his idea was that living in the civil state was similar as signing a contract in which one agrees to obey the general will and not one's particular will. Rousseau wanted to show that man could live in the civil state and be free as in the state of nature. Through the grouping of citizens, each willing to surrender himself and live with others as a whole which required thinking rationally and act morally. Most importantly, by agreeing to the social contract, people gave up their physical freedom in state of nature and signing himself over to the civil state. Hence, this directed by the general will. In the first and second line of the extract, ‘a remarkable change in man' indicates that people would benefit in a change from the state of nature to civil state. He believed that in joining the civil state, people escape the slavery of appetite and fulfill themselves as human beings. Only ‘general will' makes people human. Our particular wills may want to pursue selfish ends with no regard for the people's interests. Hence, Rousseau believed that ‘general will' is a will that â€Å"it would be in each individual's best interest to think according to the general will and so escape brutish stupidity. (Blk 3, pp115). Therefore, votes must be cast to find a ‘general will'. This general will is the product of reason (Blk 3, pp122). Only then will the society benefit if citizen act according to reason and embrace the ‘general will'. Thus, in obeying the state, citizens will be obeying themselves because the ‘general will' should be what they desire. Therefore, the particular will should coincide with the will of the state because everyone wants the best. Another idea from Rousseau was â€Å"to be legimate, the authority the state has over the people must come from the people themselves† (Blk 3, pp97). In social contract, Rousseau is trying to defend a certain view about legimate authority. He argued that a state is only legimate if based on a contract between all its members, in which they give away their bad qualities in exchange for good qualities. Thus, he claimed that the goal of the government should be to secure freedom, equality, rights and justice for all within the state. Hence, he also claimed that we should abandon our inclinations and consult our reason and think as a member of the state. This had to adopt the general will. As such, people could relate Rousseau's political ideas with David's painting. It helped to ignite a passion amongst the French general public and change French politics. In Rousseau's social contract, the minorities of individuals who do not agree with the ‘general will' must not be ignored. When there is a conflict between the two, Rousseau expects that the citizen will rationalize and choose the ‘general will' over his ‘particular will'. To do otherwise would be ignoble and slavish to selfish appetite. This emphasizes duty to state over personal desires and it was this same belief which David, a painter of the Revolution subscribed to. In his painting, â€Å"The Lictors Returning to Brutus the Bodies of his sons†, David painted in such a way that the view of the spectator is at the same level and it is drawn in a horizontal space. The picture is organized into two different figure groups whereby the females are on the extreme right while the males are on the extreme left. Thus, the empty chair forms a barrier between the two halves of the painting. The group of female figures and a woman on the far right attract the attention in this picture. Their strong emotions show sadness and anxiety to grief at the sight of the corpses. The tallest woman gives a point of interest that she is turning towards her dead sons and one of her hands supports her two daughters while the other hand hopes to rush towards her dead sons. However, her two daughters could not accept the truth that the death of their family members as one was fainted and the other one used her two hands to hide her eyes. Next to them is a female who is seated at one corner as she is deeply depressed of this scene. On the left, Brutus sits impassively in the shadow of the goddess Roma and his right arm signals the lictors to bring the corpses in. He turned his back and refused to look at his dead sons. His tightly clenched toes and muscles on his arms show how tense he is. His other hand held a letter tightly. Thus, the content of the letter has something to do with his sons as they planned a plot to overthrow Brutus. Thus, David has chosen a part of history and he has painted at that moment that Brutus sacrificed his sons for the sake of politics. Hence, he has portrayed the conflicts between political duty and family allegiances. The painting became politically significant because the content reflected the Roman republican virtues and promoted the ideas of moralizing France. This painting leads our eyes along perspective lines and into the depths of the room which was blocked half-way on this picture. The column nearest to the viewer, the dark doorway and the walls on the left and the curtain screen on the right block the view of what lies behind the painting, making us focus on the action of the figures which was closer to us. Thus, it also creates a greater depth in the dark brickwork beyond a second row of columns. The colours and features of the lictors who are first to enter the room are darker then those behind them. Hence, this gives a further sense of pictorial space and takes the viewer deeper into the picture creating depth. The red cushion to the left closer to us adds to another dimensional space. Thus, the different proportions of the chairs and table add more space and depth to the picture. Light is bright and has poured into the scene with different angles. This makes the spotlight effect on the female figures which captures our attention. Bright lights also fall on the columns and empty chair, on the feet of Brutus and on the legs of the body on the second litter. It is also more evident from the shadow of the man on the left, the shadow of female group on the cloth and flooring and one of the lictor's shadows is cast on the column. We could conclude that the light is coming from the doorway from the left. These also seem to be lit in their outlines and add to the three-dimensional effect. In his painting, David chose bright colours such as red and orange costumes for the females, table cloth and empty chair. On the other hand, he also chose dark neutral colours to create a somber mood. There is a broad tonal range in it as a whole, from very bright to very dark and this creates dramatic contrasts. The figures are clearly defined and certain colours are repeated and balanced as reflected in this painting. Like David's painting, Rousseau's ideas are also very clear and well-defined. The brushwork is well-defined and shows clear facial expressions. The expressions on the female figures clearly showed their emotion reactions whereas Brutus is left alone. Brutus and his sons had different views as his sons supported the monarchy instead of him. Thus, it symbolizes that from the left are 'emotions' and from the right are ‘reasons'. Therefore, David introduces the themes of the triumph and role of reason. When looking at David's painting, it could not separate from Rousseau's ideas. As I have mentioned earlier, one must surrender himself and live with others as a whole which required thinking rationally and act morally. In other words, we should bring across the moral values that people should be noble and not possess those bad qualities that has mentioned in the extract. Last but not least, the similarity between Rousseau and David is their ideas involved human reasons and attitudes. Hence, it also grasps an emotional and passionate side of man in both painting and extract. These two medium symbolizes both political and historical context. Thus, David's Neoclassical art extolled civic virtues and emphasized morality, Rousseau was willing to sanction death as a punishment allowing for the achievement of his civil state and David's painting serves as propaganda to reflect his ideology in his painting.

