Production and Operation Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Production and Operation Management - Essay Example Based on these, the owner selects particular designs to be made on a weekly basis. Ms. Brown also selects the kind of clothing material to be used for the particular chosen design. She employed 10 female workers to work on the rest of the process. Pattern design is done manually by one worker before grading, measurement of fabric, cutting and finally, sewing and assembling. For clothes requiring intricate designs such as patching or needlework, one female worker, Karen Smith, who specialize on this area does the final touch and inspects the garments made prior to pressing and packaging. The first few months of production have been smooth and productive. On the seventh month, there had been returns sent by the shopping mall due to defects. Apparently, some garments were not inspected thoroughly and exhibited the following defects: â€Å"open seams, wrong stitching techniques, non- matching threads, missing stitches, improper creasing of the garment, erroneous thread tension and raw e dges† (Ahmad, 2011). Ms. Brown questioned Karen Smith and was determined to investigate the cause of increased defects. If not corrected immediately, the garment company faces a greater dilemma of revoking their contract to supply garments with the shopping mall. Statement of the Problem There were apparently high levels of returns for garments that have been delivered to the shopping mall. The person authorized to inspect, Karen Smith, also tasked with doing the intricate final designs of patching and needlework. Likewise, no other person counter checked the quality of the garments prior to packing and delivery to the shopping mall. Research Objective The objective of the research was to investigate the cause of the surge of defects on the garments that was already delivered to the shopping mall. The contract to supply garments was usually based on the agreement that no significant defects should be exhibited that would cause returns. Defects of more than 20% in one batch of deliveries would be subject to full return and refund. If the next batch would contain defects of more than 10%, the contract would be revoked. Another objective was to review the manufacturing process to determine ways of minimizing the defects noted and to ensure high quality of garments are consistently delivered. Comparative Key Processes in the Manual to the Actual Practice The process manual clearly indicates that after sewing, Karen Smith, is tasked to inspect the garments prior to packing. Upon closer inspection, Ms. Brown discovered from interviews with the sewers that most of the time, Karen Smith was overloaded with final details of patching and needle work demanded from the chosen designs. As such, with full confidence, she delegated the sewers to closely inspect their works. In this regard, the following flaws in the operations process were noted: (1) The inspector and the person doing final touches on the garments are the same. Increased volume of work to be done leave s little time for inspection. (2) There was no clear policy in the procedures manual regarding any sanctions for violating adherence to high quality standards of the product; (3) There were no clear policies on inspection for the garments or in accurately identifying accountability (which sewer creates the most mistakes and defects); (4) All designs and pattern making are still done manually; (5) Roles and responsibilities for employees

Business Models and Planning Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Business Models and Planning - Assignment Example In addition, development in e-business and its associated effects that caused transitions in business models identified periodic challenged in existing business models and established the need for improved models. Efficiency and effectiveness needs towards optimal profitability in e-business models facilitated this. the e-business revolution was therefore important because it identified needs transition in business models.1 Strategy and structure are supplementary elements in implementation of business models to achieve objectives. While strategy forms the basis of a model through development of objectives, structure establishes a framework though which the strategic objectives can be achieved through a business model. Dell’s strategy of direct sales is an example. Based on the strategy, the company develops its model around information technology and formulates its structure to focus on the technology-based strategy. Consequently and from a business model persoective, strategy and structure have a suplimentary relation in which structure facilitate success of a

