Importance of Identity and Good vs. Evil in the Epic Story Beowulf Essay

The epic story Beowulf narrates the story of the hero named Beowulf and his legendary battle with the monster Grendel and later on, Grendel’s mother who longed for revenge because of the death of her beloved son (Kennedy).   This epic story, along with many other epic stories, has central themes on the importance of identity and the popular topic on good versus evil. The purpose of this paper is to discuss these two central themes of Beowulf.   This paper is cut into two sections.   The first section discusses the theme of importance of identity in the epic story while the second section discusses the depiction of good and evil within the story. Importance of Identity   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The story of Beowulf emphasizes the importance of identity (Raffel, p. 135).   In the story, almost everyone introduces himself in terms of who his parents or ancestors were.   Moreover, almost everyone in the story has an act or wants to act to continue the legacy of their ancestors (Anderson).   This very belief mirrors the principles of the people who lived in those times.   These people believed that there is no afterlife and thus, his soul can live forever if and only if he does something of great value that can never be surpassed or forgotten.   In the story, Beowulf illustrates the pride of their ancestry by helping King Hrothgar who once aided Beowulf’s father. In addition to the eternal glory of the soul, these people also believed that by doing something great, he brings pride and eternity to his ancestry. This is what they call the heroic code (Fellow, p. 7).   They further believed that once you defy the heroic code, you will be dishonored by your ancestors, your reputation will be destroyed and your soul will be punished with death —you will not be remembered forever and your children’s children will also inherit this dishonor. Good vs. Evil   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Along with many other stories, Beowulf also tackles the ever famous battle between good and evil.   Our hero Beowulf is the symbol of everything good in the story.   He went to Denmark and bravely told King Hrothgar (king of Denmark at the time) that he will battle with the monster Grendel sailing with only a few men by his side (Raffel).   His bravery also led him to defeat Grendel and later on, face the monster’s mother.   The evil side is symbolized by Grendel, his mother, and his future brother and Beowulf’s son, the dragon. When Grendel hears any kind of noise (to him any sound is considered a noise), he goes on to kill whoever makes that noise without any consideration who this person might be.   Grendel’s mother is an avenger who killed one of Beowulf’s loyal advisers to avenge the death of her son (Anderson).   Beowulf, however, was not threatened by this act and comes to the monster’s lair to kill her. He becomes the story’s messiah — he saved the lives of the people of Herot by slaying all that is evil.   He embodied the good side because of his courage to fight with the dragon.   He sacrificed himself in order to save his people.   Moreover, he is the bringer of more treasures to his own kingdom.   Thus, good and evil in this story symbolizes the eternal battle between God and Satan and light and darkness.   And as always, good triumphs over evil, God wins over Satan, and darkness will never exist in the presence of overpowering light. Works Cited Anderson, Carolyn. â€Å"Gaest, gender, and kin in Beowulf: Consumption of the boundaries†. April 12 2008. . Fellow, W.P Ker. Epic and romance: Essays on medieval literature. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1897. Kennedy, Charles W. Beowulf: The oldest English epic. London: Oxford University Press, 1978. Niles, John D. â€Å"Understanding Beowulf: Oral poetry acts.† Journal of American Folklore 106.420 (1993): 131-55. Raffel, Burton, ed. Beowulf. Reprint ed: Signet Classics, 1999.   

Biography of J.P. Morgan

Hartford, Connecticut was the birthplace of J. P. Morgan. His parents, Junius Spencer Morgan and Juliet Pierpont, hailed from Boston, Massachusetts. J. P. Morgan was educated partly at the English High School in Boston and finished his education at the University of Gottingen in Germany. After leaving the University he had entered his father's office in London. He was an extraordinary mathematician and had been strongly tempted to take up the career of professor of mathematics.But his father thought otherwise, and in the offices of George Peabody and Company young Pierpont got his first training in the technicalities of commercial banking and no doubt began the development of that unusual cepacity for accurate and quick decision which so strongly characterized his entire career. (Hovey, 2) He suffered with rheumatic fever in the spring of 1852. The illness took such a toll on him that he was left unable to walk. This was the start of a life long battle with diseases of different sort s that recurred throughout his lifetime.As part of a recovery effort, his father sent him to the Azores on a ship owned by Charles Dabney, named Io. It took him an year to fully recover and be able to attend school again. After graduating from Boston, a school named Bellerive at Vevey in Switzerland became his home. Once he gained command on the French language, the University of Gottingen became his new abode where he worked on his German. Within half an year, he developed a satisfactory base in that language. Done with his studies, he arrived in the English capital passing through Wiesbaden on the way..Personality Description John Pierpont Morgan was an example of moral excellence, singing the old hymns his mother taught him, fraternizing with bishops, forgiving his enemies, loving those who hated him, visiting sick friends and going sorrowfully to their funerals, bouncing his grandchildren on his knees, and molding his numerous corporate reorganizations for the good of the countr y. The man was magnificently endowed to play the role of financial imperator. There was the necessary bulk of bone and flesh.He was six feet tall, weighed two hundred pounds. Standing with feet apart, looking forward, he seemed poised to make a formidable advance. His head was large, craglike, well poised on his broad shoulders, his countenance rough-hewn. The upper lip, even as a boy, was heavy, and as he grew older, hidden behind his unruly mustache, it gave to his face an aspect of cruelty. His powerful jaws and rugged brow were drawn down in an imperious scowl. His bulbous nose accentuated the dark aspect of his visage.His large, wide-opened hazel eyes bent upon a visitor or suppliant with terrifying attentiveness and made him a formidable man in conference. (Hovey, 2-3) As a boy in high school his teacher said he was little short of a prodigy and could solve mentally problems in cubic root and numerous decimals. He could speak French and German because he had spent two years in a French school in Switzerland and two at the University of Gottingen. But he had no use for the classics. He could express himself in written English in a clear, direct, and vigorous style.Furthermore, even as a youth, he could put these excellent sentences down in a hand of great neatness and symmetry. He was superlatively choosy about his friends. Even as a boy in school he mixed with but few. But he was deeply devoted to them as well as to his family, his parents particularly. From the time he returned to America from school at Gottingen in 1857 to 1890, when his father died in Europe, he never let a ship leave for England without writing him a letter. Often he had to write these letters late at night after the rush of the day's work.His father preserved them in a series of books in his library. Twenty years after his father died, Morgan, looking through them, put them into the furnace. That was in 1911, a year of magnate hunting. He was growing old, and these letters were full of news, comments, opinions on the events and men of his time. Early Life John Pierpont was successively academy teacher, private tutor, lawyer and merchant. Urged to the church, he was ordained minister in 1819, accepting a call to become pastor of the Hollis Street Church, Boston.Pierpont was a vital force in the Unitarian Church and one of the most active organizers of the American Unitarian Association. But the man was more than a minister, he was a social rebel. Compact of scriptural austerity, righteous indignation and moral passion, John Pierpont's religion was warmed by humanitarian aspirations for social betterment. (Magill, 15) It was in 1857, the year of a great financial panic in the United States, that John Pierpont Morgan, a tall, taciturn young man of twenty, stepped on the stage of American business.At that time the house of George Peabody and Company was doing its American business through the New York firm of Duncan, Sherman and Company, and this firm was so serio usly crippled in the financial crisis that in order to save the situation George Peabody and Company had to appeal to the Bank of England for assistance. This experience impressed the London house with the vital importance of closer control of its American business, and it was decided to send young Pierpont Morgan to represent the firm in New York as cashier of Duncan, Sherman and Company.In the offices of Duncan, Sherman and Company, Pierpont Morgan met Charles H. Dabney, a partner in the firm and also the accountant. It was through association with Dabney that Morgan acquired his remarkable and accurate knowledge of bookkeeping and accounting. (Brandeis, 56) But the connection of the Peabody firm with Duncan, Sherman and Company was not destined to last very long. In 1864, the year in which George Peabody retired and was succeeded by Junius S. Morgan, Pierpont Morgan and Dabney formed a new firm under the name of Dabney, Morgan and Company, with offices in Exchange Place, New York .This new firm became the correspondents of J. S. Morgan and Company of London. A few years later, Duncan, Sherman and Company failed and faded from view. 1871 saw the establishment of Drexel, Morgan & Company. Based in New York, it was the result of Morgan joining hands with the Drexels of Philadelphia. By 1895, the company became to be known as J. P. Morgan & Company. It preserved its earlier relationships with Drexel & Company, Philadelphia in the USA. On the other side of the Atlantic, close relationships were also maintained with Morgan, Harjes & Company in Paris, and J. S. Morgan & Company in London.From 1910 onwards, the latter came to be known as Morgan, Grenfell & Company. (Magill, 17) The group turned into an influential banking concern by the turn of the century, brokering big money deals in the corporate world relating to reorganizations, mergers, acquisitions and takeovers. Although Morgan worked with a number of partners including George W. Perkins, he managed to keep managerial control with him over the course of his career. Morgan rose to prominenece through his constant involvement in large corporate and financial deals that seemed more like wars then mere business.He stripped Jay Gould and Jim Fisk of the Albany and Susquehanna Railroad in 1869, and then lobbied Washington DC to put an end to the financial assistanc granted to Jay Cooke by the government. This was folowed by the development of a kingdom of railroads across the USA. (Brandeis, 62) This was accomplished through, M & A activity and monetary assistance. Morgan then went on to raise huge funds on the other side of the Atlantic. This money was utilized in the restructuring of the rail roads so that higher productivity could be attained.Speculation was discouraged by Morgan as he purported a plan to transform the existing transport infrastructure ino a unique connected and inter linked mechanism. In 1885 he reorganized the New York, West Shore & Buffalo Railroad, leasing it to the N ew York Central. 1886 saw Morgan putting his efforts into the Philadelphia & Reading rail road followed by Chesapeake & Ohio in 1888. Following the the Interstate Commerce Act in 1887, Morgan hosted industry conferences in 1889 and 1890. (Hovey, 3) It served as a forum for railroad bosses to highlight the oppurtunities that the new legislation provided.Consensus was obtained for the charging of â€Å"public, reasonable, uniform and stable rates† to consumers. This was a unique initiative on the behalf of Morgan, the outfall of which were the M & A activities in the 20th century. About the time he went into business for himself he also fell in love with a young woman named Amelia Sturgis. And this romantic episode forms one of the most appealing incidents in the life of this grim man. It revealed in him depths of tenderness, which his later life in Wall Street concealed wholly from the public.She was perhaps the first or at least among the first young women he met when he arri ved from Europe. His attachment to her deepened slowly but it was probably begun in those first meetings at Newport in the very first week he spent in America. In the spring and summer of 1861 he was completely immersed in the personal problem created by Mimi Sturgis' condition. She had contracted tuberculosis. She was wasting away rapidly. There was very little that could be done then against the ravages of this dread enemy.Before the summer was over he made up his mind to marry Mimi, to give up his business and devote him completely to saving her life. Her parents tried to induce him to give up his chivalrous project. But he was not to be turned aside. And so in early October, in the Sturgis home in East Fourteenth Street, with only the family present, young Morgan carried the frail Mimi downstairs in his arms, held her at his side while the marriage ceremony was performed, and then tenderly lifted her again in his strong arms and bore her to the waiting carriage and on to the pie r.They went to London and then to Algiers with its warm sun and then, as she continued to fade, to Nice. There she died four months after the marriage. Two months later, in May, he brought her body home and laid it to rest at Fairfield. This tragedy crushed him, for a time seemed to have broken his spirit and watered down his ambition to utter frustration. But slowly he took up the broken threads, brought his old Cheshire school friend, Jim Goodwin, into partnership with him, and set off again upon his course. Later Years Following the elderly Morgan’s death in 1890, J.S. Morgan & Co, known as Morgan, Grenfell & Company from 1910 onwards came under the leadership of the son. In 1900, he began negotiations with Charles M. Schwab then head of Carnegie Co. Andrew Carnegie had a direct stake in the company. Morgan aimed to takeover a number of steel and iron businesses including Carnegie's. The final plan was to merge them into one, thus giving birth to the United States Steel Co rporation. The deal was struck for a staggering sum of $480 million. No lawyers and no written proof of the sale were the highlights of this deal.By 15h of January 1901, newspapers were filled with the news of the impending merger. Late 1901, saw the birth of U. S. Steel with a capitalization of $1. 4 billion. (Hovey, 5) Given its financial strength, it was the first company of its kind. The mission of the new coompany was to gain the advantages offered by economies of scale. These included cutting down transportation and resource costs, diversifying product lines and focusing on efficient delivery. Moreover, now the USA was in direct competition with the likes of Brit steel and and the German steel giants.(Forbes 15) The sheer size of the company was instrumental as it paved the way for a global market for steel and its products. The company came under heavy fire from industry observers who blamed the company’s management of trying to establish an industrial hegemony by vent uring into the construction of all products that embodied the use of steel as a major raw material. Morgan soon controlled 67 percent of the market share and Schwab predicted the company to hold three quarters of the industry under its belt. However, time proved otherwise as the market share detoriated, proving his prediction wrong.(Brandeis, 63) Morgan also ventured into the manufacturing and mining sectors. Morgan also had stakes in Banks, insurance companies, shipping lines and communications systems providers. His concern routed large amounts of capital that was instrumental in the development of America. (Magill, 16) Morgan was criticised for financing the federal government in the 1895 crisis through the use of gold. The critics disagreed with him on his proposed solution to the Panic of 1907, and blamed him for the poor economic state of New York, New Haven & Hartford RR. It was discovered that the J. P. Morgan & Co.coupled with the board of the First National and National Ci ty Bank had a resource pool of $22,245,000,000. This fact was made public in 1912 by a a subcommittee of the House Banking and Currency committee. This financial resource pool was equavivalent to the valu of real estate in the twenty-two states that lies west of the Mississippi River, according to Louis Brandies, former Judge of the Supreme Court. (Forbes 15) Nikola Tesla and his Wardenclyffe Tower were recipents of monetary support from Morgan worth $150,000. Following Tesla’s failure, Morgan pulled out of the venture in 1904.It is estimated that Morgan and his firm of partners controlled assets worth $1. 3 billion during the peak of their power in the dawning years of the 20th century. Works Cited Magill, Frank N. Great Lives from History. Michigan: Salem Press Inc. 1987. Pg 15-17. Hovey, Carl. The Life Story of J. Pierpont Morgan. New York: Sturgis & Walton Company. 1911. Pg 2,3,5. Brandeis, Louis D. Other People's Money: And how the Bankers Use it. Sunnyvale: Stokes. 1914 . Pg 56, 62, 63. Forbes Bertie C. Men who are Making the West. Emeryville: Forbes publishing Company. 1923. Pg 15.

