Herodotus Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Herodotus Life - Essay Example The essay "Herodotus Life" tells about the important aspects of Herodotus life such as his impact on Athens where Herodotus went and, therefore, it had a pool of intellectual brains making it have unique galaxy of talent eventually thereby making it grow more powerful. He was born as a Persian subject, and he continued to be so until he was approximately 30 to 35 years. At the time he was being born, Halicarnassus was under the rule of queen Artemisia. He thoroughly got Greek education that made him embrace the three essential subjects to a Greek which include: liberal education, music, gymnastic training, and grammar Herodotus had shown initial acquaintance with the largely Greek prose literature. He later turned to literature where he commenced the course of reading thus rendering him one of the instructive and charming writers of the ancient times. According Goodwin asserts that he traversed the European Greece and the Asia Minor due to his inquiring disposition. His traveling was typically in the period of 464-447 BC. He visited Egypt and the Athenians where he was recognized as a learned Greek. While in Egypt, he saw the Persian skulls that were slain by the Inarus. He resided in Samos for 7-8 years and it was during this time that a tragedy struck in his native town that made him return. The tyranny of Lygdamis went from bad to worse and at last, he was expelled from the foreign land. He went to his native city upon the enjoyment of the free citizen rights unto which every Greek set a very high value. He later went to Athens, which was a center of intellectual life and boasted of a galaxy of talent comprising of Pericles, Euripides, and Sophocles. It was here that he was welcomed but remained an idler, dilettante, and without any political duties. At the age of forty he continued with his journey and it is presumed that he got employed in Crotona or Metapontum. Herodotus was a literary genius as he wrote about the wars between the Greek an d the barbarians, a history of the struggle between Greece and Persia but he omitted the histories of Cathage, Phoenicia, and Etruia. Herodotus was also a great humanist who saw and respected the universe in the experience, actions of human kind, and the underlying idiosyncrasies of the regional beliefs and customs. In a 700 page book Herodotus tried to shows us that a well informed Greek requires to learn about nations, geography, cultures, fauna and flora, and the mythical origins. He died approximately at the age of sixty. The predominant voice of antiquity tells us that he may have died at Thurii where his tomb was shown in the later stages (Abe Books, 2009). The 9 books authored by Herodotus make him to be regarded as very distinguished writer of history. This s because the major themes in Herodotus’ books include: relatedness and unity of historical events over numerous generations; variety and universality of human existence and experience; incomprehensible destiny and interrelationships among different things (Goodwin 1996). Questions 1 The impact of the Persian war was that Athens and Sparta though they were great allies, it caused them to drift further apart. According to the Abe Books (2009) argue that Athens is where Herodotus went and it had a pool of intellectual brains making it to have unique galaxy of talent eventually thereby making it grow more powerful. On the contrary, Sparta grew jealous of Athens because of their lean resources. Herodotus went to Athens to regain his Greek citizenship and political rights that he had lost in Halicarnassus. As a consequence of the war, the government fell, trade dropped as the Scythians obtained their wealth from the slave trade which they controlled from the north of Greece through Cimmerian, Chersoneses, and Gorgippia. Also, it led to the city states to fight against each other. However, irrespective of the war, culture was still very important and creative as it had been insisted by Herodotus to be important to any learned Greek (Souza 2005). Question 2

Black Leaders Essay Example for Free

Black Leaders Essay Booker T. Washington and William Edward Burghardt Du Bois were influential black leaders. Their leadership strengthened the minds of the black race. During the decades of Reconstruction following the Civil War, African Americans struggled to be assimilated into the new American society. To do this African Americans required social and economic equality. Two great Negro leaders that emerged for this cause were Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. Du Bois. With these two strong-headed men, another problem arose. They both sharply disagreed upon the strategies needed to gain these equalities. Washington preferred a gradual, submissive, and economically based plan. On the other hand, Du Bois relied upon a more agitating and politically aggressive plan. They worked for the advancement of African-Americans in American society, but their methods of achieving this goal and their leadership style differed greatly from one another. It is hard to fathom that two men, who helped to strive for the great goal of racial fairness, could have been such opposites, but it is true. Booker T. Washington, a former slave and the founder of the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, believed that African Americans needed to accept segregation and discrimination for the time being and concentrate on elevating themselves through hard work and material prosperity. The eventual acquisition of wealth and culture by African Americans would gradually win for them the respect and acceptance of the white community. This would break down the divisions between the two races and lead to equal citizenship for African Americans in the end. Also he urged blacks to accept discrimination for the time being and concentrate on elevating themselves through hard work and material prosperity. He believed in education in the crafts, industrial and farming skills and the cultivation of the virtues of patience, enterprise and thrift. This, he said, would win the respect of whites and lead to African Americans being fully accepted as citizens and included into all strata of society. Washington wanted blacks in the south to respect and value the need for industrial education both from a vantage of American and African experience. Booker T. Washington was born a slave on April 5, 1856 in Franklin County, Virginia. Once the slaves were emancipated, his family moved to West Virginia. There, his family was poor, and he had to work in a salt furnace and then a coal mine. In school he named himself Booker Washington. Only later did he find out his name was Booker Taliaferro. So he combined both names to form his now famous name, Booker T. Washington. He went to school at the Hampton Institute, which was an industrial school for blacks. Later on, he based his educational theories on his time at Hampton. He founded the Tuskegee Institute, which was a Negro school, which eventually became known for its hardworking, reliable graduates. William Edward Burghardt Du Bois was born into an affluent family on February 23, 1868 in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Bois took college preparatory classes while in high school. He was also a column writer of a newspaper, the New York Globe. While still young he attended town meetings to listen to people discuss concerns of the town. He spoke about Wendell Phillips at his high school graduation. Du Boiss mother unexpectedly died in 1884. After high school, he attended Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. He was the first black person to obtain a Ph. D. from Harvard. He taught at Atlanta University. At Fisk he took part in public speaking and debates. He edited the Fisk Herald, the schools paper. At Fisk he realized that his goal was not for his own happiness, but for the advancement of the black race. He graduated from Fisk in 1886 with an A. B. degree. After Fisk he was accepted into Harvard. In 1895 Du Bois became the first African American to get a Ph. D. from Harvard. Even with a Ph. D. from Harvard he did not feel he was ready to deal with the problems that African Americans faced. He then spent two years at Berlin University. This gave him an extended outlook on the race problem. In the south, African Americans received segregated and unequal education established by white Americans. Du Bois was confident that he could get white Americans to give up discrimination. Du Bois was motivated to lead African Americans out of the disadvantaged position they seemed to be in. He believed the key to their advancement was in education. Near the end of the 1800s African Americans occupied unskilled jobs in southern cities. Their economic situation was not good. Du Bois felt compelled to work to improve this situation. He initially wanted to dedicate his life to education. In 1909 he contributed to the development of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). According to Gerald Hynes, Du Bois was not pleased with the group, due in part by it being under the leadership of whites. He agreed to work with them and became the editor of The Crisis (1909-1934), a publication from the NAACP. He also led the Niagara Movement. The Niagara Movement was an organization founded by black Americans to racial discrimination. The movement placed most of the blame for Americas racial problems on whites. It opposed the view of Booker T. Washington. He later became a Marxist and a Communist. Washington and Du Bois were alike in few ways. They were both black leaders. They were both teachers and authors. They were also both subject to discrimination from whites. They were both spokesmen for their separate ideologies. Du Bois and Washington were polar opposites of each other in every aspect except for the reasons previously stated. They were so much so that Du Bois published a book named The Souls of Black Folk, which contained many essays criticizing Washingtons views. Du Bois went on to write many other essays and speeches opposing the viewpoints of supposed Uncle Toms. The author believes that Booker T. Washington developed a leadership style based on the model of the old plantation house servant. He used humility, politeness, flattery, and restraint as a wedge with which he hoped to split the wall of racial discrimination. His conciliatory approach won the enthusiastic support of the solid South as well as that of influential Northern politicians and industrialists; their backing gained him a national reputation and provided him with easy access to the press. Members of his own community were filled with pride to see one of their own treated with such respect by wealthy and influential leaders of white America. Du Bois assigned Washington of giving the black race the distinct status of civil inferiority. Washington was for surrendering basic human rights and dignity for economic advancement. Du Bois thought that was detrimental to the black race. Washington thought that a vocational education was far more important to blacks than higher education. Du Bois thought that the really important things in life laid in the realm of the mind. The term The Talented Tenth was the trademark of his educational philosophy. To him, this was, The Talented Tenth of the Negro race must be made leaders of thought and missionaries of culture among their people. No others can do this work and Negro colleges must train men for it. The Negro race, like all other races, is going to be saved by its exceptional men. In the authors opinion, theres any question that Booker T. Washington did accept segregation. Booker T. Washington was an accommodationist. And his program was to accommodate the social and political situation of the South. Du Bois was not in complete disagreement with Booker T. Washington. Du Bois referred to Booker T. Washington as the greatest black leader since Frederick Douglass. And also referred to Washington as the most distinguished man, black or white, to come out of the South since the Civil War. So it wasnt as though Du Bois disagreed with Washingtons program, but Du Bois felt that there was room for more than one solution to the problem. And just as Washington advocated vocational education for the majority of African Americans in the South, Du Bois felt yes, there were African Americans in the South, perhaps the majority who at that point in their historical development were better off with vocational education. But there were others among the race who needed to be the individuals who were at the top, the individuals who did the training, the individuals who were the intelligentsia. And that you needed this group of people. And I think that was the basis of their disagreement. Not that Du Bois felt that Washington was completely wrong, but that Washington needed to have more than just one way of approaching the problem. And then of course the other issue on which they disagreed was Du Bois did not feel that you could accommodate injustice. And he felt that Washington was placing upon his shoulders an extremely heavy responsibility by advocating that African Americans accommodate the social and political system in the South. Washington stated that blacks should work hard and become economically prosperous before they should ask for racial equality from the whites. Du Bois thought that this was absolutely preposterous. Blacks shouldnt have to ask for equality from whites, it is Gods gift to them and every human being deserved it. Du Bois believed that the whites were responsible for keeping the black men down and that the black man should cry out and declare his independence. Washington wanted to please the whites, because he thought that was the only way anything good could happen. Even when he was a child, he made his name Washington, whom was a well-known white historical figure of prominence. Du Bois was more radical, whereas Washington was very moderate. Washington was a realist, Du Bois was a romantic. Du Bois wanted to stir mens hearts, Washington wanted to stir mens minds. Washington was loyal to his country, Du Bois was loyal to his race. Washington was possessed humility, and could relate to the common man, Du Bois was arrogant, egotistical, and imperious. Since he could not believe that the average Southern white man had any desire to help the Negro, Du Bois could see no future in the South for the ambitious young people of his race. Directly contradicting Washingtons counsel, Du Bois urged them to go North for freedom and advancement. He encouraged urban migration at every turn, believing that the country represented oppression and serfdom, while the city represented opportunity. It is very clear to see that their experiences were different and this is very important in understanding how they saw the future of the race. But its also important to keep in mind that for both of them, race uplift was the central key. Despite all of Du Bois attacks on him, Washington still managed to be more popular at the time, and more famous today.

