Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice Essay

Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is a manifestation of creativity in its bravest and most daring form. Never has a woman dared to write about the female specie in the form that Austen did; bold yet graceful and assertive but polite. Pride and Prejudice proves to be one of the timeless pieces of Literature because of its interesting content that brings about new and substantial insight every time it is read. Perhaps one of Austen’s trademark in writing is the vividness of her description and the symbolism it has. In this paper, I would like to highlight how Austen carefully and vivaciously feast on the description of the home as a determining element to the establishment of her characters and how the plot would flow. It is interesting to note that she was very careful and detailed about her descriptions yet was able to leave rooms for curiosity and imagination. The house of the Bennets is more than just a structure but a fertile ground planted with many insightful details that will bring life and color to the characters thus heightening the relationships of people and events. In the house of the Bennets, only the father is male. The rest of the members were female. This alone was enough to spark intrigue and controversy in the novel. Jane Austen lived in a time where women are treated as second- class citizens. In the house, quantity-wise, the females are more dominant, yet the father holds the power not only within the halls of their house but in the decisions made by his wife and daughters. This tells us that in the house of Bennets, no matter how many female members there were, the male member will always have the supremacy. This is also true in the Regency Society as male dominance is seen and observed everywhere. â€Å"Compared with some families, I believe we were; but such of us as wished to learn, never wanted the means. We were always encouraged to read, and had all the masters that were necessary. Those who chose to be idle, certainly might. † Chapter 6, Volume 2. â€Å"In such cases, a woman has not often much beauty to think of. † Chapter 1, Volume 1 The four daughters were treated fairly and dearly. There were the gems of the house and the life of the family. In all fairness to Mr. And Mrs. Bennet, the daughters were raised well. They were given the best that their parents can give. It may not equal that of the society’s bourgeois, but it had to be given to Mr. And Mrs. Bennet that they tried, and that alone was enough. The ladies were beautiful, that’s undeniable. But among the four sisters, Elizabeth was the one outstanding everyone else in the book. Not only did she manage to make a mark in the novel, she is regarded as one of the most famous characters in English Literature. This was because Elizabeth showed remarkable attitude, her beauty rivals her personality. Not only did she possess the looks, she had the attitude that magnetizes people. But then, I perceive Mrs. Bennet as one of the most interesting characters in the novel as her desire to have her daughters marry rich men so to elevate their already degraded status in the society. Mrs. Bennet’s role in the novel can be interpreted as a wonderful mother wanting a bright future for her children but done in a negative way. This I would have to note that the daughters were perceived as objects that can be given away for material wealth. This is very rampant in many societies in the world, not only in the regency society. â€Å"Our habits of expence make us too dependant, and there are not many in my rank of life who can afford to marry without some attention to money† Chapter 10, Volume 2. Other issues explored was the idea that women are but appendages of men; that women were born to be accessories of the male specie as if there is supremacy in being the first one to be created. We have to admit that women who are physically attractive are most likely to become wives of rich and influential men because they see them as affirmation of their masculinity. This is a very abusive yet accepted fact in the society. Women become objects that can be bought at the right price and the saddest part is that some people actually accede to it wanting nothing to do about it. â€Å"Mr. Bennet, how can you abuse your own children in such way? Chapter 1, Volume 1. However, it is very positive to note that even at the darkness of such mad society, love finds its way. â€Å"I am excessively diverted. But it is so strange! † Chapter 15, Volume 3. I would have to say that Mr. Bennet and Elizabeth were the closest in the family and thus the most intelligent members of the household. This union of intellectual bond resulted to the education of Elizabeth’s character that she learned to gear away from how her mother wished her and her sisters to be. She was able to determine that there are more important things than money, that her love for Mr. Darcy should not be stained by the lust for money and power. Elizabeth was able to acquire the greatest kind of wealth possible for any woman that is having a man who would truly love her, embracing what she is and what she’s not. â€Å"I cannot believe it. Why should they try to influence him? They can only wish his happiness, and if he is attached to me, no other woman can secure it. † Chapter 1, Volume 2.

Positivism vs Interpretivism

Positivism vs Interpretivism Positivism is an approach in sociology that believes society can be studied using similar scientific techniques to those used in the natural sciences. (Browne, 2006) This concept tends to produce quantitative data and Concerned with hypothesis testing. (Collis and Hussey, 2003) Interpretivism is an approach emphasizing that people have consciousness involving personal beliefs, values and interpretations and these influence the way they act. They do not simply respond to forces outside them. Browne, 2006) This concept tends to produce qualitative data and concerned with generating theories. (Collis and Hussey, 2003) Research topic Gaspar (2005) pointed out that employee in a competition environment is encouraged to work more efficiency in a company. However, Kurland. (1996) said that employees working in high competition environment will do some unethical behaviour for their achievements. Two of these research articles have different opinion, so there is a question which is high competitive whether help a company or it breaks a company down.Therefore, my research topic is â€Å"does running high competition system help a company to become successful in long term? † Application of research philosophies This topic through Positivism conducts qualitative data for exploring the relationship between competition and productivity. Researcher should use experiments methods to research this topic. For example, in a sales department, researchers can separate two different groups of the employee one of the group is getting stable salary and the other one is getting commission salary.Based on the data of two different group’s employee, to compare its working time, output and time required for specific work to see whether the competition system can increase the productivity in this company. Also, research can use surveys to collect some data such as the amount of unethical behaviour between normal working environment and high compet itive working environment to see which environment happen more unethical behaviour in a company.This topic through Interpretivism conduct qualitative data for reflecting the research like find out reasons why the productivity increases in the company. Researchers create some questionnaires for employees to get some opinions. For example, researcher asks employees why work hard even if he is ill. At the end, the researcher will sum up all of the opinion from employees to show the phenomenon. Also, researchers can directly observe employees emotion and behaviour to analyse why they have this action.For example, in a sales department, researcher sees the employee may lie to the consumer for getting more commissions which the researcher will use the opinion by itself. In conclusion, Interpretivism is a better philosophy in this research topic, because it will consider the reason why the productivity increase or employees do unethical behaviour. This result of the research is more useful for this topic. In Positivism, it just uses some data to prove the productivity increase but it cannot provide reasons to explain the relationship between competition and productivity.

Case study ( Ethic and law) for nursing Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

( Ethic and law) for nursing - Case Study Example Sue lied about making observations. Ben, an assistant Nurse, was assigned to carry out a task without supervision from Sue. The assistant was not legally allowed to carry out the intervention without nursing supervision, as he was not yet licensed to practice nursing and was only in his second year. Value-laden terms are terms that indicate positive or negative emphasis, which may then have favourable or unfavourable effects on patients (White & Duncan, 2002). These statements may also refer to good or bad things, which may be evaluated based on the viewpoint of the person acknowledging their existence. In this case study, Emily expressed that her symptoms (hot, nauseated, headache) were still persistent. When consulted about these symptoms, Sue said that the patient was likely just having a cold and that she just needed to rest. The nurse discounted the patient’s symptoms, simply deriding their seriousness. In effect, the terms used by the patient were not given much value, but the value of these terms was already very much significant to the patient. From a nursing perspective, nurses should provide value to the terms used by the patients; they should have either equal or greater value, but never lesser value because this would make the patient feel that she is not bei ng properly cared for (White & Duncan, 2002). Autonomy is based on the principle of independence and self-determination. The principle of autonomy is based on the patient’s right to control his or her care, to make decisions on his or her care and even to decline care (Masters, 2009). Emily’s autonomy was violated when the nurse did not attend to health concerns (nausea, headache and feeling hot), because according to Nurse Sue, she was already old and dying, anyway. Not responding to her request for symptomatic relief meant that the nurse did not support Emily’s autonomy

Organization's financial statements Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Organization's financial statements - Essay Example In this way, the success of financial analysis process is depended on the use of accurate information, as incorporated in financial statements of each organization. Due to its role in the development of effective organizational decisions, the financial analysis has been extensively explored in the literature. Emphasis has been given to the different missions that financial analysis can achieve, as a decision making tool. It seems that the need for eliminating risks in regard to investment decisions has been the key reason for the expansion of financial analysis process (Lee et al. 2009, p.2). Indeed, it has been proved that financial analysis is an excellent tool for checking whether the existent capital of a firm is adequate for responding to the needs of a particular investment, either in the short or the long term (Lee et al. 2009, p.2). From a similar point of view Norman has argued that financial analysis is quite important for minimizing risks related to the potential participa tion of a firm in a stock exchange market (Norman 2011). Maitah et al. (2012) refer to the use of financial statement analysis in banks as a tool for identifying effective ‘investment and lending decisions’ (Maitah 2012, p.107). ... ? Financial statements most important in financial analysis (Zager & Zager 2006, p.36) Through the financial statement of each organization figures showing the performance of the organization to specific sectors can be retrieved. For example, reference could be made to Liabilities and Shareholders’ equity, as elements of a firm’s balance sheet, one of the most important financial statements of modern firms (Belkaoui 1998, p.2). The financial analysis process can help managers to check the relationship between their firms’ different financial statements; in this way, the actual financial performance of the firm can be identified. The tool used for achieving this target is the financial ration analysis. The above analysis is developed using financial ratios, i.e. figures showing ‘the expression of the relation between two financial statement accounts’ (Drake & Fabozzi 2012, p.102). The analysis of these ratios helps to understand the performance of a f irm in regard to the sectors reflected in these ratios. The most common financial ratios are presented in Figure 2 below. Figure 2 – Most common financial ratios (Zager & Zager 2006, p.38) At this point, the following fact should be highlighted: Financial ratios reflect different aspects of organizational performance. Other ratios refer to the security of the business, as of its financial strength, while others show the financial efficiency of the organization (Zuger & Zuger 2006). This fact is made clear through the graph in Figure 3. Figure 3 – Financial rations as part of the financial analysis process (Zager & Zager 2006, p.39) According to the issues discussed above, financial analysis is necessary for securing the success of organizational decisions. The close relationship between financial analysis and