Current theories and Models of leadership

Current theories and Models of leadership The topics of leadership and organizational culture have attracted considerable interest from both academics and practitioners. In modern World Leadership is taken as the most influencing factor of an Organization. Leaders are those people who make the organization move through definite path towards the success. As the other topics in the field of Organizational Environment, there are numerous numbers of studies and very relative theories on Leadership. The established study of Leadership includes. Trait Theory Group and Exchange Theory Contingency Theory Path-Goal Trait Theory This theory is all about the traits present in a person. The main objective is to recognize those traits which can produce a good leader. As per the ancient scholars The leaders are born not made. A theory called The Great Person Theory gave the right way to more realistic to the trait approach. This says that these traits are not totally in born but a mixture of nature and nurture means that the factors like Physiology, Society, and Economics have a great impact on the trait of a person which can make him a great leader. Group and Exchange Theory These theories have its root in social psychology. It says the leaders must have followers. And they must have some positive exchange between them i.e. Benefits, Rewards and Costs. A recent study indicates that the leader and followers both affect each other in a great impact. Relevant to the Exchange view an approach are there, Leader-Member Exchange approach is in discussion, these says that Leader treats subordinate differently. In precise the both develop a dynamic relationship which affects the behavior of the both. Contingency Theory This can be treated as the extension of the trait theory which deals with the situational aspect of leadership. Numerous situational variables were identified but no solid theory could be formulated. Fred Feeler test the hypothesis, he had formulated from the previous data findings. He develops a contingency model of leadership effectiveness. This contains the relationship between Leadership style and Favorableness of the situation. There are some dimensions: The Leader Member relationship. The degree of the task structure. The Leaders position and power. As per this theory the trainers is taught to diagnosis the situation to change it at optimization leadership style which match the situation. Some of the ways are as follows: Spending more informal time with the follower. Discuss task structure with them. Raise the position power Path Goal Theory This theory has been derived from the motivational theory. The path goal theory attempts to explain the impact of the leader behavior has on subordinate motivation, satisfaction and performance. These are of four major types. Directive Leadership Participative Leadership Achievement oriented Leadership Using these for types on the situational factor the leader attempt to influence subordinates perception and motivation. In other word the leader attempts to make the path to the goal for the subordinate as smooth AS possible. But the leader must depend on the situational variables present. We were been discussing the traditional theories there are some other theories which has immerged most recently: Charismatic Transformational Autocratic Transactional Are some important of theories which are in discussion. Charismatic The sociologist Max Weber described charismatic authority as resting on devotion to the exceptional sanctity, heroism or exemplary character of an individual person, and of the normative patterns or order revealed or ordained by him. Charismatic authority is one of three forms of authority laid out in Webers tripartite classification of authority, the other two being traditional authority and rational-legal authority. The concept has acquired wide usage among sociologists. Charismatic authority is power legitimized on the basis of a leaders exceptional personal qualities or the demonstration of extraordinary insight and accomplishment, which inspire loyalty and obedience from followers. As such, it rests almost entirely on the leader; the absence of that leader for any reason can lead to the authoritys power dissolving. However, due to its idiosyncratic nature and lack of formal organization, charismatic authority depends much more strongly on the perceived legitimacy of the authority than Webers other forms of authority. For instance, a charismatic leader in a religious context might require an unchallenged belief that the leader has been touched by God, in the sense of a guru or prophet. Should the strength of this belief fade, the power of the charismatic leader can fade quickly, which is one of the ways in which this form of authority shows itself to be unstable. In contrast to the current popular use of the term charismatic leader, Weber saw chari smatic authority not so much as character traits of the charismatic leader but as a relationship between the leader and his followers much in the same way that Freud would transform Gustave Le Bons crowd psychology through the notion of identification and of an Ideal of the Ego. The validity of charisma is founded on its recognition by the leaders followers (or adepts A hanger). This recognition is not (in authentic charisma) the grounds of legitimate, but a duty, for those who are chosen, in virtue of this call and of its confirmation, to recognize this quality. Recognition which is, psychologically, a completely personal abandon, full of faith, born either from enthusiasm or from necessity and hope. No prophet has seen his quality Charismatic leadership is leadership based on the leaders ability to communicate and behave in ways that reach followers on a basic, emotional way, to inspire and motivate. We often speak of some sports and political leaders as charismatic (or not) an example being John F. Kennedy. Its difficult to identify the characteristics that make a leader charismatic, but they certainly include the ability to communicate on a very powerful emotional level, and probably include some personality traits. Developing charisma is difficult, if not impossible for many people, but luckily charismatic leadership is not essential to be an effective leader. Many other characteristics are involved in leading effectively, and there is significant evidence to indicate that it simply is not necessary to have this elusive charisma to lead others well. Relying on charisma to lead also can be problematic. For example, there have been many charismatic leaders who lack other leadership characteristics and skills (e.g. integrity) and lead their followers into situations that turn out horribly think political leaders such as Stalin, Hitler, and even business leaders (Enron). Finally, in organizations lead by charismatic leaders, there is a major problem regarding succession. What happens when a leader who relies on charisma leaves? Often the organization founders because the ability to lead rested with one persons charisma. Transformational Transformational leadership is defined as a leadership approach that engenders change in individuals and social systems. In its ideal form, it creates valuable and positive change in the followers with the end goal of developing followers into leaders. Enacted in its authentic form, transformational leadership enhances the motivation, morale and performance of his followers through a variety of mechanisms. These include connecting the followers sense of identity and self to the mission and the collective identity of the organization; being a role model for followers that inspires them; challenging followers to take greater ownership for their work, and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of followers, so the leader can align followers with tasks that optimize their performance. James MacGregor Burns (1978) [1] first introduced the concept of transforming leadership in his descriptive research on political leaders, but this term is now used in organizational psychology as well. According to Burns, transforming leadership is a process in which leaders and followers help each other to advance to a higher level of morale and motivation. Burns related to the difficulty in differentiation between management and leadership and claimed that the differences are in characteristics and behaviors. He established two concepts: transforming leadership and transactional leadership. According to Burns, the transforming approach creates significant change in the life of people and organizations. It redesigns perceptions and values, and changes expectations and aspirations of employees. Unlike in the transactional approach, it is not based on a give and take relationship, but on the leaders personality, traits and ability to make a change through example, articulation of an energizing vision and challenging goals. Transforming leaders are idealized in the sense that they are a moral exemplar of working towards the benefit of the team, organization and/or community. Burns theorized that transforming and transactional leadership was mutually exclusive styles. Now 30 years of research and a number of meta-analyses have shown that transformational and transactional leadership positively predicts a wide variety of performance outcomes including individual, group and organizational level variables The transformational leadership introduces four elements of full range of leadership: Individualized Consideration Intellectual Stimulation Inspirational Motivation Autocratic An autocratic leadership style is one of domination and repression, similar to a dictatorship. This type of leadership maximally founded in an administration of a country. There are historical examples of the disadvantages and oppression of an autocratic leadership style. Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin and Fidel Castro are examples of the autocratic leadership style. Hitler and his administration were accountable for the deaths of millions of Jewish people. Stalin killed more than 3 million people through famines, executions and forced labor. Castro has total control over Cubas resources, resulting in food rationing and attempts by numerous residents to flee the country. An autocratic leader tells people what to do, issues orders and expects them to be abide by. It is said to be suitable to use an autocratic leadership style in definite situations in an urgent situation and when only the leader can make the decision. For example, only the leader can decide who to hire fire and promote. If the substitute to being autocratic is participative leadership, then it is clear that employees in most organizations dont have a say in how much the salary should be after getting promoted. Today, leadership still has some ancient and paternalistic fundamentals. We now expect people in charge of us to respect our opinions and to engage us in making important decisions. But we still generally prefer only one person to be in on the whole charge and we want that person to live up to certain paternalistic ideals. This form of leadership, however, is breaking down because there is a clash between the desire for leaders who know what they are doing and the realities of modern complexity and rapid change. The regular way to cheat this predicament is to say that leadership no longer means calling the shots, to say instead that it means being a good facilitator and coach. When leadership is defined as promoting fresh directions and is not connected with position, then there is no longer any such thing as autocratic leadership. Yes, the person in charge of a group can make independent decisions but this is decision-making action, not leadership. On this view, leadership is always based on unofficial pressure or influence. Leadership can also be shown by example. The allusion of this move is that any time an executive makes a decision that affects the groups interests or direction, the executive introduced as a manager but not showing leadership. In other words, leadership cannot be shown by telling people what to do. Still managers need to be autocratic at times, such as emergency and to decide conflict that cannot be resolved in any other way Transactional Transactional leadership is a term used to classify a formally known group leadership theories that inquire the interactions between leaders and followers. A transactional leader focuses more on a series of transactions. These people is interested in looking out for oneself, having exchange benefits with their subordinates and clarify a sense of duty with rewards and punishments to reach goals. Transactional leaders believe that people are motivated by reward or punishment. These leaders give clear instructions to followers about what their expectations are and when those expectations are fulfilled there are rewards in store for them and failure is severely punished. They allocate work to subordinates whether resources are there or absent. Transactional leadership is based in contingency, in that reward or punishment is contingent upon performance. Despite much research that highlights its limitations, Transactional Leadership is still a popular approach with many managers. Indeed, in the Leadership vs. Management spectrum, it is very much towards the management end of the scale. The main limitation is the assumption of rational man, a person who is largely motivated by money and simple reward, and hence whose behavior is predictable. The underlying psychology is Behaviorism, including the Classical Conditioning of Pavlov and Skinners Operant Conditioning. These theories are largely based on controlled laboratory experiments (often with animals) and ignore complex emotional factors and social values. In practice, there is sufficient truth in Behaviorism to sustain Transactional approaches. This is reinforced by the supply-and-demand situation of much employment, coupled with the effects of deeper needs, as in Maslows Hierarchy. When the demand for a skill outstrips the supply, then Transactional Leadership often is insufficient, and other approaches are more effective. The transactional leader works through creating clear structures whereby it is clear what is required of their subordinates, and the rewards that they get for following orders. Punishments are not always mentioned, but they are also well-understood and formal systems of discipline are usually in place. The early stage of Transactional Leadership is in negotiating the contract whereby the subordinate is given a salary and other benefits, and the company (and by implication the subordinates manager) gets authority over the subordinate. When the Transactional Leader allocates work to a subordinate, they are considered to be fully responsible for it, whether or not they have the resources or capability to carry it out. When things go wrong, then the subordinate is considered to be personally at fault, and is punished for their failure (just as they are rewarded for succeeding). The transactional leader often uses management by exception, working on the principle that if something is operating to defined (and hence expected) performance then it does not need attention. Exceptions to expectation require praise and reward for exceeding expectation, whilst some kind of corrective action is applied for performance below expectation. Whereas Transformational Leadership has more of a selling style, Transactional Leadership, once the contract is in place, takes a telling style. Transactional leaders must understand what motivates their employees. Ensure employees understand the reward system and how they can achieve the rewards. Ensure that both reward and punishment systems are in place and are consistently exercised. Provide constructive feedback throughout the work process. Ensure that rewards and recognition are provided in a timely manner. Situational Leadership Theory Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard developed the situational model of leadership relates four different leadership styles to the followers confidence and ability to carry it out. Most of the leadership training programs offered today attempt to help you discover the leadership style you exhibit and make you aware of its strengths and weaknesses.   However, a situational leadership style is not dictated by the leadership skills of the manager. The idea of situational leadership  is more closely tied to using the style needed to be successful given the existing work environment being managed or the specific needs of the business. The effective manager is able to utilize multiple leadership styles as conditions change.   This is the theory behind the concept of situational leadership.   Implementing situational leadership in an organization then becomes a matter of training managers to recognize the current work setting or employee situation and using the most effective leadership style given that specific challenge. For example, delegating work to an employee that is ill prepared to accept that responsibility may result in the impression that the worker is incompetent.   This can lead to frustration for both the manager and worker.   Ironically, in some situations it is actually the managers inability to recognize the most effective leadership style, or refusal to switch styles, that is really the cause of an ineffective workforce. Importance of the Leadership-Performance Relationship During the past four decades, the impact of leadership styles on organizational performance has been a topic of interest among academics and practitioners working in the area of leadership. The style of leadership adopted is considered by some researchers to be particularly important in achieving organizational goals, and in evoking performance among subordinates Despite the widespread recognition of the significance and value of leadership, when studying the leadership literature, it is remarkable that the concept of leadership lacks consistency and agreement. Most of the leadership literature confuses the definition of effective leadership by failing to make clear distinctions in some definitions, such as between leaders and non-leaders, effective and ineffective leaders, as well as overlooking the definition of the levels of leadership Further, there has been limited research that has specifically addressed the relationship between leadership behavior and organizational performanc e. Despite these oversights, it is widely believed that leadership creates the vital link between organizational effectiveness and peoples performance at an organizational level Substantial numbers of management scholars have debated the effectiveness of leadership styles and behaviors In addition, much prior research has examined the assumed leadership-performance relationship, but it has examined a restricted number of leadership paradigms. This implies that different leadership paradigms could affect performance differently, depending on the context. Thus, when researching the leadership-performance relationship, the context needs to be taken into account and more paradigms need to be considered. Moreover, there are methodological problems with most existing studies. The majority of field studies have been cross-sectional in design, and the common-method bias often has been a problem when performance has been Measured Link between Leadership and Organizational Performance Several reasons indicate that there should be a relationship between leadership and performance. The first reason relates to practice. Todays intensive, dynamic markets feature innovation-based competition, Price/performance rivalry, decreasing returns, and the creative destruction of existing competencies. Scholars and practitioners suggest that effective leadership behaviors can facilitate the improvement of performance when organizations face these new challenges Understanding the effects of leadership on performance is also important because leadership is viewed by some researchers as one of the key driving forces for improving a firms performance. Effective leadership is seen as a potent source of management development and sustained competitive advantage for organizational performance improvement. For example, transactional leadership helps organizations achieve their current objectives more efficiently by linking job performance to valued rewards and by ensuring employees have the resources needed to get the job done . Visionary Leaders create a strategic vision of some future state, communicate that vision through framing and use of metaphor, model the vision by acting consistently, and build commitment towards the vision. Some scholars suggest that visionary leadership will result in high levels of cohesion, commitment, trust, motivation, and hence performance in the new organizational environments. According to Mehra when some organizations seek efficient ways to enable them to outperform others, a longstanding approach is to focus on the effects of leadership. This is because team leaders are believed to play a pivotal role in shaping collective norms, helping teams cope with their environments, and coordinating collective action. This leader-centered perspective has provided valuable insights into the relationship between leadership and team performance. Some researchers have started to explore the strategic role of leadership, and investigate how to employ leadership paradigms and use leadership behavior to improve organizational performance. The reason for this is because intangible assets such as leadership styles, culture, skill and competence, and motivation are seen increasingly as key sources of strength in those firms that can combine people and processes and organizational performance. Previous research leads to the expectation that leadership paradigms will have dir ect effects on customer satisfaction, staff satisfaction, and financial performance. However, in general, the effects of leadership on organizational performance have not been well studied, according to House and Adytas review. House and Adyta (1997) criticized leadership studies for focusing excessively on superior-subordinate relationships to the exclusion of several other functions that leaders perform, and to the exclusion of organizational and environmental variables that are crucial to mediate the leadership-performance relationship. A further problem with existing leadership research is that the results depend on the level of analysis. House and Adyta (1997) distinguished micro-level research that focuses on the leader in relation to his or her subordinates and immediate superiors, and macro-level research that focuses on the total organization and its environment. Other scholars also suggest that leaders and their leadership style influence both their subordinates and organizational outcomes. Selection of Leadership development Initiatives The models and competency frameworks detailed in the previous section are, in most cases, used as a basis for the development of leadership and management development provision within organizations as well as appraisal and performance review. It is beyond the scope of this report to offer a detailed review of the associated programmers and the range of leadership and management development initiatives available, however, we would like to introduce a number of approaches that we feel are particularly interesting in the manner in which they seek to develop the behaviors, skills and attitudes of leaders. National and International Learning Experiences: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Development Assignments (Lancaster University Management School) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Transformational Thinking (Manchester University) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Study Tour to Canada (Kings Fund) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Duality Leadership Programmed (University of Birmingham) Action Learning Sets (Nelson and Peddler) Modular Programmes: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Experienced Chief Executives Development Programmed (Kings Fund and Lancaster University Management School) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Drive for Results (Manchester University) Findings Prior to the examination of associations between leadership style, organizational culture, and performance, a phase of data reduction was necessary. The construction of meaningful indices was initiated by the use of principal components analysis with Varian rotation. Factor analysis was deemed necessary since it was considered prudent statistically to ascertain whether the adopted measures of organizational culture and leadership style captured differing dimensions of culture and style. The principal components analysis of items pertaining to organizational culture and items relating to leadership style were conducted individually. It was not necessary to delete items from the analysis due to lack of variation or because of problems of interpretation. Leadership Styles with Examples An autocratic leader is the one who believes in taking all the vital decisions himself. It is the leader who decides how the work has to be done and by whom. Once the decision has been made, there is no scope of any modify. The subordinates simply carry on with the works assigned to them. They are not allowed to give any input on the topic of how they should do their work or perform daily behavior. Every detail is pre-decided by the leader himself. In case some changes in the work agenda have to be made, they are made by the leader without consulting any one else. Autocratic leadership style works well if the leader is proficient and knowledgeable adequate to decide about each and every thing. Reliable is considered one of the most effective leadership styles in case there is some disaster situation and quick decisions need to be taken. If there is no time left for discussion or weighing various options, then this type of leadership style gives the best results. Authoritarian leadership styles examples can be found in the real world in people like Bill Gates and John F Kennedy. Bill Gates followed the authoritarian leadership style and steered Microsoft towards enormous success. According to Bill Gates, he had a vision when he took reins of the company and then used all the resources available to make that vision a reality. His success can be judged from the way personal computers industry has advanced in America today. Participative Participative leadership style involves the leader taking into consideration the opinions of some of his employees before arriving at the final decision. This leadership style earns the leader immense respect and loyalty among his subordinates, as they feel that their opinions matter too. This leadership style is useful for the leader as he gets to see a given situation from all directions, before deciding on the final course of action. This leadership style works really well in situations when the leader does not know everything and he relies on his subordinates knowledge for taking decisions. The biggest advantage of this leadership and management style is that it helps in ascertaining and identifying future leaders among the subordinates. Also, it keeps a teams spirit and morale high, as the team members feel that their opinions are valued by their leader. Heres a participative leadership styles examples An advertising manager approaches his team members on how to promote a particular product of a company. The team members brain storm over the issue, some suggest print media, and others suggest direct mails to the prospective clients. The participative leader takes all these suggestions, weighs their pros and cons and then takes the final decision after considering his team members opinions. Case Study This case is about the charismatic and controversial former captain of the Indian national cricket team, Sourav Ganguly. The case outlines the emergence of Ganguly as a leader, his stunning rise and later fall from grace. Ganguly became the captain of the team in 2000, when it was in a deep crisis. Over the next few years, with the help of the coach John Wright, he soon turned the team into a combative unit. His team building skills, impartiality and, guts displayed in supporting his team members through thick and thin, endeared him to the team. Experts credited him with instilling a sense of aggression in the team. Ganguly soon became the most successful captain in the history of Indian cricket. The case also discusses the fall of Ganguly in 2005 and his public spat with Coach Greg Chappell (Chappell) which led to his exit from the team. Since age was not on his side, few felt that Ganguly could make a comeback into the team. But Ganguly refused to announce his retirement and contin ued to fight to win back his place in the team despite all the odds. In 2000, when Ganguly took over as captain, Indian cricket was at its nadir. The match fixing scandal had taken its toll with some senior players including former captain Mohammed Azharuddin and cricketer Ajay Jadeja being banned from the game. The morale of the team was at an all-time low. The team, considered tigers at home, had just lost its first home series in many years to South Africa. In fact, Ganguly was not the first choice for the captaincy. He got the job as Tendulkar was reluctant to take on the additional responsibility of captaincy. Gangulys problems were compounded in the end of September 2005, when Dalmiya was defeated by Pawar in the BCCI elections. On the same day of winning the elections, Pawar axed the selectors who had been sympathetic to Ganguly. It was widely believed that Gangulys era was over. The selection committee led by more appointed Dravid as captain. In October 2005, Ganguly was dropped from the ODI squad. In November 2005, Ganguly was sacked as captain of the Indian test squad. With the doors to the team being shut, Ganguly was forced to spend time playing domestic cricket. Experts felt that while his audacity and habit of speaking his mind had earned him respect in cricketing circles, they had also served to make him a lot of enemies w The Fighter Refuses to Quit. Despite all the criticism, when Ganguly was dropped from the squad, many Indian fans, especially fans in his home state West Bengal were upset. There was also a sympathy wave for Ganguly. Gangulys fan following knew no national borders. Even in Pakistan, he had a huge fan following though he performed exceedingly well against the archrivals. Whenever I ndian journalists went to Pakistan, the fans asked about Ganguly and expressed their displeasure at how he had been treated by his countrymen. Despite all the criticism, when Ganguly was dropped from the squad, many Indian fans, especially fans in his home state West Bengal were upset. There was also a sympathy wave for Ganguly. Gangulys fan following knew no national borders. Even in Pakistan, he had a huge fan following though he performed exceedingly well against the archrivals. Whenever Indian journalists went to Pakistan, the fans asked about Ganguly and expressed their displeasure at how he had been treated by his countrymen.

