Takem’s Appliances and Electronics

LLCAuthor: Ashraf Bani Domi February 16, 2018 ACCT 511 – Advanced Business Law for Accountants Professor: Dean Poirier Liberty University Abstract I would like to start my research paper and point out the legality and the validity of the contract that Takem's Appliances and Electronics LLC. used to sell their electronics as he had this new idea of selling them door-to-door which was a success and that lead to take advantage of this success by increasing his prices to 30% more if he delivers them to the customer's house. Also, I will explain the ethical consequences that the procedure Takem used in the region he lived in. Also, explaining the meaning of breach of the contract and what constitutes the lowest requirements in search of remedies in these kinds of circumstances. And for the sales to be permissible, they must encounter every sector of the legal criteria. Also, Takem must have ethical accountability that takes place under the social responsibility to the small community he lives in. The legal case of Sally Walker vs. Takem's Appliances and Electronics, LLC will be analyzed and investigated regarding weather if the conclusion of this case is it legal, is it moral/ethical? IntroductionThe world of commerce and most business relationships are initiated on a contract. Understanding of contract law is crucial for all businesspeople, owners, and managers. Since most commercial arrangements are constructed on contractual relationships. A decent preliminary point would be an empirical definition of a contract. Contracts include more than an arrangement or an agreement between two or more parties. â€Å"A contract is a promise or a set of promises for the breach of which the law gives a remedy, or the performance of which the law in some way recognizes as a duty† (Restatement (Second) of contract chapter 1 meaning of the term).The contract can be simply described as a voluntary exchange of promises, creating obligations that, if defaulted on or failed to pay, can be enforced and remedied by the courts. It is imperative that we understand as when agreeing to terms of a contract, entities are created and defining their particular rules and obligations. This differs from other areas of the law, such as torts, where rules and obligations are imposed on them.Furthermore, a valid contract can create a situation in which parties to the contract can predict, with some certainty, their upcoming relationship because each party knows that the courts will hold them to their agreement. Despite the fact courts will enforce a valid contract after it has been created, what the parties agree to in the first place in commonly unrestricted. Mr. Takem's Business Model is it Legal?When we study contract law, the focus is usually on the problems that can arise. It may therefore appear that most contractual relationship experiences complications. In fact, most contracts are privileged or resolved to the mutual satisfaction of the parties, and the courts become elaborate in a slight amount of contractual agreements, when an unfeasible dispute arises. Hence, addressing our case study in this project we need to outline some basic terminology that we discussed above and trying to apply it to our client, named Takem's Appliances and Electronics, LLC. Takem's Appliances and Electronics, LLC owned and operated by Tommy Takem. Tommy Takem owns Takem's Appliances and Electronics, LLC that participates in what might give the impression to some to be a very profitable business. However, we need to read through the surrounding circumstances and the case scenario to see and advise our client what are the best business practice he could proceed with his business, and whether we agree with his business practices or not, our constrain her in this case is to provide a legal guiding in this section and then will see how to evaluate, and explain to him the legal consequences as well as his potentials, nevertheless from the first glance and the studying we can see that most of our client Mr. Takem and his business activities obeying to law, but still need to be examined, and also we to talk about some ethics practice that could prime unexpected results. Which is something we will cover in more detail later, in our case study. Takem's business (Takem's Appliances and Electronics, LLC) is located in a rural area of Southwest Virginia, and the majority of its customers are poorer residents of the Appalachian regions of Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, and West Virginia. According to our case, Sally Walker vs. Takem's Appliances and Electronics, LLC, our client, Tommy Takem. interested in concentrate his business around these rural areas because due to different reasons, there isn't much competition for his business which was an opportunity for his business. But the disadvantage was, most of the people who lived in these areas were relatively uneducated enough to understand, poor credit, unsophisticated, and other reasons. Moreover, there was a demand for appliances and electronics. And because there weren't many appliances stores around those areas, people needed to buy them. Tommy took advantage of that and increased his prices between 10-20%. This process adapted by our client is widening the precise meaning of the contractual law. Tommy's business has been doing so well after the increase in the prices. Tommy newly came up with an idea for expanding his business. He decided to begin selling his appliances and electronics door-to-door in the above-described regions. Until recently, it had been working great. He hired some great salespeople who really know how to â€Å"apply the pressure and turn up the heat.