A Good Society and the Economy

A Good Society and the Economy Introduction Economics as a discipline focuses on laws that determine how economies work. Usually, this entails looking at a balance between human wants and the scarcity of resources as reflected through goods and services. Economics essentially dwells on tackling these two issues in order to derive maximum satisfaction. Sometimes markets can solve their own problems or government interventions can be made. Economic interventions may appear essential to society’s functioning but their unforeseen consequences make them unreliableAdvertising We will write a custom essay sample on A Good Society and the Economy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The issues Government interventions have not always led to desirable results especially in monetary intercessions. Issues of hyperinflation (a state of exponential decrease in the value of a currency) have affected a number of societies very negatively. One such example was the South African country of Zimbabwe. At its worst economic times, that nation got to a point where citizens could not estimate how much they were going to purchase a kilogram of sugar in one evening even after buying it a certain price that morning. This changed such a society from being a net exporter to net importer and eventual dependant. The country could not feed its people and started relying on humanitarian aid for survival. Continuous government involvement in Zimbabwe’s monetary policies is what led to the problem and contributed to its propagation (Bean, 58). Government solutions may not always work because governments tend to depend on economists to base their decisions. However, economists tend to disagree on even some of the basic economic issues affecting nations. For example, in 1930, the United Kingdom was going through a very tumultuous time. Unemployment was rife and the economy was doing very poorly. Experts and analysts in the Treasury advised the then Prime Minister McD onald to increase taxes and reduce social benefits especially for the unemployed (Boettke (a), 225). The net effect of these actions was that citizens no longer had the monetary ability to keep purchasing commodities and businesses eventually had to close because of low purchasing power. In other words, the economic depression only got worse. It was at this point that another economist came up with his theory of expansionary policies. The theory focused on income, money and the economy. The latter approach served the UK well and put it back on its feet. However, expansion has not always been the ultimate solution that it has been marketed to be because some countries have tried it and failed. The United States has struggled with the revival of its economy even after President Obama set out to inject more investments into it upon his election.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn Mor e This has not worked well for the country and has even led to the waning popularity of the leader (Taylor, 15). The lack of consensus on important matters such as how to handle a recession put into question the ability of the government or its stakeholders to solve some of society’s problems through economic intervention. Some people argue that efficient management of the economy is critical to existence of a good society. However, this kind of management can be done on a micro level and on a macro level. The macro level leans towards government intervention while the micro level leans towards free market economics. Since resources are scarce, a good knowledge of how the economy works allows for optimization of these resources and hence enjoyment of efficiency. Good societies should therefore be those ones that use fewer resources or waste even less; issues that can best be implemented on a micro level. Furthermore, citizens that manage their economies well will allo cate their budgets more efficiently especially as a result of the opportunity cost principle and this will lead to better growth (Financial web, 22). This principle refers to the benefits that have to be foregone by a decision maker when shifting from one opportunity to another one that may be better. To understand the argument, consider a person who had a certain amount of money in the bank, choosing to take this money from the bank into the stock exchange would mean that the person will forego interests in the said bank but will be looking forward to the benefits of owning stock. The opportunity cost would therefore be represented by that decision to change investments. A good society is often run in the same manner. Policy makers cannot always keep recognizing the opportunities that are likely to benefit their citizens so personal initiative by the said members should be advocated. It should be noted that although consumption leads to economic growth, this can only occur when the right choices are made on what to buy and what to save by market players. A well functioning society should be one that produces results for its inputs. In other words, if a society injects certain amounts of cash into the economy then the expected outcomes should be profitable. Once no change is recorded or a negative one arises then such societies will start degrading. Issues such as unemployment and higher poverty rates are common in societies that reported no economic gains. One can therefore say that prosperity is highly determined by a stakeholder’s ability to plan for these gains. Failure to do so may create a breeding ground for a number of social evils.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on A Good Society and the Economy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More When a country’s economy is poorly operated by specific economic players such as lending institutions then such a society is likely to report immen se levels of instability. This is because a poorly operated economy directly translates to monetary impacts among specific individuals and severely limits their ability to maintain their standards of living. A case in point was the US economic downturn that started in 2007. The lives of Americans were affected directly because they had to forego some of their essential needs such as housing and the like. Statistics show that the amount of foreclosures in that year alone reached an overwhelming 1.5 million (Ivry, 2). Poor decision making amongst market lenders led to the crisis; which was an issue that could have been prevented if the market played by the rules. If governments continued with interventions that were economically inclined then such societies are likely to report greater incidences of negative externalities (outcomes created by businesses that affect communities negatively) compared to those societies that do not make economically based interventions. As such, a governm ent that over stimulates its businesses would result in higher environmental degradation than one that does not bother with these issues. Additionally, a society with too much economic intervention would also have very minimal social goods and services. For example, public transport would be unattractive to investors and may therefore be severely lacking in such kinds of societies. Issues such as universal education and public healthcare would be put at the periphery because they focus on increasing social well being over profitability (Sadowsky, 47). Therefore one can argue that sometimes the way to having a prosperous society is not just to focus on the economy because humans are concerned with other issues as well. The phenomenon of globalization has become a common topic in almost all spheres of life. Staunch economists would argue that globalization favors greater resource efficiency and better production so it should be encouraged. These economists would therefore advise gover nments to perpetuate globalization. However, non economists hold that globalization is unfair because it benefits owners of capital or wealthy nations at the disadvantage of poor ones. Developing nations get stripped further by expanding multinationals and this may not always be a fair way of solving society’s problems. If government interventions endorse it then this could lead to greater income disparities between nations.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Economic policies and interventions may sometimes focus on profitability over the overwhelming social good. Most policies in this arena are likely to lead to greater social inequality; eventually, this may cause social conflict. For example, if there was a developer who wanted to transform a local county by building a shopping mall, he may need to clear play grounds for children and increase traffic in the city. An economist would support such a move even if it would cause pollution and deny orphans or poor children spaces to play. If the government were to make economic decisions, then it would allow such a developer to build his land. When the least disadvantaged are ignored then society only puts itself in a position where clashes between one class and another can result. Matters of accessibility to better opportunities may also be a challenge in the economic arena because here, economic experts often pay minimal attention to matters of social justice yet they are just as importa nt as the economy when handling these challenges. Before endorsing a certain way of doing things, it is always essential to look at the repercussions of using that method on social organization. The manner in which things are done in this realm may sometimes cause controversy on the role of economic interventions in the functioning of a good society. In the discipline dedicated to this subject of the economy, most theories are often made based on a number of assumptions. One of them is ‘putting other factors constant’. This assumption has severe repercussions because sometimes analysts may forget about that assumption or may not seriously take the result of having the other factors in the equation variable. This leads to misleading policies and unwanted results that contribute towards the detriment of society. Matters of the economy rarely have straight forward responses (Boettke (b), 95). For example, one cannot simply say that implementing minimum wage laws will resul t in greater unemployment. This is because if the market wage rate is lower than the minimal wage law then some degree of unemployment may result. However, the degree of unemployment cannot be predicted. Also the effect and execution of that unemployment is difficult to determine as well. Some employers may opt to adjust their wages to the legal requirement while others may not and this could substantially alter the effect that their decisions have on the economy. A government intervention such as the one above is therefore not a guarantee to sound economics or a well functioning society. Conclusion To some extent, economic management contributes to better living standards and better monetary benefits because without it, resource utilization and need satisfaction will be placed on the periphery yet these are essential parts of human living. However, these are best done on an individual level. One can argue that too much emphasis on economic interventions leads to reduced attention o n social issues such as poverty, environmental hazards as well as social inequality. Additionally, experts in this field of economics (who always advice governments) tend to have divergent views on the things that matter the most thus leading to controversial solutions. Boettke, Peter (a). After Samuelson, who needs Adam Smith? Political economy journal, 3(1971), 225. Ivry, Bob. Foreclosures hit 1.5 million in US housing bust. Web. Boettke, Peter (b). Analysis and vision in economic discourse. History of economic thought journal, 14/919792): 90-95. Taylor, John. How government actions caused and prolonged the financial crisis. NY: Hoover institution press, 2010. Bean, Charles. Lessons for monetary policy. Inflation and monetary policy report, (2008): 368. Financial web. Importance of the economy. 2010. Web. Sadowsky, James. The constitution of economic policy. American economic review 77(1987): 47.