Corporate Development During The Industrial Revolution :: essays research papers fc

Corporate Development During the Industrial Revolution The Standard Oil Company founded by John D. Rockefeller and the U.S. Steel Company founded by Andrew Carnegie. The Standard Oil Company and U.S. Steel Company were made successful in different ways due to the actions of their different owners. The companies differed in their labor relations, market control, and structural organization. In the steel industry, Carnegie developed a system known as vertical integration. This means that he cut out the middle man. Carnegie bought his own iron and coal mines because using independent companies cost too much and were inefficient. By doing this he was able to undersell his competetors because they had to pay the competitors they went through to get the raw materials. Unlike Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller integrated his oil business from top to bottom, his distinctive innovation in movement of American industry was horizontal. This meant he followed one product through all its stages. For example, rockrfeller controlled the oil when it was drilled, through the refining stage, and he maintained control over the refining process turning it into gasoline. Although these two powerful men used two different methods of management their businesses were still very successful (Conlin, 425-426). Tycoons like Andrew Carnegie, "the steel king," and John D. Rockefeller, "the oil baron," exercised their genius in devising ways to circument competition. Although, Carnegie inclined to be tough-fisted in business, he was not a monopolist and disliked monopolistic trusts. John D. Rockefeller came to dominate the oil industry. With one upward stride after another he organized the Standard Oil Company, which was the nucleus of the great trust that was formed. Rockefeller showed little mercy. He believed primitive savagery prevailed in the jungle world of business, where only the fittest survived. He persued the policy of "ruin or rule." Rockefeller's oil monopoly did turn out a superior product at a relatively cheap price. Rockefeller belived in ruthless business, Carnegie didn't, yet they both had the most successful companies in their industries. (The American Pageant, pages 515-518) Rockefeller treated his customers in the same manner that Andrew Carnegie treated his workers: cruel and harsh. The Standard Oil Company desperately wanted every possible company to buy their products. Standard Oil used ruthless tactics when Rockefeller threatenedto start his own chain of grocery stores and put local merchants out of business if they did not buy oil from Standard Oil Company. Carnegie dealt with his workers with the same cold lack of diplomacy and consideration. Carnegie would encourage an unfriendly competition between two of his workers and he goaded them into outdoing one another. Some of his employees found working under Carnegie unbearable.