The Mini (car) between 1998 and 2015 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Mini (car) between 1998 and 2015 - Assignment Example On the other hand, many spare parts from the past are still useable in the present. For example, engine mounting has remained the same over the years. This is why the mini is one of the most economic cars of today’s age. The company producing minis was in the year 2000 bought by BMW a renowned high quality and class brand of car production. BMW bought the mini car production from the Rover group that was the original production company. BMW introduced the Mini Cooper in place for the mini cars. The key terms employed in 1998 and before to market the mini cars included low mileage, price friendly and uniquely styled (Thoms 1998). Today’s keywords for mini cars have drawn more attention they include; well-known brand, competitive model, iconic, powerful, hybrid, environmental friendly, laudable and so on. Semantics is the study of what words meanwhile inference involves what one draws from and the conclusions made. The wording used today mean that people are more interested in the brands of the cars than the prices. The conclusion made is that, although pricing is an important factor, more importance is drawn from the status the mini cooper brings. The social contexts of mini car advertisements greatly influence consumer market. They draw the line in most cases of who can fit in to purchase the car and who is the potential buyer. Car modeling defines the use of a car. Through the ads, the mini car’s function is highly emphasized. Whether it is a leisure car or a daily use car. The terms illustrated above to advertise mini coopers today, clearly identify mini coopers as vehicles that are growing in class and even in use. The target market has changed from the lower middle class to upper middle class and first class socially. The competitive nature of the advertisements is just attractive to bring in a more consumer-ready market. Words like powerful, iconic, hybrid and so on are associated with the brands.

Discuss arguments related to global warming.where are there Essay

Discuss arguments related to global warming.where are there differences of opinion and can they be justified - Essay Example Present science points toward the matter to unrestrained release of gases. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recognizes discharge of anthropogenic conservatory gases as the major cause for global warming in the middle of twentieth century. Clearly, the results are aiming to control the discharge of these dangerous gases. Approximately, all the countries have signed the Kyoto procedure but this is concerning all our governments. On the other hand, at any rate, the scientists are to be answerable, not the politicians since scientists have failed to recognize the actual reason, and therefore, solutions recommended by them are not useful. (Thakur, pp.115, 2002) An added alarming situation is that due to the global warming, many cyclones and hurricanes can take place on common basis with a greater force. There is also a chance of sea levels to rise and give a passage to the coastal flooding. (Codrington, pp.396, 2005) On the other hand, argument that global warming may cause tropical cyclones to turn into more relentless is rooted on the supposition that sea level temperatures will boost as the atmosphere become warmer. (Codrington, pp.396, 2005) Warm oceans give the majority of the energy supply from tropical cyclones. Again, the confirmation for this argument is vague. In the opinion of Landsea (1996), there has been a wide-ranging decline in the number of intense tropical cyclones tendency in the Atlantic. Several climatologists bring to a close that even though global warming has a number of effects on the occurrence and intensity of tropical cyclones, nearly all of the variations, are due to natural factors for instance ocean temperatures and the movement of ocean currents. (Codrington, pp.396, 2005) In today’s world, there has been more increase of rate of global warming as in comparison to what has been experienced in the past. Therefore, if we look into past we will notice that even in the history a large

Wal-Mart Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Wal-Mart - Research Paper Example Sam Walton believed that impressive profits in any business do not source from charging high prices on goods and services, but from making high sales volume. Samuel Walton believed that he could only make smart profits if he did a lot of sales of his merchandise. For this reason, Samuel Walton resolved to reduce the prices of his merchandise below the market margin, which eventually played the most critical role in attracting many customers. With many customers, the rate of stock turn over in the Wal-Mart stores increased thereby resulting to high profit margins. The success of Wal-Mart stores should act as reflective mirror to any investor in the chain store industry. Wal-Mart’s success lines up with various economic and social benefits as well as negative implications in the line of economy, social and environmental arenas. Wal-Mart stores have worked towards eliminating monopolistic complacency in the American market by inducing high level of competition. Wal-Mart is known for its tendency to reduce handlers of its products to the shelves, a strategy achieved through the identification of viable vendors who inspect the stocks in the stores and in the shelves and organize for supply when necessary. The strategy has helped Wal-Mart stores in cutting costs, transferring the advantages transfers to the customers who eventually end up buying goods at low prices (Bargdahl 14). The reduction of prices charged on the final products by Wal-Mart has attracted many consumers to the Wal-Mart stores, an event that has seen decline in performance of the other competitors. Owing to the high competition from Wal-Mart, other market operators have been forced to lower their prices thus the benefit to the consumers. According to Bergdahl, Wal-Mart stores adopted advanced technology of loading and offloading, which applies the use of conveyor belts (41). Wal-Mart has therefore employed thousands of people who operate the

Nine-banded armadillo Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Nine-banded armadillo - Research Paper Example This species is found in western Trans-Pecos portion of Texas and the east, although they can occasionally be located in the south, Missouri and South Carolina. Their natural habitat includes woods, brush, scrub and grassland. Life cycle of the species- Describe the life cycle of the organism you have chosen. The life cycle of an organism refers to the series of changes in both development and growth from its beginnings as an independent life form up until maturity, when it is able to reproduce. Organisms like bacteria have relatively simple life cycles; however other organisms (e.g., plants) have very complex stages to their life cycle. Breeding in Nine-banded armadillo occurs in the summer. During this period the embryo is not implanted and remains like that until the 14 week following the mating season. Following the gestation period that lasts for four months, females almost at all times give birth to four identical young ones, all of the same sex. The young Armadillos are born with opened eyes and start walking after a few hours. Their skin is usually soft but gradually hardens as they grow older. They are nursed for the next two months although they continue staying with the mother for some couple of month even after being weaned. Breeding for the young armadillos of both sexes may start as early like summer after their birth, but only come to full sexual maturity after two years. Full growth and sexual maturity comes at age 3 -4. Typically, this species live for about 7-20 years in the wild but for the caged ones it may go up to about 23 years. Structure and Function- Describe the structure and function of at least one major organ system of the species (e.g., digestive system, reproductive system). Choose one system and explain how this organisms system is structured anatomically and physiologically. Identify any species-specific characteristics or adaptations that are particularly unique to this organism and

Starbucks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Starbucks - Essay Example It is a public company with its headquarters in Seattle, Washington. Currently, Howard Schultz is the president, chairperson and CEO of the company (â€Å"About Us†). The organization is in restaurant business and serves whole-bean coffee, cold and hot beverages, instant coffee varieties, snacks, pastries and full-leaf teas. Apart from the major selling items, the stores also sell cold and hot sandwiches, packaged food products and other items such as, tumblers and mugs. The business operations are strategically diversified according to the customer trends, traffic as well as demands. For instance, Starbucks Evening offers varieties of wines, beers as well as appetizers after 4 pm. Another arm called Starbucks’s entertainment and brand, Hear Music, markets music, films and books. This is a strategic division with the objective of engaging consumers through different channels. Products and services are seasonal and change according to the store locality as well as local demands. It also reaches another set of target customers through its coffee and ice-cream range offered at various grocery stores. Starbucks’ mission statement is â€Å"to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighbourhood at a time† (â€Å"Mission Statement†). At present, the company is planning to restructure by shutting down unprofitable chains and opening stores in new emerging markets. Also, market saturation is forcing Starbucks to use a more innovative and persuasive approach to reach consumers across various regions. The current report will start with profiling the company, evaluating the current situation and prospects for future. This will be followed by evaluation of the external environment and key success factors for the organization. Strategic Issue Situational Profile and Prospects The potential challenges in front of Starbucks are the increased competition from new and emerging retailers. These retailers may n ot have an identical concept as Starbucks, but they have been able to attract particular category of customers, especially those with low levels of loyalty. Overall economic conditions also pose a strategic challenge for the coffee giant. Starbucks is perceived as a luxury coffee parlour catering high-end customers and corporate professionals. With the recession hit, the company is experiencing loss in many of its store outlets even in prime locations across the globe. This has raised a doubt regarding the feasibility of the present strategic action plans. Also, being perceived as a high-end retail chain, offering discounts and other promotional benefits to increase sales might not go well with its loyal and regular customers (Koehn 25-45). The company’s business operations have also been criticized for over-diversification in recent years by offering products like, ice-cream and chocolates, which did not perform well in the market and negatively affected the bottom-line of t he company. The current strategic direction of Starbucks has also been critici