A Days Time :: essays research papers

Centuries apart Robert Herrick and Robert Frost wrote poems illustrating the brevity of life. “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time'; by Herrick and “Nothing Gold Can Stay'; by Frost are the two poems which address the limited time humanity, especially the time of youth, has to spend in this life. Both authors use nature to symbolize the shortness of life and the time spent in youth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A symbol of nature utilized in both poems is a flower. In full bloom, a flower is in its most beautiful and prolific state. In youth, man is in the same state of a flower in bloom, resplendent and bountiful, but the time of beauty for a flower and youth is short. Herrrick states in lines 3-4 “And this same flower that smiles today,/ Tommorrow will be dying,';(728) which is a symbol of the shortness of youth. Frost in lines 3-4 “Her early leaf’s a flower;/ But only so an hour,';(989) also symbolizes the fleeting time of youth. In the beginning, a flower and youth are filled with vitality, but in a short amount of time the flower will wilt and die, and the youth will be an adult on a passage to death.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The second symbol used by Herrick and Frost is the day: youth is dawn, adulthood is midday, and death is the setting of the sun. From the day man is born, he is dying. In the second stanza, Herrick illustrates the shortness of a day; the higher in the sky the sun gets, the closer to setting it gets. In line 7, “So dawn goes down to day,'; (990) Frost also addresses the limited time man has in life. Frost’s choice of the word down to describe the action of the sun helps to make the symbol of the day more clear, by illustrating the shortness of a day. Usually one thinks of the sun rising in the day not going down until after noon.

First Corinthians Essay examples -- essays research papers fc

First Corinthians In 146 B.C. the Roman general Mummius crushed Greece’s attempt towards independence by completely destroying the city of Corinth. For a hundred years the area of the city laid in ruins. Eventually Julius Caesar sent a colony of veterans and descendants of Freedmen to rebuild the city, and in a short period of time a new Corinth was created from the old ruins (Ancient Corinth p. 20). During the rebuilding of Corinth Caesar was assassinated and reconstruction was continued by Emperor Augustus (Background First Corinthians). Corinth is a Grecian city, located on the isthmus which joins the Peloponnesus to the mainland of Greece. It is forty-eight miles west of Athens (Ancient Corinth p.16). The Isthmus is a strip of land that connects the lower peninsula of Greece with the mainland which is where the term â€Å"Isthmus† came from, in reference to any strip of land between two seas. The city was situated on a tableland two hundred feet above sea level (Zondervan Encyclopedia p.960-961) The location of Corinth helped to build its character to a great extent. It was a city that was excellently designed for shipping and trade. This fact invited a mixed population. There were two harbors in the city's position of control over the isthmus (Zondervan Encyclopedia p.960). Lechaeum provided for the westward side, facing the Corinthian gulf, and Cenchreae functioned as the harbor on the eastward side, facing the Saronic Gulf (Ancient Corinth p.40-41). In the 5th century B.C., Corinth was one of the three major powers within Greece, and they participated in all of the battles against Persia (Ancient Corinth p. 19) See map for Missionary Journeys. Paul came to Corinth for the first time on his second missionary journey toward the end of the year 51 A.D. (Zondervan Encyclopedia p.962). Paul wrote Romans while he was in Corinth and the list of Latin names found at the end of the letter agrees with historical statement that Corinth was a Roman colony. Jews naturally found a place in Corinth, and the Jewish population rose even higher when the edict of Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome. Along with many of the Jews came Paul, to the city of Corinth (History First Corinthians). Paul spent eighteen months in the city of Corinth, (Acts 18:11) and during the time he spent in Corinth, Paul laid down the foundation of the Church of Corinth. The congrega... ...p;  Ã‚  Ã‚  Baptism iii.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Paul’s plans, final greeting, (16:19-24) Works Cited Bright, Hilda â€Å"Servants of Christ† December 2004, 14 March, 2005. Bucke, Emory S.†Corinth† and â€Å"First Corinthians† The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible. New York: Abingdon Press, Nashville. 1962. â€Å"Corinth† and â€Å"First Corinthians† The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible Grand Rapids: Michigan, 1975. Guthrie, Donald New Testament Introduction United States, December 1975. Henderson, Charles â€Å"Christianity – General† 2005, 14 March, 2005. â€Å"History of the Book of First Corinthians† 2003, 14 March, 2005. < http://1corinthians.jesusanswers.com/ > Lenski, R.C.H. The Interpretation of I and II Corinthians Minneapolis: Minnesota, 1963. Papahatzis, Nicos Ancient Corinth The Museums of Corinth, Isthmia and Sicyon Athens 1981. â€Å"St Marks Berowra First Corinthians† 2003, 14 March, 2005. < http://www.stmarksberowra.org/sermons/1corinthians1.html> Smith, Gordon â€Å"New Testament Story Outlined in Maps† 14 March, 2005. The Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Illinois: Wheaton, 1996. Walvoord, John F. The Bible Knowledge Commentary. United States, 1986.