Case Study of the Exploitation of Financial Regulation by Deutsche Bank

Case Study of the Exploitation of Financial Regulation by Deutsche Bank Creative accounting is used to make a company seem to be performing well than it actually is. This scheme is applied especially where accounting figures do not look attractive or appealing to the investors, current and potential. This creativity is perpetuated by the senior management through support of directors making it difficult to detect where there are no proper fraud investigations are done. In the case of Deutsche Bank, its former executives are accused of obstructing regulators from looking into loss cover up in an investment dubbed Alexandria. The deals were a major cover up as alleged during a financial crisis that sae Monte Paschi in great troubles. The investigation carried out brought into attention massive losses that Monte Paschi had been misrepresented between 2008 and 2012. My agreement to this is based on the following: â€Å"The fraud first came to light in January 2013, when Bloomberg News reported that Monte Paschi used the transaction with Deutsche Bank, dubbed Santorini, to mask losses from an earlier derivative contract. The world’s oldest bank restated its accounts and has since been forced to tap investors to replenish capital amid a slump in its shares. It’s now attempting to convince investors to buy billions of bad loans before a fresh stock sale.† It is possible that the findings by the regulator are accurate since they are able to bring out a proper investigation on the matter presented to it. The bank was even required to account for differences in its carrying value on the stake at San Paulo bank and the amount they paid for the shares to have a stake there. The use of revaluation reserve to increase par value was not the right thing to do to absorb losses. This is because revaluation reserve per se is not counting towards Tier one capital. This was just a scheme to maintain its core capital as required by the regulator in the industry. Santorini Investment was also a bad move meant to serve a special purpose, to do an equity swap. The bank controlled a huge stake in this business where it had majority shares for controlling its Interest-Santorini was majority owned (51%) by Deutsche Bank – Monte Paschi controlled 49%. They used some amount that were proceeds in the sale of San Paolo to Deutsche in financing Monte Paschi’s shares in Santorini investment. Monte Paschi was taking shelter in reducing exposure of its share from constant price fluctuations. â€Å"Typically, in such a deal, there is either a floating rate or a fixed rate of interest paid over the life of the swap to the entity to which the shares were sold (in this case Deutsche) based on the notional amount of the shares traded (so 785 million euros here). When the swap matures, the original seller of the shares (Monte Paschi here) will receive the difference between the price of the shares when the swap was originated and the price of the shares at maturity. Obviously, if the shares rise over time the original seller makes a profit on the swap (minus any interest payments made along the way). Of course the stock could go up or down over the life of the transaction so there is a very real possibility that the original seller of the shares will have to make a payment at maturity in addition to the interest payments made along the way. Note also that if the stock drops over the course of the deal, the original seller may be forced to post collateral to the buyer of the shares.† It is therefore was a scheme that should have been controlled before it got too late to save the shareholder

Homelessness in the United States Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Homelessness in the United States - Essay Example This essay will look at the conflict theory to explain homelessness. Homelessness, in reference to the McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, means the situation where an individual does not have a fixed, consistent, and adequate nighttime abode. A homeless person can also be defined as an entity with a principal night time residence that is not commonly used for human habitation or a principal nighttime residence that is a temporary shelter with the intention of being institutionalized. In addition, it means a principal nighttime residence that is an administered or a publicly managed sanctuary that provides short-term accommodation and includes welfare hotels and transition shelters for the mentally ill. Homelessness has been a problem in the United States since the pre-industrial era. In the 16th Century, the homeless in the US were few and were taken care of by the immediate community since it was viewed as a communal duty to offer help to them. This was promoted by the local churches and community organizations. In the late seventeenth century, however, a more systematic system was employed. For instance, the New York City working with the local churches rented a house to use as a temporary shelter for the homeless. This culminated in an official ‘almshouse’ in 1734. ... But after the civil war, opportunities especially for women dwindled in these rural settings and people moved to the new growing cities to work as bar maids, clerks, housekeepers, and even commercial sex workers. For most people, home was where they spent the night thus began a system of loosely attached people engaged in all sorts of activity including vices such as crime. Young men and women unhappy to work in the orderly disciplined factories carried about their own business and travelers for which constant moving became a way of life. The number of people who could not find work increased and became too many for the existing shelters. Consequently, some people started spending without roofs over their heads. This problem worsened during the great depression where even warehouses holding as much as 4000 people were not sufficient; thus began the modern problem of homelessness in the United States. From the First World War to the second, the number of unemployed people increased si nce manual labor was taken over by mechanization and industrialization. This resulted in a large number of homeless people in the seventies through to the nineties up to current times (Baumohl, 1996). In 1987, the number of the homeless was estimated at 500 – 600 000 with 81% being male, 54% non white, and 48% not having cleared high school. In 2010, it was estimated that the US had 3,500,000 homeless people. The majority of the people were between 25 to 44 years of age. 70% of the homeless live in the urban areas, 20% in sub-urban areas, and 10% in the rural areas. 67% of the homeless are single men while 20% are women. In addition, 25% are veterans and 15% are parents with children. Los Angeles has the highest

UK Company Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

UK Company Law - Essay Example However, the section 172 of CA 2006 is itself a novelty which includes an explicit duty to promote the growth of the company successfully. Further, it also contains a new notion of â€Å"open-minded or enlightened shareholder value†. Whether a director of a company can be held accountable for any fiscal losses to the company due to their wrong decisions by the shareholders of the company? Under the UK Companies Act, shareholders including minority and institutional shareholders can now initiate legal action against erring directors or directors to whom hefty pay packages are being offered without relevance to their performance through derivative actions or through unfair prejudice clause. As the Institutional shareholders and the public grow angrier and angrier over the almost unimaginable riches that FTSE bosses are ranking in, the sudden spurt in shareholders’ activism in UK in recent days is being felt like the ‘shareholder spring’ had finally sprungâ₠¬â„¢. ... Institutional Investors and Minority Shareholder’s Activism in UK-An Analysis Under section 173 & 174 of the Companies Act 2006, though the directors of a company are appointed and ousted by shareholders, but the directors do not have any duty of care to any individual shareholder. It is to be observed that the duty of care by the directors is to the whole of the company’s stakeholders and is not applicable to a shareholder only to the magnitude of their investment held in the company, and thus the director’s duty of care is confined to the capital and not to any individual per se. Further, earlier, the shareholders are having every right to pass resolutions at a general meeting to restraint directors of a company but such resolutions are not binding on company directors, and it is advisory in nature only. For company directors, maximising the wealth of the shareholders is not a legal mandate but only an idealised norm of conduct. The directors are not expected t o answer only to the shareholders but also accountable for other stakeholders of the company like creditors, customers, employees, local community and suppliers. (Haynes, Murray & Dillard: 57). Under UK corporate law, there exist no explicit defence or business judgment rule as a safe harbour provision for commercial decisions taken by the directors of a company. However, the absence of any explicit provision in this regard does not leave the corporate directors in UK in the lurch. Thus, as per Justice Austin, in the absence of any explicit provisions under the UK Companies Act as regards to the business judgement rule, but the shareholders may avail safe harbour provisions through the ratification of director’s decisions by the