† Further, since he is providing a service to these societies by transporting the goods to their homes, he charges about 30% more than he would if the customers came to the store. Apparently, the salespeople do not mention this fact to the customers. Lately, Tommy received a letter from a disgruntled customer named Sally Walker (an elderly widow lady who lives alone in the hills of Southwest Virginia—her children and grandchildren have all moved out of the area.) She has fallen behind on her payments on her new laptop computer, and Tommy had started collection efforts. He had not yet referred it to a lawyer. The letter is very well written (which would be unexpected since Sally is not very well educated.) It indicates that her granddaughter, who recently graduated with an MS in Accounting from Liberty University Online helped her with it. It argues that the entire deal is unconscionable and therefore unenforceable.Moreover, the letter emphasizes that Sally has paid enough for the computer that she purchased and will not pay any more. Finally, the letter indicates that if Tommy pushes the matter more, Sally threatens to sue for punitive damages and write letters to the editors of various local papers throughout the region to ruin his reputation. As we can see from the above surrounding circumstances and from the definition of the contract, our client has been operating with the compliance in accordance with the law and legality in most of his business transaction, as general roles, â€Å"The foundations of Corporate Governance demand that organizational practice follows the legal requirements. In current times, news reviews of industry wrongdoings have forged uncertainty on the bottom line that submission is definitely the widespread procedure. â€Å"(Realistic Hypothetical Legal Scenarios Business Law for Accountants†, 2013) despite the allegation letter from Ms. Walker, and despite the ethical conduct regarding the transparency in the new adapted policy and increase of 30% on the delivered items in this section, but there is however still an exception to the legality of the later mentioned of the 30% this should be communicated to the other partiers of the contract. Whether the Argument in the Letter has any Merit?In response to a letter recently received which was written by Sally Walker's granddaughter of one of his customer, from lawyer standpoint of view, the indication of Sally's letter concerning and arguing the unconscionable act of our client (Takem's Appliances and Electronics, LLC) by excessively charging their customers. In analyzing the precedent there could thee potential legal obligations: first one, if Ms. Walker is serious enough about bringing this case to the court, the court may look upon the contract from the unconscionability part of it, while court applies this point very scarcely, but still feasible defense to the plaintiff side due to Ms. Walker conditions. The second one is that Ms. Walker could recall for the punitive damage claim, as explained below.The third one is regarding the undisclosed charges for the delivery services.Typically, court will enforce a valid contract after it has been formed, â€Å"In deciding the validity of consideration, courts will not look to the amount or type of considerations or the relative bargaining power of the parties (except in the rare case of a contract so burdensome on one party as to indicate unconscionability)† (ABLA, 2017). My concern here is to provide my client with a reasonable and accurate sound legal standpoint and preventing him from a further and a future legal consequence. On the other hand, when Ms. Walker's proclaimed that the installment and the amount she has paid for the computer so far, is enough, I see this all was agreed upon before forming the agreement with her. Obviously, I would advise that each one of us should read and go through any kind of contract in a way that can clear and remove any ambiguous completely, read through your paper one two or whatsoever, moreover, always seek for an expertise advise in most of your relationship areas, and save yourself of being an unexpected position. Should he Take the Threats Seriously?As react with caution in determining whether my client should take Ms. Walker's letter in a serious manner because we are afraid that the court might rule to her advantage. â€Å"When it is claimed or appears to the court that the contract or any clause thereof may be unconscionable the parties shall be afforded a reasonable opportunity to present evidence as to its commercial setting, purpose and effect to aid the court in making the determination. (106). The Restatement also has a similar rule which tracks the UCC provision. (107) The purpose of the unconscionability doctrine is to expressly allow courts to police contracts for terms they deem unconscionable. (108) Though â€Å"unconscionable† is not defined by the UCC, some definitions give a feel for what the originators of the doctrine may have intended. One court has defined it as â€Å"that which ‘affronts the sense of decency.'