Internal Business Processes Perspective Wal

Internal Business Processes Perspective Wal To improve the response time to customer request and speed up times transactions. The company is adapting to internet shopping and has set up a separate subsidiary to handle the internet purchases. This is in addition to the company policy of having more than one register open at a counter so that payments by customers are handled faster.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Internal Business Processes Perspective Wal-Mart specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Reduced transaction time is targeted at increasing the efficiency of the company business operations as indicated in its vision of achieving excellent operational efficiency. The company will rely on the customers’ value for efficient service that will drive them to the Wal-Mart store rather than individual online supply stores. The company has to ensure that its inventory management and shipment of goods purchased online are synced and backed up to provide a robu st system that builds customer’s trust. To this end, the company is includes an order tracking feature and a gift return option ([emailprotected], 2000). To enhance its internal control department to be able to control the company’s growth imperative so that they company suffers less from problem associated with its big size. The company can measure its success in controlling the company growth through an audit on its return on investment. Investments that make business sense and increase Wal-Mart’s overall aim of operational efficiency impact positively on the internal business processes of the company. These investments are impact on the organizational aspect of the business eliminating losses of time or equipment. For example, technological investments leverage on the overall business strategy of being just in time, like the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags to track inventory from suppliers to consumers that eliminated any blockages along the supply-chain management system. The placement of RFID tags on inventory also reduces the tendency of employees to steal from the company because the technology improves and speeds up tracking (Malhotra, 2005).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Abolish all excesses, through reduction, recycling and reuse of all supplies that moves into the company’s stores, by 2025. To achieve this objective Wal-Mart intends to reduce the level of packaging within its store supply chain by five per cent by 2013. The company is developing sustainable packaging solutions in conjunction with its suppliers. In addition, the company has implemented a strategy that persuades customers to buy reusable bags for shopping. The objective has targets customer satisfaction in a green conscious environment and aims at increasing the overall efficiency of the companies operation, which reduc es costs in the long term that would otherwise be attributed to waste management. Reusable bags will assist the company to cut its plastic bag excesses by a third by 2013. The company is incorporating various environmental sustainability efforts such as making dog beds out of tattered plastic bottles. The company runs fifteen supply trucks on biofuel out of the grease collected from its chicken roasters. In addition, the company seeks to test four new types of fuel-efficient trucks. Other notable actions include the installation of solar power system on its Mexico store and adoption of a new sustainable design of its stores that incorporate recycled chimneys and use of soya beans instead of plastics to create floors (Environmental Leader, 2009). The objective on reducing waste adds to the financial objective of cutting expenses because it saves on costs on the excess purchases. Recycling also lowers costs for purchase of new material and saves the company of legal requirements on su stainability. Increasing the company’s presence on the internet and making the online shopping system robust builds customer satisfaction and results to word of mouth advertising that is a boon to the profitability of the company as it increases overall purchases.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Internal Business Processes Perspective Wal-Mart specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More References Environmental Leader. (2009, April 20). Wal-Mart Wants to Eliminate All Packaging Waste by 2025. Retrieved from https://www.environmentalleader.com/ [emailprotected] (2000). Walmart.com Round Two: Jeanne Jackson Does Some Remodeling. Retrieved from [emailprotected]: https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/walmart-com-round-two-jeanne-jackson-does-some-remodeling/ Malhotra, Y. (2005). Integrating knowledge management technologies in organizational business processes: getting real time enterprises to deliver real business pe rformance. Journal of Knowledge Management, 9(1), 7-28. Objective Measure Target Action To improve the response time to customer request and speed up times transactions. The company will rely on the customers’ value for efficient service that will drive them to the Wal-Mart store rather than individual online supply stores. The company is adapting to internet shopping and has set up a separate subsidiary to handle the internet purchases. This is in addition to the company policy of having more than one register open at a counter so that payments by customers are handled faster. Increasing the efficiency of the company business operations as indicated in its vision of achieving excellent operational efficiency. Â  The company has to ensure that its inventory management and shipment of goods purchased online are synced and backed up to provide a robust system that builds customer’s trust. Inclusion of an order tracking feature and a gift return option. Â  To enh ance its internal control department to be able to control the company’s growth imperative so that they company suffers less from problem associated with its big size. Â  The company can measure its success in controlling the company growth through an audit on its return on investment. Investments that make business sense and increase Wal-Mart’s overall aim of operational efficiency impact positively on the internal business processes of the company. Â  These investments are impact on the organizational aspect of the business eliminating losses of time or equipment. Â  Use of technological investments that leverage on the overall business strategy of being just in time, like the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags to track inventory from suppliers to consumers that eliminated any blockages along the supply-chain management system. The placement of RFID tags on inventory also reduces the tendency of employees to steal from the company because the techno logy improves and speeds up tracking. Â  Abolish all excesses, through reduction, recycling and reuse of all supplies that moves into the company’s stores, by 2025. Leader, 2009). Â  To achieve this objective Wal-Mart intends to reduce the level of packaging within its store supply chain by five per cent by 2013. The company is developing sustainable packaging solutions in conjunction with its suppliers. In addition, the company has implemented a strategy that persuades customers to buy reusable bags for shopping. Â  The objective has targets customer satisfaction in a green conscious environment and aims at increasing the overall efficiency of the companies operation, which reduces costs in the long term that would otherwise be attributed to waste management. Â  Reusable bags will assist the company to cut its plastic bag excesses by a third by 2013. The company is incorporating various environmental sustainability efforts such as making dog beds out of tattered plasti c bottles. The company runs fifteen supply trucks on biofuel out of the grease collected from its chicken roasters. In addition, the company seeks to test four new types of fuel-efficient trucks. The installation of solar power system on its Mexico store and adoption of a new sustainable design of its stores that incorporate recycled chimneys and use of soya beans instead of plastics to create floors. Relationships to other objectives The objective on reducing waste adds to the financial objective of cutting expenses because it saves on costs on the excess purchases. Recycling also lowers costs for purchase of new material and saves the company of legal requirements on sustainability. Increasing the company’s presence on the internet and making the online shopping system robust builds customer satisfaction and results to word of mouth advertising that is a boon to the profitability of the company as it increases overall purchases.

Why PrepScholar is Great for Busy Students

Why PrepScholar is Great for Busy Students SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Are you a busy student with no extra time for SAT prep, but know it’s important for your college apps? Check out PrepScholar’s unique program that automatically gives you the lessons and practice you need based on your performance. Lots of teenagers come home from school and spend the hours until dinner watching TV, YouTube videos, or on Facebook. Other students have already learned how much that time can be used for, and how important it is to use all their time to build an impressive rà ©sumà © for college. Still others are busy because of time limitations over which they have no control, like babysitting siblings or long bus rides every day. All of the busy students described here can take advantage of PrepScholar to fit efficient, flexible and interactive prep into their schedules. PrepScholar is Efficient Classroom courses and test prep books are organized by question typethe Student-Produced-Response Math questions, for instance, or the Improving Sentences Writing questions. But this doesn’t really get at the point of the test, because the skills being testedthe information you need to answer correctly every timearen’t related to the question type. Sure, there are skills that are tested more often in a certain question type, but that’s the entire extent of the relationship. Skill-Based Learning Our teaching system maximizes learning effectiveness by customizing your lessons by skill. If you’re great at functions but weak in solid geometry, we’re not going to make you do many functions questions so you can use that time to improve your understanding of the fundamentals of geometric formulas and relationships. It seems simple, but we’re the only company that breaks it down this way and personalizes the program to meet your individual needs. Student-Specific Levels In addition to tailoring the lessons to the skills you most need to improve, PrepScholar also adjusts to your increasing ability: there are 3 levels for each skill, and you are placed in one initially by our diagnostic test. If you place into the Mastery level of a particular skill, the only time you’ll be working on that skill is during the Practice Test (which is helpful in terms of understanding that skill’s frequency and presentation). Pinpoint Focus Students have different ways of understanding things, and so besides saving time, it’s actually important to your learning that you don’t waste time â€Å"learning† things you already knowit can be easy to get confused about a subject you thought you understood perfectly. Similarly, for skills in which your understanding has gaps, you train your mind through focused problems that let you zero in on the knowledge you’re missingand then get it! Skills by Priority One of the most unique aspects of PrepScholar is our understanding of tests’ inner workings: some skills are considered more important and thus are tested more frequently. Mastering these skills is key to the bulk of your score, and our program reflects this in the time spent learning and practicing each skill. The Best Choice Busy students know that unnecessary work can waste lots of time. PrepScholar avoids this entirely, in a way that other kinds of prep can’t. If you read a book, you have to skim every chapter to determine which you need to study. With practice tests, you spend literally hours doing problems you could do in your sleep, and in classroom courses you’re at the mercy of a random teacher and a group of random students’ questions. PrepScholar is a step above all that. PrepScholar Is Flexible The internet has changed the way most of us do many thingsshopping, reading, communicating with friends. But education has so far lagged behind commerce and social media, partially from an entrenched belief that physical teacher presence is an important part of the learning experience. But everyone is starting to believe that quality, creative education can and does happen through the internetand PrepScholar is one of the companies that uses that fact to benefit students. 24/7 One of the things people love about internet shopping is that it’s always available, even at times when every store in town is closed. PrepScholar has the same huge advantagepractice whenever you want, wherever you have internet access. There are no time or space restrictions on your learning. Like to study outside? Take your laptop. Like to study in the basement? Take your tablet. It’s as simple as that. A Full Year to Prep If you’re one of those busy students who knows he or she has to start projects early in order to get them done, PrepScholar is perfect for you. Most prep courses are designed to lead up to one test date, usually spread out over a couple of months. PrepScholar puts you in the driver’s seatstudy for as long as you like, until your Practice Test scores have reached your goal, and take the next test date available. It’s never too early to start prepping. Scheduling We know it can be hard to fit â€Å"optional† test prep into a slew of â€Å"mandatory† meetings, family events, extracurriculars and other appointments. Our program encourages you to set aside 5-10 hours a week for test prep and spend that time on the site doing lessons and Practice Quizzes. The program tracks the time you spend so you don’t have to. Our program is also set up to remind you when you’re not meeting your goals, and of the long-term benefit of sticking to your schedule. Interactivity: Retention Many studies have shown that interactivity enhances retention of material. When you retain more material per lesson, you get more benefit per lesson, saving you precious time and effort. Most online prep offers little in the way of interactivity; at PrepScholar, we know that doing problems yourself and questioning the lesson is essential to a complete learning experience. In addition to interactive lessons, PrepScholar students can ask questions about any of the quizzes on the site and get prompt, top quality instructor responses. Interactivity: Feedback We also offer interactivity in the form of extremely detailed feedback. Not only do you get precise information about your progress in various skills, but you also get feedback about time you’re spending on study and how your score is improving. All of this adds up to an engaging experience that makes test prep as fun as it can be. Want to know more about how to fit SAT prep into your busy schedule? Try our advice on how to early prepare.