Italian Culture and Work Ethics Essay Example for Free

Italian Culture and Work Ethics Essay History teaches us that it is through the family that new generations are equipped with ethics and values regarding work. The advent of bourgeois society, with its characteristic openness towards other social classes, appears to have relegated the promotion of working values by families to the background. This study sets out to test the hypothesis according to which the family continues to maintain an important role in the transmission of working values. Based on data from the Work Importance Study (Super and Sverko, 1995: Life Roles, Values, a n d Careers, San Francisco, Jossey-Bass), two subgroups were compared (working adults, and high school and university students), considered as representing two different generations (youths vs adults). Some results from cluster anatysis show how substantial similarity exists between adults and youths in terms of ideal values, expressing what would be important in an ideal world. The difference between the subgroups lies in expectations (termed expected values) relating to what would be important in my actual work environment. Here, relatively more important values for young people are relatively less important for working adults. Another result presented concerns the relationship existing betiveen value typobgies (classed into six categories) and personal character associated with birth order. What emerges is that the only children are prevalently the tough type, while the first bom, considered by some to be custodians of family traditions, tum out to be more independent than the second or third bom, identified above all by their calm and sociable characters. Introduction: the work ethic and the family ethic This study presents the results of a survey conducted nationaUy in 1995 on a sample of 1523 subjects (represendng the three main geo-cultural areas of Italy: North, Centre and South—see BeUotto, 1997). The objecdve of the survey was to determine values associated with work. For this a quesdonnaire, a values scale (VS) was used, devised by an intemadonal team pardcipadng in a world-wide survey called the Work Importance Study—WIS (Super and Sverko 1995). With the data coUected, a profile of the value judgements of Italian families was formulated. The importance of working values within the family context has been little explored from a psychological point of view. Yet the family is characterized by the ethical nature of the reladonships it contains, hence its values (Boszormeny-Nagy and Spark, 1973; Cigoli, 1992). The family is rightly placed in that class of insdtudons that Hegel indicated as the ethical horizon of human society. There are very few Italian studies on the processes of value transmission within families, not to mendon the handing down of working values. While one of the principal funcdons recognized as typical of families is the socializadon of the individual, studies regarding the socializadon by families with regard to work are rarely encountered. 1351-1610/99/040583-13 Â © 1999 Interdisciplinary Centre for Comparative Research in the Social Sciences 584 Massimo Bellotto and Alberto ^atti The lack of research in this field can be partly explained by the relatively recent history of the concept of the family as a scientific subject for study in social psychology. At least until the end of the 1940s, families were considered as a group typology (Lewin, 1951). Successively, interest focused on the pathology of family relationships (Bateson et al. , 1956; Epstein et al. , 1982; Bamhill, 1979; Watzlawick et al. , 1967). It was only in die 1970s that the so-called normal family was considered worthy of psychological investigation as a scientific subject (Scabini, 1985). In recent years, however, the theme of values and the ethical importance of families has emerged strongly in a variety of fields, from individual and family psychotherapy to organizational psychology. In this article we would like to propose that a terminological distinction be made between ethics and morality. Ethics are, as the etymology of the word suggests, the study of the customs (ethos), the social habits, the relational practices of a people or social grouping. Morality relates more to the theme of how much certain behaviour corresponds to a reference model. In this sense, it is important to distinguish between ethics and morality when studying the customs and habits, in a word, the ethics of families (and not their morality). This is to avoid the pitfalls associated with referring to a particular set of values held by the family being analysed. What exacdy are the working values held by families? What relationship exists between these values and family needs? What are the motivations that stir the family organization? And which family values can be linked, even indirecdy, with work? Let us seek some answers to these important questions. Families in history have also been units of production. The peasant family, craft guilds, the factory worker families of the first and second industrial revolutions (Manoukian, 1976) are the most emblematic examples. In medieval society the chances of changing ones profession from the one inherited from the family were rather hmited. Children continued the working traditions of the family without having much choice in the matter. The transmission of working values within family groups, historically speaking, seemed to go without saying. However, it would be worthwhile to pose the question of how families educate their members today with regard to work. Families in Westem society have changed profoundly. The social mobility intrinsic to the very idea of bourgeois society (Weber, 1904) has led to the privatization of family relationships (Aries, 1960) and to the specialization of family practices to the sentimental sphere. The educational role of families is becoming more and more marginal, being delegated to collective institutions such as schools. Moreover, from the viewpoint of economic history, families have become increasingly characterized as units of consumption, losing in part their role as units of production. From a macrosocial perspective, a fundamental problem emerges in Italy: the percentage of youth unemployment is one of the highest in Europe, especially in the South. Working Values and the Italian Family 585 majority of young people between the ages of 15 and 24 live at home: 82. 4% of males and 72. 5% of females. In the next age bracket, 25-34, many more young men sdU live at home with their parents (33. 6%) compared with young women of the same age (22. 9%). According to some demographic projecdons to the year 2000, these percentages wiU touch 36. 3% for young males and 34. 2% for young females. There are cultural and ideological reasons for this phenomenon, such as the idea that marriage is the only proper route towards adult independence (8 males out of 10 and 9 women out of 10 leave the family only foUowing marriage). However, social factors also make a contribudon, in particular, high youth unemployment and a shortage of rental accommodadon. The result is that families coundng a young adult as a member are a socially significant category. Psychological factors and value systems also play an important role. The working values tradidonaUy handed down in Italian families place heavy emphasis on permanent and full-dme employment. The definidve departure from the family is often condidonal on minimizing the risks of independence. Among others, for these two factors (permanent fuU-dme employment and minimum risk of independence), life-dme employment in government and union employment policies have come to be considered as a necessary and sufficient prerequisite for the attainment of adulthood. The quest for so-caUed guaranteed employment has led Italian society to one of the most cridcal paradoxes in its history: the creadon of a barrier to occupadonal access for youth. Thus, the one prerequisite considered a vital and sufficient condidon for the evoludon of Italian families, life-dme employment, has become one of the major obstacles to the same end. By disallowing generational change in employment, it has become impossible for young generadons to enter the workforce, and hence to reach independence. * Following on these consideradons, we decided to use the results of a study on working values (WIS 1995) to shed some light on value differences between young students and adult workers. As mendoned above, very few studies have been carried out in Italy on the transmission of values within families. While the WIS study was not designed for this purpose, we believed that it could give some indicadons regarding the generadon gap (youths vs adults) and differences in social status (students vs workers). The underlying hypothesis to tjiis study is therefore that working adult values can be considered as being similar to those of parents; likewise, those held by young students can be considered as being similar to those of offspring. The WIS survey.

