Talktime Inc Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Talktime Inc - Essay Example This depicts formal authority and establishes how critical decisions are to be made. As the company has grown over the years, it has added a lot of staff to its teams and majority of them are hired on a permanent basis. This has added to the cost for the organization because of the additional training cost and remuneration of the new employees. Besides that, the permanent employees that have been with the company for many years do not like changes and are extremely resistant if any new change is brought about. This has become extremely detrimental for the company. Talktime also has rigid rules and procedures that have to be followed under all circumstances and deviations from the usual is not encouraged. There is no delegation whatsoever and every action has to be taken with the permission of the boss and the employees are not given the authority to do any thing at their own discretion. The tall structure of the organization also fosters a great degree of centralization where all the power and authority lies with the top management; this has brought about inefficiency and slow decision making. As Talktime is a telecom company, it has to keep abreast with the latest technological advances to be innovative and provide the best to its customers. However in recent years, it has been lagging behind in this department because the top management has huge job responsibilities and it is difficult for them to keep up technologically and make timely decisions. Talktime's organizational structure has brought about an individualistic culture where employees are only concerned with themselves and lack of communication causes a lot of friction and conflict in groups and teams. Employees are usually required to do mundane routine tasks and not empowered to initiate something on their own. There's also workforce diversity that causes jealousy and conflict among them. The reward system is also very rigid; very rarely is an employee rewarded in the form of a bonus or the like for a job well done; they are just paid their monthly salaries. This has made employees extremely de-motivated and frustrated and they feel threatened by any co-worker performing better than them and getting positive feedback from the manager. Conflict often arises when teamwork is essential and difference of opinion surface. This conflict results in poor performance and hampers the growth of the organization as a whole. The departments are inter-related and often two departments are working simultaneously or one department is dependant on the other, to begin work. The goals of each department are different and conflict occurs when the best solution for one department is harming the other department. Other than that, the resources of the organization are also limited and when two departments require the same resources, conflict occurs when one department feels that its needs are more important than the other. All this leads to constant quarreling, anger and bad performance overall. This is the reason why Talktime's performance has been suffering over the recent years and negative word has spread about it in the industry. As a human resource manager, the first thing that needs to done is to restructure the organization. The tall structure has been pre-dominant for many years and it is time now to bring about a change. It will be replaced by a flat structure where there are fewer

Graduate Study Challenges and Strategies for Success Paper Essay Example for Free

Graduate Study Challenges and Strategies for Success Paper Essay My decision to go back to school did not happen overnight. It was a discussion after another with my husband, because we both know, this is a serious matter that needs planning and teamwork with the whole family. Going back to school after 20 years with three children plus working full time will be very challenging. It was more of a personal decision, wanting to advance and achieve more in my chosen field. I’m aware this entails hard work and dedication on my part. My mother even asked me, â€Å"Why bother? You’re already a Director of Nursing†. But deep inside me, I don’t want to stop there. After all these years, I feel rusty, mentally and skills wise. I crave for a mental challenge and hone my communication and written skills to be more effective. â€Å"Great leaders reinvent continuously on a personal level. They are always interested in ways to enhance their own knowledge and skills† (Blanchard Miller, 2007, p. 72). In this essay, I was asked what would be the three challenges I will face in pursuing my study and its corresponding strategies for achieving success. The first challenge is financial. When I called the University and spoke with the financial counselor, I almost choked when I heard the cost. I have an idea beforehand, that going or pursuing graduate school is very costly but I did not realize to be that much. Having two teenagers in a catholic school and a paid help 8-10 hours a day for my special girl, made me think twice again and discuss the matter seriously with my husband. Second challenge for me to study again, is my lack of computer skills, knowledge with APA writing guidelines or writing skills, per se. A friend of mine, who is going to graduate school, mentioned that it demands a lot of writing and research work. This aspect scares me because I don’t have a great background in these areas. During my student days, I don’t have even the basic computer skills and using APA format for my writings. I was doing my presentation using Manila papers, not in the power point back then, and used to the traditional way of learning through reading from textbooks. All of these things, such as navigating the student’s web, looking for on-line resources are all new to me, that is why I am a bit overwhelmed. The third challenge is time management. Balancing my schedule between my family, work and school will definitely be a challenge. My other friend was actually shocked when I mentioned that I’m going for my graduate study. She said, â€Å"What are you doing? Killing yourself by stressing you more? You have a special baby to tend and two teenagers to drive around wherever they have to go, work full time and school? Where will you find time to study? † I know, this will be a tough journey but I’m in for a challenge. To overcome my first challenge, the best strategy is to do proper budgeting. â€Å"A budget plan shows you the flow of money in your everyday life. By making slight adjustments to your budget, you may have the ability to save more† ( â€Å" Informative articles on how to budget,†2009, p. 1). This is something that I will take seriously because I am an impulsive buyer and loves shopping a lot. I have a tendency to shop for the entire family, and spoil them with fancy or beautiful things and not looking at the price. I will be a smart shopper from now on and list things that are only necessary when I do my grocery. I will also cut back some expenses in entertainment such as movies, dining out and personal care such as going to beauty salon and massage parlors. For my second challenge, an open mind and positive attitude towards continued learning will be the best approach. It has been 20 years since I last attended school, but I believe it is not too late to learn and acquire new skills again. I will stick with my goal and will try to overcome any obstacles that will come along the way. Another attitude that I need here is discipline. According to Covey (2004), â€Å"Discipline is just as important as vision. It’s the executing, the making it happen, the sacrifice entailed in doing whatever it takes to realize that vision† (p. 73). Since I’m well aware of all my shortcomings, I’m taking advantage of those free workshops being offered on-line such as Microsoft Office to improve my computer skills. I’ve started reading books also to exercise my brain rather than just watching TV with my kids to improve my critical thinking and writing skills. As for the third challenge of time management, a good strategy here is being organized. Allen (2001) stated, â€Å"Organizing allows your mind to let go of lower-level thinking and graduate to intuitive focusing, undistracted by matters that haven’t been dealt with appropriately† (p. 138). I just bought a planner, and now, I’m writing all my schedules for the month such as my doctor’s appointment, children’s activities, parties to attend, staff meetings and assignments deadline. By looking at my planner every day, it gives me a feeling of control over my life. Planning ahead of time lessen my anxiety and by crossing out each task that has been accomplished, makes me more motivated to finish another one and stay focused to my goal. My journey to finish my study will not be an easy one. I know there will be a lot of obstacles or struggles along the way. But having identified my challenges so far, and effectively applying the strategies to overcome these obstacles will make it easier and worthwhile. Staying focus to my goal, maintaining discipline and having a positive attitude will ultimately lead me to a successful journey. References Allen, D. (2001). Getting things done: The art of stress-free productivity. New York, New York: Penguin Group. Informative articles on how to budget. (2009). 2010 American Consumer Credit Counseling, Inc. , (), 1. Blanchard, K. , Miller, M. (2007). The secret What great leaders know-and do. San Francisco, California: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.. Covey, S. R. (2004). The 8th habit From effectiveness to greatness. New York, New York: Free Press.

That Evening Sun Essay -- Literary Analysis

â€Å"That Evening Sun† is a short story written in 1931 by William Faulkner. Faulkner’s life in the South and family history has had a significant influence upon Faulkner’s writing style, in both content and its context, and his knowledge of southern culture and events in its history only add depth to his work. The events in â€Å"That Evening Sun†, like many of Faulkner’s stories, takes place in the fictional town of Jefferson. The story is narrated by Quentin Compson who was nine years old when the story takes place, but is now an adult recounting the events from fifteen years before. The story revolves around the Compson’s and their children’s relationship with the stories main character Nancy. Nancy is a Negro woman who is employed by Compson family. Nancy has got herself into a dilemma first by causing a disturbance by publicly demanding payment from the town banker and church deacon Mr. Stovall for sexual services and next by be coming pregnant with by him. Nancy’s pregnancy causes her husband Jesus to become angered; he then deserts her and leaves town. Nancy communicates to Mr. Compson, that she believes Jesus will soon return to kill her. The story relates to the reader the seriousness of Nancy’s situation and how and how it is taken without any seriousness by the Compsons’. There are several literary terms which are significant to â€Å"That Evening Sun†. â€Å"That Evening Sun† is told from a third person point of view. The narrator of the story is Quentin Compson who is also a character in the story. He tells his story fifteen years after the events have passed looking back upon them as an adult. The setting of the story is in Jefferson, Virginia around 1902. The protagonist of the story is Nancy who is struggling with the fear that her ... ...ed to the crucifixion of Christ where Peter denies him three times. When Nancy is taken to Jail and hangs herself, this can also be compared as a crucifixion. I am still at odds at whom or what is the heart of her suffering. One can also see how unaware the children are of the situation, only Quentin seems to know what Nancy is afraid of. Since it is Quentin who is narrating the story we do not know if his understanding happened at the time of the story or upon his retelling. Reading â€Å"That Evening Sun†, has inspired me to read The Sound and the Fury, which I believe has many of the same characters. Works Cited Faulkner, William. â€Å"That Evening Sun†. literaturesave2wordpress.com.N.p., N.d. Web. 04 February 2012. Johnston, Kenneth G. â€Å"The Year of the Jubilee: Faulkner’s â€Å"That Evening Sun†Ã¢â‚¬ www.jstor.org. Duke University Press. 1974. Web. 04 February 2012.