Federal Prison Comparison Pape Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Federal Prison Comparison Pape - Research Paper Example Ultimately there are fewer violent offenders in federal prisons than state prisons because a majority of federal crimes are non-violent/commercial crimes. State prisons originate from colonial times, and evolved from the prisons that were established to house criminals who offended the laws against the crown (Clear et al, 2011). Between 1900 and 1970 the prison population in the US was moderate, housing from 90 to 120 prisoners for each 100,000 citizens. However, with more than 35 years of â€Å"steady growth† the prison population is currently five times greater than it was in 1973 representing the largest prison population in the country’s history (Clear et al, 2011, p. 6). There have been many attempts to explain the prions population growth in the US. Gaines and Miller (2011) identified a number of contributing factors. The prions population growth in the US can be attributed to the get tough on crime policies that began in the 1980s. The get tough on crime policies introduced a number of strategies that resulted in mandatory imprisonment. One such strategy in a number of states is the three strikes policy which calls for mandatory incarceration for repeat offenders. Another policy is the longer prison sentencing strategies. With fewer prisoners eligible for parole, the prison population grows because new offenders are introduced into the system and few prisoners are released. Another explanation given for the prison population growth is the fact that there have been more crimes as criminals become more sophisticated and technology aids in the commission of criminal activities (Gaines & Miller, 2011). Security State Prisons State prison systems design their own security systems but they are generally the same among the 50 states. The North Carolina Department of Correction provides an example of the security levels in US state prisons. Prisoners enter the prison system from a county jail for the most part. Upon entering the state prison prison ers are assessed for risks and security risks are balanced against the needs of programs. Newly admitted prisoners are evaluated for security risks and are also subjected to medical and mental health evaluations in the risk assessment process. A number of factors including the crime, social demographics, education, job experience, and criminal history are taken into account (North Carolina Department of Corrections, 2011). Once the prisoner’s evaluation is completed he/she is placed in the appropriate â€Å"custodial level†. The custodial levels are classified as close (maximum), medium, minimum 1, minimum II and minimum III. Close of maximum security is a custodial level where inmates assessed to have the highest security risks are placed. Medium security houses prisoners who are at a lower security risk than prisoners placed in close security. Prisoners who pose a low security risk are placed in minimum III (North Carolina Department of Corrections, 2011). Federal Pr isons The Federal Bureau of Prisons (n.d.) lists four security levels in the federal prison system. The four security systems are minimum security, low security, medium security and high security. Minimum security prisons are also referred to as Federal Prison Camps and have â€Å"dormitory housing, a relatively low staff-to-inmate ratio† and â€Å"limited or no perimeter fencing† (Federal Bureau of Prisons, n.d.). Low security prisons on the other hand have â€Å"double-fenced perimeters†

Evaluate Auditing Processes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Evaluate Auditing Processes - Essay Example The essay will also evaluate the various accounting processes that are being adopted by the federal government in a succinct manner. It is evident that there lay certain specific criteria, which need to be adhered while complying with a standard auditing process. This aspect is also evident in the case of auditing a town or a city. The audit, which has been conducted for the Town of Maywood can be evaluated based on the requirements of GAAS. Theoretically, GAAS is a particular framework, which provides a set of guidelines to be followed by auditors for ensuring accuracy, reliability as well as fairness in the auditing process. The audit conducted for the Town of Maywood was executed with proper observations of the activities performed by the people who were involved with the preparation of its financial statements. It can be affirmed that this particular auditing procedure adhered to the guidelines of GAAS (Kinney Jr, 1986). Notably, the audit report also presented the reason for not considering the financial reports of other towns with which Maywood is associated. This particular aspect also shows compliance of the audit report with the GAAS framework (Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, 2014). Through analyzing the audit report, it can be determined that the audit conducted for the Town of Maywood is in alignment with most of the requirements of the GAAS framework and very little has been omitted or not complied with the same. Prior to the preparation of an audit report, individuals interested both in public administration as well as working as accountants for governmental units must possess an in-depth knowledge about the objectives along with the standards to be followed while preparing an audit report. This may be owing to the reason that the effectiveness of public administration is directly relevant with appropriate

Personal activities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Personal activities - Essay Example The privilege of sharing my passion with the audience only brings me greater joy. If I can inspire even one other individual, I feel it will melt away all my years of toil and endless practices. 2. Apart from your first and second languages, what other languages do you speak and write Baring English and Chinese, which are my first and second languages, respectively, I am currently studying Gaeilge through home study courses. When I first heard Gaeilge spoken I was enthralled with it. I feel its oral beauty, fluidity and woven vocal patterns are unmatched. However, in the future, I also desire to pursue the Spanish and Japanese languages. 3. Do you already have a university course in mind If so, give details. I am yet to ascertain my course of study, though, I am sure to pursue a career in diplomacy. I have varied interests including, but not limited to: finance, economics and world history; however, prior to selecting a major course, I feel it best to explore the possibilities in the direction of my current interests. I am not a scholarship recipient now; however I am applying for a 50% award. Such a scholarship will give me the opportunity to find, explore and fund my own future.

Stock Market efficiency & Company valuation Essay

Stock Market efficiency & Company valuation - Essay Example A fundamental feature of this analysis is the assessments on Majestic Wine plc, which is the foremost mixed case wine retailer in the UK. The company is quoted on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange, which aims to assist companies that are operating on a smaller scale in meeting their requirements of capital for the purposes of expansion (London Stock Exchange 2013a). The categories of analysis for Majestic Wine plc are based on a range of distinct evaluations, which shall assess the share price movements and information flows to the market for the company and also conduct a comprehensive appraisal of the market price of the company’s shares, in accordance with the value assessments methods that are understood to be standard procedures in company valuation. The Significance of the Efficient-Market Hypothesis (EMH) According to Buckle and Thompson (2004, p174) the practical significance of the hypothesis regarding efficient markets is a notion w hich cannot be ignored. The application of this hypothesis postulates that the stock market’s agreement with its observations can lead to a situation where predicting changes in share prices are no longer considered to be viable as the market prices are an exact representation of each and every data or information that is present (Buckle and Thompson, 2004, p174). The classifications of features that can assist in the development of a well-informed discussion regarding stock market efficiency are based on the categories of return predictability, event studies and private information. Buckle and Thompson (2004, p175) understand that assessing these concepts with respect to the London Stock Exchange can uncover whether its functioning is efficient or not. Theoretical Implications of EMH and the Random Walk Model Barnes (2012, p46) highlights the theoretical implications of stock market efficiency which is essentially a system where an informational efficient market is said to b e the cause of allocative efficiency. Accordingly, the basis of this efficiency is examined on three forms that were developed by Eugene Fama and were termed as weak, semi-strong and strong (Barnes 2012, p46). According to Barnes (2012, p46) the weak form is described as a situation in which any new information regarding a company is represented by movements in the new price on an immediate basis, henceforth; this notion follows the ideology which states that new share movements cannot be determined through movements in old share prices. Analysts term this phenomenon as the ‘random walk’. While, several examinations on UK Stock market have aimed to establish its efficiency, numerous competing literatures have uncovered evidences which invalidate these claims. Dimson and Mussavian (1998, p92; 2000, p9) understand that the findings of numerous studies which report the presence of anomalies is indicative of features which oppose the principal of market efficiency. Research es which have pointed towards the occurrences of such characteristics that are largely inconsistent with economic ideologies aim to comprehend the trends in pricing efficiency within stock markets. A piece of empirical evidence which represents the phenomenon of the ‘random walk’ and the presence of its corresponding concept which is known as the ‘weak-form efficiency’ with respect to t

Independence Day Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Independence Day - Essay Example This paper discusses the history of the United States and the meanings attached to the Independence Day. On June 11 in the year 1976 a committee was appointed by congress to draft a declaration and the five committee members appointed included Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Robert Livingston, Thomas Jefferson and Roger Sherman who presented this draft to the congress on 28th of the same month. Voting was undertaken on the first of July whereby each colony had a single vote, South Carolina and Pennsylvania voted against declaring independence, however the next day South Carolina reversed its decision. New York on the other hand did not vote because delegates lacked authority to vote, however authority was granted a week later, and therefore on July 2 the declaration for independence was passed however congress debated on the draft changing it and deleting some of its passages. On July 4 congress finished the wording and approved the Declaration of Independence and which is now celebrated as the Independence Day. Majority have the view that on 4th July the united states declared its impendence from British rule, there are various meanings attached to this day including a day which the united states ... The following is an analysis of the happening on and before July 4 1976. Independence: Many have the view that independence was achieved on the 4th of July, however the independence was achieved through a series of activities that led to the independence of the thirteen colonies in the united states. Many argue that on July 4 the United States declared independent but from the activities it is evident that colonies declared independent on the 2nd of July 1976. From history it is evident that there was a draft declaration of independence prepared by a committee selected by congress on the 28th of June. The draft declaration was tabled in parliament on the first of July, on this day a few states including South Carolina and Pennsylvania rejected the declaration while New York did not have the authority to vote. On the second of July voting was undertaken and South Carolina reversed its decision and there were a total of twelve votes that accepted the declaration and New York did not participate in the voting. For this reason therefore it is evident that the declaration of independence by colonized states was done on the 2nd of July where 12 states denounced colonial rule and declared independent from British rule. In the next two days congress edited the declaration deleting some of the contents of the draft including slavery and slave trade, the revised copy was made public on the 4th of July although many states and army commanders received the document days after. Signing of the Declaration of Independence: History have the view that the declaration of independent was signed on the 4th of July by congress, however it is clear that some did not sign the