Digital media in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Digital media in China - Essay Example This "Digital media in China" outlines how restrictions and censorship in China caused the emergence of the local Chinese social networks instead of western and also describes the most popular forms of digital media in this country. The first forms of digital media that are popular in china are the video sharing sites. These include Tudou and Youku. The sites are the equivalent of You Tube that is popular in the western countries. Tudou started in April 2005, and was the first online video platform to be introduced in china. Most of the content is user-generated videos and premium licensed content (Crampton 1). Youku, on the other hand, enjoys the largest Chinese video animation. This site started in December 2006. The videos are licensed, and professional, user generated and self-produced web videos (Crampton 1). However, the use of these sites by Chinese Netizens is different from how Americans use YouTube. These sites do not contain short video of cute animals or silly domestic mi shaps that are popular among YouTube users (Crampton 1). The content of these sites is more reliable, longer, and up to 70 percent is professionally produced (Crampton 1). Most of the users spend more than one hour as compared to counterparts that spend less than 20 minutes per day (Crampton 1). The Chinese sites are more online television stations or a substitute for digital video recorders. An individual in China have discretion of posting videos, but most of the subject of online video is longer-format professional videos. Most of the videos are external programs pirated, subtitled, and uploaded hours after screening in western countries such as United States (Crampton 1). However, there is increased demand of content on Youku and Tudou, and this has resulted to mushrooming of companies that focus solely on online video. The sites television like atmosphere has prompted most of young Chinese reliance on them. The other site is Sina Weibo. This is an equivalent of Micro blog site of the western nation. This started in 2009, three years after twitter. This is the most popular micro blogging platform in china. It has

Effects of tissue paper usage on the environment Research

Effects of tissue usage on the environment - Research Paper Example Effects of tissue paper usage on the environment There have been many advertisements encouraging people to continue using given brands of tissue papers mostly made from trees. Although the use of tissue papers is dominant in females, the United States uses about 50 pounds of tissue products per person annually. Tissues papers have variant effects on the environment. Since, most of the tissue paper use is at home, then, it is possible to regulate the amount of tissue paper that we consume. This paper will discuss the environmental impact of tissue paper and draw a conclusion from the discussion. The paper will then make a persuasive argument about the moral or ethical implications of our consumption. The argument will aim at convincing the rest to adopt our style of using tissue paper that is reducing the consumption and using the recycled. There are variant effects of tissue paper usage on the environment. The impact depends on the production, mode of use and method of disposal. Tissue paper usage destroys forests, wildlife habitat, aridity, and may lead to loss of biodiversity because of the huge number of trees used in the production. As such, deforestation has now become a major environmental concern because of the negative effects on the humidity, carbon dioxide levels, and earth's temperature. There are variant effects of tissue paper usage on the environment. The impact depends on the production, mode of use and method of disposal. Tissue paper usage destroys forests, wildlife habitat, aridity, and may lead to loss of biodiversity because of the huge number of trees used in the production. (European Commission Web). As such, deforestation has now become a major environmental concern because of the negative effects on the humidity, carbon dioxide levels, and earth's temperature (Secret life Web). The production of tissue papers uses a lot of energy in transportation and distribution. Tissue paper production uses a lot of water hence depleting the scarce water sources and pollutes the water sources via the emissions from the factory (Bajpai 53). The gas emissions directed to the air are pollutants containing carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and sulphur oxides, which cause global warming and acidification (European Commission Web). Acidification and global warming affects agricultu re significantly. The emissions to the air and water contain toxic chemicals and cancer- causing chemical that are all pollutants to the environment (simple ecology Web). Additionally, the chemicals used in production of paper and pulp can have negative effects on health and the environment. Toxic chlorine used in pulp breaching is an example of such chemicals (Yaffa Web). Tissue paper is a source of waste in the environment. Many people do not use recycled tissue papers. About one-third of household waste is paper and only one-half is recycled and used in the US (simple ecology Web). Hence, I observe that there are diverse effects of tissue paper usage on the environment. Most of these effects are negative and dire to humans, animals and the environment. Therefore, there is need to minimise the consumption of tissue paper, devise better disposal methods and venture in the usage of 100 % recycled tissue paper products. This guarantees a positive impact on the environment. If we redu ce the consumption of tissue paper from 50 pounds to 33 pounds per person annually and buy only 100% of recycled products we will significantly benefit the environment. We need to use only enough toilet paper, use sponges, cloth towels, and hand dryers in place of paper towels. We can also use cloth napkins at home and only one napkin at fast food outlets. Similarly, we can use a handkerchief in place of a facial tissue where necessary. When these reductions and improvising intertwine with purchase of 100% tissue papers, we can save many trees annually and reduce the water and energy consumption (Lianos Web). This is because tissue paper uses 40% less energy and