† (109) One dictionary definition is â€Å"lying outside the limits of what is reasonable or acceptable: shockingly unfair, harsh, or unjust.† (110)† (Bar-Gill, O., Ben-Shahar, O., ; Marotta-Wurgler, F. 2017).Another word from the law that needs to be added here is that the procedure in which my client (Takem's Appliances and Electronics, LLC) following by charges 30% more to delivering the appliances and electronics to the customer's door-to-door and the fact that his salespeople intended or might have been instructed by Mr. Takem not to mention it to the customers. Despite the fact that my client, Mr. Takem, intentionally instructed them to mention the 30% increase or not, while he is the owner of the business and all of his employees should follow his instructions. The court might obtain this conclusion from his business conduct and count this against him as a form of misleading, uncommunicated as one of the criteria to validate a contract, misrepresentation, misrepresentation fraudulent or other entrance to breach this contract or similar contract since the court will incline for the advantage of the plaintiff (Ms. Walker) party of this contract against my client (Mr. Takem). As we go more through Ms. Walker's letter while she emphasizes that she is going to sue for punitive damages, whereas, punitive damages cannot normally be granted in contract disputes, here I wouldn't worry about this phrase either my client (Mr. Takem), as this is merely a threaten word in Ms. Walker's letter. However, this part in some case could be unpredictable, and because they are usually compensated in addition of the plaintiff's demonstrable injuries, and are awarded only in distinct cases, but to act as a prudent defends of my client (Mr. Takem) we need to supply him with the sound of law regarding this point, as a part of a lawyer due diligence where â€Å"Jurors award punitive damages too often. The amounts they award are erratic and unpredictable, even though they start from shared moral intuitions about the reprehensibility of defendants' conduct. And when they deliberate and decide as juries, both the size and variability of the awards increase.† Feigenson, N. R. 2003). It's ambiguities which need to be corrected proximately before any serious consequences superficial. Furthermore, the major ambiguity in the business operated in this case is the lack of transparency in its transactions with their customers; this absence of transparency is most deceptive in the prices and the percentages of charge that they put on their products and their services. This lack of transparency, when visible, could cause serious issues to any business, and, an educated customer could very easily take them to court for misconduct and misleading if they don't change their method and honestly advise their customers of their business perfect. Should he Proceed with the Collection? To give my legal advice, I would recommend that my client (Takem's Appliances and Electronics, LLC) not to proceed with any further steps in collecting the remaining payments from Ms. Walker. However, this might result in having other customers doing the same as Ms. Walker. Which is refusing to pay and threatening Mr. Takem again by suing his business and sending letters to media to ruin his business reputation. We would advise that Mr. Takem take longer period of time than usual before making any efforts for future collection in general, I would propose that Mr. Takem take an initial step by offering a payment discount for certain customers with some certain conditions with that he can plan ahead of time for his future project of establishing his own financing company, in main time this will participate in reshape his reputation in the area and encourage his customers to pay one time. â€Å"Keeping the aforementioned trends, Takem needs to go beyond the literal meaning of the law and let go of unfair and /or fraudulent corporate conduct; this includes false advertising and/or ambiguous sales deals† â€Å"(Realistic Hypothetical Legal Scenarios Business Law for Accountants†, 2013) Would Mr. Takem Set up a Financing Company? And what Should he do to Protect himself?I would strongly recommend that Mr. Takem should go ahead in adopting this step, in order to prevent and protect his business from any future consequences. But the best would be if he can collaborate with an outside financing company to take over this portion of his business, in a separate entity form, to avoid and mitigate future obligations and losing his customers. Alternatively, seeking for an external collection agency to handle in arrears or uncollected payments. â€Å"Seeking a collection agency-or evaluating the one you have-can improve bottom-line results while maintaining your professional image. Overall, be sure to find a company that delivers results and matches the image you want to project. Use this list as a guide of what to expect† (Anonymous, 2015). With this step-in mind Mr. Takem should put more consideration to the law that regulates and the requirement to establish this kind of business from the participation of the comprehensive openness, full disclosure and the complete condition associated with any arrangement. Finally, he wants to Know What do you Think About his Business Model- Regardless of whether you Conclude that it is Legal, is it Moral/Ethical?I believe the majority of us will agree in response to Mr. Takem's ethics, and the way he is conducting his business is unethical, according to the given case events. Unethical behavior that is not illegal frequently falls in a grey area between right and wrong that makes it difficult to decide what to do when it is encountered. Furthermore, different people have different perspectives regarding what is ethical and what is unethical. Though, there is sometimes a difference between behaviors that are unethical and activities that are actually illegal. â€Å"The definition of business ethics and the answer to the question of â€Å"What is Business Ethics in Sales?