Fin515 Wk 4

7-2 – Boehm Incorporated is expected to pay a $1. 50 per share dividend at the end of this year (i. e. , D1 = $1. 50). The dividend is expected to grow at a constant rate of 7% a year. The required  rate of return  on the stock, rs, is 15%. What is the value per share of Boehm’s stock? D1= $1. 50 per share g = 7% rs= 15% What is the value of a share of Boehm Stock? P^0 =    D1 /(rs – g) P^0 =    1. 50/(0. 15-0. 07) P^0 =    $18. 75 7-4 – Nick’s Enchiladas Incorporated has preferred stock outstanding that pays a dividend of $5 at the end of each year. The preferred sells for $50 a share.What is the stock’s required rate of return? Dividend = $5 Preferred    = $50 What is the stock’s required rate of return ^P 0 = D/rs rs = D/^P 0 rs = 5/50 rs = 0. 10 or 10% 7-5 – A company currently pays a dividend of $2 per share (D0 = $2). It is estimated that the company’s dividend will grow at a rate of 20% per year for the next 2 years, then at a constant rate of 7% thereafter. The company’s stock has a beta of 1. 2, the risk- free rate is 7. 5%, and the market risk premium is 4%. What is your estimate of the stock’s current price? D0 = $2. 00 g = 20% for 2 years g = 7% there after Bi = 1. 2 Rf = 7. 5%RPm = 4% Rs = Rf +(bi* RPm) Rs = 7. 5 +(1. 2*4) Rs = 12. 3 What is your estimate of the stock’s current price? D0 $2. 00 g0 to 1 20. 0% g1 to 2 20. 0% gn 7. 0% rs 12. 3% Year 1 2 D1 D2 Expected dividends $2. 40 $2. 88 Expected P2 $58. 14 PV of expected dividends $4. 42 PV of expected P2 $46. 10 Expected P0 $50. 53 Problems (p. 371) 9-2 After-Tax Cost of Debt LL Incorporated’s currently outstanding 11% coupon bonds have a yield to maturity of 8%. LL believes it could issue new bonds at par that would provide a similar yield to maturity. If its marginal tax rate is 35%, what is LL’s after-tax cost of debt?After Tax cost of debt = rd * (1- tx rate) 0. 08 * (1 – 0. 35) = 0. 08 * (0. 65) = 0. 052 Answer: 5. 2% 9-4 Cost of Preferred Stock with Flottion Costs Burnwood Tech plans to issue some $60 par preferred stock with a 6% dividend. A similar stock is selling on the market for $70. Burnwood must pay flotation costs of 5% of the issue price. What is the cost of the preferred stock? E= Dividend/ (Market price-Flotation Costs)=(60/6)/(70-(70X0. 05)=0. 0541=5. 41 Answer: 5. 41% 9-5 Cost of Equity – DCF Summerdahl Resorts' common stock is currently trading at $36 a share. The stock is expected to pay a dividend of $3. 0 a share at the end of the year (D1 _ $3. 00), and the dividend is expected to grow at a constant rate of 5% a year. What is the   cost of common equity? P0 = $36; D1 = $3. 00; g = 5%; rs = ? rs = D1/P0+g=(3/36)+0. 05=0. 01333 Answer: 13. 33% 9-6 Cost of Equity – CAPM Booher Book Stores has a beta of 0. 8. The yield on a 3-month T-bill is 4% and the yield on a 10-year T-bond is 6%. The market risk premium is 5. 5%, an d the return on an average stock in the market last year was 15%. What is the estimated cost of common equity using the CAPM? rs = rRF + bi(RPM) = 0. 06 + 0. 8(0. 55) = 0. 14 Answer: 10. 4% 9-7 WACC Shi Importers' balance sheet shows $300 million in debt, $50 million in preferred stock, and $250 million in total common equity. Shi faces a 40% tax rate and the following data: rd _ 6%, rps _ 5. 8%, and rs _ 12%. If Shi has a target capital structure of 30% debt, 5% preferred stock, and 65% common stock, what is Shi's WACC? 30% Debt; 5% Preferred Stock; 65% Equity; rd = 6%; T = 40%; rps = 5. 8%; rs = 12%. WACC = (wd)(rd)(1 – T) + (wps)(rps) + (wce)(rs) WACC = 0. 30(0. 06)(1-0. 40) + 0. 05(0. 058) + 0. 65(0. 12) = 0. 0917 Answer: 9. 17%