Ethical Leadership in the 21st Century Essay

Leadership is a critical component of the organization’s culture as leaders can create, maintain, or change culture. Thus, leadership is significant to establishing an ethically oriented culture. The idea that corporate leaders are accountable for organizational ethics is not a new one. In 1938, management theorist Chester I. Barnard described the executive’s role in â€Å"forming morals for others† in his book The Functions of the Executive. Barnard suggested that the purpose of developing organizational morals is a distinctive characteristic of executive work going far beyond the moral challenges faced by individuals usually. Besides superior technical skills, a high capability for responsibility, and an intricate personal morality, this task requires moral ingenuity in defining an organization’s code of ethics and instilling the basic attitudes that support it. According to a report from the Business Roundtable, a group of senior executives from major American corporations, leadership is crucial to organizational ethics. To achieve results, the Chief Executive Officer and those around the CEO need to be explicitly and strongly committed to ethical conduct, and give constant leadership in tending and mending the values of the organization. † (Business Roundtable, 1988). In surveys of practicing managers, honesty and competence appear as the most important qualities identified as essential to good leadership (Barry Z. Posner and William H. Schmidt, 1992, 33). This view was echoed by Vin Sarni, former CEO of PPG Industries, a large multinational firm, in a 1992 speech to Penn State business school students. Sarni said that the title CEO stands for Chief Ethics Officer, a statement that recognizes how important it is for the organization’s leader to set the firm’s ethical standards (Trevino and Nelson, 1995). If the organization’s leaders seem to care only concerning the short-term bottom line, employees rapidly get that message too. John G. Rangos, Sr. , the founder of Chambers Development Co. a waste management firm, demanded bottom-line results. When executives reported to him in 1990 that profits would fall short of projections, he is quoted to have said, â€Å"Go find the rest of it. † And so they did, until an outside audit in 1992 found that the company had erroneously reported strong profits in every year since 1985, though it was losing money all the time. Former employees say that, in the pursuit of growth, influenced numbers were tolerated, or perhaps even encouraged. One former employee who found discrepancies in 1988 was told, â€Å"This is how the game is played. (Trevino and Nelson, 1995) Leaders symbolize significant others in the organizational lives of employees, with considerable power qua behavior role models or simply power, in the meaning of being able to force others to carry out one’s own will. Leaders’ example and decisions affect not simply the employees who report to them, but also the stockholders, suppliers, customers, the community, the country, and even the world. Considerations of the ethical component in day-to-day decisions will set the tone for others who interrelate with the company. Thus, the image of the business leader will affect how others choose to deal with the company and will have continuing effects, as all managers and employees look to the highest level for their cues as to what is suitable. Top executives must live up to the ethical standards they are espousing and imply ethical behaviors in others. Leadership can make a difference in forming an ethical or unethical organizational culture. Work on ethical and unethical charismatic leaders also highlights the significance of the leader in the ethics equation. More particularly, charismatic leaders can be very effective leaders, yet they can vary in their ethical standards. Such differences determine the degree to which an organization builds an ethically oriented culture, the types of values followers will be exposed to, and the role models with whom employees will have their most direct personal contact (Howell and Avolino, 1992, 43-54). One way to pull together the contributions concerning how organizational culture is shaped and reinforced by leadership style is to understand organizational culture as ethical climate. One could also ask to what extent the moral maturity of organizational cultures or climates, controlling reference group types, or dominating ethics types are interdependent or interacting with leadership styles. One could also ask if unethical leadership styles encourage an unethical climate or vice versa, if the effect of unethical leadership is reinforced or counteracted by the organization’s ethical climate. Ethical dilemmas will frequently result in unethical behavior if an organization’s leadership furthers an immature, indistinct, or negative ethical climate. Such unethical behavior is, of course, not only furthered by an unethical climate, but also reproduces such an ethical climate, in a system feedback fashion, being contagious and self-reinforcing (or perhaps infuriating internal or external counter reactions). In such instances, an organization’s culture predisposes its members to perform unethically. Kent Druyvesteyn, former staff vice president, ethics, General Dynamics Corporation, made a similar point concerning leaders as ethical role models. People in leadership need to†¦set the tone by instance of their own conduct. We could have had all the workshops in the world. We could have even had Jesus and Moses and Mohamed and Buddha come and speak at our workshops. But, if after all of that, someone in a leadership position then behaved in a means which was differing to the standards that instance of misbehavior by a person in a leadership position would teach more than all the experts in the world (Trevino and Nelson, 1995). Clearly, the development of an ethical corporate culture depends on the tone set at the top. The earliest and most continuing normative formulation has underlined the responsibilities of business corporations to those affected by a company’s decisions and policies. From the beginning, it has been felt that business has fiduciary duties and compulsions of performance that extend beyond the company’s legal boundaries and economic goals. This view is identical to declaring that those who own the company should run it, or hire professional managers to run it, with an eye to the interests of others as well as their own. Therefore, business owners and managers are said to have a range of social responsibilities additionally to being responsible for the normal economic functions that one expects to find in a well-organized and well-run firm (Shaw, W. H. & Barry, V. 2004). To maintain and diminish this perspective, its advocates have drawn on various economic, political, ideological, and socio cultural sources, though rarely acknowledging them as such. The business mind easily transmogrified this hoary maxim into the corporate context by adopting for executives the mantle of â€Å"steward† of the public interest, â€Å"trustee† of business resources, and â€Å"corporate statesman† anticipated to manifest a broad social vision, while not refuting their company’s economic purpose and objectives (nor, it might be added, did it disturb their power). For the most part, these attributions of moral peerage were what might be called self-coronations or simple declaration, since no visible public selection process had elevated these corporate worthies to such vaunted peaks of public influence and function. Thus capable with self-anointed, regal-like responsibilities, corporate executives everywhere were advocated to adopt an â€Å"enlightened self-interest† perspective in approaching business decisions and originating corporate policies. To act otherwise was to risk serious inroads on business-as-usual. As the Committee for Economic Development put it, â€Å"The policy of enlightened self-interest is also based on the intention that if business does not accept a fair measure of responsibility for social improvement, the interests of the corporation might actually be jeopardized. . . . By acting on its own initiative, management preserves the flexibility needed to conduct the company’s affairs in a positive, efficient, and adaptive manner. † The report averred that looking beyond today’s bottom line would pay off in the long run by reducing social costs, dampening radical antibusiness protest, and attenuation the likelihood of government intervention into business affairs. certainly, the stability and public acceptance of business itself were said to be at risk: â€Å"Indiscriminate opposition to social change [by business] not simply jeopardizes the interest of the single corporation, but also affects negatively the interest all corporations have in maintaining a climate conducive to the effective functioning of the entire business system. (Frank Abrams, 1951, p. 33). Theorists have, generally, identified four broad areas of corporate responsibility: economic, legal, moral, and social. The major premise of the four areas is found in the basic nature of the corporation, which is a surreptitiously based, economic entity with jural standing, whose members are expected to make decisions that will have a noteworthy impact on a number of constituents (Brummer, 1991). Thinkers and researchers do not always agree that a corporation has all four responsibilities. Some do not consider that corporations have a moral responsibility; others believe that moral and social responsibilities come after economic and legal ones. The economic responsibilities of corporations have been distinct in many ways. Milton Freidman, for instance, states that the economic responsibility of a firm is distinct by the corporate intervening goal. To him, a corporate overriding goal is maximum returns to investors. As long as a corporation works on the way to achieving this goal, it is deemed economically responsible (Freidman, 1970). Based on the same philosophy, Manne (Manne and Wallich, 1972) argues that the intervening goal of the corporation is to maximize shareholders’ profits. In the majority of instances, maximizing investors’ returns would lead to utmost profits, and vice versa. Herbert Simon, on the other hand, disagrees with the perception of profit maximization and strongly argues for profit â€Å"satisfying. † He contends that because executives should respond to a number of other objectives, factors, and constraints, and must do so in the framework of what he calls â€Å"bounded rationality,† they in fact seek to reach a mere satisfactory level of profit. Whether maximization or satisfying, economic responsibility proponents consider that the number one responsibility of businesses is, first, its shareholders, and then other constituents. However, the dilemma concerning the issue of harmonizing the firm’s economic association with its social orientation still lingers. A step in the direction of easing the confusion was taken while an inclusive definition of corporate social responsibility (CSR) was developed. A four-part conceptualization of CSR integrated the idea that the corporation has not only economic and legal responsibilities but ethical and philanthropic responsibilities as well (Carroll, 1979). The major point here is that for social responsibility to be established as legitimate, it had to address the entire spectrum of compulsions that business has to society, including the most elemental economic. Organizational responsiveness to social needs had its unveiling when early industrialists reacted to the social problem that industrialization was seen to have caused. Early on, economists as well as philosophers began to argue regarding the role of business in society and regarding what responsibility business has to society. Later, social theorists for instance Bell (1976), Bellah (Bellah et al. , 1985), and Wolfe (1989) continued the debate and raised it to a higher level of concept. They were not just concerned about the responsibility of the corporation as a social body but even more concerned concerning how the corporate revolution has altered social life. A recent evaluation of the literature recognizes no less than nine meanings for social accountability. The nine meanings were categorized by Sethi (1997) into three categories: social obligation, social reaction, as well as social responsiveness. Social obligation entails that a corporation engages in communally responsible behavior when it follows a profit within the constraints of law as forced by society. Consequently legal behavior in pursuit of profit is a communally responsible behavior, and any behavior not legal is socially negligent. Proponents of social responsibility as social compulsion offer four primary arguments to support their views first, they retain that corporations are accountable to their shareholders. Consequently, managers have the responsibility to manage the corporation in a way that would exploit owners’ interests. Second, socially responsible projects such as social improvement programs must be determined by law and left to the contributions of private individuals. Consequently, the government, through legislation, is best equipped to determine the nature of social development programs and to comprehend social enhancements in society. Businesses contribute in this regard by paying taxes to the government that correctly determines how they should be allocated. Third, it is a violation of management contract to give out corporate profits for social improvement programs. These actions amount to taxation without representation, according to Friedman (1970). Management is taxing the shareholders by expenditure their money on activities, which does not contribute directly to maximizing shareholders’ interests. Additionally, because managers are not elected public officials, they are taking actions that affect society without being accountable to society. Fourth, many people who subscribe to this school of thought believe that social programs financed by corporate managers might work to the disadvantage of society. In this sense, financial costs of social activities can, eventually, cause the price of the company’s goods and services to increase, and customers would pay the bill.

Hunting Explained- Good for LIFE experience credits

Hunting Explained- Good for LIFE experience credits HUNTINGSome people feel that hunting is wrong and that its murder of innocent animals. I feel that all wildlife must remain in balance with its food and habitat capacity. Population must be controlled in order to properly even things out. Deer for instance are allowed to grow free to reproduce as they please which will lead to an excess of the species. There will then be overpopulation, malnutrition, and disease and for farmers, crop damage. Many areas of the United States have has a large amount of deer deaths because of overpopulation and lack of food in the winter months especially. I feel that hunting is justified in order to deal with animal overpopulation problems. Deer are also a great source of low fat meat! I gained this perspective on hunting mostly from my father. I became interested in guns and hunting during my teenage years watching my father; he had a lot of knowledge to pass down to me.English: crop of File:Bgforhunting.jpg Taken by Dr...I took safety classes that tau ght me a great deal and then was able to get my hunting license. Years of experience have taught me a lot and I feel I have a great grasp of how to be a safe and effective hunting sportsman.Hunting is beneficial also because it helps to support wildlife conservation programs through license fees and taxes on firearms and ammunition. It even contributes some economic gain to New York retailers and the tourism industry. In New York alone, there are deer, bears, rabbits, squirrels, turkey, bobcats, coyote, fox, raccoon, weasels, ducks, geese, woodcock, crows and more. They all have a specific season in which they are allowed to be hunted and regulations must be checked because they change yearly. Whitetail deer in our areas has been increasing which is good especially for those...