† is the principles, morals and standards that guide the behavior in the world of business and in sales relationships too (Spro, 2013). Ethics in sales is receiving a lot of attention over recent years even more so, as it is the correct way to conduct business in the long term and produce long-term sales results for the company and for the sales team. Moreover, â€Å"Business ethics in sales can either come from the company itself, this means that the companies ethics guidelines are written into their policies and therefore can be reflected or reproduced through their sales team management and then the sales team too† (Ivan, C. D. 2014). Therefore, â€Å"Doubt regarding corporate commitment to ethical obligations has always existed, particularly when maximization of profits might be at risk. However, despite such doubt two views have singled hope. First, a view has persisted that corporations at least feel compelled to comply with the law. At times violations of law might occur. However, this was not thought to be the pattern of behavior for corporations generally. Conscious violation of law was not the behavior expected. Second, a view has begun to be echoed that business corporations are increasingly cognizant of ethical obligations beyond literal compliance with law, and increasingly feel compelled to act accordingly† (Di Lorenzo, V. J Bus Ethics, 2007).

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To what extend can it be said that the 'West' won the Cold War - Essay Example Other affiliates of these regimes and several scholars have made identical claims, which are turning out to be, as emphasised by Ralph Summy & Michael Salla (1995) in their prelude, an ‘emergent orthodoxy’ (ibid, p. xv). The objective of this essay is to analyse the extent of the victory of the United State in the Cold War in the light of the logical essence of such claims. There are great difficulties contained in the modus operandi ‘winning the Cold War’ (Cohen 1995). The foremost is uncertainty about the extent of the claim, as the mentions of Reagan and Bush suggest, since victory in 1989 implied something distinct from victory in 1992, when the USSR had disintegrated and Gorbachev had been dethroned (Philips 2001). The next and interrelated difficulty is ambiguity about the real description of the Cold War. ‘Winning the Cold War’ is a very debatable principle since it can be understood as a moral excuse for all the defence and foreign polic ies of the Reagan administration—for instance, military involvement in Nicaragua during Reagan’s term, a tactic which foresaw perhaps combating and winning a major war and unparalleled budgets for peacetime military (Painter 1999). The concept of ‘winning’ also seems to justify the rules of aiming for military supremacy and arbitrations from strength, which may be catastrophic as shown. Did the United States Really Win the Cold War? Before attempting to evaluate the influence of the Reagan regime, it has to be explained first what was involved in the end of the Cold War, by determining the major components in the strategy of Gorbachev after 1985 and the unforeseen results of the course of internal and external reform. The policy reforms of Gorbachev occurred in four major domains; in each instance the policy acquired impetus and became more revolutionary commencing around 1987 (Geoffrey 2008). Primarily, the Soviet administration commenced after 1985 to re form features of its military strategy viewed as particularly hostile by the West, and at the same time to alter its method of arms control (Suri 2002). Gorbachev embarked on reassessing military principle, pioneering the notion of ‘reasonable sufficiency at the nuclear level’ (Juviler & Kimura 2009, 139) which indicates that ‘lower nuclear weapons levels would be required’ (ibid, 139) and advancing toward ‘defensive defence at the conventional level’ (Juviler & Kimura 2009, 140), in an effort to suppress the apprehensions of the West about surprise assault. The large-scale change in arms control strategy was recommended by the spectacular suggestions formed at the Reykavik summit convention in 1986 and agreed upon during the 1987 Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF) arbitrations, when the Soviet party suggested an extraordinary eagerness to agree on thorough on-site inspection and bigger reductions in its arsenal than those mandated of the United States (Lefler & Westad 2010). The address of Gorbachev at the 1988 United Nations, when he assured considerable unilateral cuts in Soviet arsenals and combatants in European Russia and East Germany, expressed the gravity of his determination to reduce armed forces (Juviler & Kimura 2009). Subsequently, Gorbachev indicated a reform in the ideological scope and proclaimed objectives of Soviet foreign policy, distancing from an idea of global class conflict toward a more broad-minded idea of peace and alliance. Propaganda about peace had contributed in Soviet policy beforehand,