Ethical Dilemmas Facing Non-Profit Hospital Ceo Compensation

Ethical Dilemmas Facing Non-Profit Hospital CEO Compensation Ethical Dilemmas Facing Non-Profit Hospital CEO Compensation Executive Summary This essay deals with the unethical prevalence of excessive compensation packages granted to nonprofit hospital executives. Nonprofits are highly complex organizations and are vital to the community’s in which they serves. Therefore, it is essential for these organizations to appoint highly motivated individuals knowledgeable of the healthcare industry and capable of managing and leading a hospital during a national recession while health reform is changing the culture of the US healthcare system.However, many nonprofit organization’s tax-exempt statuses should be rescinded for allocating leftover resources to hospital executives in the form of exorbitant salaries, benefits, and other incentives. It is these hefty salaries and benefits that are restricting hospitals from carrying out their priority mission as public charities. These CEO’s exorbitant compensation packages are further straining the hospital’s ability to provide a social benefit, suggestion that these tax-exempt organizations are acting unethically, in that financial gain is taking precedents over social responsibilities.Ethical Dilemmas Facing Non-Profit Hospital CEO Compensation Communities across the nation have seen the coarse effects of the delicate financial status of our country and the effects it has on healthcare organization within their community. In a time difficult for nonprofit healthcare organizations to operate at a profit, many organizations are left with no choice but to cut essential departments, programs, and employees, leaving many patients that have relied on these organizations, out in the cold.Recently, because of these financial issues, the ethical principles of nonprofits regarding CEO compensation have been under heavy scrutiny by both the public, and the Internal Revenue Service for excessive salaries and benefits. Nonprofit hospitals are organization that are exempt from paying income, sales, and property taxes, and receive charitable donations and massive government subsidies with the understanding that these subsidies are issued in order for these hospitals to fulfill their duty as a community service and benefit.Excessively high compensation for hospital executives is an unethical epidemic facing many organizations, particularly large and urban hospitals, that is restricting hospitals from carrying out its duties because of additional financial constraint. Salaries for nonprofit hospital executives should be capped as they limit and often restrict hospitals to better fulfill their charitable, social missions. Healthcare is beginning to mirror corporate businesses with many hospital CEO salaries competitively rivaling those of corporate executives.However, organizational goals and missions are nearly completely diametrical. Healthcare organizations are unlike other corporations i n that corporations are in existence with the ultimate goal of financial gain. Nonprofit hospitals carry missions such as to provide high-quality, cost-effective healthcare services to all patients regardless of ability to pay,  to offer training, to conduct clinical research, to serve the community as a public health advocate, and to provide support and services which respond to the area's health care needs through health education, health promotion, and access to care.Hospitals have the ethical responsibility to pursue a social mission, including providing uncompensated care and community outreach, but when their executives boast salaries with staggering seven figure salaries, the charitable work of the organization becomes obnubilated by an unmistakable pursuit of financial gain. The IRS reported that the average hospital CEO received $490,000 in total compensation in 2006, and top executives at twenty of the larger hospitals in the nation raked in an average of $1. 4 million a year, whereas uncompensated and free care expenditures as a percentage of hospital revenues averaged about 7 percent (Terry, K. 009). There is a large margin in executive compensation that is dependent on features such as geographical location and size. According to the â€Å"Charity Navigator,† in 2008, the median CEO salary in the Northeast was $351,000 for large hospitals, and $120,000 for small hospitals. In the Mountain West region of the US, the median salaries for a large hospital was $194,374, and only $80,790 for small hospitals (Charity Navigator 2010) Seven figure salaries are not a normal occurrence among hospital and health system executives.However, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy, which does an annual national survey of nonprofit salaries, found that the five top-paid nonprofit chief executives in 2003 all worked for hospitals. On top of these exaggerated salaries are the attractive benefits such as bonuses, deferred income, retirement plans, countr y club memberships, and countless other perks that are attracting the wrong kind of leaders to these organizations. Hospitals must provide their social responsibility to the community before spending outrageous salaries for chief executives.It is an unethical practice to pay executive teams more than the total spending on the necessitous care of the community. For example, the survey identified 17 hospitals in California where the total compensation to CEO’s alone exceeded the total cost of charity care of their respective organizations. These excessive salaries could have easily paid hospital bills for uninsured individuals, or could have been used to fund educational programs for the community, provide free immunizations to the public, and or many other beneficial alternatives that could have had a big impact on the community’s health (Mahar, M. 011). It is unjustified for executives to be compensated in amounts greater than $1 million. By capping executive salary at this figure, funds can be reprioritized into community programs such as parenting support programs, screening programs, women, children and infant development clinics, which can be implemented to provide nutrition and educational information for new mothers, and social work programs that could assist individuals and families that face medical related problems, and those who need emotional support.Instead, greed has played a big factor in CEO initiatives. It has not been of rare occurrence for Chief executives to siphon off millions of tax dollars that should be going towards access and quality care. It is unethical for executives at nonprofit organizations to exploit their federally granted nontaxable status to enrich themselves (Swiatek, J. , 2005) Attorney General Michael A. Delaney of New Hampshire announced in May of 2010 that he would review the compensation of CEO’s at more than twenty nonprofit hospitals throughout the state.In a report that reviewed the proposed merg er of two health systems, Mr. Delaney expressed his concern about the pay for Alyson Pitman Giles, President ; CEO of Catholic Medical Center, who earned $1. 4 million in 2009. He stated, â€Å"Nonprofit leaders must be aware that they are the stewards of the charitable assets they oversee, and those assets are held in trust for charitable purposes, not individual gain,† (Gose, B. , 2010)Non-profit hospitals must provide a minimum of charity care in order to receive its tax-free title and its federal grants. However, many hospitals, although they meet the minimum, make no effort to go above and beyond this threshold, instead rewarding these left over funds to be dispersed to the organization’s high-end executives in the form of company cars and country club memberships (Mahar, M. , 2011). These lavish executive benefits in no way benefit the organization. They are unethical and borderline unlawful.Federal law states that non-profit, tax-exempt organizations cannot oper ate to the financial benefit of any individual. In the mid-1990s, Congress passed intermediate sanctions laws that have given the IRS authority to require individuals who make excessive compensation from a non-profit to pay the money back, plus a 25% fin. (Appleby, J. , 2004). It is a common suggestion to compensate executives to match their performance at the organization in which they lead. However there are different ways to measure hospital performance.There is a measure of how well a CEO does in leading his or her hospital in providing beneficial programs to the community; for example, uncompensated care for the poor. Another way to measure or his or her success is by how well CEO’s implement new programs and services that will in hopes attract private pay customers like specialized surgery centers, imaging centers, and cardiac centers. Many healthcare organizations across the nation are expanding and adding unique services that are attracting private pay customers, givi ng hospitals the opportunity to increase profits.This practice has its benefits in both providing a wider range of care for those who can pay, and offering the hospital more means of financial gain, however, in many organizations, this has established precedence over the social missions of nonprofit organizations. In a study conducted by Jeffrey Kramer, PHD, and Rexford E. Santerre, PhD, 30 hospitals in Connecticut were examined on how various measures of performance affect the compensation of CEO’s, which throughout the state, range from a modest $136,000 to an exorbitant $2 million plus salary.The study shows that CEO compensation is directly related to organizational size, stating, â€Å"A 10 percent increase in the number of beds results in an 8 percent increase in CEO pay. † Another 8% increase in pay is attributed to the CEO if the occupancy rate rises by 10%. â€Å"In contrast, providing more uncompensated care and admitting an additional public-pay patient low ers the compensation of hospital CEOs. The results of the study reveal that hospital CEO’s (certainly in the state of Connecticut) have financial incentive to increase the occupancy of privately insured patients rather than uncompensated care and public paid insurance patients, also suggesting that economic performance takes priority over charitable performance (Kramer, J. , ; Santerre, R. E). Notwithstanding, A non-distribution constraint on nonprofit organizations means that excessive profits cannot be distributed among those who make decisions within the organization; this includes employees, managers, and board members.Hence, the nonprofit distinction ought to mean hospital executives are paid based upon their attainment at fulfilling the charitable and social mission of the organization. Nonprofit hospitals have ethical responsibilities and obligations to serve the community, even in times of financial struggle. It is important for these organizations to recruit professi onals that demonstrate the same ideals and values of the organization. Healthcare leaders whose goal is to produce a healthier population through increased public programs and access to care is the type of leader that hospitals and health systems should strive to obtain.Accomplished leaders can be found and appointed as a nonprofit CEO for a more reasonable (6 figure) salary if he or she is in the healthcare industry not for riches, but for offering a greater good. The American Red Cross for example, took in $3. 3 billion in revenue in 2009, however Red Cross CEO Gail McGovern took in only $456,000, according to the organization's IRS filing (Hancock, J. , 2011). McGovern is an example of a leader who recognizes the ethical financial dilemmas of her organization, and will willingly take a more appropriate salary in order to accomplish the organization’s goals.There is no mention of executive compensation in the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act besides the suggestion t hat compensation should be â€Å"reasonable†. Hospital executives should be paid based on their production within the organization and their contribution to their community. As a nonprofit organization, pursuing the charitable mission should take greatest importance in determining final executive compensation. This aspect of an organization’s mission should never be overshadowed by hospital expansion, financial well-being, or increased services and technology.Although these elements are incredibly important for the organization, the insured population, and the advancement of medicine, it is unethical for charitable organizations to use government subsidies for anything other than charity care and social benefit. Budget cuts, along with a feeble economy has resulted in hospitals engaging in mass layoffs to conserve resources. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the month of August (2011) consisted of thirteen mass layoffs in hospitals, totaling in over 1,000 jobs lost. The month before consisted of ten mass layoffs with over 600 lost jobs.This puts hospitals on pace for nearly 130 mass layoffs and over 8,000 jobs lost in 2011. To make matters seem worse, in an article posted by FierceHealthcare, a leading source of healthcare management news for healthcare industry executives, AMA data claims that a 2 percent cut in the Medicare program would lead to the loss of 195,000 jobs by 2021 (Caramenico, A. , 2011). These layoffs would be decreased immensely if hospital executives received more appropriate salaries. Excessive salaries are not only draining resources from the hospital, but are also threatening the jobs of nurses, administrators, and other hospital employees.These staff members, who are on an opposite spectrum in terms of salary, face the possibility of layoffs at any time of financial vulnerability. The decision to cut jobs in non-profit hospitals while executives are still receiving Wall Street salaries is unethical of the boar d of trustees. In financially difficult times, executives have the ethical responsibility to take pay cuts in order to maintain the organization’s social reputation. Hospitals are extremely complex organizations that more often than not are the single largest employers in communities across the country.Hospital executives are responsible for making important decisions that will ultimately affect thousands of people. Many CEO’s and members of boards of trustees argue that executive roles are far too important to not have competitive compensation packages. It is argued that million dollar salaries, added bonuses, hefty retirement plans, and other attractive perks are the only way to attract highly effective leaders capable of running a hospital in a time of economic struggle and health reform. Many hospitals have net revenues exceeding the billion-dollar mark, making it easier of Board members to justify seven-figure salaries for CEO’s.President and CEO of New Yor k-Presbyterian Hospital, Dr. Herbert Pardes inherited a $9. 8 million package in 2008 that included $6. 8 million of previously awarded retirement benefits, which he'll receive when he retires at the end of 2011. If Dr. Pardes worked at a public company of about the same size, his salary would be outrageously low. In 2009, Nasdaq CEO Robert Griefeld's total compensation exceeded $13 million while his company's revenues were only $3. 4 billion. New York-Presbyterian has 2,353 beds and pulled in $3 billion in revenue in 2008, up 3% from 2007. A The Greater New York Hospital Association spokesman defended Dr.Pardes’ salary, stating, â€Å"Dr. Pardes' pay reflects his extraordinary success leading this large and complex organization, and exceeding objectives to enhance patient care, strengthen financial stability and promote community health in a very challenging environment. † (Benson, B. , 2010) The Greater New York Hospital Association stated that â€Å"CEO salaries re flect not only a national demand for their services, but also the skills and leadership necessary to operate large, extremely complex medical centers that are open 24/7, generate millions and sometimes billions in revenue, and are often the largest employer in the community. (Benson 2010) Leading one of these charities requires an individual that possesses an understanding of the issues that are unique to the charity’s mission as well as a high level of fundraising and management expertise. Attracting and retaining that type of talent requires a competitive level of compensation as dictated by the marketplace. It is important for donors to understand that since the average charity CEO earns roughly $150,000, a six-figure salary is not necessarily a sign of excessive pay for a mid to large sized charity. Charity Navigator 2010) Today, executives are being paid to keep their organizations afloat amid closings of many hospitals nationwide due to persistently poor financial perfo rmances. CEO’s face constant pressure to hire more staff, increase nurses’ salaries, implement more community programs, and invest in expensive technologies, while at the same time they are aware that insurers want to pay as little as possible. The CEO undoubtedly faces many challenges, and the responsibilities are incredibly complex.Even with a nonprofit status, many oppose executive compensation cuts, arguing that these organizational leaders deserve salaries competitive to corporate pay. Trustees pay executives based on total revenues, as well as how effective they are in providing patient safety, clinical quality, attentive service, and cost effectiveness. Hospital executive compensation should be based on a number of elements, such as total revenue, the size of the organization, as well as the amount and effectiveness of community benefit.Instead of offering company cars and extravagant country club memberships, executives should be entitled to financial incentive s to implement more community benefit programs. Peter Baristone, President & CEO of Mission Hospital located in Laguna Beach, CA referred to his own compensation strategy stating: Collaborating with the community to identify, understand, and respond to community needs that have an impact on health and quality of life is a major goal for all CEO’s. We establish specific quantifiable targets for each goal.One-seventh of my bonus depends on reaching the targets for community health and benefit. (Bogue, R, 1999). I recommend that all nonprofit Boards assemble an independent compensation committee, responsible for reviewing the CEO’s performance and ensuring that the CEO’s pay is appropriate. At its highest, CEO compensation should be capped at $1 million, thus allowing these large, urban hospitals to recycle resources back into the hospital and community programs, while at the same time offering executives a market competitive salary, fit for a CEO.At a time where n early 20% of adults are uninsured and community residents are in need of help in the form of various programs, it is more important than ever for nonprofit hospitals to perform its duty of being a â€Å"non-profit† organization and be of greater service to the community in which it serves. Nonprofits not only have the legal responsibility to implement such benefits, but also have the moral and ethical duty to carry out their social missions to the best of their ability, and as far as their recourses let them.By capping executive compensation, these resources can be better allocated to provide more charity care, to implement more community programs and benefits to produce a healthier community, and ensure fairness among staff salaries. â€Å"Hospitals are unquestionably complex institutions that require skilled managers, but there's no place for Wall Street-level salaries if we want an affordable health care system. † –Mark Scherzer (Benson, B. , 2010) Works Cite d: Terry, K. (2009, February 13). IRS Report Puts Tax-Exempt Hospitals Under Microscope – CBS News.Breaking News Headlines: Business, Entertainment & World News – CBS News. Retrieved December 5, 2011, from http://www. cbsnews. com/8301-505123_162- 43840159/irs-report-puts-tax-exempt-hospitals-under-microscope/? tag=bnetdoma in Charity Navigator. (n. d. ). 2010 Compensation Study. Retrieved October 15, 2011, from www. charitynavigator. org/__asset__/st Mahar, M. (2011, March 24). Health Beat: High CEO Salaries at Nonprofit Hospitals Under Scrutiny†¦Once Again. Health Beat. Retrieved November 5, 2011, from http://www. healthbeatblog. om/2011/03/high-ceo-salaries-at- Swiatek, J. (2005, February 6). Pay is healthy for hospitals' executives Corporate-like salaries seen at nonprofits' top jobs. The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved September 29, 2011, from www2. indystar. com/articles/6/220029-4276-P. html Gose, B. (2010). Nonprofit CEO Pay Under Scrutiny. Chronicle Of Phila nthropy, 22(16), 8. Appleby, J. , & TODAY, U. (2004, September 30). USATODAY. com – IRS looking closely at what non-profits pay. News, Travel, Weather, Entertainment, Sports, Technology, U. S. & World – USATODAY. com.Retrieved November 5, 2011, from http://www. usatoday. com/money/companies/management/2004-09-30-salary- Kramer, J. , & Santerre, R. E. (2010). Not-for-Profit Hospital CEO Performance and Pay: Some Evidence from Connecticut. Inquiry, 47(3), 242-251 Hancock, J. (2011, August 28). For hospitals, ‘nonprofit' stops with CEO's paycheck – Baltimore Sun. Featured Articles From The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved November 4, 2011, from http://articles. baltimoresun. com/2010-08-29/health/bs-bz-hancock-hospital-pay-20100829_1_hospitals-executive-compensation-ceos Caramenico, A. 2011, October 4). More mass layoffs as hospitals face payment cuts – FierceHealthcare. Healthcare News, Hospital News, Healthcare Companies — Fierce Healthcare. Retrieved October 26, 2011, from http://www. fiercehealthcare. com/story/more-mass-layoffs- hospitals-face-payment-cuts/2011-10-04 Benson, B. (2010). Hospital execs enjoy healthy paydays. (cover story). Crain's New York Business, 26(12), 1-15. Bogue, R. (1999). An incentive for community health. Linking CEO compensation to community goals. Trustee: The Journal For Hospital Governing Boards, 52(5), 15-19.