Loath and Loathe

Loath and Loathe Loath and Loathe Loath and Loathe By Maeve Maddox Paul Russell writes: I am loath to admit, or maybe loathe to admit, that I always thought the correct expression was â€Å"loathed to admit† But having Googled, I find the â€Å"loath† version scores about 1.1m pages,†loathe† around 55,000 with â€Å"loathed† in a lowly last place at 32,000. Please can you tell me which is correct, although I suspect Google has already answered my question. The forms loath, loathe, and loathed are not interchangeable. The word loath is an adjective. It’s from Old English laà ° which meant â€Å"hostile, repulsive.† It’s related to German Leid (sorrow) and French laid (ugly). Its most frequent modern usage is in the expression â€Å"to be loath to do something,† in which the meaning is not much stronger than â€Å"reluctant.† Ex. I am loath to admit my mistake. In Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, the Wife of Bath tells the story of the â€Å"loathly lady.† A young man must choose between an ugly (loathly) bride who will be faithful, and a beautiful one who will not be. The word loathe is a verb. It’s from Old English laà °ian which had the meaning â€Å"to hate, to be disgusted with.† The modern meaning is about the same: â€Å"to feel strong aversion for; have extreme disgust at.† The form loathed is the participle form. Ex. The child loathed the cruel teacher. A variant spelling of the adjective loath is loth. The th in the adjective has the unvoiced sound heard in thin. The verb loathe (despite the tutor’s note at Answers.com) has a different pronunciation. The th in loathe has the voiced sound heard in this. The silent final e is what signals the difference in pronunciation. In looking for examples on the web I came across the form â€Å"loather.† The Kingdom of Loathers is an online game. The Loathers is a music group. A blogger criticizing the ACLU indicated that the letters must stand for American Christian Loathers Union. I couldn’t find any indication of how the word â€Å"loather† in these examples is pronounced. If the â€Å"loather† is so called because of feelings of reluctance, I should think that the pronunciation is [lÃ… th-É™r] with unvoiced th. If the â€Å"loather† is so called because of feelings of intense dislike of something (as is presumably the case in the ACLU reference), then it would be pronounced with a voiced th: [lÃ… TH-É™r]. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Farther vs. FurtherList of 50 Great Word Games for Kids and AdultsPeople vs. Persons

Verb Tenses and Forms on ACT English Grammar Rule Strategy

Verb Tenses and Forms on ACT English Grammar Rule Strategy SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Knowing when to use different verb tenses and forms will be extremely beneficial to you on the ACT English section because these concepts are tested repeatedly on the ACT. Get excited for a fun-filled journey into the vivid, action-filled world of verbs. In this post, I’ll do the following: Define the verb tenses and forms that are tested on the ACT. Provide information about when to use different verb tenses. Detail how to construct verbs in different tenses. Explain and demonstrate how verbs are tested on the ACT. Provide practice questions to test you on what you’ve learned. Verb Tenses You Need To Know While you don’t need to know the names of verb tenses for ACT English, you do need to know when and how to properly use different verb tenses. Present Function The present tense is the verb tense you use when you're talking about things that are currently happening or things that are considered facts. Examples of verbs in the present tense are â€Å"jumps," â€Å"sings," and â€Å"explain.† Also, the present progressive is considered a form of the present tense. The present progressive is formed with the present tense of â€Å"to be† + the gerund (â€Å"ing†) form of the word. Examples include "am explaining," "is running," and "are laughing." Typically, words like â€Å"currently† or â€Å"now† indicate that you should use the present tense of a verb. Check out this example sentence: Currently, I am taking over the world. Construction Here is the conjugation of the verb "jump" in the present tense. Singular Plural I jump We jump You jump You jump He/She/It jumps They jump The present tense is not specifically tested on ACT English, but you do need to know how to properly conjugate verbs in the present tense for subject-verb agreement questions. Simple Past Function Generally, any sentence that describes a completed action should contain a verb in the past tense. Construction Typically the simple past tense of a verb is formed by adding â€Å"ed† to the verb. The past tense of â€Å"play† is â€Å"played.† The past tense of â€Å"listen† is â€Å"listened† and the past tense of â€Å"discuss† is â€Å"discussed.† Here's an example sentence with a verb in the simple past tense: Yesterday, George listened to Miley Cyrus songs for seven hours. Many verbs don't follow this construction and thepast tense is formed irregularly. For example, "buy" becomes "bought," "come" becomes "came," and "grow" becomes "grew." Present Perfect Function Use the present perfect tense for actions that began in the past but are still continuing in the present. Construction The present perfect is formed with has/have + the past participle. For regular verbs, the past participle is formed by adding "ed" to the verb. Examples of present perfect verbs include "has talked," "have done," and "has brought." Check out this example sentence: For the past seven hours, George has listened to Miley Cyrus songs. As shown in this example, the words â€Å"for† and â€Å"since† often indicate that the present perfect tense is needed. Be aware, however, thatthere are other instances when context determines that you should use the present perfect tense. Past Perfect Function When a sentence describes two completed actions, the past perfect is used for the action that came first. Construction The past perfect tense is formed with had + the past participle. Examples of past perfect verbs include "had talked," "had danced," and "had grown." Take a look at this sentence that shows the past perfect tense used correctly: By the time his mom came home from work, George had listened to Miley Cyrus songs for seven hours. The seven hours of listening werecompleted before George'smom came home, so we use the past perfect tense of the verb "to listen." The action that comes firstshould be in the past perfect tense. Now that we're familiar with these basic verb tenses, we have the necessary foundation to discuss exactly how verb tenses and forms are tested on the ACT. How Are Verb Tenses and Forms Tested on the ACT? Most of the verb questions on ACT English correspond with only a couple of rules. Proper verb tense or form is determined by the context clues given in the sentence and the surrounding sentences. Here are some of the specific ways in which verb forms are tested on the ACT. Consistency Most of the verb tense questions on the ACT English section have to do with consistency. The basic consistency rule regarding verbs is that verbs should remain consistent in tense or form throughout a sentence. Sentences that start in the past should stay in the past and sentences that start in the present should stay in the present. Here's an incorrect sentence that doesn't follow the consistency rule: Maria studies science and played lacrosse. The verb â€Å"studies† is in the present tense and â€Å"played† is in the past. The verb tenses should be consistent. This is the corrected version of the same sentence: Maria studies science and plays lacrosse. We could have corrected the sentence by changing "studies" to "studied". The important thing to remember is that the verb tenses should be consistent. Sometimes, however, you can have a shift in tense and the sentence can still be correct. This kind of construction is only possible if the verbs are in different clauses. Take a look at these examples: Justin bought a Honda and saves money on gas. Justin bought a Honda so that he can save money on gas. The first sentence is incorrect since "bought" and "saves" are in different tenses but the same clause. The second sentence, on the other hand, is correct. The tense shift takes place in a different clause and the two verbs are occurring at different times: Justin bought the car in the past, but he can save money on gas in the present. Justin rolls in style. On the ACT, the verb tenses of surrounding sentences can provide context clues for the proper tense to use in a given sentence to maintain consistency. Take a look at this example: Unsurprisingly, Suzanne likes frozen yogurt. It was delicious. The shift from the present tense, "likes," in the first sentence to the past tense, "was," in the second sentence doesn't make sense in context. The tenses should remain consistent. Here's the correct version of the sentences. Unsurprisingly, Suzanne likes frozen yogurt. It is delicious. Now, let's go over some tips for answering ACT questions that test verb tense consistency. Strategy Here's some strategic advice for you: if a verb is underlined and the answer choices are different tenses of the same verb, look at the surrounding sentences (a sentence or two before and after) for context clues about the proper tense to use. If there are multiple verbs in a sentence, identify the tenses to make sure they're consistent. If there's a shift from past to present or vice versa, determine if the variation is acceptable given the context of the sentence. Use these tips to answer the following example from a real ACT. Actual ACT Example Rely on your verb knowledge to figure out this actual ACT English question. Explanation: From the answer choices, we can tell that we're most likely dealing with a verb tense question because three of the four answer choices are in different verb tenses: "they were," "they would," and "they're." Whenever you have an underlined verb, check for possible verb tense errors. The verbs "continue" in the first sentence and "score" in the second are in the present tense. The shift to the past tense, "were," doesn't make sense given the context. Therefore, to maintain consistency, the verbs should be in the present tense. Immediately, we can get rid of answer choices A and B. Answer choice D is wrong because it unnecessarily adds the infinitive "to be."The correct answer is C. Here's another example of an actual ACT question that tests verb tense consistency. Actual ACT Example Go through the same process that we went through in the previous question to answer this ACT English question. Explanation: This is an obvious verb tense question. Only the verb is underlined and each answer choice is in a different tense. In the first sentence, the simple past tense verb â€Å"encountered† indicates that we’re referring to completed actions. However, the present perfect verb â€Å"have borrowed† can only be used for an action that is still happening. The context of the sentence implies that the sentence is referring to a completed action and the verb tenses in the two sentences should be consistent. Once you identify that this is a consistency question, you can immediately eliminate any answer choice that isn't in the simple past tense. After eliminating answer choices, we're left with J. Here's one final verb consistency example for you. Because tense consistency questions are the most common verb form questions, I want to make sure you fully understand them. Actual ACT Example Employ your verb expertise to figure out the correct answer to this real ACT question. Explanation: Once again, we're dealing with an obvious verb tense question. Only the verb "have" is underlined and the answer choices are all different verb tenses. The verbs â€Å"took† in â€Å"took part† and "conducted" are in the simple past tense. The first sentence is referring to completed actions that took place from 1942-1945. Based on context, we can imply that the verb â€Å"have† is referring to what happened before 1942. Therefore, we should use the past perfect tense because we are referring to the completed action that came first. Instead of â€Å"have been using,† the correct verb form is â€Å"had been using.†The answer is G. Even if you didn't recognize that you needed to use the past perfect tense, you could have recognized that you needed tochange "have" to the past tense due to verb consistency rules. Remember to keep verb tenses consistent. Would and Will Verb forms with "would" and "will" are less frequentlytested on the ACT English section, but they do occasionally appear. For the ACT, just keep in mind to use "would" in sentences with past tense verbs and "will" in sentences with present or future tense verbs. The construction of verbs with "would" and "will" are "would" + the verb, known as the conditional tense, or "will" + the verb, known as the future tense. Some examples include "would run," "would go," and "will talk." Use the conditional tense to describe things that could occur or things that haven't yet occurred from the perspective of the past. Use the future tense to describe things that have not yet occurred or could occur in the future. On the ACT, answer choices containing â€Å"will have† and â€Å"would have† are almost always incorrect because they tend to cause improper tense switches and make sentences unnecessarily wordy. The â€Å"would have† construction can only be used for something that could have happened, but didn’t. The â€Å"will have† construction describes an action in the future that will be finished before a second action. Check out this basic strategy for these questions. Strategy If â€Å"would have† or â€Å"will have† is underlined, assume it’s incorrect. These tenses can only be used in very specific situations. That's pretty much all you need to know. I'm not going into more depth because "would" and "will" questions very rarely appear and this is the only strategy you need to use on the ones I've seen. Most of them simply require you to pay attention to consistency rules. Here's one final type of verb form question that can appear on the ACT. It's the least common, but questions of this type have appeared on previous tests. Verbs That Don't Act Like Verbs Gerunds, infinitives, and participles are all verb forms that don't act like verbs. Gerunds and infinitives function like nouns. A gerund is formed by adding "ing" to the end of the verb and an infinitive is formed by adding "to" + the verb. A participle is a verb that acts like an adjective. Typically, participles end in "ing" or "ed," but there are irregularly formed participles. On the ACT, on rare occasions one of these types of words will be used in the place of a verb or vice versa. Strategy If a verb or one of these "verbs that don’t act like verbs† is underlined, make sure that it is being used properly. Each sentence must express a complete thought. Realistic ACT Example The extreme length of this article suggests that writing for an extended period of time. A. NO CHANGE B. the manner in which writing C. that I wrote D. which had written Explanation: The use of the gerund, â€Å"writing," makes the sentence an incomplete thought. The sentence needs to express a complete thought. Changing the gerund to a verb and putting in a subject (the person who did the action) corrects the sentence fragment without adding an additional clause. The answer is C. All of the other answer choices are sentence fragments. Here are some more general rules to keep in mind that will help you correctly answer all verb questions on the ACT. Remember these tips!! General Strategies for Verb Questions #1: If a Verb is Underlined and the Answer Choices are Different Tenses, Make Sure To Use the AppropriateForm of the Verb If the answer choices are different tenses of the same verb, thenyou're probably answering a question about verb forms. Make sure that the verb follows consistency rules and the tense is correct. If the answer choices are different conjugations of a verb in the present tense, you're most likely dealing with a subject-verb agreement question instead. #2: Look for Words/Phrases That Indicate Which Verb Tense Should Be Used Often, words or phrases elsewhere in the sentence or in surrounding sentences will let you know what tense to use. If a date in the past is referenced, you should probably use a form of the past tense. If the word â€Å"since† is written, there should probably be a present perfect verb. Context clues are placed around the verb to indicate the proper verb tense. Additional Practice 1. In the next five years, Jessica says that she will become a doctor and she would buy a house. A. NO CHANGE B. buy C. would have bought D. might buy 2. As the breakdancer effortlessly contorts his body, he was also smiling at the crowd of people watching. A. NO CHANGE B. has also smiled C. will also smile D. is also smiling 3. Last week, Olga participated in a charity event to raise money for autistic children. She was praised by the organizers of the event for her dedication to the cause. A. NO CHANGE B. has been praised C. will be praised D. praises 4. My brother claims that he will have become the president of the United States if he is able to raise enough money to run an effective campaign. A. NO CHANGE B. has become C. became D. will become Answers: 1. B, 2. D, 3. A, 4. D What's Next? Congratulations on taking the time to learn all about verb tense questions on the ACT English section. Check out this post for information on all the parts of speech you need to know for the ACT. For those of you who are debating between taking the new SAT and the ACT, read this article comparing the two tests. Before you take the ACT, make sure you know if you should send the four free ACT score reports. Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes what you study to your strengths and weaknesses. If you liked this English lesson, you'll love our program.Along with more detailed lessons, you'll get thousands ofpractice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Check out our 5-day free trial:

HRM Practice and Employee Attitudes Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

HRM Practice and Employee Attitudes - Assignment Example The content of the article is largely associated with how well an organization can generate Human resource management strategies. The abstract of the article has an inclusion of queries that require a lot of research and analysis on how well human resources are handled in an organization. The authors use sources from other authors that have similar findings and analysis results. Additionally, to these sources, the authors have generated their own way of coming up with own research and analysis structure. The information in this article is however based on how well a selected number of organizations related to their human resources. The author used three ways of research methodologies and collection of data. According to Fiona & Alan (2005), HRM practices are analyzed in three ways: employee report on the strengths of the used practice, employee reports and additive measures of numbers of HRM practice. Additionally, the authors measured employee attitudes depending on their commitment to their organization and their organization’s equality scales. The article operates under a thesis statement that is based on determining the relationship between HRM practice and employee work-related attitudes and evaluate whether different strategies in the measurement of HRM shows different results. According to Fiona & Alan (2005) regardless of the evaluation strategies, the results from an HRM practice are the same. They support this argument by the application by citing different evaluation processes used by different human resource experts. The authors further support their argument by comparing different results from different evaluation strategies. For instance, the author evaluated employee reports on an HRM practice and the fairness of the practice in the specific organization.  

Operational Research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Operational Research - Essay Example The numerous techniques of operations research include mathematical optimization, statistical analysis and mathematical simulation. Because of their capability to assist in decision making, operations research techniques are more often employed in manufacturing companies. These techniques have been employed to determine the most suitable places to locate new facilities such as a factory or a warehouse, identifying appropriate development paths for sections of the telecommunications. One of the most applied operations research techniques is linear programming. The use of linear programming was first proposed in 1951 to institute least-cost mixtures of livestock rations and food stuffs. This linear program reduces the expense of the mixture while some identified levels of nutritional necessities symbolize the model’s constraints. Additionally, in 1954, linear programming was proposed as a way of solving crop rotation problems (Hayashi, 2007: 21). In this case, the objective func tion symbolizes the gross margin linked to the cropping pattern while constraints link to the accessibility of capital such as land, machinery, and working capital. The idea of the use of linear programming has been used extensively in planning and managing agricultural resources on a farm. Extension of linear programming engross binary and integer platforms for applications in which it is not reasonable to allocate incessant values to the decision variables, for instance, the number of tractors and labour workers. The inter-temporality essential to many agricultural resolutions, particularly those entailing perennial crops, has necessitated the use of multi-period models. Risk and uncertainty calls for methods such as dynamic programming, Markov chains and Monte Carlo Simulation (Cheema, 2005: 43). Brazil is a huge producer of sugarcane, alcohol fuel and sugar. In order to keep the production

Business Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Business - Article Example Similarly, their analysis that their customers generally liked driving a Skoda indicated that they needed to actually make no changes to the actual car. The most interesting element was that Skoda realized that other manufacturers focused on the car, despite nominal changes in performance, and that they should instead focus on the experience of the brand and intangible assets. Microsoft Hafner and Hibbert performed a SWOT analysis of Microsoft in 2001. Some of the conclusions were obvious: Linux and Macintosh were potential threats, Microsoft had been slow in coming to the Internet and had been beaten out by companies like Google, etc. But others were more interesting. For example: â€Å"Currency exchange rates affect demand for application/operation software and hardware, and fluctuating currencies can negatively impact revenues in the global marketplace†. Hafner and Hibbert point out that Microsoft had not done the management to protect against that kind of volatility. Concl usion SWOT in practice, then, can help companies do two things: 1) Catalog for the obvious that has thus far escaped attention or has simply been assumed and not been critically analyzed; 2) Perceive past the obvious to the non-trivial. Works Cited Skoda Autos. â€Å"SWOT Analysis in Action†. Times 100. 2008. Web. Retrieved from: http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/downloads/skoda/skoda_13_full.pdf . Accessed 1/9/2011.