Incumbents and Their Re-election Essay Example for Free

Incumbents and Their Re-election Essay Statistical research suggests that in 1998 a total of 395 Representatives and 26 Senators were reelected (U. S. Census, 2000). Since the middle of the 20th century and up to the present time, the process of re-electing incumbents has turned into one of the major political trends. The more incumbents sought to reestablish themselves in political office, the more concerned political scholars became about the causes and factors of such political advantage. The current state of political research suggests that a whole set of factors predetermines incumbents’ continuous political success, with access to media and excessive financial resources being the most important elements of political fight. True, those trying to become the members of political office for the first time often lack sufficient political opportunities, compared to resources, which incumbents can access and use in their election campaigns. Reelection of incumbents has already turned into the major political trend in the U. S. , and there are several reasons for that. To begin with, incumbents are frequently referred to as â€Å"the perks of Office†; in other words, all Congress members are given enough material and nonmaterial resources to hire professional staff, whose primary responsibility is to turn their Congress employers into well-represented, widely recognized and well-liked political figures (McKay 140). For example, incumbents can send postage-free letters to their constituents, and can use these as a part of their promotional political campaigns (McKay 140). These are just some out of many benefits which Congress members are being granted by the state. Time is just another component of incumbents’ success in Congress. It should be noted, that Congress is incumbents’ full-time job, and meeting voters, resolving local issues, and participating in public events and television shows are what they are being paid for. It appears that for many potential candidates to run for office and to try to combat an existing Congress member would mean to face the lack of media and financial resources, which for the current Congress members are available on a regular basis (McKay 147). Certainly, all these benefits would be irrelevant and unimportant if not for the image promotion and visibility of all Congress members. It is difficult to deny the fact that â€Å"sitting members of Congress are almost universally recognized in their districts† (Cusdi). This visibility is the direct result of one’s running for office, and after having served two or more years for Congress, its members become widely recognized and accepted among their constituents; and voters are more likely to give their vote to those whom they already know for their Congressional achievements than those, who just start their political career. It should also be noted, that such political visibility is directly associated with incumbents’ ability to organize their promotional campaigns. Having won at least one election campaign, an incumbent is more prepared to face the major political and organizational challenges than his (her) political opponents (McKay 152). Finally, these are financial resources that predetermine incumbents’ political successes. McKay writes that â€Å"for both senators and representatives, money has become a crucial resource in congressional elections. With voters acting in response to the appeal of individual candidates rather than to parties, both incumbents and challengers must ensure that the voters know who they are and what their record is† (169). It appears that in terms of money, incumbents also have significant comparative advantage over political outsiders. Average financial resources available to incumbents are 2-3 times higher than those available to challengers, which makes it impossible for the latter to develop well-grounded media campaigns. For example, in 2002 many Republican incumbents took advantage of â€Å"fundraising visits by President Bush during the 2002 election cycle† (Smith, Roberts Wielen 74). As a result, incumbents have much more chances to win elections for the second time, and will hardly give their position away to political outsiders. Conclusion A whole set of advantages works to provide incumbents with an opportunity to be reelected. Time, visibility, access to media, and excessive financial resources – all these factors make incumbents less vulnerable to political changes and give them a kind of comparative advantage over political challengers. On the one hand, these advantages seem to make elections unfair, but on the other hand, political outsiders have to develop convincing argumentation that would persuade constituents to change their political commitments, and to give a political beginner a unique chance to run for office.