The Importance Of Work Environment Construction Essay

The Importance Of Work Environment Construction Essay 3.1 Introduction This chapter reveals the importance of work environment and gives an over view on different types of office designs and its applications. Unit also provides an insight in to the evolution of the modern offices. Workplace and Its Importance A workplace is the physical work environment and it is very important to a person. The physical work environment is ranked one of the top three factors employees take into account when deciding to accept, decline or leave a job according to research carried out by the American Society of Interiors (ASID, 1999). Employee comfort, flexibility, access to equipments and privacy all depends on the physical work environment. Thus an unsatisfactory physical environment can lead to occupant dissatisfaction. The prime factors the employees value in a work environment (ASID, 2001); Comfort of the work environment, which includes the climate, ergonomics, lighting, noise, privacy, cleanliness and the overall atmosphere. Communication, which is the effective means of communicating internally and externally with co-workers and customers. Easy access to people, equipments and things needed in a workplace. Functionally Efficient making the employees perform their task in an easy and efficient manner and with the effective utilization of space. Workplace Productivity According to Clements-Croome (2000) workplace productivity depends on the following variables; Personal characteristics- the job itself Characteristics of indoor climate- lighting, acoustic, temperature, air quality and workplace layout Social factors- coworkers and the relationships with them Organizational characteristics- structure of the organization and the management Office productivity is a composite of the physical environment and the behavioural environment (Barry P. Haynes, 2007). Physical environment of productivity falls into two main categories: office layout and office comfort. The components distraction, interaction and informal interaction points relate more to the behavioural environment of productivity. Fig 3.3 Validated Theoretical Framework of Office Productivity (Barry P. Haynes, 2007) Factor Name Attributes 1 Comfort Ventilation, heating, natural lighting, artificial lighting, dà ©cor, cleanliness, overall comfort, physical security. 2 Office layout Informal meeting areas, formal meeting areas, quiet areas, quiet areas, privacy, personal storage, general storage, work area-desk and circulation space. 3 Interaction Social interaction, work interaction, creative physical environment, overall atmosphere, position relative to colleagues, position relative to equipment, overall office layout and refreshments. 4 Distraction Interruptions, crowding, noise Table 3.3 Components of Office Productivity (Barry P.Haynes, 2007) The primary goal in building design is designing spaces that are conducive to the tasks being performed in these spaces and to operate building systems in an efficient manner. The indoor air quality (IAQ) deteriorates and energy is wasted when the building systems that regulate and control indoor environmental conditions do not function properly. Conflict in performance requirements between several attributes, such as ventilation, lighting, or temperature can result from poor building performance. The cumulative effect of less than satisfactory performance culminates in environmental stresses perceived by the occupants. Building integrity depends on satisfaction of various factors (Preiser, 1989); Functional/ Spatial Quality Thermal Quality Air Quality Acoustic Quality Visual Quality The researchers have, for the most part, ignored the effects of building indoor environment on productivity and job satisfaction considering the great importance of the workplace, and the stresses related to it. The field studies were usually carried out by industrial organizations to determine the effects of extreme temperature and humidity conditions on workers. Most of the occupants in recent case studies have been highly dissatisfied with an environmental attribute even though some of the technical measurements indicate that current standards are being met. This shows the need to reassess the measurements and standards as they apply to more specific and newly emerging functional requirements. 3.4 Evolution of Modern Office Office is where people come to engage in activities for enterprise persevere and prosper. Office buildings in mid 1800s where rooms rented to a single company or to several firms for clerical and executive business. With a single purpose office building the workplace evolved with advances in construction technology, improvements in office equipment, and developments in organization theory. As the workforce grew, they were accommodated in larger general-purpose office spaces. Bullpens were the placement of enclosed offices on the perimeter created sizable interior spaces where hundreds of clerical workstations were placed in these expansive interior spaces. Fig 3.4 Open bullpen office space in 1926 (Adopted from Denice Jaunzens, 1997, RICS browsed on 09-07-09) It consisted of a rigid arrangement of desks in rows. With no visual or acoustic privacy, noisy, poorly lit environment they provided individual workers uncomfortable places to work. Ergonomics was not considered. A new office design called the Burolandschaft was developed in the late 1950s in Germany, which provide flexible office. Spacious layouts and high-quality furnishings were used. Space was divided into individual work areas tailoring to the occupants needs. Robert Propst, in 1960, developed an unconventional approach to furnishing offices by replacing traditional office furniture as desks and credenzas with furniture components and panels that could be assembled into a wide range of work settings. Storage units, work surfaces and other elements were hung on freestanding panels, which could be arranged as needed to form a complete office work setting. This was the beginning of systems furniture (GSA). Changes occurring in the organization, communication techniques as well as functional conceptions of office space are presented in table. Conventional Contemporary Pattern of Work Routine Individual tasks Isolated 9-5 Creative Group, project work Interactive Extended Occupancy Own desk/office Low utilization Low density Shared as needed High utilization High density Settings Status based Single setting Task based Multiple/varied Settings Table 3.4 Changes in functional concepts of office space (Adopted from Denice Jaunzens, 1997, RICS) 3.5 Types of Office Layouts in Modern Buildings 3.5.1 Closed Plan/Cellular Office In closed plan, full height walls or partitions divide the space into offices and support space by floor-to-ceiling partitions (walls) with doors. It usually has a desk and chair. The people (one or two) working in a cellular office use the same office everyday and leave their working material there. Private offices are situated along the window wall. Administrative support is housed in workstations along corridors or in shared rooms. 3.5.2 Open Plan Office (More Working in Less Space) Open plan office has a large open space and minimizes the use of small, enclosed rooms such as private offices. An open plan office saves spaces as compared to cellular offices. Cost, efficiency and communication are the major advantage of open plan. Fig 3.5.2 An open plan office in Abu Dhabi, UAE Open plan provides greater opportunity to maximize the utilization of space than closed plan and minimizes the circulation space required because workstations can be modified slightly to fit available space. The use of systems furniture in open plan can also improve space utilization because a job function can normally be accommodated in less space in a systems furniture workstation than in a closed-plan office. Most of the modern buildings in UAE are implementing open plan offices. This design saves money, promotes teamwork and improves flexibility for future renovations. But many employees view this design as a series of compromises in terms of space, prestige and privacy. As employees consider changing from closed plan to open plan cubicles, they often have concerns about their abilities to work productively in what they anticipate to be noisier, more distracting workplace. The most overwhelming complaint about open plan office design is the lack of acoustic privacy. New Environments for Working The behavioural component of productivity, interaction signifies the importance of work interaction with the functional spaces such as hive, den, club and cell and link analysis which relates to the position relative to the equipment. 3.6.1 Francis Duffy Theory Francis Duffy, chairman of international architectural practice DEGW and one of the leading thinkers and practitioners in the field of office design theorized that office design is closely related to increasing productivity at work through work-based layouts. Francis Duffy bases his theory on two organizational needs privacy and teamwork. This explains the dynamics of change in office design and throws light on the ways in which office layouts are likely to differ and to change. Privacy and teamwork are interrelated with many aspects of office design because they affect workers expectations about the layout and work settings. Duffy identified organizational types as hive, cell, den and club in a way to capture the distinct work patterns and distinctive design features of each. The implications of modern working practices for the specification and performance of building form and environment systems were studied in 1997 by DEGW in collaboration with the Building Research Establishment (BRE) (Laing et al, 1998). This led to the development of a model for design logic in new office comprising of four alternative office layout topologies according to the activities they support. These were designated as; Hive Hive office is characterized by individual routine process work with low levels of interaction and low autonomy. The user sits at the workstations for continuous periods of time. Examples are call centre, customer support offices, BPOs etc. Den Den office is associated with group work, interactive but not highly autonomous. This office is for group working in a simple setting, typically arranged in the open-plan or group room example, workstations in Advertising agency, Sales offices etc Cell Cell offices are for individual concentrated work with little interaction. Individuals occupy the whole office in an intermittent irregular pattern with extended working days, working elsewhere some of the time. This space is highly autonomous for example, CEOs cabins, lawyers Office etc. Club Club offices are for knowledge workers and are highly autonomous and  Ã‚   interactive. Occupancy is intermittent and over an extended working day. For example, conference rooms, meeting area, break-out areas and cafeteria where there are one off meetings, not ongoing interaction between the same people. ` Fig.3.6.1a Arrangement space based on functionality (Adopted from Denice Jaunzens, 1997, RICS) Cell Hive Den Club Fig:3.6.1b Typical arrangement in modern offices according to functionality (Source: http://ergo.in/paw_funatwork.html browsed on 08-08-2009 original source: unknown) 3.6.2 Spaces for Performance For the performance of workers three types of spaces are identified (BCO, 2008); Spaces to concentrate This is to provide space for workers for performing tasks, which require high levels of privacy and attention. These can be separate rooms, designated areas or rooms separated from noise and distraction of the office. These spaces are equipped with furniture and adjustable settings. Spaces to collaborate A collaborate space is a dedicated area for the teams to work and communicate freely. It should be well equipped with white boards, pen, paper, AV equipment etc. Movable furniture and flexible work settings should be there for personalized use. To suit the task and time of day, the lighting should be adjustable. Spaces to contemplate Contemplate space provide a space for the people to recover from stress and noise of the office environment. It should provide calm and noise free environment. Plants and adjustable lighting can make the contemplate space more relaxing. 3.6.3 Integrated Workspace The result of a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to developing and providing workspace, bringing together the organizations strategic real property plan with strategic business goals is Integrated Workplace. It provides the people in a workplace the physical space and tools needed for their success. Integrated workplace provides a flexible, efficient and cost-effective office environment that enhances productivity and retains quality work force. 3.7 Functional arrangement of office space 3.7.1 Link Analysis Link analysis is a technique used to represent relationships between elements in a design. It assesses the links or connections between areas, such as the frequency of peoples movements between two spaces. Applying this technique to the existing office environment will contribute to a conclusion of who needs who for the new office floor layouts. Avoiding any unnecessary movement around the office shall free up any possible hint of congestion. This technique will indicate where links are and most useful, but will not give the frequency. Therefore, an observational study of the current office structure will be concluded to see the frequency of events within the linking system. (Brooks, 1998) Link Analysis before reorganisation Link Analysis after reorganisation layout Fig 3.7.1 Link Analysis (Adopted from Brooks, 1998) Avoiding unnecessary journeys around a workplace can ease areas of congestion and reduce annoyance levels for workers seated near walkways. 3.8 Conclusion The selection of the work place is truly based on the work culture, work style and nature of the job. Workplace selection should be primarily based on the job demands. Each Job has its own requirements and if the facilitator is not able to meet the job demands that will lead to a decline in the productivity of the office workers. Chapter-4 Factors Affecting Workplace Satisfaction and Productivity 4.1 Introduction Before analysing the satisfaction level of the occupants we need to understand the factors related to workplace. This chapter provides and insight to the factors affecting the workplace, sick building syndromes (SBS) and indoor environment quality (IEQ) parameters. 4.2 Common Complaints in a Workplace Key aspects affecting workplace satisfaction and productivity (Hilary Davies, 2005, RICS ): Workplace layout: Most of the modern offices are open-plan to increase flexibility and allow changes in organization size and structure. Open-plan was intended to allow more communication among the co-workers. But according to study conducted by Pekala (2001) the work-success ratio for those who worked in open-plan was 74% less than those in enclosed offices. Thus the occupants were not satisfied with their work environment affecting their productivity. Distractions: In most of the modern offices, noise is more because of workstation density and use of more office equipments. Workplace grids create more distraction. Workers in open plan are 65% more distracted than in private offices (Olson 2000). Increased errors and stress is generated as a result of working in a noisy environment. Thus noise impacts productivity (Leaman and Bordass 1999) and 70% of the occupants agreed that productivity can be increased by decreasing the office noise (Carsia 2002) . Comfort, Health and Well-being: Air quality and ergonomics are the major areas which affect the occupants health and work environment. Repetitive strain injuries affect the health of the occupants leading to back pain and rehabilitation. Studies conducted by Kruk (1989) showed that an ergonomically designed chair can increase the occupant satisfaction in an office by 15%. Indoor air pollution also affects the occupant productivity which inturn can cause sick building syndrome (SBS). Indoor Environment: Indoor environmental factors such as insufficient day-light, lighting, smelly air, acoustics causes occupant dissatisfaction and discomfort. Occupant satisfaction and productivity is inter-related. 79% of the employees surveyed in a Steelcase survey (2003) believed that the physical environment had an impact on occupant satisfaction. Frequently reported unfavorable conditions in UK offices were: high/low temperatures, stale air, noise problems, low quality lighting and insufficient day-light (Clements-Croome and Kaluarachchi , 2000). Personal Control: This is one of the major problems affecting occupant satisfaction. Most of the occupants can be satisfied with individual control over their environment and when they are allowed to participate in the design decisions. Efficiency and morale increases when occupants are allowed to reconfigure their workplaces (Stern, 1991). The difference between a tolerable and intolerable workspace is the ability to fine-tune locally. The ability to control climate, reducing glare by able to move the desk, able to open the window, quiet space, storage space all boost employee satisfaction and productivity according to the survey by Knoll. Employee Stress: Stress affecting the occupants can be various. This can be work-related stress due to increased workload or inadequate resources or less time, stress from home and life aspirations. High stress office environment can result from unsupportive, monitoring supervisors and low levels of job control (Kaplan and Arnoff, 1996). An open plan office with less privacy, increased noise and disturbances can also lead to low levels of psychological privacy. Thus dissatisfaction with the physical environment lead to decreased job performance. 4.3 Spatial Comfort Productivity As the offices shrink in size, dimensions of the office furniture become more important to the worker. Occupant in a building evaluates spatial comfort in terms of the amount of space they have, storage and ergonomic comfort of furniture. Key aspects of office furniture, such as work surface dimension, file storage; partition height and choice of accessories also affect spatial comfort. Smaller offices and workstations at higher densities cause users to be more aware of the amount of work surface they have. All these have a direct impact on the functional comfort and performance of work in an office. Although modern office furniture is physically comfort, corporate tendency to standardize office and workstation layouts (one size fits all) and to density layouts at the cost of spaces to meet and work together makes a certain percentage of users functionally uncomfortable. Factors such as proximity to co-workers, varying partition height to enable contact with some colleagues and protect from contact with circulation areas and other workgroups, proximity to spaces to meet and work together and convenient access to shared storage and equipment all have a direct effect on how well people work. Spatial comfort affects productivity of the occupants in a building as workspace size, configuration, storage and shared work areas directly affect the performance of individual and team tasks. Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) Sick building syndrome (SBS) is a term used to describe a situation where the occupants in a building experience acute health or comfort problems during the time spent time in a particular building. The complaints can be widespread in a building or confined to a particular room or zone. The condition is temporary and most of the occupants find relief once they are out of the building. But some buildings can have long-term problems. According to the World Health Organization (1984 Committee Report) 30% of the new and re-modeled buildings may be the subject of excessive complaints related to indoor air quality (IAQ). Frequently reported symptoms or complaints of SBS are (Thad Godish, 1995); Sensory irritation in eyes, nose and throat Neurotoxic or general health problems such as headache, sluggishness, mental fatigue, dizziness, reduced memory Skin Irritations Nonspecific hypersensitivity reactions as running nose, asthma-like symptoms Odor and taste sensations 4.4.1 Causes of Sick Building Syndrome According to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) investigation, the primary contributor to SBS is inadequate ventilation. Air contamination from sources within the building such as copying machines was reported to be major cause of contamination. Other indoor sources like adhesives, carpeting, upholstery, manufactured wood products, pesticides, and cleaning agents may emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) including formaldehyde, which can affect the health of the occupants, and at high concentrations be carcinogens. Chemical contaminants from outdoor sources which can enter the building through poorly located air intake vents, windows, and other openings and biological contaminants like bacteria, molds, pollen, and viruses can also cause sick building symptoms. 4.5 Indoor Environment Quality (IEQ) The IEQ in a building can affect the health, comfort and well-being of the occupant and intern the productivity of work. Indoor Environment Quality is used to describe air quality and the attributes of enclosed spaces. The key components of IEQ are; Indoor air quality Thermal comfort Acoustic environment quality Luminous and visual environment quality 4.5.1 Indoor Air Quality Indoor air quality is a major concern as it can have a major impact on occupant health, .90% of the people spent their time indoor and most of their in an office environment. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency studies show that there can be more indoor pollutant levels than found outside which can increase the risk of illness. Indoor air pollution is ranked the most important environmental health problem. An improved indoor air quality can result in higher productivity. The factors that affect indoor air quality are; pollutants or odors; building ventilation systems; moisture and humidity occupant perceptions and susceptibilities Fig 4.5.1 Under floor air distribution system (Source:http://www.cbe.berkeley.edu/underfloorair/typicaloffice.htm browsed on 10-07-09) 4.5.2 Thermal Comfort Thermal comfort is defined as the subjective satisfaction with the thermal environment (Bligh and Johnson, 1975). Thermal comfort is the psychological state of mind and affects the overall morale of a person. Productivity decreases in a workplace as employee complaints may increase and in some cases people may refuse to work in a particular environment. Air temperature, radiant heat, humidity and air movement are factors of thermal environment which may also contribute to the symptoms of sick building syndrome.(HSE Guidance) 4.5.3 Acoustic environment quality An important attribute of commercial office building design is acoustics. One of the most prevalent annoyance sources in offices is noise which can lead to stress for occupants to maintain a high level satisfaction and moral health among occupants a good acoustic environment is very essential. The major sources of dissatisfaction include: Speech interruptions, such as people talking over the phone, in adjacent areas and corridors Equipment noise Excessive background noise from HVAC and lighting systems Lack of conversational privacy Lack of personal control over noise levels Space being acoustically too lively or too dead Fig 4.5.3 An open plan office with no acoustic privacy (Source:http://www.rockwool.com/acoustics/acoustical+comfort/acoustic+in+special+buildings/offices browsed 10-07-09) The levels of background noise and speech privacy and separation between particular types of spaces have important implication for the work environment and productivity of building occupants. Distractions due to the sound of speech have been found to be significantly problematic especially in open plan offices. This is because speech is more distracting than unintelligible speech or sounds with no information content. Conversely, office spaces with low background noise can have poor levels of speech privacy, which can also hinder communication. (Peter Newton, Keith Hampson, 2009) 4.5.4 Luminous and visual environment quality The luminous and visual environment quality is the totality of the characteristics of a building, which affects the occupants visual perceptions. The occupants abilities to perform tasks will be affected by the luminous and visual environment if they are visually intensive. Occupant perceptions can be affected by the following (Peter Newton, Keith Hampson, 2009): Luminance levels (ambient and task) for different task and their uniformity Glare levels and reflections in computer screens Levels of personal control through task lighting, shading or dimmers Access to daylight and views Lighting characteristics, such as color temperature and ballast flicker Visual appeal and color scheme of interior design Fig 4.5.4 An Office with abundant daylight for the entire office to gather (Source: http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/12/1201_idea_factory/source/8.htm 12-07-09) Dissatisfaction with the visual environment can be due to limited access to daylight, inappropriate light levels, glare levels and lack of control over the environment. Appropriate task lighting and integration of day lighting and electric lighting systems for ambient lighting wherever feasible can be introduced for improving the luminous and visual environment and maximizing occupant comfort,. 4.6 Office Ergonomics Ergonomics incorporates the scientific and engineering disciplines that are concerned with the humans at work. An ergonomically designed workspace enhances peoples well-being, make work easy to do and allow people to perform efficiently (Kroemer, 2001). The elements of ergonomic assessment include general physical activity, lifting and handling, work postures and movements, accident risk, job content, job restrictiveness, worker communication and personal contacts, decision making, repetitiveness of the work, the need for attentiveness, lighting and vision, thermal environment and noise. Ergonomic parameters which are required in the design of a workstation are (Craig A. Langston, 2003); seat height with feet flat on the floor height to top of thigh when seated (for desk height) eye height above seat level (for use of computer) height from seat to underside of elbow (for arm rest height) near reach when seated and far reach when seated, affecting spread of equipment and functions on a desk and adjacent surfaces Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) is the common type of injury due to poorly designed workstation. The RSI develops slowly and affects many parts of the body. An ergonomically designed workstation can reduce the possibility of RSI. Fig 3.8 An Ergonomically designed Workstation (Adopted from David A. Madsen, 1990) 4.7 Conclusion Every workstation has pros and cones while comparing openness, flexibility, privacy etc. While analysing the workplace satisfaction level the selection of type of workstation is an important factor. Furniture, accessories, flooring, ceiling, HVAC System, lighting, sound insulation, color schemes, interior design themes and corporate identity are the other ]factors affecting the satisfaction level of the occupants. Low Quality building design or interior design and poor maintenance will lead to sick building syndromes (SBS). Next chapter elaborates the method of research conducted to identify the facts.