Marketing Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Marketing Paper - Essay Example This is because as a potential customer, one desires to feel valued by the sender/company. An indicator of how much a company values its targeted clients is when it has exerted effort on getting correct details regarding the customer. Furthermore, addressing potential customers by their complete name adds the personal touch to the sales method that is often appreciated by the client. In line with rules of etiquette, getting customer details precisely signifies respect towards the recipient of the mail. In both cases, it is highly probable that I would purchase these products. Given my preference for convenience in handling my finances, I opt to use multiple credit cards for various purposes since I am pre-occupied with studies among other things. Thus, it is much easier for me to settle my bills through credit card and at the same time have funds on hand for my purchases. On the other hand, I have not come to the point of demanding pre-need plans and other insurance products. Probably in the near future I will realize the value of securing my future, my possession, and my loved-ones. For the meantime, I have not identified this product as a need. In this regard, I have not availed of life or medical insurance. The professional-looking promotional materials from the companies caught my attention since they, in a way, stand out from the rest of my mails. Apart from this, the catchy taglines printed on the elegantly designed envelopes have aroused my curiosity and persuaded me to open their solicitation. The mails looked promising and I felt that I might be mission on a perk or benefit that these companies offer if I failed to open the solicitation. 5. What differences or similarities do these companies use to try to make you buy the product Both companies offered tempting promos that go with purchasing their products. The difference lies in their approach. For instance, the credit card company was offering a chance to win a vacation package to a tropical paradise if I decide to avail of the credit card. On the other hand, the insurance company was granting substantial discount for the early birds who would purchase their insurance product package. Another difference is that the credit card company also had telemarketers to contact me shortly after I received the solicitation. In contrast, the insurance company provided an email address that I could write to in order to express my interest to have the brochure sent and its salesperson to get in touch with me. 6. What suggestions would you make to improve these direct mail pieces to have the consumer open them / have the consumer respond To have the consumer open the direct mails, these companies may consider offering freebies like small souvenir items or mailing the complete promotional kit that may perk up customer interest along with

Client entity letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Client entity letter - Essay Example To start with, a solo-proprietorship will require a small capital, few legal requirement if any and less demand in management. Conversely, the returns may not be much as compared to other entities. A partnership requires a group of people, who came together, pool their resources and pursue a common goal. The risk of business failure or losses is spread to a number of individuals hence proving more important that sole-proprietorship. The only requirement is the partnership deed required by the law. A third distinction occurs on liability issue. A sole-proprietorship and partnership are liable for losses that might occur in business. A creditor would claim their dues to be paid if such business collapses. For a limited company, limited liability partnership and corporations, the case is different. The claims would not fall under the owner of the business rather the business itself. However, this should not result from malpractice or professional negligence. These entities are recognized by law and have legal status. Finally, any form of limited entity be it a partnership, limited liability company, public company have access to better funding. The rate of returns is equally promising compared to unlimited form of

Marketing Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Marketing Paper - Essay Example This is because as a potential customer, one desires to feel valued by the sender/company. An indicator of how much a company values its targeted clients is when it has exerted effort on getting correct details regarding the customer. Furthermore, addressing potential customers by their complete name adds the personal touch to the sales method that is often appreciated by the client. In line with rules of etiquette, getting customer details precisely signifies respect towards the recipient of the mail. In both cases, it is highly probable that I would purchase these products. Given my preference for convenience in handling my finances, I opt to use multiple credit cards for various purposes since I am pre-occupied with studies among other things. Thus, it is much easier for me to settle my bills through credit card and at the same time have funds on hand for my purchases. On the other hand, I have not come to the point of demanding pre-need plans and other insurance products. Probably in the near future I will realize the value of securing my future, my possession, and my loved-ones. For the meantime, I have not identified this product as a need. In this regard, I have not availed of life or medical insurance. The professional-looking promotional materials from the companies caught my attention since they, in a way, stand out from the rest of my mails. Apart from this, the catchy taglines printed on the elegantly designed envelopes have aroused my curiosity and persuaded me to open their solicitation. The mails looked promising and I felt that I might be mission on a perk or benefit that these companies offer if I failed to open the solicitation. 5. What differences or similarities do these companies use to try to make you buy the product Both companies offered tempting promos that go with purchasing their products. The difference lies in their approach. For instance, the credit card company was offering a chance to win a vacation package to a tropical paradise if I decide to avail of the credit card. On the other hand, the insurance company was granting substantial discount for the early birds who would purchase their insurance product package. Another difference is that the credit card company also had telemarketers to contact me shortly after I received the solicitation. In contrast, the insurance company provided an email address that I could write to in order to express my interest to have the brochure sent and its salesperson to get in touch with me. 6. What suggestions would you make to improve these direct mail pieces to have the consumer open them / have the consumer respond To have the consumer open the direct mails, these companies may consider offering freebies like small souvenir items or mailing the complete promotional kit that may perk up customer interest along with

Consumer Relationship Marketing Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Consumer Relationship Marketing - Case Study Example Companies or brands that focus on such areas can gain competitive advantage. Motorola's strategy, as outlined below, is to deliver a safe customer relationship service, which speaks to the customer's desire for clarity of vision. Motorola places strong emphasis on their ability to provide consistent security in information systems, and also matches the third requirement by maintaining a strong research and development program between all segments. With this approach customers are adequately informed of what the brand is seeking to achieve and benefits that shall accrue to them if they are successfully accomplished. Motorola is known around the world for innovation and leadership in wireless and broadband communications. Motorola (NYSE:MOT) is a global Fortune 100 leader in broadband, automotive communications, wireless technologies, and embedded electronic products. The company's Government and Enterprise Mobility Solutions (GEMS) business provides integrated radio communications and information solutions for public safety, government, and enterprise customers. Widely distributed sales and system integration teams previously collaborated by improvised phone, e-mail, and paper processes. Motorola consists of three businesses: Connected Home Solutions, Networks & Enterprise, and Mobile Devices. Connected Home Solutions provides a scalable, integrated end-to-end system for the delivery of broadband services that keeps consumers informed, entertained and connected. Mobile Devices designs, manufactures, sells and services wireless subscriber and server equipment for cellular systems, portable energ y storage products and systems, servers and software solutions and related software and accessory products. Networks & Enterprise solutions include secure two-way radio, cellular and wireless broadband systems to meet the needs of public safety, government, private, and service provider and enterprise customer's world-wide. The Motorola RAZR cellular phone. The sleek RAZR mobile phone is an innovative product marketed as 'Ultrathin' and light. Razr reported profits of $1.75 billion on sales of $9.42 billion with 750,000 units of the phone to wireless carriers in the first 30 days on the market (Hesseldahl 2005). Strategic Focus Motorola's Web-site states that: "We're scientists. We're artists. Most of all, we are a global communications leader, powered by, and driving, seamless mobility. Motorola is revolutionizing broadband, embedded systems and wireless networks - bringing cutting-edge technologies into your everyday life, with style" (Motorola 2006). A defining characteristic of Motorola's RAZR phone is international use and multi-national business, which is characteristic of a social and cultural worldview. This worldview may be comprised of the group's norms, values and assumptions for how people interact with each other (Distefano & Mavnevski, 2000).

Ethical Principle Essay Example for Free

Ethical Principle Essay Ethical principles have a huge portion in the impact of intentional or assisted euthanasia. Beneficence according to Beauchamp states, â€Å"compassion; taking positive action to help others; desire to do good; are core principle of our patient advocacy† (Beauchamp,2009,p38). The value of beneficence simply states to do good to achieve the best possible outcome. For example, medical research is expanding and exploring numerous cures for diseases that are causing harm to people. Doctors that are approving euthanasia are because of empathy and kindness for the patient. The doctors and physicians are trying to do good for the patient by performing euthanasia because they know the prognoses is poor and the medical treatment won’t cure the disease. Utilitarianism theory can also be applied to the situation, â€Å"this theory supports what is best for most people. The value of the act is determined by its usefulness, with the main emphasis on the outcome or consequences†(American Nursing Association). In other words, the greatest value for all, is the selection that is morally accurate. For example, some patients support active euthanasia because it ends the suffering of the person. The choice to end life in return brings the great happiness for large amount of people. The autonomy theory states, â€Å"Agreements to respect right to self determine is a course of action and support of independent decision making†. (Beauchamp,2009 p.38). People should have their own choice to make decision for themselves when it involves their lifeà ¢â‚¬â„¢s. If the member is unable to make his or her needs known, an inform consent or power of attorney should be made before hand of the patient wishes. The ethical theory such as deontology mentions, people should abide to their task and obligations when review an ethical dilemma. Reference Beauchamp, T. L., Childress, J. F. (2009). Principles of biomedical ethics (6th ed., pp. 38-39). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. American Nurses Association. Retrieved from website: http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/EthicsStandards/Resources/Ethics-Definitions.pdf