Pick a historical related film and analyse its historical accuracy.

Pick a historical related film and analyse its historical accuracy. The historical accuracy of gladiator in some aspects was quite good but in others, quite bad. Even right from the opening scene, the inaccuracies start. First, there was no last great battle with the Germanic tribes on the eve of Marcus Aurelius' death. There was a great daylong battle late in the campaigning season of A.D. 179, but Marcus died on March 17 of 180, just as he was about to launch another great military campaign. It is most probable that the scriptwriters needed to shorten the chronology here to save time in a long movie, but that wasn't their only mistake relating to battles. The use of fire-hurling catapults and mechanical dart launchers against the oncoming barbarians was certainly dramatic but probably unhistorical. Such weapons were too burdensome for use on the open battlefield, thus were confined to more static siege warfare.I have found no proof corresponding to the Roman commander Maximus, the movie's hero, and if there were one, it would not have been a German shepherd, a breed that did not exist in ancient times.Portrait of Emperor Lucius Verus. Marble, ca. 161-...Marcus Aurelius was not quite 59 when he died, perhaps of plague. "Gladiator" does capture his kindly and philosophical nature, but his decrepit frailty, thin beard, and wispy fly-away hair in the movie bear little resemblance to his statues and portraits on coins. They show him as a fairly vigorous man with a full beard and a thick head of curly hair.The whole movie in addition radically compresses the chronology of the Emperor Commodus' reign. He became sole emperor upon his father's death in March of 180AD and was assassinated almost thirteen years later on December 31, 192AD. Although the time covered by "Gladiator" is not precisely indicated, it would appear that no more than two years could...

18-year-olds Going OTR Are They Ready Are You

18-year-olds Going OTR Are They Ready Are You The demands on the trucking industry are increasing every year- many companies are running at full capacity with daily shipments in need of experienced, licensed CDLs to pull their weight.  Might the 18-20 year old set offer the potential to fulfill urgent delivery schedules? While most states require drivers to be 21 to acquire their commercial driver’s licenses, some do allow 18-20 year olds to take regional trucking jobs. But they can’t cross state lines, and there’s a frustrating lag between graduating from high school, getting your CDL, and being eligible to take most jobs in the industry. Many young drivers move on to careers that are more readily available, which means the industry is missing out.An Argument AgainstOne of the best tools for handling stressful job situations is maturity and experience- a teenager fresh out of high school probably hasn’t had to bounce back from so much as a fender-bender. Trucking requires the utmost professionalism and responsibility. Most teenagers make inadequate interns, but should we really trust them on the road?Brain Development in Progress: Both a Pro and a ConMaybe their reflexes are slightly sharper and they need less sleep, but the human brain continues to develop until age 25! Teens have underdeveloped frontal lobe, which is where impulse control, memory, attention, and consciousness are stored. On the flip side, they have a great capacity for learning, and by the time they’ve grown into full maturity as drivers, their skills will be ingrained.Plan for the FutureWhile executives, dispatchers, and company owners may feel its in their best interests to get young drivers on the road as soon as possible, in the interests of safety and performance, more training measures should  be developed before it becomes a viable industry-wide goal. Innovations like semi-automated trucking might help alleviate the risks of less-experienced young drivers (or benefit from their likely life-l ong fluency with new technology), and  ride-along training programs may help get the younger workforce up to speed faster and safer.