Ideas from the Underground :: Critical Thinking Cars Essays

Ideas from the Underground Automotive designer Jerry Hirschberg was speaking to the product planning manager for marketing at Nissan about redesigning their light trucks:'Really, "I responded, growing intrigued. "Yep. Seems they use their trucks as trucks less than twenty-five percent of the time"... "What do they use them as the rest of the time?"I wondered. "Basic transportation. Cars." There. A small, barely detectable synaptic spark The truck trisected itself in my mind in to three discrete boxes: one for carrying the engine, one the driver, and one the cargo. Seen in this formulation, it became dramatically evident that the former & latter were quite ample, but between them they sandwiched a rather stingy, cramped volume for the human cargo. And yet, according to Sheldon Payne's information, it was precisely this middle box that was most important and received the greatest use. In his essay "The Three Domains of Creativity" Arthur Koestler states that, "Creativity often starts where language ends, by regressing to preverbal levels, to more fluid and uncommitted forms of mental activity." Although at that point in the essay, he is speaking of scientific creativity, later on he conveys that it can be applied to almost any kind of creativity. Take Hirshberg in the above passage as an example. He was trying to access the raw information gathered by the marketing department at Nissan about what improvements consumers wanted in the light trucks. When he got to a point where his idea began to form in his mind, he stopped talking and started visualizing how he could redesign the new model of the truck. Another example of non-verbal thinking is shown in Ron Howard's film A Beautiful Mind, where John Nash is in a bar with his friends and he reasons out his new idea that won a Nobel Prize. His reasoning on the screen is shown as images of his friends and the girls they are trying to "get", as he thinks of how they could all win. The scene mirrors how he came up with his revolutionary theory. Koestler also emphasizes this idea of the visual playing a greater part in creativity than verbal thinking with the results of an inquiry, in 1945, into the working methods of eminent mathematicians in America. He wrote, "The results showed that all of them, with only two exceptions, thought neither in verbal terms nor in algebraic symbols but relied on visual imagery of a vague, hazy kind.