The implications of the notion of the Big Society

The implications of the notion of the Big Society The Big Society was officially launched by the Prime Minister David Cameron in July 2010 (see NCVO, 2010). However, this was not the first we had heard of the Big Society. The notion was first discussed within the Conservative Party from mid 2009 (see Conservative Party, 2010), with the terminology associated with the Big Society coming to the fore in the weeks and months before, during and after the 2010 General Election campaign. At the core of David Camerons vision for revitalising both the UK and the Conservative party is what he describes as the Big Society. The concept calls for a restructuring of the relationship between state and society, with a substantial movement of power and responsibility from the former to the latter (Pattie Johnston, 2010, p2). Some view the Big Society as a positive move with the potential to transform society and address many of its problems through community led action. Others are more sceptical and resistant, viewing the Big Society as an ideologically driven move towards a do-it-yourself society, leading to further social polarisation and disadvantage. This paper will briefly explore the theoretical and political background to the Big Society before moving on to look at the potential implications and the role of Sheffield City Council in supporting the delivery of this agenda in three key areas. What is the Big Society? Put simply, the Big Society is a Government agenda that seeks to shift power from politicians to people (NCVO, 2010, p2). It represents an approach that seeks to give increased power to people to solve problems closer to where they live (Cabinet Office, 2010). Three interlinked agendas and questions are seen as key to building an understanding of the notion of the Big Society (see GOYH, 2010). Firstly, the idea of social action is seen as an important building block of the Big Society. Examples of this include supporting volunteerism and philanthropy, in an attempt to answer the question what can we do for others?. Secondly, public service reform is seen as an important element in moving towards a Big Society. This is not only about reducing red tape and bureaucracy, but importantly about increasing transparency and accountability across public services. Key to this is identifying what the state can do, and coming to some level of consensus about what role the state can and should play in key areas of public life. Finally, community empowerment and creating communities in charge of their own direction is seen as a key part of the Big Society. This will help individuals work together to identify what we can do for ourselves as a result of c ollective endeavour and action. The Big Society moves from a default position of central design and governmental provision to citizen-driven partnership across all sectors (Cabinet Office, 2010). In order to achieve this, Government envisage an approach built around a broad ecosystem made up of three levels (see figure 1), where no one player dominates another (Cabinet Office, 2010). In addition, figure 2 shows the three priorities which Government feel need to be focussed on in order to build the Big Society ecosystem and reconfigure how policy is developed and delivered (Cabinet Office, 2010). Figure 1 Figure 2 1Neighbourhood groups comprise a broad range from those with an explicit social or activism mission to those focused on local participation, engagement and community building whether informally through sports and interests or more informally in conjunction with local anchor institutions (Source: Cabinet Office, 2010) Before going on to look at the implications of the notion of the Big Society in Sheffield it seems relevant to briefly pause and examine the theoretical and political background to the notion of the Big Society. The Big Society and public policy Although closely associated with the Conservative Party, the General Election campaign of 2010, and more recently a number of policy areas developed by the Coalition Government, the Big Society idea is far from new. In some ways, the idea is as old as democracy itself. From ancient Athens on, a recurrent normative image has been that of the engaged citizen playing an active part in his or her community (Pattie Johnston, 2010, p4). Each new British government since the late 1970s has put its own spin on this idea (as evidenced in Sheffield First Partnership, 2010). David Camerons support for this idea follows this general trend, however it is a view that has not always sat comfortably with the Conservative Party. It is important to acknowledge that in rejection of Margaret Thatchers 1987 declaration that there was no such thing as society, David Cameron used his first speech as Conservative Party leader (in December 2005) to announce his belief that there is such a thing as society, its just not the same as the state (Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5). Historically within Conservative thought the idea of the Big Society can be traced back to Edmund Burkes championing of the little platoons. These are the intermediate organisations families, communities and so on between the individual and the state. For Burke, these little platoons were a bulwark against two sources of tyranny: on the one hand, the overweening power of the state and on the other the uncontrolled demands of the mob (Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5). Although initially the Big Society can be viewed as the opposite to Labour statism it contains distinct echoes of New Labours agenda. New Labour had intended, for instance, greater involvement of citizens and voluntary groups in decision-making and provision of services. But intentions were sidetracked somewhat by external events and by internal disputes within the Labour government (Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5). Outside of political debate the idea of the Big Society draws on a number of social and political trends. It taps into a growing anti-politics mood among the public (Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5) and ideas surrounding politics for an anti-political age as highlighted in the work of Mulgan (1994), Stoker (2006) and Hay (2007) (cited in Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5). Finally, it seems worthwhile to highlight the strong links between thinking on the Big Society and the concept of social capital. Putman argued that communities rich in social capital were more efficient, happier, better-run, safer, healthier just downright nicer places to live in than communities in which social capital was lacking (Putman, 2000 cited in Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p6). Many of the positive elements of social capital are the very things that a Big Society seeks to create and sustain. The current context for the Big Society As the Conservative Liberal Democrat Coalition Government took shape in May 2010 the Big Society notion once again came to the fore. The Coalition Agreement (see HM Government, 2010) specifically makes reference to the Big Society as part of a wider focus on social action. Significantly, the Big Society was the first major policy announcement of the new Coalition Government. The Government sees the Big Society as being developed within the three-fold wider national context of; a lack of trust in politics, longstanding social problems and unprecedented challenges to public finances (see Cabinet Office, 2010). The aim is to build a society with much higher levels of personal, professional, civic and corporate responsibility; a society where the leading force for progress is social responsibility, not state control (Conservative Party, 2010, p1). What does this mean for Sheffield City Council? As set out earlier in this paper, the key principles and context for the Big Society are relatively easy to engage with and think about at a general level. The difficult questions arise when thinking about its implementation. What is clear though is that in the context of increased localism, the role of the local authority will be fundamental to its success, and to turning the Big Society rhetoric and vision in to reality (Office for Public Management, 2010, p1). The following sections build on the analysis already carried out and go on to set out the potential implications of the Big Society for Sheffield City Council in the following three main areas of; laying the foundations for the Big Society, the potential implications for the Council itself, and finally the implications for the relationship between the Council and the Voluntary, Community and Faith (VCF) Sector. Laying the foundations for the Big Society Whatever ones political persuasion, its possible to envisage how the Big Society agenda, with its emphasis on more involvement of local communities in social outcomes, could support the creation of positive change (Office for Public Management, 2010, p2). In many cases the Big Society is already happening in Sheffield. Sheffield can lay claim to innovation and best practice over a number of years in public sector reform, community empowerment (e.g. through the use of a Community Assemblies to set local priorities and allocate funding) and in its relationship with the VCF Sector. When setting the context for how the Big Society may impact on a city as large and complex as Sheffield it is important not to lose sight of what is already happening at an organisational, community and individual level. The analysis in previous sections has gone some way to setting out the varied political roots and philosophical ancestry of the Big Society notion. However, in its current form it is closely linked to the policies and ambitions of the Coalition Government. In addition, Big Society initiatives coincide with a period of austerity in public spending. Any changes in services and service delivery will inevitably be linked to cuts in much of the media and in the eyes of the public (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p3). These are both important points, as if the perception of local politicians and the wider general public is that the Big Society is driven by a particular political party or philosophical viewpoint this could present a barrier to the universal acceptance of any initiatives or legitimate outcomes that result from Big Society action. Within the local political context of Sheffield this is a particularly important point. The Council is currently in no overall control, with a Liberal Democrat Leader. In addition, many of the national issues around government policy and funding are played out in the City and receive increased media attention due to Sheffields connections with the Deputy Prime Minister. With this in mind it is important for any approach to the Big Society in Sheffield to be genuinely built from the needs of the community whether directly (e.g. through social action) or indirectly (e.g. from information collected by service delivery organisations) in order for it to be aligned to the needs and aspirations of the local community and to avoid it becoming overly politicised. For the Big Society to work, all local authority staff and stakeholders need to understand the Big Society. Local authorities will need to ensure that they effectively communicate a locally specific Big Society vision to their own staff, members and stakeholders to motivate people to work towards a common goal (Office for Public Management, 2010, p3). Implications of the Big Society for Sheffield City Council A number of factors are currently impacting on the role, nature and size of local authorities such as Sheffield. This presents a number of challenges and opportunities as the implications of the Big Society are thought through at an organisational and political level. It is clear from the limited information from central Government surrounding the Big Society that local government will be central to creating and engaging with the Big Society ecosystem, it will also have a clear role to play in delivering a number of the priorities of the Big Society. However, it is important to acknowledge that local government is part of the state (Tizard, 2010) and therefore it will be subject to continuing reform whilst also trying to engage the local community in debate about what any reforms should look like. The Big Society represents a different relationship between citizen and the state. In some ways the Big Society can replace the state but in other ways it merely represents a nudge towards a greater emphasis on the citizen, community and third sector (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p3). In many instances (and in some service areas more than others) this will require a change in mind-set, with a move from a corporate to mutual philosophy, a redefinition of the role of elected members and democracy, and in some instances giving up power and demonstrating listening (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p3). This creates a number of challenges for local Elected Members and from a theoretical perspective raises a number of interesting questions around the ideas of representative and participatory democracy (see Pearce, 2010). This in itself is not a new concept or dilemma for Elected Members. However, the Big Society agenda potentially adds a further level of complexity to this dynamic. National Government has already announced a number of Big Society policies which set the context nationally. These include, the Big Society Bank, a national Big