How Did Men Deal with the Stress of World War II Essay Example for Free

How Did Men Deal with the Stress of World War II Essay The iconic â€Å"thousand-yard stare†, a far-off, unfocused gaze characteristic of soldiers who had succumbed to the trauma of war by dissociating from it, emerged with its name through the chilling photos of soldiers who were overtaken by these symptoms in the wake of World War II. It’s no surprise that war takes a toll on the psyche of all those affected by it. Given the brutality and scope of World War II, which began only 21 years after World War II (a war that had already ravaged the landscape and people of Europe leaving high estimates of the death toll at 65 million deaths), civilians and soldiers alike were engulfed in total war. As Hitler and the Nazis’ ideology was based on â€Å"A War of Extermination† fueled by a racial ideology that sought for the ethnic cleansing and complete reengineering of the social population of Europe, the massive amount of Soviet soldiers that perished as they were thrown wave after wave in order to slow the Nazi war machine, and the general cruelty that was apparent in this war, soldiers upon soldiers grew appalled by the nature of the war. As one soldier confesses in The Italian Job, â€Å"After three months, it was demoralizing†¦ it was every night, every night everybody was hunting Germans, everybody was out to kill anybody†¦ we was insane†¦ We did become like animals in the end†¦ Yes, just like rats†¦ It was far worse than the desert. You were stuck in the same place. You had nowhere to go. You didn’t get no rest, like in the desert. No sleep†¦ You never expected to see the end of it. You just forgot why you were there† (Addison 208). Often times, the amount of effort put into it and the lives sacrificed seemed to far outweigh the benefits reaped from both; Gottlob Herbert Bidderman, a German soldier that was present on the Eastern Front reflected on â€Å"the insignificance of twelve kilometers: twelve kilometers—in an endless land, where unbroken fields stretched to the horizon before us from sunrise to sunset. I wondered how many more twelve-kilometer battles lay ahead of us during our march away from the setting sun† (Bidderman 23). However, like anything that people are overexposed to, these men slowly grew accustomed to and desensitized to the trocities and horrors of the war. Human beings are naturally adaptive beings and history has shown time and time again that they do what is needed in order to survive. It would be simplistic to classify each of the nations and their armies as being uniform in their coping with the war – due to the specific nature of some of the problems and solutions that emerged from belonging to that particular nation (such as the Soviets reveling in their loyalty and the cult-like worship of Stalin and the Nazis racial ideology being one that ensured in their mind their victory), but many men, regardless of their affiliation, handled the war similarly. Some treated the time on these fronts as a long extended workday, disassociating from the acts they committed and the sights they witnessed as simply being a part of a job. Others turned to their families away from home – brothers and sisters, who through their common experiences, pains, and moments of hope, stood together in solidarity. Others turned to the bottom of a bottle to ease the pain; while others turned instead upwards to a higher power, or at the very least began to frequent religious services. Those who were not willing to look quite so loftily turned to their superiors and leaders for guidance and bravery; while in the case of the Soviet soldiers, glanced fearfully backwards as the higher-ups pushed them forward to their death. Far away from home and under harsh conditions, food and other chanced upon provisions and commodities would often serve as a best to moral. Due to the sheer breadth of stress embodied in being a soldier in any front during WWII, soldiers dealt with the immense strain in varying ways in order to keep intact their humanity, or at the very least, keep their sanity so that they could ensure their survival. There is a perception held by many idealistic, young men that war is a somewhat akin to a noble crusade. However, there is the reality is much more analogous, to as one German soldier put it â€Å"this is ten times worse than hell† (Grossman 151). A scene from the Italian Job details this hell: â€Å"some (too many, far too many) were carried in dying, with gross combinations of shattered limbs, protrusions of intestines and brain from great holes in their poor frames torn by 880millimetre shells, mortars and anti-personnel bombs. Some lay quiet and still, with legs drawn up – penetrating wounds of the abdomen. Some were carried in sitting up on the stretcher, gasping and coughing, shot through the lungs †¦ All were exhausted after being under continuous fire, and after lying in the mud for hours and days† (Addison 208). As a result, as these idealistic notions were lost, many turned to viewing the entire ordeal as a job. Having suffered through the war for some time, one soldier remarked, â€Å"You’re fighting for the skin in the line. When I was enlisted I was patriotic as hell. There’s no patriotism in the line. A boy up there 60 days in the line is in danger every minute. He ain’t fighting for patriotism† (Addison 210). Another soldier enjoyed fighting at dawn as he felt that it was almost as if he was heading off to work at the factory. Rather than consciously thinking of all of the horrors that they were witnessing on a daily basis and focusing on the fact that they could die at any moment, the concept of just doing a job provided a blanket under which these men sought to maintain control of their humanity by separating their psyches from the appalling state of being they were in. A man in an earlier war who was quoted in Addison’s book stated that â€Å"whatever its size a man’s world was his section—at most, his platoon; all that mattered to him was the one little boatload of castaways with whom he was marooned on a desert island making shift to keep off the weather and any sudden attacks by wild beast† (Addison 211). Away from their families and friends, immersed in a bloody war where hundreds upon thousands of people could die in a skirmish or battle, these soldiers could only count on each other to truly understand the situation they were currently in. Beaten and battered together, having lost many of the same friends, triumphed momentarily, or retreated hastily, this mutual understanding gave way to a support group – a family who soldiers could lean upon and secure their well being. Of this, Bidermann wrote, â€Å"Our thoughts were constantly occupied by the tenuous if not hopeless situation in which we found ourselves. We received solace only in our numbers and in being with comrades with whom we had shared so many experiences over the weeks, months, and years† (Bidermann 266). Repeatedly throughout the 3 readings, there is mention of men, whether they in the heat of battle or â€Å"relaxing† with company, being drunk. It’s no surprise as alcohol has been a means by which men have coped with their problems for thousands of years. If the problems won’t go away, the solution for some has been to drink until those problems do not register as problems anymore. As such, Holmes noted â€Å"headaches were almost universal in a theatre of war where wine and brandy were readily available† (Addison 212). Grossman ctually talks about how his battalion commander Kozlov, in the midst of battle, â€Å"withstood an attack of tanks. He was on great form and completely drunk. The tanks were thrown back in a dashing fashion† (Grossman 103). As religion has functioned as a form of comfort since the inception of civilization and the birth of religion, it was only natural for men living in depravity to come to it to relieve them of some of their burden. Subsequently, the men of the clergy were often instrumental to moral and aid. Furthermore, due to the looming possibility of death in war, the mortality of some became that much more apparent. In Bidermann’s account, he talks of a divisional chaplain named Satzger who had several times risked his life to recover wounded men. Resulting from men of the cloth like Satzger and with death looming, â€Å"many of the soldiers who had not been so inclined began to attend religious services †¦ For far too many [the chaplain] would offer the last voice of reassurance and the last vestige of comfort before they, too, succumbed to mortal wounds† (Bidermann 25). Another Catholic priest was dubbed â€Å"the rucksack priest† as he carried a field pack from which he provided troops on the front lines with simple food items that had in war become luxuries. While it may have been a spiritual solace that many received at the hands of these men of God, others attended for the sake of having a comforting and helping hand. It’s been told that leaders are supposed to lead by example. Caught in chaotic times, superior officers often functioned as beacons to rally around. In times past, great leaders such as George Washington, Alexander the Great, and Genghis Khan immersed themselves in battles, showing that the best commanders do not directing them from the rear, but rather leading them in the front. A commanding officer by the name of â€Å"Captain Kendall, turned a shaky company into a passably good one by public displays of sheer guts. ‘Look at me,’ he said quietly, walking from man to man under fire. ‘They can’t hit me. Look at me’† (Addison 210). Examples like this provided moral boosts to dreary men who needed something positive to cling to. Conversely, rather than inspiring by a guiding light of bravery and courage, the Soviets were incentivized onwards by the ever-present detachments behind the troops that would shoot deserters. Grossman describes this in further detail: â€Å"Stalin’s Order No. 27 – ‘Not One Step Back’ – included the instruction to each army command to organise ‘three to five well-armed [blocking] detachments (up to two hundred men each)’ to form a second line to ‘combat cowardices’ by shooti ng down any soldier who tried to run away† (Grossman 141). As many Soviet soldiers understood the likelihood of their death in squaring off against the Nazis, the desire to flee was understandable. Stalin believed that the presence of the troops would force the Soviet troops to fight even harder. Pushed forwards, the stark realization of soldiers was expressed by Grossman: â€Å"Once you are here, there is no way out. Either you will lose your head or your legs†¦ Everyone knows that those who turn and run would be shot on the spot. This was more terrifying than the Germans† (Grossman 146). Under the constant strain of needing to ration supplies and consistently cut off from supply lines, soldiers had to make do with their limited resources. Given the treacherous nature of the constant advancement and lack of luxuries, whenever there was time to enjoy the comfort brought by certain goods that had faded away from recent recollection to distant memories, the time was relished and the goods provided relief to the men. In fact, Bidermann specifically noted several instances where his regiment and he would partake in â€Å"luxuries† that were not available to them by enjoying the spoils of war. â€Å"Two August was marked by a break in the monotonous field rations, when we boiled freshly dug potatoes in an unnamed Ukrainian village. Obserschutze Fehr had already plucked a chicken, and together with the boiled hen and potatoes we ate peeled cucumbers† (Bidermann 24). In another instance, his crew discovered a still-intact collective farm and was able to enjoy hot coffee, schmalzbrot, and sleep in small thatched-roof huts. Though seemingly commonplace to us, moments such as these provided brief relief and respite from the horrors of daily life across the theatres, and allowed soldiers to momentarily reflect on how life used to be. Constantly under an onslaught of forces that, if mishandled, could cause a man to lose his mind, soldiers used some, if not all, of the aforementioned forms to provide relief or inspiration in persevering in their struggle. Under pressure, these men had to find whatever means by which to motivate themselves to return safely home, and more so than that, return home as much themselves as before.