Organisation Structure Essay

The structure is totally centralized. The strategic leader makes all key decisions and most communication is done by one on one conversations. It is particularly useful for new (entrepreneurial) business as it enables the founder to control growth and development. They are usually based on traditional domination or charismatic domination in the sense of Max Weber’s tripartite classification of authority. [edit] Bureaucratic structures Weber (1948, p. 214) gives the analogy that â€Å"the fully developed bureaucratic mechanism compares with other organizations exactly as does the machine compare with the non-mechanical modes of production. Precision, speed, unambiguity, †¦ strict subordination, reduction of friction and of material and personal costs- these are raised to the optimum point in the strictly bureaucratic administration. †[5] Bureaucratic structures have a certain degree of standardization. They are better suited for more complex or larger scale organizations. They usually adopt a tall structure. Then tension between bureaucratic structures and non-bureaucratic is echoed in Burns and Stalker[6] distinction between mechanistic and organic structures. It is not the entire thing about bureaucratic structure. It is very much complex and useful for hierarchical structures organization, mostly in tall organizations. [edit] Post-bureaucratic The term of post bureaucratic is used in two senses in the organizational literature: one generic and one much more specific [7]. In the generic sense the term post bureaucratic is often used to describe a range of ideas developed since the 1980s that specifically contrast themselves with Weber’s ideal type bureaucracy. This may include total quality management, culture management and matrix management, amongst others. None of these however has left behind the core tenets of Bureaucracy. Hierarchies still exist, authority is still Weber’s rational, legal type, and the organization is still rule bound. Heckscher, arguing along these lines, describes them as cleaned up bureaucracies [8], rather than a fundamental shift away from bureaucracy. Gideon Kunda, in his classic study of culture management at ‘Tech’ argued that ‘the essence of bureaucratic control – the formalisation, codification and enforcement of rules and regulations – does not change in principle†¦.. it shifts focus from organizational structure to the organization’s culture’. Another smaller group of theorists have developed the theory of the Post-Bureaucratic Organization. [8], provide a detailed discussion which attempts to describe an organization that is fundamentally not bureaucratic. Charles Heckscher has developed an ideal type, the post-bureaucratic organization, in which decisions are based on dialogue and consensus rather than authority and command, the organization is a network rather than a hierarchy, open at the boundaries (in direct contrast to culture management); there is an emphasis on meta-decision making rules rather than decision making rules. This sort of horizontal decision making by consensus model is often used in housing cooperatives, other cooperatives and when running a non-profit or community organization. It is used in order to encourage participation and help to empower people who normally experience oppression in groups. Still other theorists are developing a resurgence of interest in complexity theory and organizations, and have focused on how simple structures can be used to engender organizational adaptations.

Mba 653

MTV ARABIA – Case study MBA -653 Table of Contents Abstract†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 1 SWOT Analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 2 Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â ‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦3 Challenges†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦4 Strategies†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 7 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â ‚¬ ¦.. 9 References†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦10 ABSTRACT MTV Networks (MTVN) had over the years developed a reputation for its ability to provide localized content without diluting what MTV stood for.However, the company faced the most challenging test in late 2007 with its launch of MTV Arabic in the Middle East, which some experts considered as the biggest launch in the channel’s history. While the market in the Middle East offered MTVN with huge opportunities due to its huge youth populace, MTV’s controversial content that was known for angering religious, political, and conservative communities could easily backfire in the conservative environment prevalent in the region. On the other han d, too much localization to suit the tastes of the region could dilute MTV’s global brand.The case discusses in detail the strategy adopted by MTVN to enter and expand in the Middle East and also the challenges faced by the channel. 1 SWOT Analysis 2 1. Experts felt that one of the biggest challenges faced by MTV while launching MTV Arabia was the prevalent culture in the Arab world. Discuss the Arab culture. How is it expected to pose a challenge to MTV? The Arab world stretches from Morocco across Northern Africa to the Persian Gulf. The Arab world is more or less equal to the area known as the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).It can also be defined as those countries where Arabic is the dominant language. Arab countries are religiously and ethnically diverse with Islam being the dominant religion in most countries. 22 Arab countries/areas: Algeria, Bahrain, the Comoros Islands, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. The Arab Culture is divided into three main parts, the Urban Culture (Al-Hadar), the Rural Culture (Al-Reef), and the Nomad Culture (Al-Badow).Typically, countries like Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, and Morocco are considered Rural Cultures, while Arab states of the Persian Gulf, Libya, Mauritania and Jordan are considered Badow (Bedouins), while finally the Lebanon, Palestine, Tunisia, Algeria are considered Urban, yet most of the Arab Major Cities are recognized with Urban Cultures, like Cairo, Rabat, Baghdad, Alexandria, Damascus, Marrakech. The Arab countries are religiously and ethnically diverse. The Arab world is a location of several world religions (Islam, Christianity, and Judaism) and a multitude of ethnic and linguistic groups.However, the predominant religion is Islam and Arabic the dominate language. To be an Arab, like an American, is a cultural trait rather than racial. An Arab worldview is based upon the below concepts: 1. Atomism: Arabs tend to see the world and events as isolated incidents, snapshots, and particular moments in time. Westerners tend to look for unifying concepts whereas Arabs focus on parts, rather than on the whole. 2. Faith: Arabs usually believe that many, if not all; things in life are controlled by the will of God (fate) rather than by human beings. . Wish Versus Reality: Arabs, much more than Westerners, express emotion in a forceful and animated fashion. Their desire for modernity is contradicted by a desire for tradition (especially Islamic tradition). 4. Importance of Justice and Equality: Arabs value justice and equality among Muslims, and to a lesser degree to others. All actions taken by non-Arabs will be weighed in comparison to tradition and religious standards. 3 5. Family versus self: Arabic communities are tight-knit groups made up of even tighter family groups.Family pride and honor is more important than individual hon or. 6. Paranoia: Arabs may seem paranoid by Western standards. Many are suspicious of any Western interest or intent in their land. 7. Shame and Honor: Admitting, â€Å"I don’t know† is distasteful to an Arab. Constructive criticism can be taken as an insult. Be careful not to insult. And women wear headscarves as a show of respect, even if wearing Western clothing. 8. Family: Family is the center of honor, loyalty, and reputation for Arabs. And males are always the head of the Arab family. 9.Personal Space: Most Arabs DO NOT share the American concept of â€Å"Personal space† in public situations, and in private meetings or conversations. It is considered offensive to step or lean away! Women are an exception to this rule. DO NOT stand close to, stare at, or touch a woman. 10. Socialization and Trust: When conducting business, it is customary to first shake the hand of all males present, taking care not to grip too firmly. Allocate plenty of time for refreshmen t before attempting to engage in business. It is important to first establish respect and trust.Arab Perspective vs. Western Perspective Arab Western Family Considered the foremost, where the father is patriarchal Important, but not as central to the life of the individual Friends Part of life, but considered more periphery Core to a few, but mostly important in life Honor very important amongst Arabs. Honor will be protected and defended all costs. Typically not as important ShameAvoided as much as possible, especially in relation to family, where gossip, insults and criticism taken to heart typically not as important time less rigid.Approach to time is much more relaxed and showed than that in Western cultures. Very structured, deadlines must be met. Religion is central to all things varies with individuals, very personal, not discussed in polite conversation. SocietyFamily tribe is most important individual rights. Government Most governments are secular, but still emphasize reli gion. Purpose is to protect rights and improve standard of living. Age and wisdom honored. Youth and beauty praised. Wealth respected. 4 Some of the key differences identified are given here: Western youth were found to be generally pessimistic about the future, while Middle Eastern youth were generally optimistic. * Religion was seen to be â€Å"enormously important† to Middle Eastern youth when compared to their Western peers. * National identify and traditional values were extremely important to Arab youth, but not to their peers in the West. For Arab youth, â€Å"loss of traditional values and culture† was identified as one of the top three biggest challenges facing the world today, along with rising cost of living and corruption in government. Arab youth generally admired political, religious, and business leaders, while Western youth do not. * Arab youth wanted to â€Å"make a difference†, while Western youth mostly wanted to â€Å"get ahead†. * Mid dle East and Western male youths had very different opinions about gender equality in the workplace, with less than y in 10 Middle East males favoring it. MTV and the challenges posted by the prevalent culture As a result the Arab culture is known for reacting, and some think over reacting negatively to controversial content. The Middle East offered a huge population of youth with a rich and diverse culture.In an effort to adopt the strategy of â€Å"Think Globally, Act Locally† MTVN (Music Television Networks) executives made it a point to learn the cultures and make shows that relate to the cultures as oppose to exporting the American culture. In order to achieve this goal the channel adopted a decentralized structure and gave commercial and creative autonomy to the local staff. This venture was considered to be one of the biggest launches in MTV’s history because of the potential audience. MTV hoped to provide a culturally unifying agent within a region that has bee n known for its political tensions.Also, this channel may correct some misconceptions of the region and reduce tensions. The target audience for the channel would be the Middle East youth; providing them with access to music via mobile, broadband, and television. The challenges MTV expected to encounter included: the reputation of MTV airing sexually explicit programs and images in direct contrast of the socially conservative culture of the Middle East. Adjusting content to be suitable for each region may prove to be very challenging. For example, what is acceptable in Dubai may not be acceptable in other parts of Saudi Arabia.MTV also had to be careful not to lose the vision of their brand in its attempts to conform to localization. 5 In addition, issues such as the US invasion of Iraq complicated relation among the Americans and Arabs. There were also competitors that had already created a niche for them in the region. So, it’s not particularly difficult to see why MTV had a major challenge on its hands. Its content (music, videos and reality shows) could offend the cultural sensibilities of people in the Arab world especially in terms of * Too much skin show * Intermingling of genders * Use of disparaging or swear words References to alcohol * Discussion on religion or politics * Unaccepted gestures such as finger pointing, showing the soles of feet, etc. Another challenge before MTV was that the Arabs were generally considered paranoid by Western standards and they tended to be suspicious of any Western interest. MTV, in a way, stood for what the Arab world most reviled about Western / American culture. While MTV might argue that the values that it stood for were relevant to youth throughout the world, it may still be perceived as something contrary to Islamic ideals and the Arab culture.The launch of MTV in the Arab world could easily be perceived as an imposition of Western culture. Fanatics, or those who pretend to be guardians of Islam, could ea sily rake up the issue and create a lot of trouble for MTV. To complicate matters, the anti-American sentiments prevalent in a section of the Arab world too could pose step challenges to MTV. One may argue that with globalization and the advancements in information and communication technology, youth across the globe share similar aspirations and consumption behavior. And that a section of the youth population in the Middle East did want MTV.However, ignoring the cultural differences is fraught with danger, as the Arab youth consider religion â€Å"enormously important â€Å"and â€Å"loss of traditional values and culture â€Å"as a key challenge. 6 2. MTV’s Strategy in the Middle East . Do you think MTV will be able to succeed in this market? Our team was required to analyze MTV’s strategies in the Middle East and anticipate its success in this market. We believe that the company will do well due to its scientific approach to overcome the major challenges faced i n the region and efficient managerial decision making.Firstly, it was a good start to establish profitable relationship between AMG and MTV, where each of the sides will benefit from its correlation in terms of earnings, great name and people that provide MTV Arabia with a lot of resources. Secondly, Arabs have different tastes and preferences compared to US audience. These differences in taste transfer to all areas including music networks. However, MTV had taken the decision before launching new products to population of the Middle East to adapt the product to fit local taste.Thirdly, the extensive market research was conducted by the company in order to minimize the risk of failure by the determining the needs of the population and developing the product that will satisfy their needs. Same research revealed that Islamic biases toward Americanization will not affect development of the company within the region since majority of the participants’ associated MTV brand with ot her countries rather than US. In addition, the study helped to find vacant niche that could be served to attract larger part of the population and generate more profit. Strategies used by MTV: 1) Segmentation strategy: (a) Geographic segmentation: Targeted region: Middle East Saudi Arabia, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Yemen, Palestine and Syria. (b)Demographic segmentation: Targeted Population: About 65 percent of the Arab population consisted of youth under the age of 25. (2) Targeting strategy: Before launching the channel, the extensive survey of the region was conducted to understand what people wanted. The survey team targeted people in the 18-24 age groups and travelled around the region to schools and universities canvassing opinions. (3) Positioning strategy: During MTV’s 25th anniversary, the company said that it would provide the audience in the region content that would be different from that offered by popular Arab music chann els. Though, the Arab market was crowded with more than 50 channels, none of them provided a global platform to export the musical talent of the local youth. (5) Niche strategy: To overcome competition, the channel proposed to establish itself as a platform wherefrom the Arab youth could voice their local concerns as well as advertise their music talent.For instance, MTV Arabia’s flagship show â€Å"Hip Hop Na†, where the winner from each city would get a chance to record a track for a compilation CD produced by Fred Wrecks. (6) Product strategy: Product provided: The channel’s programming was to have a mix of music videos, music-based programming, general life-style and animated programs, reality shows, comedy and dramatic series, news specials, interviews and documentaries where the key is obviously the language. About 45 percentage of MTV Arabia’s content was too produced locally, with the rest translated.New products were developed: MTV Arabia designe d new shows in Arabic to cater to pan-Arab youth audience. There would be a localized version of popular shows such as â€Å"Made†( Al-Helm) and â€Å" Boiling Point† (Akher Takka). (7) Promotion strategy: Celebrity attraction marked the launch of MTV in the Middle East. The launch featured performances by eminent stars as Akon, Ludacris and Karl Wolf along with local hip hop group Desert heart. (8) Distribution channels strategy: The Middle East had the potential to offer MTV numerous media like mobiles and the Internet to reach its end consumers.MTV Arabia wants to provide Middle East youth with the opportunity to watch MTV on mobile, on broadband, and on television. 8 (9) Technical innovative strategy: Products such as MTV Overdrive in which the user could download the video at broadband speed, and MTV Flux in which the online users could create their own TV channel were expected to help in luring the various Internet service providers in the region. (10) Marketâ₠¬â„¢s Entry strategy: MTV entered Middle East by tying up with a local partner; the Arab media group (AMG) (11) Investment and control strategy:The channel MTV Arabia was formed as a result of a licensing arrangement between MTV and AMG. MTV would earn an estimated US $10 million annually in licensing fees from AMG for 10 years. (12) Hybrid approach Refers to company’s ability to fit in local environment with its culture, traditions values, and perception of the reality. MTV Arabia was there to entertain people within the limits of Arab traditions and had no intention of showing disrespect to the local culture. It would be a channel for the Arabs and made by Arabs, where the launch team comprised a mix of Saudis, Palestinians, Emiratis, Iraqis and Lebanese.Conclusion This case gave us an understanding of the issues and challenges in entering and expanding operations in new markets which were culturally different from the organizations home/traditional/existing markets, Unders tanding the pros and cons of entering a new market with a standardized/adapted product to suit local preferences and made us go further in analyzing MTVN’s strategy in the Middle East, identify challenges and explore strategies that the channel could adopt in the future.This case was very useful it made us realize how MTV and other channels experience in global markets. And how localize strategies in various markets. The challenges MTV faced while launching in the Middle East also were disclosed we analyzed those challenges it faced in expanding its operations in the region and the strategy adopted by MTV in the Middle East. 9 References: http://www. arabianbusiness. com/the-revolution-will-be-televised-197356. html http://news. bbc. co. uk/2/hi/middle_east/7100252. stm ttp://www. businessweek. com/stories/2007-10-21/online-extra-mtv-presses-play-in-the-middle-east https://www. inkling. com/read/international-management-helen-deresky-7th/chapter-5/part-ii-comprehensive-case-4 http://www. businessweek. com/stories/2007-10-21/online-extra-mtv-presses-play-in-the-middle-east www. mtv. com WWW. mtvme. com http://www. arabianbusiness. com/ WWW. hrbusinees. com www. cnn. com www. bbc. com www. businessweek. com www. icmrindia. org/casestudies/catalogue/ www. hollywoodreporter. com