Great Train Robbery of 1870

Great Train Robbery of 1870 The Great Train Robbery of 1870 outside Verdi, Nevada actually happened as depicted in this story. It was reported to be the first train robbery in the Western states. The names of the robbers their plan and their ultimate prison sentences are true, except for Brewster Purvis who is fictional. I took some liberties with their various roles in the robbery and the part about half of the money not being recovered is fiction. In actuality approximately 90 percent of the loot was later found. As for the small amount that was never recovered it would be worth approximately $500,000 today, and there are some people who still believe it remains hidden out there somewhere and maybe still looking for it! The Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) poem was not published at the time of this story. Although she was still alive and had written well over a thousand poems by 1877, she was an intensely private writer as well as a recluse and only 7 of her poems were published in her lifetime. Some biographers believe her poetry and complete withdrawal from society came about as a result of heartbreak and unrequited love. Her poetry often reflects loneliness but is also inspirational. Upon her death, her sister Lavinia co-edited three volumes of her poems published from 1891-1896. The complete poem: Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all, And sweetest in the gale is heard; And sore must be the storm That could abash the little bird That kept so many warm. Ive heard it in the chillest land, And on the strangest sea; Yet, never, in extremity, It asked a crumb of me. In the 1870s-80s more than 300 mines were producing gold in Amador County. A 20-mile stretch from the Mokelumne River to the Cosumnes River known as the Mother Lode was the richest producing over $160 million in gold between 1851 and 1942. There were some tunnels, but mostly incline and vertical shafts were built reaching down a mile or more into the ground. Head frames crowned shafts and stamp mills processed and crushed the ore. Workers came from all over the world, with large groups from Italy, France, Yugoslavia and Cornwall. The Treasure Mine (MacKellar Amador in this story) actually shared a shaft with the Bunker Hill Mine, which was known as the Rancheria Mine from 1853-1898. The Secret Service Division began in Washington, D.C. in 1865 with the mission to halt the flood of counterfeit currency that was circulated after the Civil War. During the 19th century, before centralized printing and engraving of U.S. currency, approximately 1600 banks designed, printed and issued their own notes. Each note had a different design making it difficult to distinguish the 4,000 varieties of counterfeits from the 7,000 genuine notes. At one time it was estimated that one-third of all currency in circulation in the United States was counterfeit. In 1867, the Secret Service responsibilities broadened to include all crimes against the federal government such as racketeering, smuggling, mail robbery and land fraud. In 1893, the Secret Service became a distinct organization within the U.S. Treasury Department. In 1894, the Secret Service began the mission we are most familiar with today, protection of the President, with the part-time protection of then President Grover Cleveland. The Barbary Coast was a neighborhood in San Francisco much as described in this story, so named after the notorious coast of North Africa (Morocco, Algiers, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt) where pirates regularly attacked ships. Pirates of a different kind reigned in San Franciscos Barbary Coast which rose from the massive influx of treasure seekers from the Gold Rush. At the end of 1849, there were only about 300 women in San Francisco out of a population of 20-25,000 and two-thirds of these women were available-for a price. For most of the 19th century and early into the 20th century the area continued to be a haunt for every kind of low life and crime. Gambling, prostitution, thievery, opium dens, murder and of course shanghaiing prevailed here. Prostitution in the area ended in 1917 when the San Francisco Police blockaded the neighborhood in response to the California Red-Light Abatement Act. Today it is overlapped by China Town, North Beach and the Financial District. The Miwok were not so much a tribe as an aggregation of villages speaking a common language-Penutian. The names Patee, Kaliska, Litanya, Taipa and Kiku are actual Miwok words or names. They lived throughout California including in the Sierra Nevada and Yosemite area. They referred to the Yosemite Valley as Ahwahnee which loosely translated means Place of a Gaping Mouth. A large group of Coast Miwok inhabited the Bay area and Marin County including Angel Island. They had a simple animistic philosophy meaning that all life is produced by a spiritual force, all natural phenomena have souls and all animals were believed to have preternatural powers. They were hunter/gatherers and traded with the Paiute people. Acorns were a diet staple. The shamans were both men and women and supposedly had the power to cure, kill, predict the future and start the rains. Shamanistic power was passed down to the son, daughter, grandson or granddaughter of a shaman. They observed many long vigils in lonely places and were sometimes so feared they were driven away from the villages by the other tribal members. During the peak gold rush years of 1849-54, over 200,000 emigrants traveled overland to California hoping to strike it rich in the gold fields. The majority were unsuccessful. About one