Industrial Relations vs. Worker Safety and Health

Industrial Relations vs. Worker Safety and Health Industrial Relations vs. Workers Safety and Health aspects A). The Past and The Present Links Between Industrial Relations And Safety And Health Introduction Industrial relations or better still ‘employment relations’ together with safety and health aspects of any organizations are vital elements in the relationship between the employee and the employer. In simple terms, industrial relations refer to the relationship between employees and the employers. It is a multidimensional field which looks into the employment relationship between the employers and the employees as it’s a cutting edge focusing on the ever changing nature, forms and regulations of the employment relationship. The main objective of this paper is to look into the past and links between safety and health practices within an organization and the industrial relations, in addition to the importance for safety and health practitioners (Monappa, 1990). Since time immemorial, all employers have a duty of care to their employees, and in turn the inception of the Occupational health and safety (OHS) concept which became paramount in employments. Moreover, a safe working place between the employees and the employer involves more than the physical environment. Harassment and bullying, discrimination and equal opportunity are as well important topics and relate equally to employee welfare as do, the more obvious physical hazards in the workplace. The main aim of â€Å"Occupational health within an organization is the maintenance and promotion of the highest degree of physical, mental, and social well-being of workers in all occupations within an organization. In addition, it also helps in the prevention of workers leaving work due to health caused cases in their working conditions (Edwards, 2003). Links between industrial relations and safety and health The term industrial reactions have a broad and also narrow outlook. In the past, the term industrial relations were broadly defined in order to include the relationships and interactions between the employees and the employer. From this perspective, industrial relation the aspect of industrial relations entailed all the aspects of employment relationships, such as human resource management, employee relations, and union-management (or labor) relations. Over the time the issues that were once under the umbrella of the ‘industrial relations’. However, the definition of the term has seen changes, becoming more specific and restricted. It is the gradual changes of industrial relations that have seen the connections between ‘its’ and the health and safety measures within an organization continue to exist (Blanpain Baker, 2010). Consequently, industrial relations pertains to the study and practice of combined negotiations, trade unionism, and labor-management relations, while on the other hand human resource management is a disconnect, largely distinct field that deals with non-union employment relationships and the personnel practices and policies of employers. In addition, it also entails the management of differences/conflict between employers, workers, and trade unions whenever it arises. Evidently, the nature of industrial relations is shifting, and the impetus for the same being provided by the changing scenarios. However, the main connection remains as the enhancement of the worker-employer relationship whereby one of the aspects is the provision of health and safety measures to the employees (Venkataramana, 2007). It is evident that, the environment in which employers-employees and trade unions find themselves has changed considerably in the one decade and will go on with changing over the coming times. One of the changes that is noticeable is the ongoing disintegration of workplaces and the shift in the balance from collective to individual models of employment relations. However, the functions of the industrial relations remain as they were’ protecting the employer through the maintenance of a healthy relationship between all the parties involved in employment. The significance of the workplace relations over the time shows the link between the industrial relations and safety and health is there and still remains. Traditionally, employment (or industry) relations, has been associated with the management of either collective or individual conflict in the workplace. In recent years, the focus has opened out to consider the benefits of high performance working on productivity, but also the wider social implications for individuals and their dependents. The workplace provides not only the money that we need to support ourselves and our families, but it can also provide purpose, status, and friendship, allowing people to develop new skills, both technical and social. The ability of line managers to manage employment relations on a day-to-day basis and to get the best from their staff has implications for innovation, productivity, quality and reliability, and ultimately levels of growth at a national level and our ability to compete on the global stage. With so much invested in work by managers and employees individually, employment relations have never been so important (Stellman, 1998). B). Importance for â€Å"Safety and Health† Practitioners to Understand Industrial Relations As seen above, industrial relations are an important aspect in the management of organizations. There is in turn a very strong and positive business case for the safety and health practitioners to understand all the aspects of industrial relations. This would enable all the parties involved to fully understand what is needed for each one of them. In addition, it helps understand the fact that, a happy and healthy employee is a more productive employee. In turn it enables the employer understand the repercussions of disgruntled employees. The very last thing any employer would want is a group of dissatisfied employees who might scrutiny their organization’s administration team as one that is concerned only about profits and not anything for workers well-being because this group will not be very industrious.Clear understanding of industrial relations helps the management to take care of their employees for better return in terms of productivity. Moreover, clear understanding of the industrial relations, helps in placing and maintaining of worker in a work-related setting through the adaptation and understanding of physiological and psychological capabilities of the employees. This can be summarized as the ability to manage the workforce for maximum production within an organization (House builder’s health safety, 2008). In addition, understanding of industrial relations helps the management to understand the fact that, injuries and ill-health that is caused by poor work circumstances can impose significant and repeatedly unrecognized monetary and legal costs to their organizations. Not to state the implication that could be felt if the corporation directors are found to have been negligent for the workers. Word also gets out and a company with a poor health and safety record will be far less appealing in a tender bid than one which is already fully compliant and has a good health and safety record. Even those companies that do not tender for work still need to protect their reputation; hence a good reputation can be maintained, through understanding of Industrial Relations (Wilson et all, 2003). Conclusion Industrial relation has grown to become of the broad aspects within organization management. The employees-employer relation has been enhanced by the understanding of the aspects within the industrial relations. This in turn brought along the issues of safety and health for the employees within any given organization. Through the understanding of public relations, the employer understands the main focus of occupational health, such as: (i) the maintenance and promotion of workers’ health and working capacity; (ii) the improvement of working environment and work to become conducive to safety and health and (iii) development of work organizations and working cultures in a direction which supports health and safety at work and in doing so also promotes a positive social climate and smooth operation and may enhance productivity of the undertakings. References Monappa, A. (1990).Industrial relations. New Delhi: Tata mcGraw-Hill. Edwards, P. (2003).Industrial Relations: Theory and Practice. Oxford: Blackwell Pub. Blanpain, R., Baker, J. (2010).Comparative labour law and industrial relations in industrialized market economies. Alphen aan den Rijn, The Netherlands: Kluwer Law International. Venkataramana, P. (2007).Industrial relations. New Delhi: A.P.H. Pub. Corp. Gross, J. A., Compa, L. A. (2009).Human rights in labor and employment relations: International and domestic perspectives. Champaign, IL: Labor and Employment Relations Association, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Stellman, J. M. (1998).Enclyclopaedia of occupational health and safety. Geneva: International Labour Office. House builders health safety. (2008). Northampton: Construction Industry Publications. Labour inspection: [general survey of the reports concerning the Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (NO. 81) : third item on the agenda: information and reports on the application of conventions and recommendations]. (2006). Geneva: Internat. Labour Office. Wilson, L., McCutcheon, D., Buchanan, M., University of Alberta. (2003).Industrial safety and risk management. Edmonton: University of Alberta Press.

Different Levels Of Involvement In Social Responsibility Business Essay

Different Levels Of Involvement In Social Responsibility Business Essay A socially responsible business practices are where the corporation adopts and conducts discretionary business practices and investments that support social causes to improve community well-being and protect the environment. Here are three levels of its involvement: Social responsibility is the businesss obligation to pursue long term goals that helps the society. It goes beyond legal and economic requirements and view the business as a moral agent. Social obligation is the businesss obligation to meet its economic and legal responsibilities where it pursues social goals only when they contribute to economic goals. Social responsiveness is the capacity of the firm to conform to changing societal condition, where it tries to satisfy social needs in line with social norms. As might be expected, most initiatives related to socially responsible practices relate to altering internal procedures and policies, such as those related to product offerings, facility design, manufacturing, assembly, and employee support. An initiative can also be reflected in external reporting of consumer and investor information and demonstrated by making provisions for customer access and privacy, and can be taken into consideration when making decisions regarding hiring practices and facility and plant location, common activities include the following: Designing facilities, developing process improvement, select supplier, provide full disclosure, Developing programs to support employees well-being, measuring, tracking and reporting, providing increased access for disabled populations, projecting privacy of consumer information,Kotler.FLee.N (2005). Figure1: corporate social responsibility process. 3.2 The stages progression of an organizations social responsibilities -Promote stockholders interest by looking forward to minimize cost and maximize profit. -Following all laws and regulations and feeling obligation to satisfy other societal needs. -Managers to agree their responsibility to employees and focus on human resource affair and improving condition, to expand responsibilities to other stockholders include faire prices, good quality of product and services, safe product, and good supplier relationship. -Finally managers to feel responsibility to whole society by trying to advance the public good, preserving the environment, promoting social justice, and then support social and cultural activities. 3.3 characteristics of the social responsibility. The social responsibility major consideration is ethical. It focuses on ends. It emphasis is obligations. and Make it decision framework a long term. 3.4 The Greening of Management. The greening of management is the identification of the nearly link between an organizations decisions and activity and its collision on the natural environment, its resulted from highly visible ecological and environmental disaster. The organization go green once it shades of green shows the different approaches that an organization may take in which: Legal approach: it follows the legal obligations. Market approach: organization behave to the customers environmental preference. Stakeholders approach: organizations chooses to respond to multiples demand made by stakeholders. Activist approach: looks for ways to respect and preserve the earth and its natural resources. Terry.J 4.0 Ethics. Ethics is concerned with the study of morality and standards of conduct of reason to clarify specific rules and principles that determine right and wrong for a situation. It can be a code that you follow and live by. 4.1 ethical Leadership. The ethical leadership is the direction and example presented by senior management in terms of what is considered to be acceptable practice within an organization must inform and shape the behaviour of others. It is a leaders role to define the vision and core values of an organization. Fisher.CLovell.A(2009) Focus on the personal qualities, attitudes and mind-sets which managers need to learn and which will in turn drive improvement in business performance. Should become embedded into the education, training and development of managers and staff, and are tool for assessing performance in all business functions. Ibid Figure2: Factors that affect ethical behaviour. 4.2 Ethics Management. The business ethics management is the direct attempt to formally or informally manage ethical issues or problems through specific policies, practices and programmes. There are numerous management activities that could be regarded as aspects of business management, Some of which: Mission or values statement. Codes of ethics. Reporting/advice channels. Risk analysis and management. Ethics managers, officers and committees. Ethics consultant. Ethics education and training. Auditing, accounting and reporting. Crane.A Matten.D (2007) 4.3 Morality in Ethics. Morality is the concerned with the norms, values, and believe enclose in social processes which defines right and wrong for a person or community. Whereas the key practical direction for ethical behaviour tend to be codified in the negotiated agree framework of businesses. Morality is social attitude that distinguish between right and wrong in the human society. Distinguish morality in this way is not making an affirmation about what is objectively right or wrong, but only referring to what is examined right or wrong by people. 4.4 Mission or Values Statements. Mission or values statements are generate statement of corporate aims, beliefs, values. Such statements frequently include social goals of one kind or another and may often specify a commitment to operate in an ethical fashion. Example: the british retailer Mark and Spencer aim to be the most trusted retailer, wherever the trade by demonstrating a clear sense of social responsibility and consistency in their decision making and behaviour. Codes of ethics are explicit outline of what conduct is the desired and expected of employees from an ethical point of view within a certain organization, profession, or industry. Ibid Figure3: purposes of shared values. To develop a shared values managers are in charge for shaping the organization so that its norms, ideas, and values appeal strongly to employees. To create a good corporation of values statement one should: 1.Involve everyone in the company. 2.Allow customizing of the values by individual department. 3.Expect and accept employee resistance. 4.Keep the statement short. 5.Avoid trivial statements. 6.Leaves out religious references. 7.Change it. 8.Live it. A.Farnham(1993)state your values: hold the hot air,fortune,p117-24 5.0 Matalan Matalan is one of the UKs leading clothing and home wares retailers offering prepared fashion and home goods at up to half the similar high street price. 5.1 Matalan social responsible and ethics. As one of the UKs ten largest retailers of clothing, Matalan takes seriously its responsibility to provide its customers with clothing products that have been produced ethically. Whilst decided on ensuring its position as a provider of high quality excellent value products, this must not be at the dignity or expense of individuals with whom they sources. As social and ethical compliance is paramount in their partnership with suppliers and is seen as an obligation to be fulfilled on behalf of their customers. Matalan founded necessary to go beyond a simple customer supplier relationship, and accept the responsibility of improving the working conditions of their supplier workforce in partnership with their suppliers to improve conditions and quality of working life. To achieve that Matalan have invested a lot in recruiting people with many years experience in the industry who are on hand to work closely with suppliers at all levels of people on improving their quality of working practices and conditions. 5.2 Audit policy in Matalan Matalan have an ethical audit policy with their full time auditors, they regularly visit locations where their manufacture is import. They have launch over 650 audits in the past three years. These audits are directed in a good spirit of co-operation with management, supervisors and factory floor employees. Additionally they possess independent auditors with local language skills and they have bring more than 85 Audits in the last three years. This powerful activity has resulted in over 1100 positive curing actions being completed during the audit period. Over this past year a number of unexpected factory visits have been made in order to satisfy their own integrity. . http://www.matalan.co.uk Every article of clothing factory used for Matalan is audited, and must conform to the below: 5.2.1 Government. Every Factory must at the very least abide by local government laws on: Basic minimum wage. Over time. Minimum working age. Hours of work. 5.2.2 Social. All factory owners and Management allow and support: Freedom Of Association. Collective Bargaining. Independent Works Committees. Working to paying a realistic living Wage. Complaints procedure. Ibid Matalan recognizes its responsibility to minimize the promising for causing harm to the environment and struggle to sustain and ameliorate the environment through the careful consideration of design, alternative of materials and operational procedures. Matalan is achieve to complying with all regulatory and legislative requirements in all aspects of the business and will undertake where practicable to ensure that its contractors and suppliers also comply. The company views this as a minimum basic with awe to environmental issues. ibid 6.0 My suggestion to Matalan. An ethical policy should be set up to set standards and give guidelines regarding the way advance Promotions should operate in Ethically. It is useful to hold this set of basis values and approaches to the method of running business on a daily basis. The ethical policies focuses around this key areas: 6.1 Employees. Promotion values of employees as a key resource, a good employee communication, involvement and responsibility both individual and team could be for central importance. Giving an equal opportunity to every employee for personal recognition, regardless of personal background or culture belief, and also provide salary without exploitation. executives must set a best example. honesty and integrity must be first concern, executives must have an open door policy and welcome suggestions and care from employees. This to allow employees to feel comfortable discussing any issues and will bright executives to concerns within the work force. executives must reveal any conflict of interests regard their position. 6.2 Customer. Everyone must play a part in providing efficiency and quality to customers. Set Promotions believes that honesty in dealings with customers is necessary for a sustained and successful business relationship. Personal network, helpful and responsive action are aspects of the service to provide to establish long term relations with our customers. 6.3 Supplier. Promotions should aim to develop relationships with suppliers based on common trust and all dealings should be directed in a professional manner at all times. Also undertake to pay suppliers on time and concur to agreed terms. All supplier relationships should determined against feedback and Quality Counts standards given to suppliers on a time basis. 6.4 Community. Promotions seek to insure agreement with legislation affecting its operations. Matalan will have to look for how to serve and support the community where it functions by providing services profitably and efficiently, and by giving good employment opportunities and work conditions. They should take into account the concerns of the immense community including national and local interests. In particular, Matalan should accept a chosen local charity and essay to augment money outside of business interests for a good act. Matalan might occur some problem if this suggestion is adapt such Resistance of employees to the new norms. Difficulties of employee and customers in getting used to the new style. Conflict between employees and managers due to new rules. Conclusion. Overall, some basic models of social responsibility have been introduced briefly. Hence, a general idea about social responsibility should be achieved and ethically. Moreover, the benefit of utilising social responsibility successfully is clear so that is strongly recommended that Matalan should achieved at least a basic task of managing its social responsibility in order to lead the organization to success.