Attitude Formation

†¢ The affective component consists of the emotional feelings stimulated by the object of the attitude. †¢ The behavioral component consists of predispositions to act in certain ways toward an attitude object. The object of an attitude can be anything people have opinions about. Therefore, individual people, groups of people, institutions, products, social trends, consumer products, etc. all can be attitudinal objects. †¢ Attitudes involve social judgments. They are either for, or against, pro, or con, positive, or negative; however, it is possible to be ambivalent about the attitudinal object and have a mix of positive and negative feelings and thoughts about it. †¢ Attitudes involve a readiness (or predisposition) to respond; however, for a variety of reasons we don’t always act on our attitudes. †¢ Attitudes vary along dimensions of strength and accessibility. Strong attitudes are very important to the individual and tend to be durable and have a powerful impact on behavior, whereas weak attitudes are not very important and have little impact. Accessible attitudes come to mind quickly, whereas other attitudes may rarely be noticed. †¢ Attitudes tend to be stable over time, but a number of factors can cause attitudes to change. †¢ Stereotypes are widely held beliefs that people have certain characteristics because of their membership in a particular group. †¢ A prejudice is an arbitrary belief, or feeling, directed toward a group of people or its individual members. Prejudices can be either positive or negative; however, the term is usually used to refer to a negative attitude held toward members of a group. Prejudice may lead to discrimination, which involves behaving differently, usually unfairly, toward the members of a group. Psychological factors involved in Attitude Formation and Attitude Change 1. Direct Instruction involves being told what attitudes to have by parents, schools, community organizations, religious doctrine, friends, etc. 2. Operant Conditioning is a simple form of learning. It is based on the â€Å"Law of Effect† and involves voluntary responses. Behaviors (including verbal behaviors and maybe even thoughts) tend to be repeated if they are reinforced (i. e. , followed by a positive experience). Conversely, behaviors tend to be stopped when they are punished (i. e. , followed by an unpleasant experience). Thus, if one expresses, or acts out an attitude toward some group, and this is reinforced by one’s peers, the attitude is strengthened and is likely to be expressed again. The reinforcement can be as subtle as a smile or as obvious as a raise in salary. Operant conditioning is especially involved with the behavioral component of attitudes. 3. Classical conditioning is another simple form of learning. It involves involuntary responses and is acquired through the pairing of two stimuli. Two events that repeatedly occur close together in time become fused and before long the person responds in the same way to both events. Originally studied by Pavlov, the process requires an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) that produces an involuntary (reflexive) response (UCR). If a neutral stimulus (NS) is paired, either very dramatically on one occasion, or repeatedly for several acquisition trials, the neutral stimulus will lead to the same response elicited by the unconditioned stimulus. At this point the stimulus is no longer neutral and so is referred to as a conditioned stimulus (CS) and the response has now become a learned response and so is referred to as a conditioned response (CR). In Pavlov’s research the UCS was meat powder which led to an UCR of salivation. The NS was a bell. At first the bell elicited no response from the dog, but eventually the bell alone caused the dog to salivate. Advertisers create positive attitudes towards their products by presenting attractive models in their ads. In this case the model is the UCS and our reaction to him, or her, is an automatic positive response. The product is the original NS which through pairing comes to elicit a positive conditioned response. In a similar fashion, pleasant or unpleasant experiences with members of a particular group could lead to positive or negative attitudes toward that group. Classical conditioning is especially involved with the emotional, or affective, component of attitudes. 4. Social (Observational) Learning is based on modeling. We observe others. If they are getting reinforced for certain behaviors or the expression of certain attitudes, this serves as vicarious reinforcement and makes it more ikely that we, too, will behave in this manner or express this attitude. Classical conditioning can also occur vicariously through observation of others. 5. Cognitive Dissonance exists when related cognitions, feelings or behaviors are inconsistent or contradictory. Cognitive dissonance creates an unpleasant state of tension that motivates people to reduce their dissonance by changing their cognitions, feel ing, or behaviors. For example, a person who starts out with a negative attitude toward marijuana will experience cognitive dissonance if they start smoking marijuana and find themselves enjoying the experience. The dissonance they experience is thus likely to motivate them to either change their attitude toward marijuana, or to stop using marijuana. This process can be conscious, but often occurs without conscious awareness. 6. Unconscious Motivation. Some attitudes are held because they serve some unconscious function for an individual. For example, a person who is threatened by his homosexual feelings may employ the defense mechanism of reaction formation and become a crusader against homosexuals. Or, someone who feels inferior may feel somewhat better by putting down a group other than her own. Because it is unconscious, the person will not be aware of the unconscious motivation at the time it is operative, but may become aware of it as some later point in time. 7. Rational Analysis involves the careful weighing of evidence for, and against, a particular attitude. For example, a person may carefully listen to the presidential debates and read opinions of political experts in order to decide which candidate to vote for in an election. Attitude Formation †¢ The affective component consists of the emotional feelings stimulated by the object of the attitude. †¢ The behavioral component consists of predispositions to act in certain ways toward an attitude object. The object of an attitude can be anything people have opinions about. Therefore, individual people, groups of people, institutions, products, social trends, consumer products, etc. all can be attitudinal objects. †¢ Attitudes involve social judgments. They are either for, or against, pro, or con, positive, or negative; however, it is possible to be ambivalent about the attitudinal object and have a mix of positive and negative feelings and thoughts about it. †¢ Attitudes involve a readiness (or predisposition) to respond; however, for a variety of reasons we don’t always act on our attitudes. †¢ Attitudes vary along dimensions of strength and accessibility. Strong attitudes are very important to the individual and tend to be durable and have a powerful impact on behavior, whereas weak attitudes are not very important and have little impact. Accessible attitudes come to mind quickly, whereas other attitudes may rarely be noticed. †¢ Attitudes tend to be stable over time, but a number of factors can cause attitudes to change. †¢ Stereotypes are widely held beliefs that people have certain characteristics because of their membership in a particular group. †¢ A prejudice is an arbitrary belief, or feeling, directed toward a group of people or its individual members. Prejudices can be either positive or negative; however, the term is usually used to refer to a negative attitude held toward members of a group. Prejudice may lead to discrimination, which involves behaving differently, usually unfairly, toward the members of a group. Psychological factors involved in Attitude Formation and Attitude Change 1. Direct Instruction involves being told what attitudes to have by parents, schools, community organizations, religious doctrine, friends, etc. 2. Operant Conditioning is a simple form of learning. It is based on the â€Å"Law of Effect† and involves voluntary responses. Behaviors (including verbal behaviors and maybe even thoughts) tend to be repeated if they are reinforced (i. e. , followed by a positive experience). Conversely, behaviors tend to be stopped when they are punished (i. e. , followed by an unpleasant experience). Thus, if one expresses, or acts out an attitude toward some group, and this is reinforced by one’s peers, the attitude is strengthened and is likely to be expressed again. The reinforcement can be as subtle as a smile or as obvious as a raise in salary. Operant conditioning is especially involved with the behavioral component of attitudes. 3. Classical conditioning is another simple form of learning. It involves involuntary responses and is acquired through the pairing of two stimuli. Two events that repeatedly occur close together in time become fused and before long the person responds in the same way to both events. Originally studied by Pavlov, the process requires an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) that produces an involuntary (reflexive) response (UCR). If a neutral stimulus (NS) is paired, either very dramatically on one occasion, or repeatedly for several acquisition trials, the neutral stimulus will lead to the same response elicited by the unconditioned stimulus. At this point the stimulus is no longer neutral and so is referred to as a conditioned stimulus (CS) and the response has now become a learned response and so is referred to as a conditioned response (CR). In Pavlov’s research the UCS was meat powder which led to an UCR of salivation. The NS was a bell. At first the bell elicited no response from the dog, but eventually the bell alone caused the dog to salivate. Advertisers create positive attitudes towards their products by presenting attractive models in their ads. In this case the model is the UCS and our reaction to him, or her, is an automatic positive response. The product is the original NS which through pairing comes to elicit a positive conditioned response. In a similar fashion, pleasant or unpleasant experiences with members of a particular group could lead to positive or negative attitudes toward that group. Classical conditioning is especially involved with the emotional, or affective, component of attitudes. 4. Social (Observational) Learning is based on modeling. We observe others. If they are getting reinforced for certain behaviors or the expression of certain attitudes, this serves as vicarious reinforcement and makes it more ikely that we, too, will behave in this manner or express this attitude. Classical conditioning can also occur vicariously through observation of others. 5. Cognitive Dissonance exists when related cognitions, feelings or behaviors are inconsistent or contradictory. Cognitive dissonance creates an unpleasant state of tension that motivates people to reduce their dissonance by changing their cognitions, feel ing, or behaviors. For example, a person who starts out with a negative attitude toward marijuana will experience cognitive dissonance if they start smoking marijuana and find themselves enjoying the experience. The dissonance they experience is thus likely to motivate them to either change their attitude toward marijuana, or to stop using marijuana. This process can be conscious, but often occurs without conscious awareness. 6. Unconscious Motivation. Some attitudes are held because they serve some unconscious function for an individual. For example, a person who is threatened by his homosexual feelings may employ the defense mechanism of reaction formation and become a crusader against homosexuals. Or, someone who feels inferior may feel somewhat better by putting down a group other than her own. Because it is unconscious, the person will not be aware of the unconscious motivation at the time it is operative, but may become aware of it as some later point in time. 7. Rational Analysis involves the careful weighing of evidence for, and against, a particular attitude. For example, a person may carefully listen to the presidential debates and read opinions of political experts in order to decide which candidate to vote for in an election.