Stalin, Joseph essays

Stalin, Joseph essays Joseph Stalin was the soviet communist leader whos passing molded an era, and whose iron rule determined the lives of millions of people. Considering that he shaped the direction of post-World War II Europe, we may regard him as the most powerful person to live during the 20th century. Joseph Stalin was born Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili on December 21, 1879, in Gori, Georgia . Both his parents were peasants. His father, Vissarion Dzhugashvili, was a cobbler, hopping that one day his son will be apprenticed in the same trade; his mother, Yekaterina Geladze Dzhugashvili, worked as a house servant for various upper-class Georgian families. Stalin was rather sickly as a child; he was badly scarred by smallpox, and another illness crippled his left arm (later in his life, in 1916, this disability will prevent him from joining the Russian army). Nevertheless, he is described as having been in excellent physical shape as a teenager; throughout much of his life he was muscular and well built. Sosso (Stalins schoolboy nickname) was an excellent student. He graduated from the Gori Church School in 1894 with very high marks and managed to earn a full scholarship to the Tbilisi Theological Seminary. While attending the seminary, in his way to become a priest, Stalin was converted over to Marxism. He quit the seminary before graduation, in order to be a full-time revolutionary. Stalins revolutionary career began in 1899, when he joined the Social-Democratic party as a propagandist among Tbilisi railroad workers. In 1902 he was arrested by the police, under the charge of revolutionary activities, and he was imprisoned for eighteen months in Baku. After this incarceration ended, Stalin was sentenced to three years exile in Siberia, from which he managed to escaped in 1904. This became a familiar pattern. Between 1902 and 1913 Stalin was arrested eight times; he was exiled sev...

Free Essays on Getting Rid of the Stereotypes and Teaching in a Multicultural Perspective

Overview: It is rare that any two-classroom teachers will have the same definition for multicultural education. â€Å"The basic goal of multicultural education is to help all children understand and appreciate events and people from various points of view† (Welton, 113). Teaching with a multicultural perspective encourages appreciation and understanding of other cultures as well as one’s own. Rey Gomez states that teaching with this perspective promotes the child’s sense of the uniqueness of his own culture as a positive characteristic and enables the child to accept the uniqueness of the cultures of others. Children’s attitudes toward their race and ethnic group and other cultural groups begin to form early in the preschool years. Children are easily influenced by the cultural, opinions, and attitudes of their caregivers. Caregiver’s perceptions of ethnic and racial groups can affect the child’s attitudes toward those minority groups. â€Å"Early childhood educators can influence the development of positive attitudes in young children by learning about and promoting the various cultures represented among the children they teach† (Gomez, 1). Gomez also states young children can develop stereotypic viewpoints of cultures different from their own when similarities among all individuals are not emphasized. Teachers can help eliminate stereotypes by presenting material and activities that enable children to learn the similarities of all individuals. Early childhood teachers and parents of young children should become aware of the myths and assumptions assoc iated with multicultural e! ducation so that they develop appropriate goals and methods. Listed below are the assumptions of multicultural education created by Paul Gorski and Bob Covert: 1. It is increasingly important for political, social, educational and economic reasons to recognize the US is a culturally diverse society. 2. Multicultural education is f... Free Essays on Getting Rid of the Stereotypes and Teaching in a Multicultural Perspective Free Essays on Getting Rid of the Stereotypes and Teaching in a Multicultural Perspective Overview: It is rare that any two-classroom teachers will have the same definition for multicultural education. â€Å"The basic goal of multicultural education is to help all children understand and appreciate events and people from various points of view† (Welton, 113). Teaching with a multicultural perspective encourages appreciation and understanding of other cultures as well as one’s own. Rey Gomez states that teaching with this perspective promotes the child’s sense of the uniqueness of his own culture as a positive characteristic and enables the child to accept the uniqueness of the cultures of others. Children’s attitudes toward their race and ethnic group and other cultural groups begin to form early in the preschool years. Children are easily influenced by the cultural, opinions, and attitudes of their caregivers. Caregiver’s perceptions of ethnic and racial groups can affect the child’s attitudes toward those minority groups. â€Å"Early childhood educators can influence the development of positive attitudes in young children by learning about and promoting the various cultures represented among the children they teach† (Gomez, 1). Gomez also states young children can develop stereotypic viewpoints of cultures different from their own when similarities among all individuals are not emphasized. Teachers can help eliminate stereotypes by presenting material and activities that enable children to learn the similarities of all individuals. Early childhood teachers and parents of young children should become aware of the myths and assumptions assoc iated with multicultural e! ducation so that they develop appropriate goals and methods. Listed below are the assumptions of multicultural education created by Paul Gorski and Bob Covert: 1. It is increasingly important for political, social, educational and economic reasons to recognize the US is a culturally diverse society. 2. Multicultural education is f...