Honda, The Car Everyone Needs :: Argumentative Persuasive Essays

Honda, The Car Everyone Needs      Ã‚  Ã‚   Beep! Beep! Beep! Goes the alarm clock in the other room.   Oh man, surely it can't be time to get up yet, you think to yourself. As you scramble out of the bed and into the shower, the thought crosses your mind, I hope my car starts. You take the quickest shower possible and eat breakfast so fast you almost choke and then realize, I'm still going to be late for my 8 o'clock class. You race out of the house with your keys in your hand, jump into the car, and damn it won't start. Then, you think to yourself, could this day get any worse? If this sounds like your typical morning, then I have the car for you.      Ã‚  Ã‚   What kind of car do you drive? Is it a piece of junk that is falling apart? Are you looking to buy a new car? Are you attending college presently? If you answered yes to the majority of these questions then you could be in the market to buy a Honda Civic.      Ã‚  Ã‚   Every college student should own a Honda Civic. After all the Honda Civic ranks as   the best selling compact car in America. Why wouldn't it be? Being affordable, reliable, durable, safe, economical, compact and sporty, with low insurance rates, and not to mention achieving great gas mileage makes this car the best. This car has everything I look for when buying a new car and more.      Ã‚  Ã‚   Price affordability is definitely the first thing I notice when looking at this car. When going to college most students don't have thousands of extra dollars lying around, so price is one of our main concerns. Price is an extremely attractive factor when looking at a Honda Civic because they are highly affordable starting around the low price of $14,000. If your one of those people that must have all the accessories and options, then you can buy a Honda Civic nicely equipped for around $16,000, which as you can see is very affordable when compared to others in its class.      Ã‚  Ã‚   This very affordable car also has a reputation for reliability. A reliable car is beyond doubt what a stressed out college student needs.

General Electric (GE) Appliances Case Study :: Business Management Analysis

Abstract The newly appointed district sales manager, Larry Barr, faces the problem of allocating sales quotas among his various sales representatives. This decision will affect everyone's earnings including his own. This problem is compounded by the fact that different territories have, for a variety of reasons, different potentials. In addition, the territory that is known to be the toughest will soon require a new sales rep. Company History/Background Canadian Appliance Manufacturing Co. Ltd (CAMCO) was created in 1998 under the joint ownership of Canadian General Electric Ltd. and General Steel Wares Ltd. (G.S.W.). CAMCO purchased the production facilities of Westinghouse Canada Ltd. under which the brand name White-Westinghouse was created. Appliances manufactured by CAMCO in the former Westinghouse plant were branded Hotpoint. G.E., G.S.W., and Hotpoint major appliance plants became divisions of CAMCO. These divisions were operated independently, had their own separate management staff and competed for sales although they were all ultimately accountable to CAMCO. Larry Barr has recently been promoted to the district sales manager position for G.E. Appliances. One of his more important duties was the allocation of his district sales quota among his five salesmen. He received his 2002 quota in October 2001 at which time his immediate task was to determine an equitable allocation of that quota. This was important because the company’s incentive pay plan was based on the salesmen’s attainment of quota and a portion of his remuneration was based on the degree to which his sales force met their quotas. The five territories were: Territory Destination/Sales Person Description 9961 Greater Vancouver Hudson's Bay, Firestone, Kmart, McDonald Garth Rizzuto Supply, plus seven independent dealers 9962 Interior All customers from Quesnel to Nelson, Dan Seguin including contract sales (50 Customers) 9963 Coastal Eatons, Woodwards, plus Vancouver Island Ken Block north of Duncan and upper Fraser Valley (east of Clearbrook) (20 customers) 9964 Independent and Northern All independents in lower mainland and Fred Speck South Vancouver Island, plus northern B.C. and Yujon (30 customers) 9967 Contract Contract sales Vancouver, Victoria All contract Jim Wiste sales outside 9962 (50-60 customers) The sales incentive plan was a critical part of G.E.’s sales force plan. Each salesman had a portion of his earnings dependent on his performance with respect to quota as well as Barr being awarded a bonus based on the sales performance of his district.

Teaching of Morals in Public Schools :: Free Essays Online

From the age of five until the time they graduate in their eighteenth year the children of America are compelled to attend school. Everyone agrees that we need compulsory education, but no one really agrees why our children need it. Some, like Jonathan Kozol, feel that the purpose of education is to turn a child into a good person through a series of moral and ethical lessons. The other school of thought is that school is a place for a general education of facts and figures and that morals have no business in the classroom. This is a question of vital importance because, with the vast majority of American youths in public school, it could truly change the face of America. The first twenty years of a human being's life have more to do with making up who they are than genetics and the other fifty-odd years of their life combined. Because of this there is a definite need for children and young adults to have a forum to learn about morals and ethics. In this respect Jonathan Kozol's ideas from The Night is Dark and I am Far from Home are true, but, is the right place for a child to learn ethics a public school of the United States? An individual's moral beliefs are one of the most personal and complex pieces of his/her psyche. One must deal with the question of whether or not they want this nation's youths to all be taught the same morals. If teachers were able to impose their own personal beliefs while teaching history and English, imagine what they could do to impressionable minds while teaching ethics. There is absolutely no way to teach morals objectively. If a teacher were a Christian fundamentalist, could she ( I, like Kozol, use "she" because a majority of elementary teachers are female) help a student make an informed, unbiased decision about abortion? If that teacher had to teach a child to make up his or her own mind, or if that teacher had to tell the student to be pro-choice (the law of the nation) she would be teaching something she didn't believe. The abortion example brings up the question, "Whose morals are we going to teach our youth?" If you allow a class in ethics, whose do you teach? The teacher's, the schoolboard's, or the nation's? Whose ever morals you do teach them would probably be drastically different from what they would come up themselves or what their parents would teach them. Teaching of Morals in Public Schools :: Free Essays Online From the age of five until the time they graduate in their eighteenth year the children of America are compelled to attend school. Everyone agrees that we need compulsory education, but no one really agrees why our children need it. Some, like Jonathan Kozol, feel that the purpose of education is to turn a child into a good person through a series of moral and ethical lessons. The other school of thought is that school is a place for a general education of facts and figures and that morals have no business in the classroom. This is a question of vital importance because, with the vast majority of American youths in public school, it could truly change the face of America. The first twenty years of a human being's life have more to do with making up who they are than genetics and the other fifty-odd years of their life combined. Because of this there is a definite need for children and young adults to have a forum to learn about morals and ethics. In this respect Jonathan Kozol's ideas from The Night is Dark and I am Far from Home are true, but, is the right place for a child to learn ethics a public school of the United States? An individual's moral beliefs are one of the most personal and complex pieces of his/her psyche. One must deal with the question of whether or not they want this nation's youths to all be taught the same morals. If teachers were able to impose their own personal beliefs while teaching history and English, imagine what they could do to impressionable minds while teaching ethics. There is absolutely no way to teach morals objectively. If a teacher were a Christian fundamentalist, could she ( I, like Kozol, use "she" because a majority of elementary teachers are female) help a student make an informed, unbiased decision about abortion? If that teacher had to teach a child to make up his or her own mind, or if that teacher had to tell the student to be pro-choice (the law of the nation) she would be teaching something she didn't believe. The abortion example brings up the question, "Whose morals are we going to teach our youth?" If you allow a class in ethics, whose do you teach? The teacher's, the schoolboard's, or the nation's? Whose ever morals you do teach them would probably be drastically different from what they would come up themselves or what their parents would teach them.