Generating Binary Phase Shift Keying Lab Report

Generating Binary Phase Shift Keying - Lab Report Example Normally, each of the phases is encoded equal bits. The demodulator is designed primarily for symbol-set to be used by the modulator. This modulator is used in determining the phase of the signal received mapping it back to the symbol that it represents. It, therefore, requires the receiver to compare the received signal phase to the reference signal. This system is termed as coherent. This paper explores an experimental set up in which an IQ modulator is used to generate the Binary Phase-shift keying while investigating the effect of phase shift on the residual carrier magnitude. Aims and objectives. A To appreciate the principle of phase shift keying and its relationship with the analogue phase modulation. B. To generate the two-level of phase shift keyed signal and investigate the spectrum and bandwidth associated with it. C. To investigate the demodulation of an FSK signal using the Residual carrier D. To understand the operation of the costals Loop circuit for phase demodulation E. To investigate the demodulation of 90 degree FSK signal using a costals Loop and using Schematic diagram of an IQ modulator connected to Residual carrier Equipment used and Practical configuration In this experiment, the list of apparatus that were used include the sine cosine generator, variable attenuator, multiplier, IQ modulator connected to a residual carrier, costal loop block diagram that has low pass filters and Limiters and the circuits that operate like comparators. The apparatus were configured as shown below. Schematic diagram of an IQ modulator connected to Residual carrier Schematic circuit of a double costal loop Procedure The frequency counter was opened and used to set the Function Generator Frequency to 15KHz .The phasescope main channel probe was then moved to the 1 carrier input. The phasescope was then opened and while using the Variable phase shift control associated with the Carrier Source, the IQ carrier phase difference was set to 90 degrees. The phase s cope main channel was moved to the phase modulator output monitor point 4 and set to constellation display mode. The signal Level Control was then used in adjusting the amplitude of modulation. This was followed by setting the X expand on the oscilloscope to observe the individual carrier cycles. The spectrum analyzer was opened and used to observe the phase scope. The signal Level Control was then used in adjusting the modulation. The modulation was increased to give a total shift towards 180 degrees, while adjusting the spectrum analyzer. Finally, with the shift at plus and minus 90 degrees, the oscilloscope display was observed and the instrumentation screen shots were captured. The diagram bellow shows the experimental set up Results The results for this experiment are presented below. - AC p-p set to 0.3v / frequency set at 15kHz. Instead of setting the phases at -90 and +90 degrees, in this experiment -45 and +45 degrees were used since the prior could not be achieved and it i s as shown below. Changing the amplitude of the modulation can vary the phase shift. Concentrating on the blue output (carrier) is switches the phase by 180 degrees The carrier and the sidebands as seen during this experiment. A total phase shift of near to 90 degrees (45 + 45) Spectrum analyser showing the carrier frequency and two sidebands. When the phase shift was put to 180 degrees the carrier frequency on the spectrum analyzer fails to be distinguishable. Second attempt This shows the oscilloscope with the

Harlem Renaissance Poets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 5

Harlem Renaissance Poets - Essay Example It was not just any literary event but it brought up a great change in African-American culture. This movement was marked by various African-American writers, artists, and poets who produced some of the most extraordinary art work for black American artistic world. Most of the famous artists of Harlem Renaissance were affected by the double consciousness they faced after migration and this double consciousness is very much evident in their poetry. This article will discuss two of the most cherished poets of Harlem Renaissance and their contributions. Countee Cullen: Countee Cullen was one of the most famous poets in Harlem Renaissance and he is often remembered for his great contribution in African-American poetry. â€Å"Incident† is one of the most cherished poems from Harlem Renaissance. Countee Cullen tried to express his views regarding the social status and condition of African-Americans in his poems. According to English (1999), Incident is one of his most cherished creations which explain the experience of the poet while his stay in Baltimore and Cullen expressed distress of his experience in very simple manner. Langston Hughes: Langston Hughes is among the central figures of the Harlem Renaissance and this poem is the proof of his great wisdom and quality to ink his feelings. Langston Hughes was often known as a poet who loved to display the folk traditions of African-Americans. He was successful in expressing the feelings of his people and gave it a perfect literary form with his poetic skills. Unlike Cullen who ignored the African folks and their culture in his creations, Hughes left a huge impression of his love for African folks in his poems. Incident by Countee Cullen: In the initial lines of the poem, the child is happy with a joy in his eyes and his heart ready to learn the new experiences of life. But the child was called a â€Å"Nigger† by a white boy of his same age as in the

Quantitative Techniques Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Quantitative Techniques - Essay Example The social and economic scenario is in the constant process of undergoing change and is influenced by a number of external factors. As such, there are numerous controllable and uncontrollable parameters that today’s decision makers need to take care of in order to prepare a careful course that can navigate through all idenfied obstacles. If adopted, qualititative, well-structured and a well-planned business forecasting effort can yield the desired results. As such, apart from feeling the need to forecast, it is also very important to plan the forecasting process with great precision (John E. Hanke, Arthur G. Reitsch, 1989). The rise in the growth and use of computing power to perform calculations has gained immense popularity among users. As such, with a good forecasting plan, one can easily perform the required analysis in a short time. Forecasting is used to identify a number of patterns that are deemed important to a company’s interests. It could include attributes such as the performance of stocks over a time period, pattern of sales, prices of essential raw materials, employee satisfaction surveys etc. a company can immensely benefit from business forecasting as these enable it to analyze its performance across various domains and also helps it compare itself amongst other competitors in the market. It enables the company to identify the segments that are not performing according to expectations and paves the way for adopting suitable solutions to overcome them. As the economy is dynamic in nature, there is an ncreasing need to prepare the future map in advance, which emphasizes the need fo r business forecasting. In the recent years, business forecasting has adopted an extensive scientific flavor that includes the fusion of various business theories and techniques to forecast specific types of data. It can involve procedures as simple as spreadsheets to massive database networks that are performing trillions of

Book review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Book review - Essay Example The author’s usage of the word dirt as an allegory is the main construct of the entire book. The book is a distinctive exploration of culture in the early nineteenth century when the colonial settlement took place in New Zealand. It also presents a well-drawn picture of scholarly and enlightening history of sanitation and public health awareness in the early Dunedin, New Zealand. The way the book is written and constructed, it pulls the threads of the discourse analysis, cultural theory, as well as anthropology. The author uses a research methodology that answers certain questions like what does dirt symbolizes or points to, in what ways the colonial settlers parleyed their negative impact, and how did the dirt positively contributed to the city’s development. Moreover, the author highlights the cultural eventuality of dirt that inspired its changeability in the colonial settlements. She provides a narrative on the regulatory practices that added to the dirt and describ es the incidences by using a metonym for the polluted city. Wood’s coherently expresses the implications of her knowledge of history and its snowball effect on the current thinking of town planning. She quite impressively draws a collection of primary sources that without doubt produce a substantial addition to the literature of history of Dunedin. Undeniably, the book is a historical record of a relationship of dirt and the city. Nevertheless, Dirt clearly qualifies for the work of cultural studies and the historical work presented in the book is only to support the theoretical framework of the book (Woods, 2005). Moreover, the book sheds light upon the subject in nine chapters that are built upon splendidly captioned modern photographs, drawings, and cartoons. Wood’s weaves the history of colonial settlers and the impact they had on the Dunedin, New Zealand’s largest city. She has discussed that the issues in the times of colonial setters in the city of New Ze aland were more than the limitation of public health, prowling perils of immorality and town planning. Furthermore, she explores the vital role played by the hospitals and doctors alike, along with authorities who joined in the cause to protect the public from disease and decay. Thus, in order to do so she skims through topics like mud and swamps, toilets, sewerages, abattoirs and cemeteries with emphasis upon pollution and decomposed1. Wood’s, with awareness has put her case study in a wider context, by making comparisons with other cities of New Zealand and Australia. Moreover, she has managed to evaluate the impact the British has left upon the cities thinking that they have brought a positive change with the aid of colonizing the cities. Therefore, the book covers all the points in order to justify the topic the writer has used a multi pronged approach and has showed the intricate linkage between the colonial concept and the dirt, filth and disease it brought with itself2 . Dunedin’s dream withered in to poor planning, unhygienic sanitation, formless roads and the piled up waste, the crux of the statement is that the impact of importation of cultural practices soon discoloured the dream of modernity of early New Zealanders. The surfacing of the city brought with it correlations between human and dirt, matter and culture. Dirt was an unalterable part of the new community, which formed and grew in the presence of disease, decay, and pollution. From the 1790 onwards, the European settlement was intermittent