Heredity and Hormones Effect on Behavior Essay -- essays research pape

Human behavior has been a mystery to scientists and psychologists for years. What causes humans to act the way they do? Is it learned by experience, or inherited from prior generations? The human brain is a complex machine driven by numerous intangibles that influence our thinking process directly and indirectly. The endocrine system in the human body stores a chemical known as hormones. Hormones are released by endocrine glands into the bloodstream and travel throughout the body carrying messages. A hormonal impulse is similar to a nerve impulse only much slower. The messages carried by the hormones trigger different behaviors. Hormones can affect behavior in many ways such as: Mental activity or tiredness, boredom or excitement, sexual behavior, the ability to maintain focus, boldness, the potency of stress, and the admiration of friendship. Hormones can also be a leading factor in whether a person is in a good mood or a bad mood (Morris & Maisto, 2005). Endocrine glands located in different parts of the body all release unique hormones, some of these hormones can affect behavior in different ways. The thyroid gland, located beneath the voice box releases the hormone known as thyroxin. Thyroxin is the hormone responsible for regulating the level of metabolism in a human body. Therefore, thyroxin can be related to the amount of energy one has, their sleeping habits, ability to focus and concentrate, and even their individual temperament. The pituitary gland, located on the bottom side of the brain, produces a variety of hormones, some of which affect human behavior. These hormones can have an affect on sexual conduct and desire (Morris & Maisto, 2005). The gonads in the human body differ depending on the sex of the human. T... ...utionary psychologists believe that behavior is not influenced by environments or situations but by natural instincts that have been inherited through a process known as natural selection. Natural selection suggests that only those who posses survival traits and adapt well to their surroundings survive and pass on these traits to offspring (Morris & Maisto, 2005). Human behavior remains a great mystery to psychologists and there is really no evidence that pinpoints the exact cause of our behavior. Some things are certain, genes and hormones directly affect behavior, but the extent of this influence is still debatable. There are many intangibles that are factored in when considering human behavior but no single factor shows evidence of how our minds make decisions. Human behavior is directly influenced by decisions, and decisions are apparently not an exact science.

The Mercury Symbol Essay -- Sex Gender Crossdresser Transsexual Essays

The Mercury Symbol My mom’s former boyfriend Rick, now known as Andrea, became a woman over a decade ago. Andrea is a transgender person whom the Mercury symbol represents. For transgender people, the Mercury symbol stands for their personal inner striving to become the gender they feel they were meant to be, equality, and pride. Happily, Andrea and my mom have remained friends since she became a woman. For many people who cross the gender line, acceptance does not always come so easily. Transgender is defined as appearing, wishing to be considered as, or having undergone surgery to become a member the opposite sex. There are many terms for or associated with transgender people, which people may also link to the Mercury symbol, such as transvestite, transsexual, crossdresser, intersexed (Wellesley College). The symbol is meant to express the balance of feminine and masculine traits within an individual. Some transgender people are open about their feelings while others, for fear of societal rejection, hide their pain for years and sometimes forever. The Mercury symbol dates back to ancient Greek mythology. Hermes (Mercury) and Aphrodite (Venus) had a child that possessed both male and female sexual organs. They named the child Hermaphroditus, which is where the term hermaphrodite originally came from. The Mercury symbol is made up of three parts: the crescent moon, the cross, and the ring. The crescent moon represents masculinity, while the cross represents the feminine and the ring stands for the individual surrounded by the struggle with gender. (forPLU) In today’s society, it is not easy to be an openly transgendered person and wear this symbol on your sleeve. Most people fear what is different... ... strength they show by changing their gender and way of life. Bibliography â€Å"I wonder what that means.† Wellesley College’s Queer Resource Handbook. 2000. Wellesley College. 28 Sept. 2004 < http://www.wellesley.edu/Activities/homepage/wlbtf/qrhandbook/definitions.html > â€Å"Normal.† Movie Tome. 2003. Movie Tome. 29 Sept. 2004 < http://www.movietome.com/movietome/servlet/MovieMain/movieid-77789/Normal/ > Stone, Sandy. â€Å"Transgender.† 1999. Sandy Stone. 29 Sept. 2004 < http://sandystone.com/trans.html > â€Å"Symbols of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Movements.† Lambda Community Services. 2001. Lambda. 27 Sept. 2004 < http://www.lambda.org/symbols.htm > â€Å"Symbolic signatures.† 2000. forPLU.com. 27 Sept. 2004 < http://www.forplu.com/community/life&style/symbols/symbols_meanings.htm >

Discursive Essay Essay

Discursive Essay It is argued nowadays on whether teenagers, who go to school, should be wearing a uniform. There are many advantages but also some disadvantages, such as : All the students wearing the same uniform , which can take the stress off looking better than other students as they are wearing similar attire, and also having a uniform can make a person look smart and respectable, but on the other hand, students can feel that their uniforms are too boring and doesn’t show their personailty or their style well enough, and that for certain schools, uniforms can be expensive, especially if it is a larger family they are being bought for. An advantage of uniforms would be that, all the students are wearing similar clothing, so no-one will feel as if they don’t look good enough or that they have to impress anyone. Students would probably feel this way if it were a non-uniform school, and would be under stress trying to buy new clothes every week or month to impress their classmates. So having a uniform is beneficial to certain people as they may not be as well off as other and won’t be able to afford new clothes all the time. I think this is a very strong point as i agree that students wouldn’t feel pressured to impress their friends with new clothes, and that their parents would save a fortune with a uniform as uniforms only have to be renewed every month or so. Another advantage of uniforms would be that they look smart and respectable, which can give the impression that the student goes to a great school, and that he/she is quite intelligent. Furthermore, some schools that don’t have a dress code, their pupils look casual and it doesn’t look like they even go to school. In addition to that, when schools have a non-uniform day, it can be more exciting because its a day where they can show off their non-school clothes. I strongly agree with this point because students do look more sensible in a uniform rather than casual attire, and i also agree that, when schools do have a non-uniform day, they want to look nice and show off their designer clothes, where as, at a school which has no dress code, they have probably already worn their designer clothes to school, so they would resort to buying even more clothes to impress, which will cost a fortune. Which brings me to my next and final point on the advantages of having a uniform, The cost. Some private schools uniforms may cost considerably more but would you rather pay for a full uniform at a dear price, or buy new clothes every week or two for around the same price range, or more? Most public school uniforms don’t cost an incredible amount, and only have to be renewed after a month or two. I do agree with this point as it is true about having to buy new clothes all the time would cost an awful lot, and that you could buy a full uniform for around the same price. Uniforms may be good in some ways, but some students strongly dislike them for multiple reasons. One disadvantage of uniforms would be the image. The first though that comes into a students head when they see a uniform is that, they look boring, and the reason for this is understandable as uniforms usually consist of one, two, or maybe even three colours, but these colours are usually neutral, boring colours that aren’t very eye catching. But you never really see a uniform that has colours like bright yellow or even multiple colours that would definately make you stand out from the crowd. I do agree with this point very much as uniforms can be extremely dull and boring looking, and wearing a uniform that has colours such as brown or black would probably make you feel quite depressed and unhappy, and i also think that there should be much more colourful uniforms that stand out more. Another disadvantage of uniforms would be the type of clothings schools make you wear, such as skirts. Skirts at any length can make any girl feel uncomfortable, no matter how big or small the girls are. The reason for this is because they may have to show their legs, by wearing knee-high socks, or even wearing tights can be uncomfortable for them as their not used to wearing skirts. In addition to that, when it gets into the winter period, some girls are still forced to wear skirts, even when the temperatures are below 0’C I strongly agree with this, as girls should be aloud to choose whether they wish to wear trousers or a skirt, and i also believe that it is wrong to force girls to wear skirts in the winter period, as they will be freezing going to school. My final disadvantage of uniforms would be that they can hide a students personality, their style, and who they really are, and this really irritates students if the teachers are too strict and will not allow simple jewellery, accessories or extra clothing. I strongly agree with this statement as its true that students should be able to show how unique they are and show their personalities through the way that they dress. Even if its a few extra peircings or a bright hair dye, students should be able to do so as trying different things and styles is part of growing up. Having a uniform prevents this. In conclusion, i believe students should be able to wear whatever they wish to school, and not have to wear a uniform. I say this because uniforms are extremeley boring and depressing if they consist of one, dark, dull colour. And i agree that if the school is very strict about what the students are wearing to school, it can hide the students personality or how unique they are.