Human Resources Functions at Next Essay

Introduction: Next is one of the UK’s largest fashion and home retailers. Their ongoing success is built upon a passion for the Next brand that is shared by the whole organisation. This involves a commitment to providing excellent product in well run stores and through an attractive Directory. Head Office Located in an award-winning complex near Leicester, their Head Office in Enderby is home to a multi-skilled population. There you’ll find a comprehensive infrastructure including Product, Sales and Marketing, Finance, IT and HR teams. Stores At Next they have over 340 stores spread throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland. Over 20,000 people work in these stores which are heavily supported by their Head Office and a network of warehouses. These stores range from stand-alone units to much larger flagship stores offering the full Next range. Next Directory The Next Directory provides a facility for people to shop from home and has over I million customers and 1,000 employees. The Next Directory customer services call centre is situated at two sites close to Leicester City Centre. Warehouses Next warehouses are among the most modem in Europe and employ around 2,200 people. Located principally in West York and distribute stock to stores and Directory customers right across the United Kingdom and Ireland. E1 * Human Resources Planning: At Next they undertake human resource planning to determine a course of action which helps them to function more efficiently by having the right labour, in the right place, at the right time and cost. This requires accurate forecasting: organisations need to forecast their manpower needs, both in terms of the number of employees needed and the types of skills and qualities required. It is also important for them to monitor and assess the productivity of the existing and available workforce and recognise the impact of technological change on the way in which jobs are carried out. Human resource planning at Next takes place over different time frames, though for simplicity they can consider is two time horizons: there is planning to meet short-term needs and planning to satisfy long-term intentions. Short-term plans are referred to as tactical plans and usually contain precise, detailed, measurable objectives. Short-term planning is carried out at lower levels in an organisation like Next, at middle manager and supervisor levels. Long-term plans are not as detailed or measured as short-term plans. The longer the time horizon of the plan, the less certain managers can be about outcomes. They are usually made at higher levels of management Long-term plans are also known as strategic plans. Next has to plan carefully to ensure they have the right number of suitable employees for their needs. To do this Next need a good understanding of the labour market in the areas where they operate. Next need to be able to consider the effects of the following labour market factors for human resources planning in a business: * Employment trends * Skills shortages * Competition for employees * Availability of labour (internal and external; to the business). HR palnning also involves looking at how labour is organised within the business. You need to understand the need for businesses to take account of a arrange of factors when making decisions about their internal staffing. Such factors include: * Labour turnover (stability index, Wastage rate) * Sickness and accident rates * Age, skills and training * Succession. You need to know how to use statistics to analyse these factors when appropriate. * Recruitment and Selection: Next’s human resource planning team also needs to be able to identify and analyse the factors influencing and shaping the labour markets from which the organisation recruits staff to satisfy its manpower needs. Human resource specialists have to work in Next within these labour markets to acquire sufficient resources to meet the productive needs of the organisation. At Next Head Office you’ll find an environment, where each employee’s personnel contribution is encouraged. They believe strongly that, although qualifications can give you a head start, its initiative and self determination is what makes all the difference. This is why they don’t always insist on degree qualifications. If you can show that you have good experience and great potential in a relevant discipline, you’ll be considered. People do well at Next and seize the opportunities presented to them. This is why they look for motivated graduates with drive, commercial acumen and a passion for fashion. Individuals who will thrive in an open and creative environment where teamwork is valued. It is a fast-paced environment and it can be demanding. But the people that work there at Next take real pride in their work, and it’s their commitment that has made them what they are today. In return, they offer generous rewards and bonuses. For e.g. Staff Shop access and cut price clothing. Not to mention training and development. Businesses such as Next recruit staff for a variety of reasons. The reasons for why and how they recruit staff are: * The growth of the business * Changing job roles withtin the business * Filling vacancies created by resignation, retirement, dismissal * Temperorary staff holidays * Internal promotion The recruitment process can be very costly, in terms of resources devoted to the recruitment process and costs associated with recruiting poorly performing staff, due to the lack of motivation. It is important therefore to accurately select the right candidates for the interview or you could lose the right one before even the first process. Next are often straight to he point and make it very clear about the requirements of the job and about the person they are looking for. The way in which they do this is through: * The preparation of personal specifications and job descriptions * Carefully planning how, where and when to advertise * Identifying the strengths and weaknesses of job applications curriculum vitae and letters of application * Shortlisitng candidates. * Training and Development: To join Next as a Trainee Buyer, you’ll need either a fashion/clothing/textile/design related degree or HND. They prefer relevant retail experience with strong evidence of fashion awareness. For Trainee Merchandisers, you’ll need a business related or numerically biased degree/FIND or relevant retail experience as a Trainee Fabric Technologist or Trainee Garment Technologist, you’ll also need a relevant degree or an HND in textiles, fashion or clothing design. It is important to have these qualifications due to the demanding customers Next have. Computers have become an integral part of modem day life and are becoming increasingly important as teaching and training tools. In the work place and many other educational institutes computers and networks have become commonplace. This allows companies such as Next and educational establishments to utilise many possible computer training and education techniques. Today the use of computer based training and education covers a very broad spectrum of uses. Many companies now use computers in staff training and education. Computers are used as both a resource to present information and as a tool to develop practical expertise in staff. Computers can be used as a resource to present information because of presentation programs such as Microsoft PowerPoint. This presentation package can be used for basic training such as an employee induction; the presentation could give information about the company and what the employees will be doing. Computers can also be used as tools because they can help develop employees practical skills e.g. an employee who would be working with the companies database would probably be trained on a â€Å"dummy database† this would allow the employee to build up practical skills. Among the many benefits of computer-based training the major benefit to an employer is the reduced cost. As they do not have to send people away on courses which mean they don’t have to pay for travel or accommodation. So the investment in a suitable training scheme often pays for itself, as the computers are already available. The only drawback is that the computer based training courses can be impersonal and the employee may have to be a computer literate to do the course. One of the other advantages is that staff can train when they like at there own desks on the computer. The downside to this is that they are being taught by a computer, which cannot explain to the employee what they did wrong when they make a mistake, although some training packages may be able to do this to an extent. The major benefit to the people being trained close to Next is the convenience as they do not have to travel away and can learn in there own time. They can also get immediate feedback on how well they are doing. The only real disadvantage to using computer-based training is the impersonal touch of being taught by a computer. * Performance Management: A need to manage the performance of its employee’s effectively if Next is to remain competitive. This means that they must use effective management control exercised at both individual and organisational level. A range of processes and techniques need to be in place which allow individual employees to know how well they are doing and for managers to be able to monitor how well their subordinates are performing. At Next they monitor their employees whilst they are working. For e.g. they monitor your call with a customer if you are working in the directory and they observe you when you are serving customers on the shop floor. They do this because they wish to maintain the high standards people think they are at and their value in the market would increase.

Evolution Theory Essay

Darwin spent five years exploring the world. Darwin traveled to many places mainly in the Southern Hemisphere. As he traveled from place to place, Darwin was surprised, by the similarities between the species. He wrote in his journal of the Galapagos Islands, â€Å"†¦there is even a difference between the inhabitants of the different islands; yet all show a marked relationship with those of America, though separated from that continent by an open space of ocean, between 500 and 600 miles in width.† At this early stage of his life, along with graduating college Darwin soon began collecting evidence for his theory of Evolution and natural selection. While on his journey Darwin made many observations. They were mainly about the different species he saw on the Galapagos Islands. Each island had a different variation of birds. He noticed that the beak sizes of the finches were different on each island because of the size seeds they ate. Darwin noticed that organisms reproduce more offspring than can survive. Each individual offspring has unique characteristics that can be hereditable. Most of Darwin’s observations focused on the idea of natural adaptions. Darwin noticed that the body parts an animal used the most for survival, evolved over periods of time. Meaning if a giraffe tends to use its neck a lot, it will extend in length throughout time. This is an organism’s natural adaption to, living within its environment. These observations lead to the theory of Evolution. Aside from this Darwin observed the competitive field among organisms. An organism’s physical adaption can either make or break them. Survival of the fittest is key in every habitat. Through evolution, organisms have been allowed to make physical and behavioral adaptions that can be beneficial towards survival. In his theory Darwin states that organisms have visible differences. This difference can be inherited from the offspring’s parents. Another point is that organism’s produce more offspring than can survive. From these organisms that are produced, many do not reproduce later on in life. Since so many organisms are reproduced there is a fight for the survival of the fittest. Individuals best suited to their environment survive and reproduce most successfully. The characteristics that make them best suited to their environment are passed on to offspring. Individuals whose characteristics are not as well suited to their environment die or leave fewer offspring. Organisms change over time, this is the theory that Darwin tries to prove known as evolution. It is believed that organism adapt t their environment and change over periods of time. The species that live in present day are descendants form those in the past. All organisms on Earth are united by one common ancestor. These are the major points form Darwin’s theory of Evolution. I feel that Darwin’s theory is very accurate. Organisms adapt over time and this adaptions help with natural survival. Evolution occurs over periods of time and has leaded us to our modern state. Every organism is the descendant of a prehistoric ancestor. There are visible similarities, but sometimes it may be hard to tell an organisms’ ancestor. I feel that if changes occur gradually it can be easily noticed that organism’s physical, behavioral and outer appearances change.