The 12 Hardest SAT Writing Questions Ever

The 12 Hardest SAT Writing Questions Ever SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips You’ve been studying hard, and now the time has come to really test what you have mastered! Are you ready to try out 12 of the toughest questions to grace the new SAT Writing and Language section? I've combed all the official practicetests to find the absolute hardest SAT Writing questions. If you get all of these right, you're truly a master of this section. Why Should I Care About the Hardest Questions? Knowing what to do when you hit tough questions is a key part of your test-taking strategy that you should work out ahead of time. Your target scores will help you determine what to do. 700 - 800 scorers Are you looking to score between a 700 and 800 on Reading and Writing? If so, these are the sorts of questions that you'll have to master in order to get your score where you want it to be. 500 - 600 scorers In contrast, if you are looking to score in the 500 – 600 range on Reading and Writing, you don't have to answer every question correctly on SAT Writing to hit your target score. So, if you're taking the test and run across a question as confusing as the ones listed below, you officially have permission to guess! Either way, good study strategies are your best bet for getting the score you want. Not sure how to start? Check out our guide to studying for the new SAT, and then read our complete explanation of all the grammar rules that the SAT Writing section will test. Don't worry, it's not as bad as it seems. Which Questions Are the Hardest? As a quick refresher, the SAT Writing and Language section asks multiple choice questions based on long reading passages. The questions test your understanding of grammar, punctuation, word choiceand idioms, and writing logic.For a full overview of all the grammar testedon the Writing SAT, see our guide. The College Board used to rank SAT questions according to difficulty, but they no longer do this. So how did I pick out the hardest questions? And what makes some questions harder than others? Even though the revised SAT no longer features trick questions, there are still many times when several of the answerchoices seem to be valid. Sometimes,this is because questions test several skills at the same time: apunctuation detailcombined with your ability to understand the logic of a passage, for instance, or a grammar rule combined with correct idiom usage. Other times, this is because questions make you simultaneously focus on a small sentence-level issue and a larger problem involving several paragraphs. Don’t worry, there are really only 12. Spoiler Alert Before I show you the hardest SAT Writing questions, I have towritea littlespoiler alert. These are real questions taken from the official full-length practice SAT tests.If you’re likely to remember them and their answers forever, then it's probably best for you to read the rest of this article after you’ve taken all the practice SATs. On to the Questions! These questionsrepresent a variety of concepts the SAT thinks students will struggle with the most. Remember: all of these questions come from long passages, since the entire Writing and Language section of the SAT is passage-based. Try them out and see how you do - if you really want to challenge yourself, limit your timing for each question to 40 seconds. Each question is followed by the answer and an explanation. Question 1 [1] The main environmental problem caused by the production of Greek yogurt is the creation of acid whey as a by-product. [2] Because it requires up to four times more milk to make than conventional yogurt does, Greek yogurt produces larger amounts of acid whey, which is difficult to dispose of. [3] To address the problem of disposal, farmers have found a number of uses for acid whey. [4] They can add it to livestock feed as a protein supplement, and people can make their own Greek-style yogurt at home by straining regular yogurt. [5] If it is improperly introduced into the environment, acid-whey runoff can pollute waterways, depleting the oxygen content of streams and rivers as it decomposes. [6] Yogurt manufacturers, food scientists; and government officials are also working together to develop additional solutions for reusing whey. To make this paragraph most logical, sentence 5 should be placed A) where it is now.B) after sentence 1.C) after sentence 2.D) after sentence 3. The Challenge The main goal of this question is to see if you can figure out how a paragraph should flow logically. What makes it hardisthat two of the answers (B and C) seem equally logically plausible. Answer C Explanation In a paragraph, each sentence should introduce a little bit of new information, using what previous sentences said to push the point of the passage a little bit further. Leaving the sentence where it is (answer A), or putting it after Sentence 3 (answer D) would make the paragraph sequence illogical. You’d suddenly be back to talking about acid whey in the environment after you’ve already explained how it can be disposed of properly. It’s very tempting to put Sentence 5 after Sentence 1 (answer B). It seems plausible because Sentence 1 lays out the idea that acid whey is a problem, so ostensibly Sentence 5 could come next and spell out what the problem with acid whey actually is. Butthis is not thebest place. You have to firstexplainthat there is an overabundance of acid whey, and that it's difficult to dispose of it. Only then is it an ideal timeto introduce the concept of â€Å"acid whey runoff.† So, putting Sentence 5 after Sentence 2 (correct answer C) usesinformation introduced in Sentence 2 and sets up what follows in Sentence 3, yielding this logical sequence: Sentence 2 explains why acid whey is a bigger problem for Greek yogurt. Sentence 5 explainshow damaging acid whey can be if it’s allowed to enter the environment Sentence 3 sets up the different ways of disposing of acid whey. Yogurt: delicious in parfaits, apparently deadly for the environment. Question 2 Typically, the ice sheet begins to show evidence of thawing in late summer, following several weeks of higher temperatures. For example, in the summer of 2012, virtually the entire Greenland Ice Sheet underwent thawing at or near its surface by mid-July, the earliest date on record. A) NO CHANGEB) However,C) As such,D) Moreover, The Challenge This question is checking whether you understand how to use conjunctive adverbs, which are words that show how two sentences or two parts of one sentence connect to one another. It’s very hard to seethe two sentences actually relate when reading them througha potentially wrong conjunction. Answer B Explanation One trick is just to cover up the conjunction that’s been put there, and read the two sentences without it. This way you can focus on the information that’s being presented and make up your own mind about how to make sense of the logical flow of this information. In this case, we first get a sentence that explains what happens most of the time: usually snow melts in late summer.Then we get a sentence that contradicts the earlier one: in 2012, snow melted veryearly on. This means we need to find a conjunctive adverb that shows that the second sentence is an exception to the rule. â€Å"For example† (answer A) means that what follows will demonstrate the rule, rather than break it. That’s not what’s happening here, so this is not the right choice. â€Å"As such† (answer C) has to do with defining what just came previously. "As such" means, â€Å"given the definition of the thing just mentioned, here is an associated property of that thing.† But, we are not defining, but are showing how a pattern has been broken, so this is the wrong choice. â€Å"Moreover† (answer D) means â€Å"in addition to, and potentially more convincingly,† and is used to add emphasis to an example or an argument. We aren’t doing that here, so this answer is incorrect. â€Å"However† (correct answer C) is a conjunctive adverb that introduces a statement/idea that contradicts what has just been said, which is exactly what we need to do in this case. At this rate, our only source of polar ice will be old stock photographs. Question 3 Also, studies have found that those students who major in philosophy often do better than students from other majors in both verbal reasoning and analytical writing. These results can be measured by standardized test scores. Which choice most effectively combines the sentences at the underlined portion? A) writing asB) writing, and these results can beC) writing, which can also beD) writing when the results are The Challenge This question is testing your editing skills.In particular, it’s checking your ability to know when cutting something out is actually better than leaving more information in. The challenge here is that because the wordâ€Å"results† occurs both in the original textandin two of the answer choices, it seems like a key piece of the sentence. Instead, it's a red herring. Answer A Explanation The secret to good editing is understanding the context. Here, we need to reread the two sentences to see what information we actually have. In this case, there areno results mentioned in the first of these twosentences. What we do have is information about studies that show philosophy students performing better. But this better performanceis not a â€Å"result† – it isn't a goal reached after a specific course of action. In other words, although philosophy students perform better, they didn't study philosophy in order to get better test scores. This means answers B and D are out. Answer C is wrong because of the word â€Å"also.† This word seems to point to the testing being an additional example or piece of evidence – but there is nothing for it to be in addition to. So, the right answer A is also the most economical, the one that removes everything that clouds the sentence’s meaning. Plato and Socrates recommend at least tenyears of philosophy grad school for optimal standardized test performance. Question 4 The share of library materials that is in nonprint formats [1] is increasing steadily; in 2010, at least 18.5 million e-books were available for circulation. At point [1], the writer is considering adding the following information. - e-books, audio and video materials, and online journals- Should the writer make this addition here? A) Yes, because it provides specific examples of the materials discussed in the sentence.B) Yes, because it illustrates the reason for the increase mentioned later in the sentence.C) No, because it interrupts the flow of the sentence by supplying irrelevant information.D) No, because it weakens the focus of the passage by discussing a subject other than librarians. The Challenge The SAT is full of these decision-tree editing questions, which ask you not only about correctly identifying editing changing, but also about justifying your answer. This question is hard because two of the answers (answers A and B) seem plausible, since putting a list in dashes can either put an explanation or a set of examples into a sentence. Answer A Explanation Answer C is wrong becausethere’s nothing irrelevant about the added text. The sentence and the addition are both talking about the kinds of materials available at the library. Answer D is also wrong – the passage as a whole is not specifically about librarians, so there is no reason that this insertion would have to be. To eliminate answer B, we have to realize that the added text doesn’t give areason. Providing a list of types of materials doesn't explain why there are so many e-Books. Instead, the added textsupplies a definition for thenon-obvious term â€Å"nonprint formats,† by giving a list of examples that fall under this nonprint category. This means answer A iscorrect. Nonprint, huh. How long until we no longer think of bookshelves when we say the word "library"? Question 5 The first time I visited the Art Institute of Chicago, I expected to be impressed by its famous large paintings. For example, I couldn’t wait to view painter, Georges Seurat’s, 10-foot-wide A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte in its full size. A) NO CHANGEB) painter, Georges Seurat’sC) painter Georges Seurat’s,D) painter Georges Seurat’s The Challenge To get this one right, you have to knowhow to punctuate modifiers.A modifier is a piece of a sentence that is used to explain, define, or clarify some other part of the sentence. What makes this one hard is figuring out whether this modifier is necessary to the sentence or not. Answer D Explanation Modifiers come in two flavors. Some are so necessary to the sentence that it would lose its meaning without them; these don't get set off by commas. Others are not crucial for the sentence to make sense; theydo get surrounded by commas. In this case, the modifier is â€Å"George Seurat.† Now ask yourself – is this piece of information necessary to make the sentence work? One trick is to read the sentence without the modifier to see if the sentence still makes sense. Here,we’d just be left with the strange formulation â€Å"I couldn’t wait to view painter’s 10-foot-wide A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte.†That is clearly not correct, since you need the name George Seurat to make the word "painter" have any meaning.This means that the modifier "George Seurat" is crucial. Since answers B and C neither surround the modifier with commas nor take them all out, they both are incorrect. Crucial modifiers don’t get set off by commas, so the right answer is D, the one that leaves the commas out. Here is what that giant painting looks like, by the way. Question 6 It has long been known that the sea otters living along the West Coast of North America help keep kelp forests in their habitat healthy and vital. They do this by feeding on sea urchins and other herbivorous invertebrates that graze voraciously on kelp. With sea otters to keep the population of sea urchins in check, kelp forests can flourish. In fact, even two years or less of sea otter presence can reduce the sea urchin threat in a coastal area. Without sea otters present, however, kelp forests run the danger of becoming barren stretches of coastal wasteland known as urchin barrens. What was less well-known, until recently at least, was how this relationship among sea otters, sea urchins, and kelp forests might help fight global warming. The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased 40 percent. A recent study by two professors at the University of California, Santa Cruz, Chris Wilmers and James Estes, suggests that kelp forests protected by sea otters can absorb as much as twelve times the amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as those where sea urchins are allowed to devour the kelp. A) NO CHANGEB) dispatchC) overindulge onD) dispose of The Challenge Words that seem similar but have crucial differences in meaning are at the heart of this tricky question.From the context, it’s clear that the word has to have something to do with making less of something – but since all of the word choice options carry this connotation, it’s challenging to figure out which one fits best. Answer A Explanation â€Å"Dispatch† means to send away, or to deal with efficiently. The kelp is certainly going away, but the sea urchins aren’t sending it anywhere, so this (answer B) is not the right word. â€Å"Overindulge on† can mean overeat. The sea urchins are certainly eating the kelp, so answer Cis a tempting choice. However, â€Å"overindulge† carries a moral judgment with – it’s describing an action that is being done despite the knowledge that doing so much of it is wrong. The sea urchins aren’t equipped to deal with right and wrong – and they also aren’t overeating the kelp. They are eating as much as is in their nature to eat. So, scratch that answer. â€Å"Dispose of† is another tempting word choice. It means â€Å"to get rid of,† which is definitely what is happening to the kelp at the hands of the sea urchins. Answer Dcould arguably fit into the sentence without a problem, except that we have a word that is even better. â€Å"Devour† means to eat copious amounts of in a short time.This exactly describes what the sea urchins do, so answer A is undoubtedly the best choicein this context. Not only does it mean just what the passage needs it to mean, but it also echoes a piece of the previous paragraph, where the sea urchins were described as â€Å"invertebrates that graze voraciously on kelp.† Graze voraciously = devour. If the only other option is picking these horrific-looking things up by hand, I say let the sea otters have at them. Question 7 Circadian rhythms, which are controlled by the bodies biological clocks, influence body temperature, hormone release, cycles of sleep and wakefulness, and other bodily functions. A) NO CHANGEB) bodies’ biological clocks’,C) body’s biological clocks,D) body’s biological clock’s, The Challenge At the heart of this question is knowing how to properly make nouns into plurals and possessives, and when to use one or the other.What makes this sentence doubly confusingis that when you say the sentence out loud, clearly both nouns - "body" and "clock" - need to end in anâ€Å"s† sound. Answer C Explanation To figure outwhether nouns should be plural, possessive, or both, you have to understandthe context of a passage. Here, thesentence is explaining how circadian rhythms affect the human body. Because we are speaking in general terms, the word â€Å"body† should be singular.That means that the original wording (answer A) is wrong: â€Å"bodies† is the plural form of â€Å"body.† Answers B iswrong for the same reason: â€Å"bodies’ † is the plural possessive of â€Å"bodies,† meaning â€Å"belonging to several bodies.† So, what belongs to the human body in the sentence? Several timing mechanisms called biological clocks.Does anything belong to these clocks? No. Thus, answer D is wrong: â€Å"clock’s† the possessive form of â€Å"clock,† meaning â€Å"belong to a clock.† The right answer C uses the singular possessive form of the word â€Å"body† and the regular plural form of the word â€Å"clock†: "body’s biological clocks," meaning "the clocks that belong to a generic human body." Some adorable circadian rhythms at work. Question 8 In 1883, he placed an advertisement seeking educated, well-mannered, articulate young women between the ages of 18 and 30. Response to the advertisement was overwhelming, even tremendous, and Harvey soon replaced the male servers at his restaurants with women. A) NO CHANGEB) Response to the advertisement was overwhelming,C) Overwhelming, even tremendous, was the response to the advertisement,D) There was an overwhelming, even tremendous, response to the advertisement, The Challenge One of the things that the SAT tests is your understanding of redundancy, wherethe same piece of information or description is needlessly repeated. What makes this question complicated is the way the original passage is punctuated, and the fact that three of the answer choices contain both original adjectives, making it seem like these adjectives are important to the sentence. Answer B Explanation Setting off the word â€Å"tremendous† with commas, and modifying it with the intensifier "even,† makes it sound as if the word â€Å"overwhelming† doesn’t fullyconvey the enthusiasm of the women answering the ad. This can lead you to think that you need the phrase â€Å"even tremendous† to really sell how gung ho women were to work for Harvey. In reality, â€Å"overwhelming† and â€Å"tremendous† both mean â€Å"surprisingly large and robust,† so using both is repetitive. Thus, the correct answer is B, which is the only choice that deletes the repeating (redundant) adjective. Harvey House: basically the Hooters of 19th century America. Question 9 The State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, one of Russia’s greatest art museums, has long had a productive partnership with a much loved animal: the cat. For centuries, cats have guarded this famous museum, ridding it of mice, rats, and other rodents that could damage the art, not to mention scared off visitors. A) NO CHANGEB) scaringC) scareD) have scared The Challenge Here, the challenge comes in two parts.First, you have to be able to recognize the grammar of parallel structures.And second, you have to know how to match verb tenses inside a sentence. Answer C Explanation There are many different verbs in the sentence, so the first thing to do is the figure out who is doing the action of the verb in question – the cats or the rodents. Who or what is doing the scaring? The cats heredo two things: they guard the museum, and they rid it of pests.This means that it’s the mice and rats that scare visitors. After realizing this, we can see that the phrase â€Å"not to mention† sets up our parallel construction: rodents could do (verb 1) one thing, not to mention do (verb 2) another thing.This means that verbs 1 and 2 have to be in the same tense and form. Verb 1 is in the present tense: â€Å"damage.† So the matching version of verb 2 has to be answerC, â€Å"scare.† Then they'll have to get dogs to catchthe cats, then goats to catch the dogs, then cows to catch the goats... all in the museumthat Catherine the Great built. Question 10 At the same time, a social and civil rights movement for Mexican Americans was working to raise awareness of Mexican American cultural identity. Artists associated with this began to rediscover and promote the work of the Mexican muralists, particularly Siqueiros. A) NO CHANGEB) itC) themD) this movement The Challenge To get this question right, you have to have a solid grasp of pronouns and their antecedents, the nouns that pronouns stand in for. This question is hard because the problem with this pronoun isn't agreement (the usual pronoun/antecedent issue), but instead clarity. Answer D Explanation If there are too many nouns that could be a particular pronoun’s antecedent, then that pronoun needs to be replaced with a noun for clarity. That is the problem with this passage: in theory, the pronounâ€Å"this† could refer to: â€Å"cultural identity,† â€Å"awareness,† or â€Å"social and civil rights movement.† So leaving it as is (answer A) doesn't fix the problem. Replacing â€Å"this† with â€Å"it† (answer B) isn't a good solution– like the original "this," the pronoun â€Å"it† could also haveany one of those nouns as its antecedent. Replacing â€Å"this† with â€Å"them† (answer C) creates a logical problem. The antecedent of "them" would be "Mexican Americans," which would mean that the artists being discussed were associated with themselves. The right choice, answer D, is simply to add a clarifying noun to the confusing pronoun. Writing that the artists were associated with â€Å"this movement† simplifies the sentence and allows the passage to flow. One ofSiqueiros's murals,"El Pueblo a la Universidad, la Universidad al Pueblo." Question 11 The designer envisions the game’s fundamental elements: the settings, characters, and plots that make each game unique, and is thus a primary creative force behind a video game. A) NO CHANGEB) elements: the settings, characters, and plots that make each game unique- C) elements- the settings, characters, and plots that make each game unique- D) elements; the settings, characters, and plots that make each game unique; The Challenge One of the things the SAT tests is how to punctuate explanations.This question is hard because it mixes up twodifferent kinds of explanatory punctuation styles: dashes and colons. Answer C Explanation Different kinds of explanations are punctuated in different ways. In this case, the structure of the sentence is: designer makes game elements + list of game elements + this means the designer is the game creator When we lay it out this way, we can see that the bit in the middle (the list of game elements) is an explanatory modifierfor the vague term â€Å"game’s fundamental elements.† This modifiernot crucial to the sentence, since the sentence will make perfect sense without it. Instead, it's a parenthetical aside that clarifies something. The original punctuation (answer A) and the punctuation in answer B focus on the list aspect of the modifier. You can tell because each suggests introducing the set of game elements with a colon. This would work fine if the list ended with a period, but since it doesn’t, these options are out. Answer D suggests using semi-colons to set off the examples. However, semi-colons are either for separating lists where a single list item has commas in it (not the case here), or for separating independent clauses (also not the case here). So answer D is wrong. Answer C fixes the sentence by setting off the set of examples with dashes, which are basically like parentheses you can wrap around a piece of a sentence that interrupts the main train of thought. The brilliant minimalist design of Minecraft makes every player the creative force behind the game. Question 12 Some people buy organic food because they believe organically grown crops are more nutritious and safer for consumption than the people who purchase their conventionally grown counterparts, which are usually produced with pesticides and synthetic fertilizers. A) NO CHANGEB) the purchase ofC) purchasingD) DELETE the underlined portion. The Challenge This question is checking to see whether you can spot an illogical comparison. However, the answer choices make it seem as though this is actually a question about the correct form of the word "purchase." Answer D Explanation One trick to remember is that the word "than" announces that a comparison is about to happen. This is your cue to check whether the sentence is setting up an illogical comparison. In this case, the sentence is trying tocompareorganic and conventional food, which means that conventional food has to immediately follow the wordâ€Å"than.† The original text(answer A) is worded so that it incorrectly compares â€Å"organically grown crops† with â€Å"people who purchase.† This doesn't make sense, so the sentence can't be left as is. Answers B and C change the comparison, but stillends up comparing â€Å"organic crops† with â€Å"the purchase† or the act of "purchasing." You can compare crops with a purchase, sothese answers are out. Correct answer D, however, eliminates the problem and fixes the sentence so that like is compared with like: â€Å"organically grown crops are more nutritious and safer for consumption than their conventionally grown counterparts.† Conventional, organic - once you throw them on the grill, it's all good. The Bottom Line The hardest questions on the SAT Writing and Language section are challenging because they: test several grammar, editing, or punctuation skills at once have two or more very plausible answer choices have answer choices that make it look like the question is testing one concept, when it's really testing something totally different Oneway to work through these difficult parts of the test is to cover up the answer choices (including the original text), and read the parts of the passage that aren't in question. This way, you can form your own uninfluenced opinion about: the logical progression of the passage's argument the way the different sentences, or the different parts of one sentence, relate to one another how you would fill in the missing piece Then, you can find the answer choice that most closely matches your own thoughts, rather than being led astray by working backwards from the answer choices. What’s Next? Did you make any mistakes?If so, you can use these problems to help pinpoint the areas you struggle with and focus your studying to get a great score on SAT Writing. Want to learn other strategies for SAT Writing?Check out our articles on improving your score, getting a perfect score, and how best to study. Want to improve your overall SAT score by 160 points? Check out our best-in-class online SAT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your SAT score by 160 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes your prep program to your strengths and weaknesses. We also have expert instructors who can grade every one of your practice SAT essays, giving feedback on how to improve your score.Check out our 5-day free trial:

The Methods of Selection in the Recruitment Process Assignment

The Methods of Selection in the Recruitment Process - Assignment Example If the organization does not come to terms with these methods of selection, it hires other companies which search for the required talent. However, what is needed here is an understanding that shall reach upon the premise of hiring people who are skilled enough to deliver the goods as and when required. Recruitment process is important to understand within an organization because it is the basis of resource provision that employers look forward to having (Bierman, 2002). The recruitment process paves the way for the growth and development domains of an organization since it finds the ways and means through which success will be deciphered in a proper way. What is even more significant is the way under which the human resources management department deals with the process of recruitment that shall only make the entire process understandable to the publics who are outside the domains of the organization (Noe, 2009). These publics would want to know what kind of recruitment strategies a re in place within the organization and where the hiring regimes are coming into full action. Since these publics have a fair amount of say within the working methodologies, it is only natural to think of the discussion of stakeholders because these stakeholders have one or the other stake within the organization. Either the shares are being looked after by these stakeholders or they have invested a fair bit under the aegis of the organization (Laser, 1994). The need is to realize where the stakeholders deem the company in a positive way and what kind of optimism they have in mind regarding the chosen organization. In the same light, the organizational discourse must find a way through which the recruitment processes are handled in an ethical and moral way. If the hiring and firing domains are settled properly by the selection methodologies which are in place, then this should mean that the organization is doing something right for the new hires. This would be translated in the form of people joining its fore and aspiring to become a part of it in the coming times as well (Mckinney, 1991). However, many organizations are not well equipped to tackle all these issues and end up being at the receiving end of the public wrath for a number of reasons. The recruitment processes within China and the United Kingdom are important to understand because it outlines the basis of properly utilizing the resources within the domains of an organization. If the recruitment process manifests time delays and similar issues, then it would mean that there are serious problems that exist within the fore of hiring individuals within an organizational setting. Therefore the role of the human resources management department

Social media advertising on airline industries Article

Social media advertising on airline industries - Article Example These sites are not only used by youngsters, but businessmen/women, housewives, and even retired people use them to get connected with their friends, share their thoughts with the world and find entertainment as well. The most popular sites Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn generate heavy traffic from all kinds of people around the globe. All these sites although have different purposes but are easily used by advertisers to advertise brands in a cost-effective and more interactive way. Social Networks Advertising (SNA) is a very distinct form of advertising. There can ads that are pushed to the consumers, and some that the consumers pull towards themselves. There are some advertisements that require the companies to pay to the social networking sites, whereas there are some that are for free (e.g. Fan pages, twitter profile etc.) There are some that are merely adaptation of the print media (e.g. Banner ads) whereas others are unique for the social media (e.g. fan pages, micro blogging etc) In the beginning only FMCGs or Restaurants marketed themselves on the social media. But now even if you are a service company or you belong to an automobile industry, or you have a small business, you need to have your brand’s social media presence. This research paper will see how social media is used in the airline industry. Most of the great airlines have a social media presence and are engaging with their customers through these interactive mediums. However there are still some airlines where they consider social media as â€Å"just a silly fad† as mentioned in the article â€Å"All that twitters† by Madhu Unnikrishnan & Robert Wall. The article gives the example of JetBlue airline which has 1.4 million followers on Twitter. The company focuses on listening to what customers say and solving their customer service issues with the help of twitter. Many social media analysts say that even if the brand is not online, it will still be discussed there by the

Small Business Appraisal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Small Business Appraisal - Essay Example However, there have been a number of Indian start ups in the domain, with quite a few bigger Indian business houses too throwing their hat in the fray. One of the most prominent start ups in foods and services retailing domain is Lite Bite Foods (LBF). LBF operates in the high growth segment of Quick Dining Restaurants (QDR) and Quick Restaurants (QR). It was founded by a group of High Networth Individuals and industry professionals, and has been funded by an Institutional Venture Capital firm. The firm has entered into strategic tie ups with a number of well known food brands, and is presently in the roll out phase. As per the company website, it already about half million square feet of retailing space under is management and is aggressively looking at adding more space. This small business was started to cater the need for fast food in Indian population. In the given project, the business as well as management of the business will be discussed after undertaking the theory of small business and entrepreneurship. ... ble for developing small businesses which were started by a single person, later on other family members like sons, relatives and friends might join with the owner which results in increase in the size of business. Many famous multinational business of today had started as a small business by a single owner. These examples act as motivations for millions of people to start their own small business. Even today the small business plays a vital role in gross domestic production in developed countries like US. As per a report published in September 2010, the multinational companies in US buy goods and services from more than 6,000 American small businesses that amount to $3 billion. This represents approximately 24 percent of the total buying done in US. Thus, these small enterprises are important partners of the US multinational companies. The government policies of US are also concerned for development of small business in America. As for example, the resent agreement of $ 1 billion fo r increasing new export by US firms will boost demand for goods and services and this will benefit the SMEs. As per the data, the small businesses are responsible for 99.7 percent that is $29.6 million business in US during 2008. Almost 49.6 percent of total payroll employment done in US is offered by small business. The young small business are important for creating new jobs as small business within the age of two years are accounted for creating 25 percent of new jobs in last few years (Business Roundtable, 2010, p.1-2). Not just in developed nations, even in emerging nations, the small businesses are important for the economy like China and India. There are several factors that influence small business growth in these markets. Among these factors, socio-economic condition, availability