Earning Management Essay

â€Å"Earning Management† refers to those accounting practices that may follow the letter of the rules of fundamental rules of accounting practices but unethically misrepresented to the users of accounting information. For the personal interest managers often try to show outstanding performance of the business and use the strategic way to falsify Income, Assets or Liabilities. Earning Management as generally understood refers to systematic misrepresentation of the true income and assets of corporations or other organizations. â€Å"Creative accounting† is at the root of a number of accounting scandals, and many proposals for accounting reform – usually centering on an updated analysis of capital and factors of production that would correctly reflect how value is added. Quality of accounting information is one of the Fundamental Concepts of Accounting Framework. Where it’s mentioned that, accounting information must be Relevant, Reliable, Comparable, and Consistent & Comparable (Intermediate Accounting by Keiso, Weygandt, Warfield, 12th edition). Unless having these qualities a report cannot be treated as qualified. â€Å"Managers that always promise to â€Å"make the numbers† will at some point be tempted to make up the numbers†. – Warren Buffet Definition of Earning Management * Managing earnings is â€Å"the process of taking deliberate steps within the constraints of generally accepted accounting principles to bring about a desired level of reported earnings.† (Davidson, Stickney and Weil (1987), cited in Schipper (1989) p. 92) * Managing earnings is â€Å"a purposeful intervention in the external financial reporting process, with the intent of obtaining some private gain (as opposed to say, merely facilitating the neutral operation of the process).†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ â€Å"A minor extension of this definition would encompass â€Å"real† earnings management, accomplished by timing investment or financing decisions to alter reported earnings or some subset of it.† (Schipper (1989) p. 92). * â€Å"Earnings management occurs when managers use judgment in financial reporting and in structuring transactions to alter financial reports to either mislead some stakeholders about the underlying economic performanc e of the company or to influence contractual outcomes that depend on reported accounting numbers.† (Healy and Wahlen, 1999, p. 368) Motivators Earning Management * Meet financial analysts’ estimates of earnings that leads to performance-based compensation * Raise the stock price thereby enhancing the value of stock options * Smooth net income making it appear that the earnings are increasing at a steady rate * Make it look as though future earnings are higher than they really are by establishing â€Å"cookie jar reserves† (inflated expenses) in the current year that can be drawn on in future years. (Dr. Steven Mintz, Professor and Area Chair, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo) Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting From this figure we’ve indicated that in the level – 2, where bridge between 1&3 creates should be the concerning point of maintaining the qualities of Accounting Information. Qualities are not only help to detect falsification, but also helps users to take decisions. Primary Qualities: * Relevance – It helps users to predict the ultimate outcome of past, present, and future events. It also helps users to predict that, how much loss/profit company can made. * Timeline – Specific timeline of accounting period helps users to trace out the business performance over the years. * Reliability – To assure that the information is verifiable, faithful and reasonably free of error and bias. Secondary Qualities: * Comparability – The reported information should be measured such a way that it can be compared with other company’s reports. * Consistency – Treatment of similar events from period to period must be used by same accounting standards. Standards cannot be changed suddenly, unless it’s proved that new method is better than previous. Perspective of Earning Management There are two perspectives on earnings management. (1) the Opportunistic perspective, states that managers seek to mislead investors by showing attractive & predetermined accounting information, (2) the Information perspective, first enunciated by Holthausen and Leftwich (1983), under which managerial carefulness is a means for managers to reveal to investors their private expectations about the firm’s future cash flows. (Earnings Management: A Perspective by Messod D. Beneish) Accrual vs. Earning Management Plenty of research report shows managers try to use Accrual in financial engineering. Accruals are the difference between net income and cash flows. For example, when companies sell items to others on credit during a growth period, the sale creates an accrual of revenue. When companies engage in earnings management, they can increase or decrease income by creating accruals; these are often referred to as non – discretionary (flexible) accruals. Reasons behind using accrual as the engineering tool are – * Accruals are the principle product of GAAP, so it’s easy to do falsification with camouflage. * Accruals resolve some problems related with the effects choosing various accounting methods. * It will be hard for investors to see effect of unobservable components of accrual. Types of earnings management Theoretically there are two types of earnings management. They are income increasing and income decreasing earnings management (Messod, 2001). a) Income Increasing earnings management: As the name suggests, income increasing earnings management is the process to boost up net income of the company intentionally (to hide the poor performance) so that investors get some wrong signal about the firm’s financial position and performance and make the decision of investing in to company (Messod, 2001). Management are motivated towards increasing earnings management because of getting more debt and equity Financing. b) Income decreasing earnings Management: This process of earnings management is done by decreasing the amount of net earnings. Management is more involved in income decreasing earnings management is to get future compensation like: reducing this month’s earnings by increasing expenses, they ensure the profit from the next month. Also tax avoidance, import tariff rel ief, union negotiations etc. are other reasons for manager’s motivation towards income decreasing earnings management (Messod, 2001). In corporate world these are the types of earning management mostly done by the management: a) Revenue and Expense Recognition Under standard accounting rules, a company must record revenue in its books when it earns that revenue — not when it actually receives payment. Similarly, it must record expenses when it incurs them — not when it actually pays money. These rules leave room for companies to manipulate their numbers for earnings management (www.budgeting.thenest.com). For example, say a company signs a deal on December 1 to buy $1 million worth advertising time on TV over the next two months. The company could recognize the entire expense in December, recognize the whole thing in January or split the difference. If it records it all in December, then that year’s profit will be lower by $1 million — but the company will get a â€Å"head start† on the next year’s profit by not having any advertising expenses in January. Profits have been shifted from one year to the next with an accounting trick. b) Cookie Jar Reserves Companies shift earnings around by creating overly large reserve accounts in good years, then drawing them down in bad years. For example, when a company sells a product with a warranty, it must recognize the estimated expense of honoring that warranty at the same time it books the revenue (www.budgeting.thenest.com). A company might conclude that it incurs warranty costs of $10,000 for every $1 million in sales. If it’s having a particularly profitable year, it might decide to take a $30,000 warranty expense per $1 million in sales. That builds up a big warranty reserve now so that the company doesn’t have to record warranty expenses in the future, thus shifting profits from one period to the other. This tactic goes by the name â€Å"cookie jar accounting,† because it essentially stashes excess profits away to be used when needed. c) The Big Bath There will be times when a company simply can’t avoid a bad year. No matter what it does, it’s going to post a loss because of a sour economy, unfavorable market conditions, and legal trouble, whatever. Some companies, though, deliberately make a bad year even worse by shifting all kinds of expenses, one-time charges and write-offs into that year and shifting revenue out of it. This allows it to inflate profits in future years (www.budgeting.thenest.com). The reasoning behind this strategy is that if the company is going to â€Å"take a bath,† it might as well take a big bath. The company’s stock price was going to suffer anyway, the thinking goes, and the damage probably won’t be that much worse if the company inflates the loss. Indicators of Earnings Management We have find out five factors which can be important indicators of earnings management: a) Political connection and earnings management: Firms with political connection (large number of stockholder, or CEO or board of directors of the company is a parliament member) are more involved in earnings management (Paul, Mara and David, 2010). Mainly the reasons are- political leaders help the particular firm involved in earnings management to avoid penalization by SEC and also political leaders use these companies’ financial performance and position to increase their public image. b) Internal Audit and earnings management: This one is another major indicator of earnings management. If the quality of internal quality is low there are some possibilities of earnings management. According to the research, if a company is having high quality internal audit, they might be less motivated towards earnings management (Douglas, Jason and David, 2008). Main reasons are: these internal auditors are more professional, responsible towards their job and they barely miss the expert’s expectations. c) Financial transparency and earnings management: Many studies have shown that financial transparency and earnings management are related. If a particular financial report is more transparent then the manager are less interested toward earnings management (James, Robert and Cheri, 2004) The main reason behind this situation is detail information about the accounts including: change in depreciation methods, details about each and every account will help investors to find out any manipulation done by the manager.

Organic vs Non Organic Foods Essay

It’s hard to walk into a grocery store and not notice a certain new kind of trend. There is a growing urge to have more organic items on shelves. The general belief is that organic items tend to be better for the consumer and the environment when compared to non-organic items. Although many people cant tell the difference, there are multiple pros and cons between organic and nonorganic. In terms of consumer health, both organic and processed foods have their benefits. The benefits of processed foods are that scientists can place additives that increase the nutritional value. According to Dr. Mehmet Oz (2010), this helps to â€Å"prevent neural-tube defects and certain childhood cancers, boost brain development and may increase intelligence, and reduce the incidence of rickets. † This means that theres nutrients that can be added to aid in helping the country with disease prevention. Organic foods lack the ability to be genetically modified but offer their own benefits as well. According to Maria Rodale (2010), some organically grown foods have â€Å" more conjugated linleic acid, which is a powerful cancer-fighting nutrient. † Both these types of food can help consumers healthy and prevent disease. There are some alarming differences between organic and processed foods especially when considering agriculture. â€Å"Organic† means that a food is grown without the aid of pesticides or fertilizers. Organic farmers use manure and nothing else to grow fruits, vegetables, and grains. It says in The Organic Myth that this can lead to some bad cases of E. Coli that wouldn’t be present in foods grown with pesticides since there are all sorts of bacteria in the manure (2004). The reverse is that without all those chemicals being sprayed on crops, you tend to have less pollution. Rodale states, â€Å"Growing foods organically prevents thousands of toxic chemicals from entering the environment and poisoning our soil, our wells, our wildlife, our children and ourselves† (2010). Organic goods also tend to cost more leading to them being classified as a luxury item. The downside is that most cattle and genetically altered crops have â€Å"unwanted additives like growth hormone and chemicals† (Oz 2010). It’s hard to know whether it’s worth the money to go organic or just stick with the usual. Foods grown without the aids of pesticides seem to be beneficial to the consumer and the environment, which is a big selling point for those who want to go green. On the other hand they are much more costly than non-organic crops. Many people would rather risk the potentially harmful additives to shave a few bucks of the price. It all depends on preference and beliefs but its definitely easy to see where they offer there own pros and cons. Miller, M. (2004). The Organic Myth. National Review, 56(2), 35-37. Oz, M. (2010). The Organic Alternative. Time, 176(9), 46-46. Rodale, M. (2010). 15 WAYS TO CHANGE THE WORLD (and your life)†¦ ONE APPLE AT A TIME. Men’s Health (10544836), 25(3), 113-138.