My Personal and Professional Development Plan Essay

It is a journey of the self to contemplate all the happenings going on around. I can say that I have reached the middle of the road with regard to my journey in life. I am now entering a new phase of my life. My graduation is almost near. I have to face the new world in order for me to continue my journey on this earth. I remember when I first entered this university. I do not have friends before; I also remember the times when I am longing for my parents. I miss them so much but because of my determination to study here, I managed to cope up with my new environment. I remember how I felt whenever I’m alone. I also remember the hard times during my first day here. The way of life, the attitudes of the students and of course, the expectations from my instructors and professors gave me some intense feeling of being new to this university. But as days passed I learned how to mingle with them and cope with my new environment. Now, the time is near to end my journey in this stage of my life. My journey in college is coming to an end. I am so excited to face a new period in my life. As I move on to my journey, I want to spend time with my family and catch up with my friends. I want to go out on a vacation where I can loosen up a bit. I am planning to go to a place where I can relax and think of nothing but myself. By the time I graduate, I will visit my family back in Brazil and I will visit all the places that I’ve been. This will give me time to think about my future; on what path would I take. I will also visit my old friends to reconnect with them, and try to enjoy my vacation there. By the time I go back to work, I will see to it that I will be promoted after five months. I will instill in mind that I need to be promoted, this is my way in motivating myself to achieve what I have planned. I will also enroll in a university to get a Master’s degree. I plan to get a management degree because I want to have a managerial position in my workplace. We know for a fact that having a greater education gives you a chance to compete in the market that is, having a higher position in a company. I believe that the adult tasks, unique to each period and era of the adult life are intertwined with the issues and problems inherited from our childhood, and are mediated by dynamic pressure from socioeconomic and historical aspects of life from within the cultures and societies where we live. Helping put our adult lives back in balance with our inner resources, and understanding the contradictions and conflicts built into our life patterns — between who we are and who we want to be, between what we love and what we must do, between our often clashing commitments — this is often the task that underlies the resolution of psychological symptoms and suffering. With these challenges in life, an individual learn to know himself/herself better and try to do something about it. Each and every one of us has experienced this kind of situation and we try to solve it as soon as the problem arises. Going back to my previous papers I mentioned that I have been into sorrow but I think of positive thoughts to divert my attention and see to it that these challenges in my life will help me grow. I am grateful for the incidents in my life that I have experienced. It made me who I am— a stronger woman. Forgetting and learning from your experiences, makes you more knowledgeable about realities of life. As human being, we have differences and similarities. Thus, according to Levinson, â€Å"human life cycle is universal, yet each life is different†; that both sexes have developmental histories to some extent unique to their own gender, but the overall pattern in the adult development. This follows the same structure of eras and alternating periods. Adult Development Theory helps us see more of our connectedness to the rest of life, primarily through our experience of living within the limits of a relatively invariant, species-specific life cycle, containing nevertheless within it, the creative potential of individual variability (Kitrrell, 1998). My plan in achieving my goals: personal and professional I mentioned earlier that I first planned to graduate for me to get a decent job. In order for me to get a high grades I would have to keep in mind that nothing is more important than finishing all the requirements needed for me to graduate. One of my mottos this school year was to graduate and find a job that will help me enhance my knowledge about my course. And time is near for me to accomplish my goal with regard to my education. One of my personal goals is to develop my profession and apply the knowledge that I have learned during my stay here at the University. I want to help others in building their own dreams. I want to have smooth relationships with my co-workers. I want them to know me better. In helping them with their tasks, they will also help me with mine. thus, my growth with regard to personal and professional life go hand in hand, that is, i can develop my relationship with others by making them my friends and at the same time, they help me enhance my professional growth—making good at my job. Doing your job is not good enough to say that you are growing professionally. An individual needs a harmonious relationship with people surrounding him/her to understand and do his/her work better. In it, the individual will not have any conflicts with his/her co-workers. S/he will be happy and enjoys his/her tasks in the office. Adjustment is the key in making a harmonious relationship with others. It is very important in work and also with personal life, rather than likability, meaning it is more important to interact within your co-workers than to impress them. If a person wants to impress others, s/he must communicate will with others s/he must mingle with them. In this way, s/he will be understood by them and they may help him/her in his/her endeavor in work. Being friends with your co-workers makes your work load more fun and you will not feel the pressure in doing your assigned tasks. So, I must adjust to the people in my workplace and in the society that I belong. I will see to it that I will not have any conflict with them. I will befriend them to help me cope with the new environment that I enter. I will share my thoughts to them for them to understand me better and try to use it as an instrument in accepting me as part of their company. I also want promotion, so I am planning to have a higher education, I will enroll for masteral and at the same time do good in my work. I will attend conferences if necessary to help me gain more credentials for the promotion that I want. I just want to achieve this in my first two years of work. After attending masterals, I plan to have my PhD to have a higher position in my recent workplace or maybe I can have a career move where I can improve my ability and skills with regard to what I have studied. But before I achieve these goals, I will develop a clear and highly specific career goals and objectives for myself. I believe in the goodness and attainability of my goals— I being accountable for the consequences that may occur. I will strive towards reaching my goals and dreams one day at a time. I see my career as a vehicle that will help me take my goals. I will commit myself emotionally and psychologically to turn my dreams into reality. But first, I need to focus on what I want to do, that is, to have a vacation for myself. I will plan my goals base on its attainability—short- and long-term goals. Second, I need to eliminate excuses for not moving forward toward my goals. I will put my career plan that maps out specific moves I can make toward my goals on a daily basis. From what I have found on my assessments, I now develop an awareness of what I want to do. Two years from now, I want to finish my Master’s degree. Five years from now, I want to have a child and have a beautiful family of my own. And ten years from now I want to have a top position in a company and make a name in the business industry. My ideal job would enable me to grow personally and professionally. This job will help me enhance my ability and skills in communicating with others. As I graduate from this university, I will step-up for more formal education in order for me to attain my goal. We all know that having a higher education will give you a chance to compete on the job market. This way, I can improve my personality. Having a good job is not enough. I want to get more than what I have. At my recent job, I will try my best to do my job for me to be promoted. Being a CSR, I won’t try arguing with unhappy customers. If I can’t handle them, I better call my manager. I also want to receive feedback about my performance at work once a week. I will use these feedbacks to improve my work, and to be more efficient employee. I will use my resources to my advantage. Performance is a very important factor for every individual. It is created to assess individual action with regard to how s/he conducted his/her own acts. Interacting with others help someone assess his/her action on how and what should s/he do to act accordingly, that is, behaving in a manner where s/he is supposed to act. Each and every one of us is expected to act in every situation we encounter. An individual could maintain an ideal role within the situation. As a student, I must study hard and do all my assignments to conform to the rules and regulations of the school. I must act as a student in order for me to perform my role as a student. By doing this, I learned how to assess my work according to the standards of the University. The road to success Happiness is connected to personal effectiveness wherein you feel contentment within yourself. For me, personal effectiveness is doing what you want, getting yourself from where you are to where you want to be, that is, achieving what you want in life. Thus, it takes a lot of effort to say that an individual is successful in doing the things that s/he wants. Defining personal effectiveness is the same as how we define success. We individuals seek success being intertwined with happiness. We can say that success is having the things that you want—earning money for yourself and your family, getting the highest paying job in town, having all the things that the world offers, and the likes. We define success with regard to tangible and intangible factors— the materials that we use in determining success and the feeling that we feel inside in getting that success. As I mentioned in my previous paper, I defined happiness as a pleasurable satisfaction, a state of well-being and contentment—being happy of what you have. Regret is a way of depressing yourself of not getting what you want or doing what you should have done. Seeing my mistakes and my weaknesses enables me to improve my worth as an individual. This made me more effective citizen, student, daughter, friend and a partner. And I try to live one day at a time in order for me to achieve my goals in life. In this way, I can avoid myself of feeling too overwhelmed with my limits and emotions. I will be entering a new page in my life, as I go on with this great transition, I realized that my experiences and the people around me have a great impact of who I am today and what will I be tomorrow. My future depends on how I plan to go on with my life—my future! I can say that I am contented of what I have right now but I am not satisfied of where I am today. I want to explore more of my world. I want to excel from my job and I plan to have a very good life, that is, being successful and all the people around me are happy with what they have, especially my family. Prior to graduation, I plan to have good, if not better grades. I want to make it better for me to land a job that will help me earn enough money that is salary that will enhance my way of living. I don’t want to have a failing mark. This will reflect my personality as individual. Failing mark means I didn’t do my best to pass my course. In order for me to achieve this, I will read all my reading assignments and complete all the requirements that are needed to be submitted. I will see to it that I will pass my entire exam. I will love and enjoy my course and look at every single test as a challenge in making me more responsible individual. Taking responsibility in all your actions make an individual is more assertive of what s/he wants to achieve. My family is very important to my life, I want them to be happy with their own life and be successful with their chosen field. I want my mother to be more understanding and I will see to it that she is happy right now. I want her to feel that we, her children love her very much. I want my family to be complete and witness my graduation. I want to share my achievement with them. They are my strength and joy. Without them, I cannot overcome all the obstacles that came my way. They are the one whom I run to whenever I have a problem. They gave me good advices on how to handle my problems. Even though they are not with me, they are always here in my heart. Daniel Levinson’s theory of adult development Adult development theory presents a vivid understanding of life cycle. Daniel Levinson worked out his theories of adult development in two landmark studies, Seasons of a Man’s Life and Seasons of a Woman’s Life. He argues essentially that the adult portion of the human life span is divided into three eras: early, middle, and late adulthood. Each of these broad eras are themselves divided between entry or initial stages and ending or more-or-less stable stages. Think of the difference and quality of the life structure and goals of a 24 year old as compared with a 34 year old, and you will get a sense of the internal changes that occur within otherwise specific eras, i. e. , both a 24 year old and a 34 year old would be considered young adults within the Levinsonian perspective. The divisions between the life eras are marked by significant transitional periods that can last for some years. Life during these shifts can be seen as rocky or smooth, noisy or quiet, but the quality and significance of one’s life commitments often change between the beginning and end of such periods. I chose this theory to plan my future because it enables me to think of the differences and similarities of characteristics between the two sexes and also to compare the experience of the adulthood with the late-adulthood stage and the other stages of life as discussed by Levinson. This theory reflects essential changes that adults undergo. Thus, it provides a clearer view of what reality is. This theory can be applied in planning on with your life. It will make you aware of the things that you don’t bother to know. This will help you analyze your work and performances as part of the society. This will enhance your knowledge about your role in the society. This will enable you to view things in a broader way, i. e. , having a positive outlook in life in entering the new phase of your life. This theory also presents a good foundation for understanding goal setting of individuals entering into particular adult stages (Minter & Samuel, 1998). If you know your goals, probably you will know where you are heading to. This perspective on adult development is important for us, adults to understand. This will enable us to resolve important transitional issues during the vital periods in our lives. Thus, each transitional period is needed so that changes in individuation and relationships are attained by concerned individuals (Wheeler-Scruggs, 2008). This model is created to promote individuation and build relationships among individuals that they may use in getting what they want in life. These changes bring greater sense of autonomy and give a greater expression and achievement of one’s self-potential (Wheeler-Scruggs, 2008). Thus, individuals go through the various stages and transitions in order for them to become more self-reliant. Its nature is focused on building characteristics that would help the individual attain his/her personal and professional goals. It is also used to create rapport with each and every individual concerned. This would help the individuals reach their goals. Building rapport is very important in making your goals attainable. If you communicate well with other, they will help you achieve your goals by giving you information that you need. For instance, as a CSR I need to build rapport to the customers for them to give a positive feedback in which they will be nice to me thus, making my work easy. And with regard to my co-workers, I need to build rapport for them to help me in my job, giving some advices if I experience some difficulties in my job. Thus, this will help each and every one to improve their work and at the same time develop personal relationships. As I have mentioned earlier, we need each other in order for us to grow. With the help of others, we will achieve the set goals we planned for ourselves. As I assess my performance, I see my potentials to be growing. These potentials include my leadership ability and interpersonal skills which I can use in communicating at work. I will try to develop my weaknesses into strengths for me to improve myself, personally and professionally. This will also be of help to us in communicating with each other. Every student must know that they need their teachers for them to gain knowledge and improve their way of thinking. The teachers may help their students in developing their potentials and skills which they will use in communicating with others, most especially with regard to their work. Conclusion After planning all my walks in life, I would like to slowly acquire my goal. I will stick to my plan. As I have said earlier, I want to achieve my goal one step at a time. I believe that all my plans are reachable. I divided my plans into two: long-term goal and short-term goal. I would focus first on short-term goal: to be promoted in my work, to have a vacation with my family in Brazil, to visit my friends, to extend my family by having a new French bulldog in my house, and to graduate; and then work on to my long-term goals: having a good life with my own family and for my mom to be happy with what we, her children have achieved in life, and be one of the best Psychologist in town. This assignment enables me to reflect on how I manage my life after graduation. I have learned that in order to succeed in life, an individual must look at all the aspects of life before planning his/her future, that is, reflecting on the experiences s/he had and planning the future. Thus, development means assessing your own life and making all the necessary steps to achieve my goals. I learned that in order to achieve your dreams, you must decide to for Utopia, which means going beyond the reach of the society until we overcome the obstacles that stand in our way. These obstacles include negativism, fear, depression, and the problems they create— discouragement, economic stagnation, crime, drug dependency, family distrust, etc. At this moment in my life, I can say that I have achieved something for myself—overcoming the obstacles that came my way. This helped me have a positive outlook in life. Thus, I will prioritize myself, of what I want to do and where I want to go. Through this process I will know that I will be a successful psychologist someday. References Kitrrell, D. (1998). A Comparison of the Evolution of Men’s and Women’s Dreams in Daniel Levinson’s Theory of Adult Development. Journal of Adult Development, 5(2), 105-115. Minter, L. E. & Samuel, C. A. (1998). The Impact of ‘the Dream’ on Women’s Experience of the Midlife Transition. Journal of Adult Development, 5(1), 31-43. Wheeler-Scruggs, K. S. (2008). Do Lesbians Differ from Heterosexual Men and Women in Levinsonian Phases of Adult Development? Journal of Counseling & Development, 86(1), 39-46.