in five died during the perilous journey and many were forced to leave belongings alongside the trails. Prior to the gold rush, in 1844, the Stephens-Townsend-Murphy party faced the dilemma of how to surmount the Sierra Nevada. They met a Paiute Indian whom they named Truckee who provided directions on how to follow the Truckee River to a pass over the Sierra Nevada usually known as Donner Pass but more correctly as Stephens Pass. The Stephens party became the first to complete this trek overland by wagon. In 1845-46 improvements to this route over the Sierra Nevada, via Dog Valley and Roller Pass, turned it into an established wagon trail. Other wagon routes included the Carson Trail to Georgetown, the Johnson Cutoff to Placerville, the Volcano Road to Volcano, Walker River-Sonora Trail to Sonora and the Big Tree Road. There were also a number of pack trails over the Sierra Nevada. All these trails branched off from one of the three main northern routes to California. Some proved successful while others were short lived or little used. The construction of the transcontinental railway linking the Union Pacific and Central Pacific Railroads in 1869 made travel easier. Emigrants could travel west or east not only on a network of wagon roads and trails but also by rail. Geological note: The Sierra Nevada Mountains were formed approximately 150 million years ago when an island arc collided with the West coast of North America, the resultant uplifting created the mountain chain. This event known by geologists as the Nevadan orogeny produced metamorphic rock. Uplift of the Sierra Nevada continues today especially along the eastern side causing minor earthquakes. The whole idea of a massive cavern is not fiction. There are many instances of incredible underground labyrinths throughout the mountains and foothills of the Sierra Nevada as well as many thermal vents and hot springs. Many of the caverns are open to the public for underground tours-such as Boyden, Moaning, Black Chasm, Mercer and California (formerly Mammoth Cave) Cavern. California Cavern opened way back in 1850 for tours. At Moaning Cavern, bones of ancient natives dating back more than 13,000 years were found.

Journalists And Public Relations Practitioners Media Essay

Journalists And Public Relations Practitioners Media Essay Since studying and undertaking work experience in the field of public relations I have realised the need for a good relationship between journalists and PR practitioners if both professions want to achieve their goals and do their job to the highest standard. Writing press releases and then sending them to journalists is an important aspect of a PR practitioners job, so a good relationship between the two is important. Both professions rely on each other; journalists need PR practitioners to provide them with newsworthy stories about their clients or organisation they are working for and PR practitioners need journalists to publish the press releases that they send to them on behalf of their clients or organisation. After writing some press releases and sending them to journalists while undertaking work experience at The Phoenix Partners I found that three of the four press releases which I had written were published by at least one of the journalists which I had sent them to. I also found after analysing press cuttings that many of the press releases written by my colleagues were also often used by journalists. After speaking to two PR practitioners who previously worked as journalists, I was told that PR practitioners are having a big influence in the setting of the news agenda as many of their news stories are being used by the relevant media. What I have learnt while studying PR confirms that what I have seen first hand from my work experience and what I have been told by ex journalists is correct and I have decided to research this topic further to gain a more in-depth knowledge of it. Research Questions In order to come to a conclusion to see whether the influence of the news agenda is being transferred from journalists towards PR practitioners, I have formulated the following research questions: How common is it for news in media outlets to be as a result of PR activity? Do PR practitioners generally have a good relationship with journalists? Has there been a shift in employment in PR and journalism? Methodology To answer the question and to see whether the influence of the news agenda is being transferred from journalists towards public relations practitioners, I will be using a combination of primary and secondary research methods. There has already been a lot of secondary research conducted on this area of PR and journalism and this research will help me to answer all of my research questions. This secondary research includes research already conducted by national organisations and academic teams. I will also be using academic and professional sources in researching the topic. This includes the use of academic textbooks, websites, magazines, newspapers and media reports, allowing me to use a mixture of factual data as well as the thoughts and opinions of researchers, academics and practitioners in the field of PR and journalism. My study will also make use of primary research methods in answering two of my research questions; how common is it for news in media outlets to be as a result of PR activity and do PR practitioners generally have a good relationship with journalists? The primary research will consist of conducting questionnaires, one sent to PR practitioners and one sent to journalists within the West Midlands, England. The questionnaires will ask both