Comparison Paper between Don Quixote from Cervantes and Bouvard and Essay

Comparison Paper between Don Quixote from Cervantes and Bouvard and Pecucher by Flaubert - Essay Example The importance of failure in both books is used to show this human attribute and the beliefs which many have surrounding their own lives and with the failure that is achieved. With this approach by both authors, one is able to create a different understanding of what it means to succeed or fail at different tasks. Structure of the Book The first technique which is used in Don Quixote and Bouvard and Pecucher is the use of failure that is acquired through the structure of the book. Both of the books have a main focus of providing comedy in the book while creating a specific relationship to the book through the continuous quest in which the characters are on. In Don Quixote, the individual quests never amount to anything. Either the character leaves the area, loses the battle or decides not to complete the mission. This is combined with the structure leading to the understanding that the plot line does not exist. These different components show the idea of failure specifically from the viewpoint of the character and with the structure of the book, which continuously diverts from any type of success on the journey. A similar path is taken with Bouvard and Pecucher. The structure focuses on both of the characters not being able to achieve anything throughout the book. ... This creates the understanding of failure based on the actions which they take as well as the perceptions which they hold. The character of Don Quixote shows this with the viewpoints that he holds and the intellectual relationship which he holds to the adventures which he goes on. The failure of the character occurs first through the difficulties with the quests that are never achieved and which don’t reach the end goal. For instance, the knight’s ailments and mishaps continue to remain a theme after dealing with others, such as youth and peasants, during his travels. â€Å"Nor was Don Quixote less so, for what with blows and bruises he could not sit upright on the ass, and from time to time he sent up sighs to heaven, so that once more he drove the peasant to ask what ailed him. And it could have been only the devil himself that put his head tales to match his own adventures† (Cervantes, 53). This passage shows the reality of Don Quixote, specifically which shou ld have the character of a knight who is able to overcome the difficulties and problems with the missions which he has been given. However, he is instead approached with ailments and the inability to win different battles while recognizing that the adventures which he has taken are not realistic to what he has heard. The continuation of failure is one that is also noted in the characters of Bouvard and Pecucher, specifically through their decision to take an intellectual quest to determine their righteousness in different situations. The different situations which they become a part of do not lead to any answers. More important, they always fail at winning the arguments or conversations that are a part of the

Lewin's Model of Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Lewin's Model of Change - Essay Example It is also comprehensive and relevant that it has not required revisions – unlike others – to remain relevant to its subject. The major concepts of this theory are unfreeze, change, and refreeze (freeze) (Gerth, 2013). This stage comprises readying the organization to acknowledge that change is inevitable. Preparation involves dislodging the existing status quo before starting to construct a new strategy of operating (Gerth, 2013). Crucial to this is creating a powerful message demonstrating why the status quo cannot continue. This is the most convenient to develop when the organization can attest to declining revenue, worrying client satisfaction surveys, poor financial results, etc. These indicate that things must change in a way that all stakeholders can understand (Schunk & Meece, 2014). Successful preparation of the organization requires starting at its core – the people in charge of driving the change should confront the notions, values, behaviors and attitudes that presently define it. After the risk created in the unfreeze phase, the change phase is where the organization starts resolving its risk and looking for new approaches to doing things. People start behaving and believing in ways that back the new dimension. The shift from the unfreeze stage to this phase does not occur overnight (Schunk & Meece, 2014). Employees take time to accept the new dimension and proactively participate in the transition. The Change Curve, an affiliate change model, concentrates on the specific concern of personal changes in a dynamic environment and is appropriate for comprehending this particular issue more comprehensively (Schunk & Meece, 2014). As the changes happen and people have accepted the new methods of working, the organization is primed for refreezing (Schunk & Meece, 2014). The superficial signs of this phase are a stable company chart, uniform job descriptions, etc. The refreeze phase should also

Comparison Paper between Don Quixote from Cervantes and Bouvard and Essay

Comparison Paper between Don Quixote from Cervantes and Bouvard and Pecucher by Flaubert - Essay Example The importance of failure in both books is used to show this human attribute and the beliefs which many have surrounding their own lives and with the failure that is achieved. With this approach by both authors, one is able to create a different understanding of what it means to succeed or fail at different tasks. Structure of the Book The first technique which is used in Don Quixote and Bouvard and Pecucher is the use of failure that is acquired through the structure of the book. Both of the books have a main focus of providing comedy in the book while creating a specific relationship to the book through the continuous quest in which the characters are on. In Don Quixote, the individual quests never amount to anything. Either the character leaves the area, loses the battle or decides not to complete the mission. This is combined with the structure leading to the understanding that the plot line does not exist. These different components show the idea of failure specifically from the viewpoint of the character and with the structure of the book, which continuously diverts from any type of success on the journey. A similar path is taken with Bouvard and Pecucher. The structure focuses on both of the characters not being able to achieve anything throughout the book. ... This creates the understanding of failure based on the actions which they take as well as the perceptions which they hold. The character of Don Quixote shows this with the viewpoints that he holds and the intellectual relationship which he holds to the adventures which he goes on. The failure of the character occurs first through the difficulties with the quests that are never achieved and which don’t reach the end goal. For instance, the knight’s ailments and mishaps continue to remain a theme after dealing with others, such as youth and peasants, during his travels. â€Å"Nor was Don Quixote less so, for what with blows and bruises he could not sit upright on the ass, and from time to time he sent up sighs to heaven, so that once more he drove the peasant to ask what ailed him. And it could have been only the devil himself that put his head tales to match his own adventures† (Cervantes, 53). This passage shows the reality of Don Quixote, specifically which shou ld have the character of a knight who is able to overcome the difficulties and problems with the missions which he has been given. However, he is instead approached with ailments and the inability to win different battles while recognizing that the adventures which he has taken are not realistic to what he has heard. The continuation of failure is one that is also noted in the characters of Bouvard and Pecucher, specifically through their decision to take an intellectual quest to determine their righteousness in different situations. The different situations which they become a part of do not lead to any answers. More important, they always fail at winning the arguments or conversations that are a part of the

Financial Statement Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Financial Statement - Research Paper Example 2. Damaged Goods: if the organization has damaged goods, these goods will be evaluated and scrap should be sold to recover some amount and contacted to the insurance company for insurance recovery and write off the loss from the damages. 3. Stolen Inventory: if the organization faces loss from stolen inventory it should be reported for recovery but if after a period unable to found stolen goods it should be treated as loss. Explanation Losses may be normal or abnormal faced by the organization and there is different accounting treatment for each type of loss. If a company is having normal cost then it will have no special treatment it will only increase the production cost and normal loss is unavoidable and inherent which is valued with the closing stock. If the inventory is decreased by sales it will be treated as an expense in the form of a reduction in inventory (Smith and Butters, 1949). But if abnormal loss is faced by the company it will be valued and Debit to the abnormal loss account and credit to process account. These kinds of losses may arise from accidents and carelessness. For recording of this loss another account will be created in the chart of accounts and it will be debited and after that it will be write-off as an expense in the income statement.

Cooking Methods Essay Example for Free

Cooking Methods Essay Baking is a way of cooking sweet or savory items in the dry heat of an oven. Although baking itself is a relatively easy process, it is good to have some knowledge of the role each ingredient plays in creating the final dish. Barbecuing: Nothing beats the deep, rich flavor of good barbecue. In the United States, barbecue refers to the slow, indirect cooking of meats over a wood, charcoal or gas flame. The meat is often seasoned with rubs, sauces or mops. This same method is known as barbie in Australia and braai in South Africa. Asian barbecue, on the other hand, uses thinly sliced meat and seafood, often highly seasoned, that is quick-cooked on a hot grill or a searing hotplate Deep Frying: Who doesnt love fried food? Deep frying may not be the most calorie-poor way to prepare food, but it certainly produces some of the worlds tastiest. The high heat of the oil seals in a foods moisture and crisps up the outside, giving that irresistable pairing of crunchy and juicy Grilling: Grilling is the quick cooking of meat, fish or vegetables over intense heat. The source of the heat can be burning wood, simmering coals, a gas flame, or an electric heating element. A related method is broiling, but with broiling the heat source comes from the top instead of the bottom Roasting: Roasting is the slow cooking of meat, poultry, fish or vegetables, uncovered, with dry, indirect heat. Spit roasting was the original form. In the modern kitchen, the dry heat of an oven is preferred. Roasting is a method best used with large cuts of meat, whole poultry, whole fish, or with sturdy vegetables such as carrots, potatoes and onions. Steaming: As the term implies, steaming involves suspending food over simmering or boiling water and cooking it with the resulting steam. Steaming as a method is valued for the fact that it preserves vitamins and minerals in the food that might otherwise be washed away with boiling. It is also a way to cut back on fat, since none is needed, unlike sauteing or grilling.