Quantitative Techniques Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Quantitative Techniques - Essay Example The social and economic scenario is in the constant process of undergoing change and is influenced by a number of external factors. As such, there are numerous controllable and uncontrollable parameters that today’s decision makers need to take care of in order to prepare a careful course that can navigate through all idenfied obstacles. If adopted, qualititative, well-structured and a well-planned business forecasting effort can yield the desired results. As such, apart from feeling the need to forecast, it is also very important to plan the forecasting process with great precision (John E. Hanke, Arthur G. Reitsch, 1989). The rise in the growth and use of computing power to perform calculations has gained immense popularity among users. As such, with a good forecasting plan, one can easily perform the required analysis in a short time. Forecasting is used to identify a number of patterns that are deemed important to a company’s interests. It could include attributes such as the performance of stocks over a time period, pattern of sales, prices of essential raw materials, employee satisfaction surveys etc. a company can immensely benefit from business forecasting as these enable it to analyze its performance across various domains and also helps it compare itself amongst other competitors in the market. It enables the company to identify the segments that are not performing according to expectations and paves the way for adopting suitable solutions to overcome them. As the economy is dynamic in nature, there is an ncreasing need to prepare the future map in advance, which emphasizes the need fo r business forecasting. In the recent years, business forecasting has adopted an extensive scientific flavor that includes the fusion of various business theories and techniques to forecast specific types of data. It can involve procedures as simple as spreadsheets to massive database networks that are performing trillions of

Stereotype Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Stereotype - Research Paper Example Our society is plague with stereotypes, and even though we live in a world that is deemed civilized, prejudice will never be extinct. The turn of the nineteen century witnessed a new era for women. No longer were women contented to stay in the background, or fade in the shadows of their husbands. Having been in the air-force I have witnessed and heard how men view women in a mans world. They resent the fact that they will have to take orders from a woman superior. They have biases that have no foundation, other than the fact that they grow up hearing over and over the criteria that make women women. A woman should do what she does best―nurturing her husband and children. During my service in the air-force, one case in particular has a ineradicable imprint in my mind. My squadron had a woman drill sergeant; and my team-mates resented having to salute a woman or take orders from her. Many times they would pretend to forget and addressed her as â€Å"sir.† She was well aware of their hostility and that made her more militant than most male officer. Their reaction to her was predetermined, she knew it, and was determined to change their minds. Only the best she would accept, she had to prove herself, to show us that she can do a â€Å"mans job. She was dauntless, consequently, my team was first in all training exercise. My colleagues were using a hand-me-down stereotyping. They were perpetuating a myth, a myth that held its ground for many centuries, It was only in 1976, less than fifty years ago, that the first woman was allowed to register in the air-force. The logic that was displayed here is dogmatic. According to the book Introduction to Logic, â€Å"Dogmatism is the position taken by a person who asserts his or her belief as what should be the case: no room for disagreement is possible in this case, and if there is no room for disagreement, the possibility of argument also disappears. (please put the author(s) of the book, the publication

The Abortion Debate: Are Abortions Immoral?

The Abortion Debate: Are Abortions Immoral? Abortion involves the loss of fetus and consequently loss of a future human being. It can only be justified in circumstances where the life of the mother is in danger and the consequences of failing to abort are great (Marquis 194). Marquis identifies two accounts that make killing wrong, namely, the discontinuation account whereby killing automatically terminates life and discontinues the experience of living to the victim, and the desire account, whereby killing interferes with the fulfillment of strong fundamental desire necessary for any other desire to be fulfilled (195). This is compounded by the fact that it is morally wrong to kill people who have little or no desire to live. It is equally wrong to kill the unconscious, the sleeping, those who are tired of living and even those who are suicidal. A fetus lacks desire to live and this makes abortion to be wrong (Marquis 195). People desire to live because they value what life has to offer. Furthermore the goodness of life is not secondary to peoples desire for it because it were so; the pain of premature death would be easily replaced with appropriate desire (Marquis 196). Despite the fact that fetuses are not in a position to value their future and their future may not be valuable to them, It is important to note that the future of a fetus is valuable to other people (Marquis 198). Support of abortion on the basis that an entity cannot possess the right to life unless it has the desire for its continued existence can easily be disapproved by the fact that failure of an individual to have interest in something does not mean that the individual does not have a right to it (Marquis199). Similarly, Bansens argument that a fetus lacks sentience, it cannot be wronged and cannot be a victim even if aborted is equally disapproved by the fact that fetuses have prospects and can be victims when aborted because they are deprived of their future and their prospects (Marquis 200). In view of issues discussed in this essay, it is evidently clear that abortion is not any different from killing, a practice that deprives the victim of a future-like ours. Fetuses possess a future and property that makes killing of adult human beings wrong, it follows without saying that abortion is ethically wrong (Marquis 201). Use of contraceptives cannot be equated to abortion because they only prevent fertilization and conception from taking place but this does not result to any form of killing (Marquis 201). Why Most Abortions Are Not Wrong Some people feel that decision to procure an abortion lies squarely on the pregnant woman because she is the one bearing the burden of unwanted pregnancy, while other people prefer keeping abortion safe and legal because of dangers associated with illegal abortion and inequalities associated with the poor and the minority women who are unable to control their fertility (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 471). Steinbock, Arras and Alex argue that abortion is not wrong because of the moral status of the embryo and the burdens resulting from pregnancy and childbirth on women (471). It is okay to kill a non- conscious fetus if a woman does not want to keep the pregnancy because killing a fetus does not deprive it of a future like ours. This is based on the simple scientific fact that a fetus is non- conscious and consentient hence it does not have a future like ours (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 472). A fetus cannot be equated to a new born baby because even though the fetus is alive and human, it is practically not aware of anything and it is not any different from a sperm and ovum which are also alive and human. Furthermore, a fetus cannot think, feel or even perceive anything as opposed to a new born baby. This makes Killing of fetuses to be morally different from killing babies because they do not have the ability to experience pain and pleasure. They are consentient; just like trees and they lack interest of their own hence it is impossible to consider their interests (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 472). Steinbock, Arras and Alex highlight that nonscentient beings cannot experience pain and suffering because it does not matter to them what they experience or what is done to them. Since fetuses are nonscentient, it follows that they do not have the ability to experience pain and pleasure. This is simply because their nervous system has not yet developed to transmit pain messages to the brain hence fetuses cannot be said to experience pain during abortion (473). Although fetuses are living, they do not have a life because they are nonsentient, they are equivalent to living cells in human beings which die or are simply killed. Such cells are not said to lose their live or to be deprived of their lives. Killing a fetus before it becomes conscious and aware does not deprive it of anything (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 473). The fact that fetuses are potential human beings does not qualify them to be treated as actual human beings. In any case living human beings are potentially dead but there is no reason to treat them like corpses (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 474). If fetuses; the potential human beings should be treated like real human beings, then the potential personhood attached to fertilized ova should also be attached to unfertilized eggs and sperms as potential human beings. Furthermore every player is also a potential winner and as such unfertilized eggs and sperms are also potential human beings and their potential should not be negated (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 474). Since neither the sperm nor the egg has a future of its own before fertilization, it follows that even the embryo does not have a future without the uterus and cannot develop all by itself without the uterus and adequate nutrients from the pregnant woman (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 477). A pregnant mother serves as a life support system to sustain the life of a fetus; hence the morality of abortion not only depends on the fetus but also on womans moral obligation to sustain the life of the fetus without terminating pregnancy (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 478). Pregnancies are associated with various burdens including labor, delivery and sometimes death. Outside the abortion context, there is no situation in which someone should undergo risks and burdens to preserve another persons life. Clearly, restrictive laws of abortion impose burdens on pregnant mothers that are not imposed on other people in comparable situations thus violating the principle of equal protection. (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 478). A woman should not be forced to undertake significant risks and burdens of keeping the fetus alive. After all such a woman would have to carry a bugger burden of raising a child against her wishes or even giving it up for adoption (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 479). It is morally right to terminate pregnancy for sex selection or for fetal reductions, especially where a woman has 3 or more fetuses because chances of them surviving are minimal if some are not killed. It is also risky to mothers health (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 481). Women have a amoral right to decide either to carry the burdens of pregnancy and childbirth or to abort. It would be much fair to put women to task on justifying their decision to have children instead of justifying their decision to procure abortion (Steinbock, Arras and Alex 482).