Economic Development

The accelerated economic growth has compelled the employers and firms to hire a set of highly skilled and well educated workforce to keep up the pace with the dynamic developments. Employees worldwide have several reasons for their inability to take up a job like unsuitable geographic conditions, not being up to the mark with certain qualifications etc. but on the other hand, India is one such country where workforce is available in abundance but there are only limited candidates suitable to fill up the jobs and thus employer finds it difficult to find a perfect candidate. Shortage of relevant skills including hard and soft skills, being uneducated or unqualified results in less or no employability. Moreover, unlike other countries which are facing a burden of ageing population, India has a benefitting edge with a unique 20-30 years window of majority of the population and thus has a supporting demographic dividend. The main focus for the paper has turned to skill gap in the economy. A study by Rupam Jyoti Deka and Bhavika Batra (2016) has focused on the skill gap prevailing in the country. Indian workforce needs to acquire skills and knowledge in order to gain employability. As per the Planning Commission Reports of 2008, India has a huge skill gap compared to other countries. Percentage of workforce receiving skill training (2008) With the rising influence of globalization, India has immense opportunities to establish its distinctive position in the world economy. The rural workforce still lacks in skill development and good quality education for them to qualify and secure a job {Radhika Kapur, (2014)}. They need to develop skills for the purpose of obtaining skill sufficiency in resource utilization, governance, leadership, technology, management and so on. A study by A. Mahendra (2015) suggests that education alone does not suffice. For proper execution, skills are necessary. The importance of skill is an unattended area except in few areas like Medicine, Engineering etc. that too in very few institutes. The graduates are still struggling in free and confident communication, lack of boldness to present the presentations and projects. India is composed by demographic dividend with multiple languages, cultures, religion etc. So teaching in common language is not possible, if we continue doing this, other issues are cropped up. In 2014, the Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Damodar Das Modi announced and requested the global economies to ‘produce in India' by launching a campaign ‘Make in India'. About 63% of Indian youth indicated a dire need to create employment in manufacturing sector, a study by Ankul Pandey and Prof. D.K. Nema (2017) indicated. Another paper by Ankul Pandey, Prof. D.K. Nema (2017) and AnnaLee Saxenian (2002) raised the concerns about an issue of Brain Drain or Brain Circulation. Brains of Indian people are immeasurably intellectual and has proved the worth and stand of India at various Global Levels including NASA, or holding a well reputed and respected positions in global firms including Google, Microsoft, Pepsi co. to name a few. But due to lack of job opportunities, the Indian talent is draining out to other countries which are willing to offer better positions with higher opportunities and perks. The emigration of highly skilled personnel to other countries represents a huge economic loss and brain drain. The main causes for this drain to happen be obviously lack of growing opportunities and availability of very few seats for huge number of job applicants. Also, higher salaries and perks attract huge number of job seekers improving their standards of living. AnnaLee Saxenian (2002) introduced a new concept of ‘Brain Circulation'. Brain circulation widely means returning of a personnel back to his own country after learning and experiencing the advancements in education, skill or work and contributing his part in the growth and development of the domestic economy instead of permanently settling down in the foreign country. Brain circulations would definitely prove a game changer if it is honestly practiced and this would be possible only if India would improve its skill development and increase the job opportunities and offer more perks and employee benefits. As per the study by Aya Okada (2012), the difficulties faced by youth for seeking jobs are:Intense globalization has led to intense competition among firms which is leading to improvement in their efficiency forcing them to hire few but highly skilled personnel.Global economy has led firms to engage in massive restructuring resulting in fewer job openings.Rapid technological advancements require workers to have moral complex and cognitive skills than ever. The economy now is more of ‘knowledge based'.Due to increase in migration of labour, the youth is exposed to increased intense competition even from workers globally who offer more knowledge, skills and competencies.To improve the conditions of employability and to produce more efficient labour, the government has launched several campaigns and movements. There is a measurable skill gap between what industries demand and the acquired skills of the youth. Youth's access to vocational training is limited because the vocational education and training systems across the nation is not large enough to be able to accommodate many schools and graduates. However, the government has formulated National Skills Development Policy, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, and Skill India; set up a new institutional framework to coordinate the skill development efforts and National Vocational Education Qualification Framework.

Public Relations Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Public Relations Strategy - Essay Example The organisation has also faced a number of issues in regards to the competition. The organisation is facing a number of issues in relation to this and the competitive advantage that the company has had in the past is now being challenged by other organisations. Also the company has been unable to keep up with the stake – holders’ missions and has not been able to provide the stakeholders the required returns. The main return that the stakeholders are looking for is ‘care for people’. This includes ensuring that the relationship with the patients is strengthened. The organisation also does not work with the aim of making profits hence, the organisation aims at maximising its economic profits. Public relations deal with managing information of the organisation between the organisation and the public. It normally aims at providing the information that will interest the audience of the organisation. Public relations can be used by the organisation as a mode to build a rapport with its stakeholders like the employee, shareholders, patients, etc. Building a public relations strategy has four main steps: a) defining the public relations problem, b) Planning and programming, c) taking action and communicating, and d) Evaluating the program. The assessment one of the NHS has thrown light upon the current situation within the organisation for NHS – a brief of which has been discussed in the introduction above. The first step as a public relations officer is to define the problem. This is the base of all strategies and helps build a plan for which the organisation requires changes to improve and resolve the issues. National Health Services is the biggest health service in United Kingdom. However in the past the organisation has faced a number of press reports which have been quite dampening for its image. The press has accused the organisation a number of times and the NHS chief Executive Nigel Crisp has also spoken about the attack made by the

AT&T Wireless Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

AT&T Wireless - Term Paper Example This essay discusses that AT & T Wireless has been a major player in the techno-communications industry and has made a lot of great impacts in society since its inception. Agreeably, the company has achieved so much and can boast of shredding shoulders with all other companies when it comes to naming global techno-communication giants. Apart from the fast that the company has grown in financial wise and has been credited with a number of technologically based innovations and inventions, there still remains a lot more that the company can do to wind up its achievement. It was option said that the sky was the limit but today a lot more corporate gurus are beginning to realize that there is much space beyond the sky and so the limit could even be pegged above the sky. If this is the case, then a lot more can be targeted for AT&T to achieve as a global corporate figure. But for whatever goal or vision is set for the company, the goal cannot be achieved in the absence of a well caved busi ness strategy. This is because it is these strategies that serve as roadmaps, yardsticks and radars for determining the policy direction to take into achieving the goals of the company. Based on this assertion by Kusi, The Plan Ware defines a business strategy as document or facility that â€Å"can provide the foundation and frame work for a business plan.† This means that before a strategy would be needful, there must be a business plan in place. With reference to AT & T Wireless, their business plan may be summed in their mission and vision statement, which is to become a leader in the provision of network of all wireless carriers. It is actually based on this business plan that a technology strategy has been highlighted below. Quoting directly from the AT&T Enterprise (2012), the most outlining strategy suggested for the company is the â€Å"Development of a gap analysis which addresses people, process, and technology considerations.† This means that there is an adv ocacy for the customer to strategically focus on customer needs and assistance whiles exploring ways of expanding their technological reach. This is a very comprehensive strategy that entails a number of fundamental models. First, the company must be in a position to appreciate the contribution of their customer as the most important stakeholders of the company. Second, the company must have a commitment to meeting customers at the point of their needs. Third, the company must be result oriented so as to be in a position to solve all technology based problems pointed out by customers. Finally, the company must seek of ways of expanding their systems and structure to cater for growing demand of support from their customers. It must be emphasized that this strategy is not a corporate social responsibility whereby the company is being asked to solve customers’ problems for free. Rather, it is customer-oriented strategy that indict upon the company to help the customer know that he or she has this problem and so needs this solution to the problem and that the company is in a position to offer the solution. In simple terms, the company should look out for problems to fix at a cost. This will create a win-win situation where by the customer would see the company as a ready-to-help mate and the company to will by this means be making her own profits. Section 2 - Core Competencies Given the strategy of the company as â€Å"development of a gap analysis which addresses people, process, and technology considerations†, there are a number of core competencies that can be built around the realization of this strategy. Because the strategy is more of reach out system of identifying the needs of people (customers) and applying the most appropriate technology based solutions to the problems, some of the core competences that can be outlined include beginner technology evaluation, corporate technology offer assistance and wireless security expertise. Each of thes e three core competences can briefly be highlighted as follows: Beginner