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The changing nature of advertising from traditional print and broadcast to interactive and web based - Research Paper Example This essay "The changing nature of advertising from traditional print and broadcast to interactive and web based" how advertisement is presented in various types of media, how it changed and how the advent of the Internet affected it. Traditional mass media involve advertising through the newspaper, books, magazines, radio and television. This type of advertising is one- to- many type of communication that does not allow direct feedback from the audiences. For instance when people read the magazines or turn on the television ,there is no way to directly respond to advertisements unless they write to or call the company themselves but this way they will be using another form of advertising. Radio advertising cost is very attractive advertising vehicle for many small business owners. Radio advertising has a wide scale appeal to consumers and it reaches thousand of target audience at the right time and right message. However, radio was primarily an entertainment medium and advertising is considered an interruption. This has resulted in an industry called satellite which provides entertainment without commercials because consumers are willing to pay for them. With the emergence of satellite radios the popularity of radio advertising is slowly decreasing. Radios have also evolved into entertainment source for background noise at work and for primarily driving. At homes, there has been a drop in radio use because people can play their CDs where they have the freedom to choose their music and programmes free of commercial interruption. This has led to low popularity in radio advertising. Television Advertising Television is a form of entertainment that brings the family together to enjoy public amusement without leaving home. Research has shown that an average person spends more time with the television than with newspaper and radio combined. This shows that television has a very huge audience making it the most powerful advertising choice for many manufacturers and retailers. This has been so for a very long time but all the same the television advertising is slowly dying. The television audience has been fragmented into few local channels where major companies would choose their advertiser but with the introduction of cable and satellite television the audience has further been fragmented into over 200 channels. This fragmentation has led to dramatic reduction of audience in the local channels. Television advertising has limited lifespan for any advertisement this makes the advertisers to not do their advertising on television because once the advertisement has aired its gone for good hence a viewer may not remember the advertisement after all. The television audience as well has a way of avoiding commercial interruption because there has been an introduction of TIVO, pay per view, public broadcasting stations and the multitude of satellite. This has seen a great number of audiences paying for those services because they are avoiding the commercial interruptions (Stafford, & Ronald, 2001,65). At homes, families are opting to watch a common movie as a form of entertainment since they are free of interruption. Although television advertising has decreased for the small business for the big businesses it is now possible to make world -wide advertisement this show that television advertisement has developed and has is yielding more benefits for

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Effective Employee Communication (in perspective of Employee to Employee) - Essay Example In organisations, communication plays a key role in the efficiency, effectiveness and ultimately the overall performance of the organisation. Communication in an organisation mainly takes two forms based on the direction of flow of information in the organisation. They include vertical and horizontal communication. Vertical communication takes two forms, which is defined by the downward flow of information from the management to the subordinates, mainly in the form of directives and instructions, and upward communication which exemplifies the flow of information in the form of feedback and requests from the subordinates to their supervisors and managers. Horizontal communication on the other hand is the conveyance of information between employees at the same level in the organisation e.g. departmental heads and same level managers or even the lowest level of employees. The main focus of this paper however, will be on the ‘employee to employee’ communication within the organisation and its effectiveness. Generally, employee communication inter se can either be formal or informal. Formal communication involves transmission of information in an official capacity, mainly written or documented within the employees of the organisation while informal or grapevine communication involves the exchange of information between the employees on an unofficial capacity and they do not need to follow proper channels in relaying information on the grapevine. Communication between employees is also a key pillar in the success of an organisation even though most organisations pay little attention to it. Research conducted over the years in many organisations has shown that peer communication and relations between employees can be of great source of employee motivation, can alleviate job-related stress and hence worth reducing the levels of job satisfacti on and employee turnover. It is hence key for the management of the

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International assignment training for Pakistan - Term Paper Example It is not difficult to distinguish between the people of Pakistan from a large number of Americans. The reason is their different and unique cultures. Pakistani people have distinguishing dressing patterns, living style and traditions which are not present in the American culture. Pakistan is one of the biggest Islamic countries and hence, Islamic teachings are reflected in every way of their life (Abbott, 1968). In Pakistan, male children are given priority over the females. This discrimination among the children covers a vast area of their lives. Male members are given priority when it comes to the availability of education, financial support, dressing and entertainment stuff (like toys, games, Computers, cell phones etc.), food etc. Brothers, fathers and husbands are normally considered as the head of their families. Head of the family takes all important decisions about the house and lives of the family members. Pakistani children are taught to respect their elders and women are strictly directed to follow the decisions and respect the opinions of the head of their families. Religious strictness forces the Pakistani women to stay out of sight of male counterparts of the society (Bano, 1994). Men are supposed to help their families financially. They are given proper guidance since their childhood about their responsibilities to the family. It can be said that when Pakistani children grow up they are fully aware of the fact that it is their duty to support their family financially and morally. However, on the other hand, American people face less or no discrimination on the basis of gender as Shelly’s Frankenstein suggests in the portrayal of the monster’s desire to have an opposite sex companion. Children are given proper education, food, opportunities to grow confidence and are provided with the sense of independence. They are taught to distinguish between rights and wrongs of the society. Females are not forced to adopt and accept the decisio ns of their male counterparts. As they grow up and enter their teenage life, they start feeling and using their independence. However, they may misuse this freedom by adopting negative attitudes of the society. American teenagers are more likely to involve in alcohol misuse, drug addiction, smoking etc. Youngsters drink alcoholic beverages for fun and fashion purposes but afterward they get addicted to it. The exposure of alcohol and drinking to youngsters and young adults is evident in their literature as Hamlet’s refusal to kill his step father suggests when he was praying. His revenge wanted him to kill his father’s murderer when he was busy in negative or prohibited activities like drinking, sexual relationships and so on. These habits change their attitudes towards their family, friends, studies and responsibilities. They create a severe risk to their lives and future. However, once they enter their adulthood, normally they are not answerable to their elders unlik e Pakistanis. However, it always depends on the way they are brought up. There are no restrictions on the American women to keep themselves away or hidden from the male counterparts of the society. They have equal rights to employment, education, health facilities and career selection. American culture and laws are strict against

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Occupational Exposure to Benzene Among Shoemakers And Others - Research Paper Example 2. Benzene overview Benzene is considered an organic chemical compound made up of six carbon atoms joined together in a ring, having one hydrogen atom attached to each carbon atom (Lide, 2005). It is considered in the same category as the hydrocarbons which have long been considered toxic to our environment. Benzene is a natural ingredient in crude oil and also considered a petrochemical (Lide, 2005). It is aromatic, colorless, and highly flammable. It is often utilized as a precursor to heavy chemicals like ethylbenzene and cumene (Arnold, et.al., 1958). It has a high octane number, and as such is a major component of gasoline. 2.1 Benzene health risks Benzene increases health risks for acquiring cancer and other diseases. It has been known to cause leukemia because of its negative impact on the bone marrow (Smith, 2010). Based on epidemiological and clinical studies, it has been known to cause aplastic anemia, acute leukemia, and other diseases where affectations of the bone marrow are concerned. Specific blood malignancies indicate that benzene is linked to diseases like acute myeloid leukemia (AML), myleodysplastic syndrome, acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), and chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) (Smith, 2010). As early as 1948, the American Petroleum Institute stated that benzene is a very dangerous compound; the US Department of Health and Human Services has also labeled the compound as a carcinogen and long-term exposure to high levels of this compound in the atmosphere has been known to cause leukemia (American Petroleum Institute, 1948). Moreover, it has long been proven and undisputed that benzene has been known to cause AML and acute non-lymphocytic leukemia. The exposure of humans... The above discussion indicates the importance of strictly implementing health regulations in relation to benzene. The pressure is on government enforcement agencies to implement strict monitoring activities on companies using benzene. The above discussion indicates the impact of benzene on general human health and on workers. Benzene is a toxic chemical compound which in its entirety is considered to be a hydrocarbon. It is an additive for various industries, including shoemaking (glue), petroleum industry, as well as other industrial plants. As an additive, it can take on liquid, solid, and gaseous forms, thereby causing various instances of exposure for man. The health risk for this compound is mostly related to the blood marrow functions, and as a result, it is known to cause leukemia and other blood disorders. Studies indicate how many workers, shoemakers, petroleum workers, etc have a high risk for developing leukemia and these studies also indicate that there is indeed a link between leukemia and benzene. At present, the levels of benzene in most products have been reduced, however, a certain percentage of the compound is still present in various chemicals. This is still therefore a major concern because the EPA acknowledges that the only safe level of benzene is zero. It is therefore important for managers to establish occupational safety conditions for their workers to reduce direct exposure or to reduce the benzene components of their raw materials to acceptable and safe levels.

Philosophy of healthcare in USA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

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International assignment training for Pakistan Term Paper

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Philosophy of healthcare in USA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Philosophy of healthcare in USA - Essay Example The target population includes the elderly especially the chronically ill older patients, children, and unemployed or underemployed people. Much attention has been given to older people because of their poor health and it is estimated by 2050 thirty percent of the population in USA will consist of elderly people. It is estimated that over 45 million people in USA are either uninsured or underinsured (Papadimos, 2007). This means that access to quality healthcare is little or none. In some instances political agendas have resulted in creating healthcare programs that are ineffective. This has downplayed the importance of better healthcare services to the population. The quality and appropriateness of healthcare services impact heavily on costs. The insured have access to better healthcare services than those uninsured. This means the uninsured and those unemployed or underemployed access cheap healthcare services that may be poor in quality. The government should make sure that all people have access to quality healthcare regardless of their socioeconomic status. Health insurance policies should at least cover the most vulnerable people in the population. Programs proposed by the Congress should be workable and