michael jordan :: essays research papers

In Jim Naughton’s book Taking To The Air, the main character is Michael Jordan. The book is Jordan’s life and talents. Michael Jeffrey Jordan was born February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York. He was the fourth child and the youngest of three boys. Michael JoMichael Jordan was one of five children born to James and Delores Jordan. He was born February 17, 1963 in Brooklyn. The Jordans' felt that the streets of Brooklyn were unsafe to raise a young family of five children. Instead of trying to endure the streetrdan is by any measure, the most popularWhat is Basketball without Michael Jordan When someone says the name Michael Jordan, the first thing that might come to mind is basketball, Nike shoes, or Wheaties. Through the years Michael Jordan has proved time and time again that he is the greatest basketball player ever and by doing that heMichael Jordan: King of the Court   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When I began my report I didn’t know much about Michael Jordan, but I did know that he was â€Å"undoubtedly the greatest player in the history of the NBA† (â€Å"Michael Air Jordan† 1). It seemed like every time I heard the word basketball I also heard the name Michael Michael Jordan   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Twenty-four seconds left on the shot clock. Fans in the Utah Jazz’s Arena (the Delta Center) sitting on the edge of their seats while Michael Jordan dribbles the ball down the floor; he does a killer crossover on Bryan Russell of the Utah Jazz. Michael pulls up for the game winniâ€Å"Michael Jordan is the best ever. There shouldn’t be any question in anyone’s mind. There are no ifs, ands or buts about it. He broke the mold. There is no one remotely close to him, Nate Thurmond says. Look at all the finals, he always carried his team. He willed them to another title eaMICHAEL JORDAN: A MARKETER'S DREAM by Celeste Michaels Michael Jordan's retirement from the NBA came as a shock to the entire sports world. After winning an unprecedented third straight NBA title the man who many people touted as the greatest to ever play the game, not to mention king of all endovWhen someone says the name Michael Jordan, the first thing that comes to mind is basketball, The Chicago Bulls and Nike shoes.

The Original Style of Jon Scieszka :: Biography Biographies Essays

The Original Style of Jon Scieszka Jon Scieszka has an original style that is all his own. Many of his books such as The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs, The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, and The Frog Prince Continued have led several people to believe that he has created a new genre of children's literature: using unique perspectives to retell classic fairy tales. But what motivated Scieszka to become an author? And how does he come up with his innovative ideas? I will answer these questions by discussing Scieszka's many inspirations including his teaching career, students, and his family. Scieszka began his love for books early on in his life when he and his mother spent time together reading. It was during these times that one of his favorite authors emerged. Dr. Seuss stood out because "he was the first author that I realized was a different person - that there actually was a person who wrote the book" (Scieszka). It was then that he decided that creating books for others to read would be entertaining. He did not give this idea much thought until after he became an elementary teacher. That was when he reconsidered the idea of writing children's books. As a second grade teacher he learned many things about children including what kind of books they enjoyed and which ones did not even keep their attention. As Scieszka himself said, "...there's nothing more discriminating than a group of second graders sitting on the floor. And they'll tell you if they don't like it, or if it's boring, or if it's stupid, or if it doesn't make sense" (Scieszka). This helped to shape his ideas as to what would be interesting and fun for children to read. Students have done more than just inspire him to write. Many have helped give him ideas. In Math Curse after her teacher tells her that almost everything has math involved in it; the narrator discovers how true the statement is as her world explodes into a giant math problem. Scieszka credits this idea to some of his "less accomplished" students and how they perceive math (Scieszka). Another source for his ideas comes from within his own house. His own daughter has unknowingly inspired him on at least one occasion. When she was small she enjoyed the popular story of The Gingerbread Man. After an endless amount of times of rereading the story Scieszka wondered: What would happen if the lady ran out of gingerbread and had to make him out of something else? The Original Style of Jon Scieszka :: Biography Biographies Essays The Original Style of Jon Scieszka Jon Scieszka has an original style that is all his own. Many of his books such as The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs, The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, and The Frog Prince Continued have led several people to believe that he has created a new genre of children's literature: using unique perspectives to retell classic fairy tales. But what motivated Scieszka to become an author? And how does he come up with his innovative ideas? I will answer these questions by discussing Scieszka's many inspirations including his teaching career, students, and his family. Scieszka began his love for books early on in his life when he and his mother spent time together reading. It was during these times that one of his favorite authors emerged. Dr. Seuss stood out because "he was the first author that I realized was a different person - that there actually was a person who wrote the book" (Scieszka). It was then that he decided that creating books for others to read would be entertaining. He did not give this idea much thought until after he became an elementary teacher. That was when he reconsidered the idea of writing children's books. As a second grade teacher he learned many things about children including what kind of books they enjoyed and which ones did not even keep their attention. As Scieszka himself said, "...there's nothing more discriminating than a group of second graders sitting on the floor. And they'll tell you if they don't like it, or if it's boring, or if it's stupid, or if it doesn't make sense" (Scieszka). This helped to shape his ideas as to what would be interesting and fun for children to read. Students have done more than just inspire him to write. Many have helped give him ideas. In Math Curse after her teacher tells her that almost everything has math involved in it; the narrator discovers how true the statement is as her world explodes into a giant math problem. Scieszka credits this idea to some of his "less accomplished" students and how they perceive math (Scieszka). Another source for his ideas comes from within his own house. His own daughter has unknowingly inspired him on at least one occasion. When she was small she enjoyed the popular story of The Gingerbread Man. After an endless amount of times of rereading the story Scieszka wondered: What would happen if the lady ran out of gingerbread and had to make him out of something else?

Living in Sin by Adrienne Rich: Of Simplicity and Brevity Essay

Poetry has turned off a lot of people Because of its confusing nature and interjection of difficult-to understand symbolisms, poems have been disregarded by many. Yet what most people do not know is that the landscape of poetry has changed tremendously in the past years. Contemporary poets have realized that their works should no longer include flowery words and deep allegories to be beautiful – that in fact, the poems that eventually become popular are those marked with simplicity and brevity and those that posses the ability to touch the readers’ hearts. If one is to get reacquainted with poetry, Adrienne Rich’s Living in Sin is a good place to start. This particular poem talks of something that is very common nowadays – domestic partnership without the grace of marriage. But the â€Å"sin† Rich referred to in the title does not point to the seemingly sinful relationship of living together but was more a tirade on how people can sometimes persuade themselves about staying in a relationship even when the ‘expectations’ on the particular relationship have not been met. Living in Sin tells how a woman has realized that living with the person she loves is not all â€Å"A plate of pears, / a piano with a Persian shawl, a cat / stalking the picturesque amusing mouse† and that there is indeed â€Å"dust upon the furniture of love†. In Living in Sin, Rich describes how a relationship is something that one needs to work at. This poem is the best one to pick up when trying to re-embrace poetry because it differs greatly from those written under the pens of 15th and 16th Century poets. Revolving around a present-day issue, Living in Sin is sure to be easily understood by new readers. Most of the people nowadays can surely relate to the fact that certain aspects of a relationship can be disillusioning. Almost anyone who enters a relationship do so armed with certain positive expectancies that are – sadly – not met as the relationship progresses. By painting images of boredom (â€Å"†¦he, with a yawn, / sounded a dozen notes upon the keyboard, / declared it out of tune†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ) and disappointment (â€Å"she, jeered by the minor demons, / pulled back the sheets and made the bed and found / a towel to dust the table-top, / and let the coffee-pot boil over on the stove.†), Rich successfully communicates her message. Rich’s successful telling of her message can be attributed to her ability of steering clear from highfalutin words and hard-to-imagine imagery. In fact, Living in Sin is marked by simple words and symbolisms that are common to everyone. The language that Rich used in this particular poem is something that we all understand. These are just more reasons to actually pick up and enjoy this particular poem. Yet the good points of Living in Sin do not end there. This particular poem is also armed with only a few lines. Rich employed just 26 lines and a mere 196 words in conveying her message yet those numbers have been enough to transfer Rich’s messages to the readers. Undeniably, no other literary piece can achieve such feat but poetry. Living in Sin – and poems in general – are lovable in that one need not go through lots of word tangles to feel exactly what the author wants him/her to feel. True enough, poems of old are pretty hard to understand, talking about things that most modern-day people can no longer relate to. Yet as with everything, poets have changed and have taken to voicing out topics that are close to today’s readers’ hearts. Adrienne Rich is but one of those poets who have successfully mastered combining relatable subjects with easy-to-grasp symbols and language in her poetry. And reading one of her more popular poems, Living in Sin, will surely convince this generation that poems should be given a chance because, contrary to popular belief, they are beautiful literary pieces that are worth reading.