Strategic Justifications In The US Wine Industry

Strategic Justifications In The US Wine Industry Mergers refer to the aspect of corporate strategy, corporate finance and management dealing with the buying, selling and combining of different companies that can aid in, finance, or assist a growing company in a given industry. As outlined by Lawrence Gitman, it is the combination of two or more firms, in which the resulting firm maintains the identity of one of the firms usually the larger. The primary reason for a merger is to improve a companys financial and strategic position. (Gitman, 2009) Determining whether the merger or the acquisition in the U.S. Wine Industry is offensive or defensive is dependent on each companys perspective. International Beverages quest for seeking an acquisition was considered a defensive action put forward by the company and it needed to lengthen its life within the organization. This company was known as a leading producer and marketer in the wine industry. This company being slow at achieving internal growth as their revenues grew at a mere 10% per year as a result of aggressive acquisition strategy. They needed to make an acquisition to prevent it from becoming a market failure as lack of any acquisition resulted in a no growth rate for the Company. This needed to be done to achieve growth internally and to refrain from going under. The wine industry has showed desirable preferences for change to higher end brand which placed International Beverage in a very dangerous position as customer would show a great deal of preference for the highe r end brand wines. International Beverage then had to take the initiative and move strategically in order to remain in the market as a key player, thus alleviating any adverse effects that would occur as a result of the new emerging preference in the future. One of the other companies to be acquired was Starshine. One of the main compositions of companies that International Beverage acquires was the fact that they were all producers of low end quality wine. Starshine was one of them. They too were also facing the fact that they could eventually lose in the market shares as the market began leaning towards a higher end brand of wine and Starshine were offering mid range labels in the market. Since Starshine produced only mid range brand wines, it would have been in their best interest to merge with the other company Bel Vino in order to secure a share in the market. This would have been their defensive action. The merger was crucial because had they not merged with Bel Vino, International Beverage could have acquired their company as the urgently needed some pull out, keeping in mind also that International Beverage also needed some fix for themselves to retain their market share. Starshine would then now be able to deal with their cost issues and competition from foreign producers. The merger between Starshine and International Beverage would be a defensive action with respect to the emerging market changes and also to avoid not having a say in the future business of the company. Bel Vino was producers of high-end wine with a very strong brand. Despite this, they also had sluggish performance, there prevalent management conflicts, these were the internal problems the company was faced with; also their inability to form good distribution lines, have a bad management team and as a result, has unflattering performance levels (Luehrman Kester, 2009). The market change favoured Bel Vino prospects as it allowed them to have more clients to form a better distribution line which will then have positive effects on its revenues. Bel Vino did not need a merger neither an acquisition because it could have solved the aforementioned issues by itself. Despite this fact, there was the option of solving these issues by taking advantage of the already established distribution lines and high earnings of both Starshine and International Beverage (Luehrman Kester, 2009). Given these reasons, Bel Vino is the only one that would be taking offensive action in both instances with respect to merger and acquisition. Question 2 What primary advantages did your company bring to the table? An acquisition of or merger with Bel Vino would benefit both company as Bel Vino, is the company that offered classic vintages and strong brands (Luehrman Kester, 2009). This would give them the comparative advantage over the other companies since these other companies, Starshine and International Beverage, deal mainly with lower end and mid range labels (Luehrman Kester, 2009). From the fact that industry has overcome the wine glut the demand for wine has shifted to the higher end products which neither of Bel Vinos competitors possess (Luehrman Kester, 2009). This was an advantage for Bel Vino since they were able to use this for their negotiations. This would be beneficial also for International Beverage and Starshine providing the opportunity to gain a market share and for their survival in the new market transformation. Bel Vino also benefited from the low cost advantages with respect to the merger with Starshine given the fact of the apparent cost control issues. (Luehrman Kester, 2009). Management in Bel Vino were able to utilize their finances as opposed to overspending on advertisement as Starshine did. All in all, Bel Vino brought several advantages to the table during this negotiation, all of which benefitted each of the companies of way or the other. Question 3 Compare the market positions, financial performance, and future prospects of Bel Vino and Starshine. What are the most significant sources of synergies for the potential transactions? Market position can be defined as the ranking of a brand, product, or firm, in terms of its sales volume relative to the sales volume of its competitors in the same market or industry (Business Dictonary, 2009). In analyzing the three companies, it was found that from the years 2006-2010 Starshine continually had higher net sales to that of Bel Vino. In 2006 Starshine had 475 million compared to Bel Vinos 359 million and International beverages 2980 million. In 2007 Starshine had 495 million compared to Bel Vinos 360 million and 2999.9 million. In 2008 Starshine had 525.1 million compared to Bel Vinos 366 million and 3019.9 million. In 2009 Starshine had 557.2 million compared to Bel Vinos 382.1 million and 6100.4 million. In 2010 Starshine had 591.5 million compared to Bel Vinos 390.1 million and 6141.2 million. (Harvard Business School 2009) This shows that Starshine had a greater market presence than that of Bel Vino and that Bel Vino was finding it difficult to generate sales esp ecially in the international markets to compete with its rivals. This was possibly due to its poor distribution lines. International Beverage could help Starshine and Bel Vino increase their market share both domestically and internationally and also help improve Bel Vinos distribution line. Financial performance refers to the measuring of a firms policies and operations in monetary terms. These results are reflected in the firms return on investment and return on assets (Business Dictionary, 2009). As the formula for return on assets is Net Income/Total Assets, the Return on assets for Starshine through the years 2006 to 2010 are; in 2006: 11.1/498.3 = 2.23%; in 2007: 8.6/503.9=1.71% ; in 2008: 17.4/507.5=3.43 ; in 2009: 28.3/531.5=5.32 ;in 2010: 36.9/556.9= 6.63%. In comparison, the returns on Assets for Bel Vino throughout the years are in 2006: 4.2/425.9=0.99%, in 2007:18.8/406.8=4.62%, in 2008: 27.7/389.4=7.11, in 2009: 33.2/403.6=8.23%,in 2010: 36.1/409.1=.8.82%. This shows that Bel Vino had a higher return on assets than Starshine. Our return on assets are as follows; in 2006: 162.2/1227.2=13.22%; in 2007: 109.9/1461.5=7.52; in 2008: 97.5/1544.5=6.31; in 2009: 423.7/22.32.7=18.98; in 2010: 446.6/2770.2=16.12. This again shows that our company, International Beverage company is a larger better run company. In relation to the future prospects of these companies, Bel Vino had to focus on the protection of their brands, increase in distribution lines and increase in sales volumes. Pertaining to Starshine, they need to cut costs and break into the high end market. Question 4 What was the rationale behind the choice of target for the opening bid and our overall bidding strategy? As we were in a better position than both companies, we were faced with the decision of it to stay as we were and run the risk of both companies merging or if to acquire on of the companies. We decided that were not under any pressure and we were going to keep our bidding low as we felt it was in the other companies best interest to merge with us. We started by making a bid for Starshine as we felt that with their greater presence in the markets would help us to gain an even stronger market share. We thus made an opening bid of $45 per share to Starshine. This bid was rejected. As a result our share price dropped by $0.50 to $64.70 while starshines rose by $2.26 to $56.64. We decided to start the bidding at such a low price so during negotiations; the ceiling price would not get too high. We realised that Starshine offered Bel Vino 1.05 new Starshine shares for each existing Bel Vino Share. So we decided to give Bel Vino something to think about by offering $39 per share. This was lo wer than their share price at the current time which was $45.96. We were not prepared to buy out any of these companies while incurring huge debts. This was another reason why our bids were kept so low. Bel Vino didnt see our bid as attractive despite the fact that we could improve their distribution line internationally considerably. So they rejected our bid. We thus decided it was not worth it to acquire any of the two companies as they lacked the vision to see that they could only benefit by merging with us. In the end Starshine accepted Bel Vinos offer and the companies merged. Question 5. If you were not successful at completing a transaction, why do you believe this was the case? Do you think it represents the best outcome for your shareholders? Would you do anything differently if given another chance to negotiate? According to the confidential information our team was provided with, both Bel Vino and Starshine were potential prospects for a merger. Our main prospect was Bel Vino since they sold high end products and our company would have received more value from this merger. We also noted that a merger with Bel Vino would have added worth to our company. Therefore in the long term, shareholder value will also be increased. In order to increase shareholders value, it is imperative that a company implements strategic planning. This can be done by increasing cost base while maintaining revenue and by increasing revenue share and by reducing cost (Ezine Article, 2010). A merger between Bel Vino and Starshine would have reduced cost of goods sold by roughly $3 million to $ 5 million. In addition, their Research and Development cost would decrease by a significant amount, roughly, one million on an annual basis. Bel Vino showed strategic planning and they recognized the goal of the company and beca use of their financial operations which were done effectively and efficiently, they were able to develop their working capital. There was a possibility of mergers between Bel Vino and Starshine, which actually came to fruition. Before any negotiation is made by any organization and for it to be successful it is critical for them to look over key issues that will affect their organization in the long run. In other words preparedness is one of the main key to successes in any business organization. In addition, a good strategy is also important for a healthy and long term existence of that company. Our team definitely lacked in the area of preparation was resulted in International Beverage not being able to merge with any of the two prospective companies. Our team members were definitely not ready to negotiate because we did not conduct enough background work in terms of focusing on our operating assumptions which included domestic and international revenues. In addition, due to the lack of understanding the game and time, we were not capable of making enough offers to the other two wine companies These factors needed to be decided upon before we ventured into the negotiation process. We also need to focus more on our balance sheet and make comparisons between Bel Vinos and Starshines balance sheets. Despite our unpreparedness, we were able to make bids by offers to both Bel Vino and Starshine at prices, $48.81 and $58.57 respectively. Both companies rejected our offers. We assumed that they believed that their companies were worth more than what we were offering them. At the end of the simulation, Starshine and Bel Vino merged. In conclusion, the wine simulation was a learning experience for our team and we realized the importance of conducting our homework before venturing into negotiations. It is important to learn about your counterparts in detail, as opposed to looking on the surface. Details such as financials are crucial in getting into mergers. If given the opportunity to negotiate again, we will definitely make serious preparations for the negotiations.