Society day, the Localism Bill, and a new right for public sector workers to form employee-owned co-operatives and bid to take over the services they deliver. Local Elected Members and local authority managers will be called on to deliver a number of policy goals and expectations encouraged by central Government. A key role for Sheffield City Council will be in transforming government action from top-down micromanagement and one-size-fits-all solutions to a flexible approach defined by transparency, payment by results, and support for social enterprise and cooperatives (Tizard, 2010). One concern is that through devolving power down to the local level different outcomes in different localities will lead to rising inequalities not only geographically, but amongst different sectors of society. With this difference, it must be ensured that there is a consistency of opportunity (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). Key to ensuring that everyone benefits from the Big Society is focused activity to identify how to support complex communities or those with low social capital. Citizens with less time, resources, or quieter voices such as children and the vulnerable are in a worse position to take advantage of the new opportunities provided by these changes (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p5). With this in mind a key role for local authorities is managing any risks that may arise from new forms of provision. One view of the role of a Local Authority in the Big Society is not for control, but for quality control protecting core and essential services; protecting values and principles (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). Within the wider context of the Big Society a key role for Sheffield City Council as an organisation will be to create the conditions that safeguard the wellbeing of all citizens and communities, providing protection for the most vulnerable. This is already a key role for local authorities but it may become increasingly important in offsetting any disadvantage or unintentional outcomes of the Big Society. Implications of the Big Society for Sheffield City Councils relationship with the VCF Sector Within Sheffield a large amount of successful activity is already led or supported by the VCF Sector. In some instances this is wholly independent of the local authority and delivers vital services to the citizens of Sheffield. However, a substantial amount of VCF Sector activity in the City is publically funded. Over the coming years this will need to change as the pressure on public funding intensifies. There is a challenge for the VCF sector to change their funding base from grants from the public sector to a greater use of social enterprise, cooperative and mutuals. In addition, Philanthropy and increased charitable giving are regarded as key parts of the Big Society, yet it is unclear how they are to be increased and better directed (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). The Big Society idea sets out a larger role for social enterprises, charities and voluntary organisations in the provision of services, it also plans for a substantial transfer of control to ordinary citizens, coming together to provide for their own communities (Pattie Johnston, 2010, p2). This sets an interesting context for the relationship between Sheffield City Council and the wider VCF Sector, with local authorities having to consider how best to align their activity to and support the work of community groups, both current and emerging (Office for Public Management, 2010, p2). The relationship with the VCF Sector is integral to all three of the agendas and questions of the Big Society set out earlier in this paper. The VCF Sector is one of the key ways in which Sheffield City Council can allow local people to participate more effectively in the governance, design and delivery of services in their communities (helping to identify what the state can and should do). Through supporting community empowerment and drawing together social action the VCF Sector has a valuable contribution to make in focussing activity and providing a framework which helps individual citizens and communities identify what they can do for themselves and what they can do for others. Within local authority areas such as Sheffield the VCF Sector will need to adapt and change to the increasing responsibility placed on it by Big Society. It is widely acknowledged that there will be a need for new initiatives to emerge, but also a need to recognise the valuable resources and good practice that is already in place. Chanan and Miller (2010, p2) argue that most of the Big Society policy does not rest on the idea of communities taking over mainstream public services, although this is a view that has been caricatured by the media. It is acknowledged that few communities would want to take over statutory public services, and where they did there are no guarantees that existing problems would not exist. In many instances, where community groups want to or are able to effectively run specialist non-statutory elements of public services they are able to do so through social enterprises or by bidding for such work through established processes. Chanan and Miller (2010) go on the state that where services are statutory it is right that a certain level of accountability, standards and bureaucracy are attached to them. They do however set out an important role for the VCF Sector in complementing and co-producing public services. The underlying principle is not the state offloading public services but the state and people working together to ensure maximum value either from a public service or from a voluntary service initiated by a community group. It is this that will make public services more efficient and economical and communities more capable (Chanan and Miller, 2010, p3). However, Tizzard (2010) and NCVO (2010) have an alternative view and believe the very essence of the Big Society will lead to more social enterprise, third and community sector public service delivery. So, at one end of the potential continuum of involvement of the VCF Sector in the Big Society is the taking over of or co-production of public services. Although this may seem unlikely in the short term it is a possibility that needs to be considered and will increasingly be part of political debate. Developing ways to open up debate on this issue in Sheffield is clearly a responsibility of the democratically accountable local authority. However, at the other end of this continuum is developing an approach and local mindset where people have the power and confidence to take action where they feel it is necessary. This could be through volunteering to support local projects, causes or initiatives (existing or new), or maybe through schemes to recruit community organisers. Some infrastructure for this to take place already exists within Sheffield, but it is not consistent across all geographical areas and does not necessarily appeal to all social groups. Furthermore, it is not clear how much capacity and willingness there is for people to engage in this type of activity beyond the small army of people who are already involved (see Pattie Johnson 2010). It is acknowledged that Increased volunteering will need a framework and incentives to widen recruitment and increase the volunteer base. It should be recognised that volunteers are not a stable workforce and cannot replace aspects of the public sector like-for-like (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). Within Sheffield the VCF Sector needs to be supported in building their response to Big Society and building capacity to deliver the Big Society agenda is essential. A number of commentators set out the important role that Local Authorities can play in helping to ensure that the VCF Sector have the relevant skills and capacity to deliver the Big Society and in helping to build consortia that can deliver local priorities. Outside of funding, providing assets and working with partners to set up volunteer schemes, the Office for Public Management (2010) set out a number of ways in which local authorities may support the VCF Sector in working towards the Big Society. Examples include initiating and incubating new ideas, providing support and advice, sharing knowledge in order to support community initiatives, and helping to remove some of the barriers that the VCF Sector may experience when trying to do things differently. In addition, the Office for Public Management (2010) also set out the important role for local authorities in managing risk and reducing inequalities (both points discussed earlier in this paper). Above all, there needs to be an acknowledgement that the approach and involvement of the VCF Sector in the Big Society will look different in different places. These differences will be due to the different choices and decisions made by people in these localities, different levels of service need and service provision and the ethos of any new schemes that are introduced (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p2). This difference can be viewed as positive as it has the potential to deliver increased levels of competition and choice where appropriate, allowing local services to reach and support local people more effectively. However, an important point to consider is what happens in those communities and neighbourhoods where there is little or no VCF infrastructure or where people are not willing or able to engage in the Big Society. If this is just small pockets then the hope is that the enthusiasm and energy from neighbouring areas will drive activity. However, where lack of engagement is widespread and shows little evidence of developing organically what resources and mandate will local authorities have to intervene? Will it be politically and morally acceptable to allow nothing to happen in some areas, whilst others thrive in the Big Society? This is also an important consideration given that in some areas it may take longer to build the Big Society than in others. With this in mind, there is clearly a role for the local authority to work with the VCF Sector to ensure that such potentially negative aspects of the Big Society are reduced and to unite people from all sectors and parts of the community to ensure that everyone benefits. Conclusion There is still much confusion surrounding the notion of the Big Society, which remains a potentially complex and controversial area of emerging public policy. Many commentators, politicians and academics have concluded that the Big Society can be what you want it to be and that success depends on applying the principles and ideas most appropriately and effectively at a local level. This paper has only focussed on three elements which are of direct relevance to Sheffield City Council as it starts to develop its thinking around the Big Society. However, many of the issues raised will be relevant to other areas. Much is already happening which could be defined as the Big Society. The question is not if this activity and commitment will continue (as I am sure it will), but if the terminology of the Big Society will still be with us in 12 months only time will tell. The opportunity of the Big Society is surely around harnessing the new and alternative sources of ideas, energy, capacity and challenge which the current focus on the Big Society brings. Importantly, this needs to work with existing capacity, resources, enthusiasm and political will to deliver on shared outcomes that impact positively on individuals and communities. For the reasons discussed earlier in this paper some degree of oversight over Big Society initiatives is essential. The public sector, the state, and the VCF sector have important roles to play here (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). In addition, there needs to be an acknowledgment that certain approaches (e.g. volunteering, social action) will be better suited to delivering certain types of Big Society activity. However, there is still a need for the development of long term strategic approaches and the maintenance of statutory services. The Young Foundation (2010, p20) set out a useful distinction between services that can be tailored or devolved to communities, with service standards shaped or set locally and services that require central planning, delivery and oversight, with service standards set by the local authority. Where this line falls will vary locally and will be dependent on a range of factors such as need, community capacity and political will, however this is a useful way of framing the wider Big Society debate. Within the current climate of public sector cuts and reforms it is important to understand that creating a smaller state wont necessarily (or automatically) lead to a Big Society. In some areas there will be a role to play around directing resources, leadership, nurturing, support, encouragement and enabling. In the majority of cases an organisation such as a local authority has the governance and democratic accountability to carry out this role, and importantly ensure fairness and equality. However, for the Big Society to work the overall approach needs to remain fluid, dynamic and responsive. It is only through adopting such an approach that the needs and aspirations of individuals and communities can be best met. This in itself may be a challenge for large organisations such as local authorities, but it is arguably one that they need to rise to in order to make the most of the Big Society opportunities.