Non traditional threat to US Essay

In my opinion the most pertinent Non-traditional threat to the US is the economy. It is the single most important, globalized, and un-accounted for problem in the US. The current problem is so bad that the US economy is days away from a (partial) default. This would be the first default since possibly the 1700’s at the founding of the nation. The problem with this is the US green back is the reserve currency of the world (all or most investments are made in US dollars). If the US defaults it will cause a ripple effect that will make the 2008 global financial crisis look small in comparison to the lobal catastrophe that will occur. The reason most investments are in US dollars is because dollars have historically been the most stable currency in the modern age. The US defaulting on its debts has both internal and external effects. The total of US government debt is over $ 16. 9 trillion. (US Debt Clock) Of that debt, $ 4. 8 trillion is owned by governmental agencies. This includes agencies such as the social security (holds over $2. 5 trillion dollars). Of the public debt, foreign investors own $5. 7 trillion. Keep in mind this is Just the actual government debt; effects of a default would be uch bigger. The US reached its debt ceiling in 2012. The US constitution – 14th Amendment, Section 4 – directly forbids the government from defaulting on its debt. Thus to cope with the debt ceiling being reached the government has been taking extraordinary measures in order to pay their debts (for instance suspending investments on individual pension funds). When these measures are exhausted, the government will not bring on a global economic collapse as they default on all their bonds. They will Just be forced to balance the economy – to match their spending with their collected revenue. This is a very different issue (still with its problems) to a full default. What is important is that a full default is likely to not happen. The brinksmanship between the rogue Republicans and the government would only threaten a ‘technical’ default on the shortest-dated US government bonds, because their shorter lives mean their maturity date is nearer than the rest of the government’s ‘safe’ assets. The problem here, as ever, is not whether the federal government is able to repay the principle from these bonds, but the short-term methods used to make these repayments. The US treasury would still be seen as a ‘safe investment’, albeit in more economically uncertain times, and thus bonds would probably rise in price – believe it or not, the US government 10-year bond decreased in price after news that the media reported a default was unlikely. Though we are quick to forget, there have been 17 government shutdowns between 1976-1996 and the debt ceiling is raised almost every year – a full default never happens. This brinksmanship is historically common, and it is the media and politicians that fuel the political fire by indicating that this is the year where it will default.

Employee Performance Essay

The methods presented here are designed to develop elements and standards that measure employee and work unit accomplishments rather than to develop  other measures that are often used in appraising performance, such as measuring behaviors or competencies. Although this handbook includes a discussion of the importance of balancing measures, the main focus presented here is to measure accomplishments. Consequently, much of the information presented in the first five steps of this eightstep process applies when supervisors and employees want to measure results. However, the material presented in Steps 6 through 8 about developing standards, monitoring performance, and checking the performance plan apply to all measurement approaches. A HANDBOOK FOR MEASURING EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE foreword The handbook has four chapters and three appendices: ⠝™ CHAPTER 1 gives the background and context of performance management that you will need to understand before beginning the eight-step process. ⠝™ CHAPTER 2 defines accomplishments, which is key to using this handbook successfully. ⠝™ CHAPTER 3 includes a detailed description of the eight-step process for developing employee performance plans that are aligned with and support organizational goals. ⠝™ CHAPTER 4 provides study tools, including a followup quiz and a quick reference for the eight-step process. ⠝™ THE APPENDICES contain example standards that were written specifically for appraisal programs that appraise performance on elements at five, three, and two levels. After reading the instructional material, studying the examples, and completing the exercises in this book, you should be able to: ⠝™ DEVELOP a performance plan that aligns individual performance with organizational goals  Ã¢ â„¢ USE a variety of methods to determine work unit and individual  accomplishments ⠝™ DETERMINE the difference between activities and accomplishments ⠝™ EXPLAIN regulatory requirements for employee performance plans P E R F O R M A N C E M A N A G E M E N T: B A C K G R O U N D A N D C O N T E X T emember the story about the naive student in his first English literature course who was worried because he didn’t know what prose was? When he found out that prose was ordinary speech, he exclaimed, â€Å"Wow! I’ve been speaking prose all my life!† Managing performance well is like speaking prose. Many managers have been â€Å"speaking† and practicing effective performance management naturally all their supervisory lives, but don’t know it! Some people mistakenly assume that performance management is concerned only with following regulatory requirements to appraise and rate performance. Actually, assigning ratings of record is only one part of the overall process (and perhaps the least important part). Performance management is the systematic process of: ⠝™ planning work and setting expectations ⠝™ continually monitoring performance ⠝™ developing the capacity to perform ⠝™ periodically rating performance in a summary fashion ⠝™ rewarding good performance The revisions made in 1995 to the governmentwide performance appraisal and awards regulations support â€Å"natural† performance management. Great care was taken to ensure that the requirements those regulations establish would complement and not conflict with the kinds of activities and actions effective managers are practicing as a matter of course. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT: BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT PLANNING In an effective organization, work is planned out in advance. Planning means setting performance expectations and goals for groups and individuals to channel their efforts toward achieving organizational objectives. Getting employees involved in the planning process will help them understand the goals of the organization, what needs to be done, why it needs to be done, and how well it should be done. The regulatory requirements for planning employees’ performance include establishing the elements and standards of their performance appraisal plans. Performance elements and standards should be measurable, understandable, verifiable, equitable, and achievable. Through critical elements, employees are held accountable as individuals for work assignments or responsibilities. Employee performance plans should be flexible so that they can be adjusted for changing program objectives and work requirements. When used effectively, these plans can be beneficial working documents that are discussed often, and not merely paperwork that is filed in a drawer and seen only when ratings of record are required. MONITORING In an effective organization, assignments and projects are monitored continually. Monitoring well means consistently measuring performance and providing ongoing feedback to employees and work groups on their progress toward reaching their goals. The regulatory requirements for monitoring performance include conducting progress reviews with employees where their performance is compared against their elements and standards. Ongoing monitoring provides the supervisor the opportunity to check how well employees are meeting predetermined standards and to make changes to unrealistic or problematic standards. By monitoring continually, supervisors can identify unacceptable performance at any time during the appraisal period and provide assistance to address such performance rather than wait until the end of the period when summary rating levels are assigned. MEASURE WHAT IS IMPORTANT—NOT WHAT IS EASY TO MEASURE It is easy to count the number of days since a project began, but if that is all that you measure, is that enough information to assess performance? No, probably not. Or if, for example, a customer service team only measures the number of calls that come into the team (the easy measure) and does not attempt to measure customer satisfaction with its service (the more difficult measure), the team does not have complete information about its performance and has no idea how well it is serving its customers. In addition, because what gets measured gets done, the team will probably focus on how it can increase the number of calls it receives and ignore the quality of service it provides. As a result, organizations need to anticipate the behavioral and unintended consequences of measuring performance. As an example, recently a medical laboratory came under fire because of the errors it made in certain of its cancer tests. A high number of cancer tests that the laboratory had approved as negative turned out to be wrong—cancer had actually been