open-ended and closed-ended questions which will provide me with enough information to analyse my findings and answer my research questions. I have chosen to use the West Midlands for my investigation as I already have lots of contacts who are PR practitioners within this area and therefore I will benefit from a higher response rate than if I were to send the questionnaire to people who I dont know from other areas. I will use my PR contacts to help me find journalists to respond to the questionnaire, as well as using Mediadisk to find journalists within the West Midlands and contact them directly. The sampling methods I am using are a combination of convenience sampling and snowball sampling. Forzano and Gravetta (2008) state that convenience sampling is where researchers use participants who are easy to get based on their availability and willingness to respond. Babbie (2009) feels that snowball sampling works well when a population is difficult to locate. This is because the researcher collects data from the members of the target population that they can locate and then asks them to help locate other members of the target population that they may know. Ethical Issues When conducting primary and secondary research for my study I need to consider any ethical implications of my research methods. As I will be using secondary data already conducted by national organisations and academic teams, I will ensure that I dont pass any of the research off as my own and I will cite what source I have got the research from. While I analyse my findings from the questionnaires sent to PR practitioners and journalists I will make sure that I dont fabricate, falsify or misinterpret research data. This will ensure that my research is honest and truthful, this is important in order to make my study represent a true reflection of my findings. One of the main factors which discourage participants in taking part in a questionnaire is that they want their answers to remain confidential and anonymous, even to the researcher. To ensure respondents answers to the questionnaire will be kept anonymous, I will be setting up the questionnaire online and wont be asking respondents to fill out their name. This will ensure that any participants who fear for their anonymity can be sure that this ethical issue will not pose them a problem. Literature Review The relationship between journalists and PR practitioners, which has typically been characterised as essentially in conflict, has recently been recast as a trading or exchange relationship in which under-resourced journalists, working in under-staffed newsrooms, increasingly rely on PR sources for editorial copy while offering access to editorial columns for PR messages in return (Gans 1978, Jones 2006). However, Tench and Yeomans (2006) state journalists feel that PR practitioners are incapable of manipulating them and that they are an annoying distraction to them when theyre setting out to do their jobs. While PR practitioners argue that media relations works best if its aim is to provide a service to the media, instead of acting mostly as a promotional channel for their clients or organisation. A long standing stream of PR research has looked at the influence of the news agenda. There is more than 80 years of research on this topic in the USA, Australia and UK. Macnamara (2009) states that USA studies go back as far as 1926 when Silas Bent studied the New York Times and found that out of the 256 stories in the newspaper, 147 of them came from PR sources. In 1963 when a series of studies of the news media was conducted in the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, it found that 45% of the stories in newspapers and 15% of news aired on radio and television were in some way sourced from PR activity. (Grunig and Hunt, 1984) The New York Times was again looked at along with the Washington Post when Leon Sigal found that around two-thirds of articles originated from press releases and other PR sources. Only 26% of news resulted from reporting, interviews or the journalists own analysis. (Macnamara, 2009) Studies on this subject in Australia date back to more recent times. Macnamara (1993) conducted a study to examine the relationship between PR practitioners and journalists; it also looked at the conflicting claims over the role of and impact of PR in shaping the news agenda. He undertook research for his Masters of Arts by conducting a survey of 417 journalists and editors in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra. He found that 86% claimed to have very frequent contact from PR practitioners and 74% said that they received over 20 press releases or other PR communications per week. At the same time 150 press releases were gathered from 27 different companies and a national press clipping service provided 2,500 articles on the topics of the press releases. The study found that 31% of stories were based on the press releases, only nine press releases out of 150 tracked (1.2%) were not used by the media and the average usage rate for the press releases was seven times. A more recent analysis of media content in Australia by Zawawi (2001) conducted an examination of 1,163 articles published by three leading newspapers to identify the origin of news stories. The research confirmed the origin of 683 articles, of which 251 (37%) were sourced from PR activity. The analysis found that surveys, papers and submissions sent to journalists with the aim of attaining media coverage could also be considered as PR activity and these accounted for a further 88 news stories. Taking this into consideration it was concluded that 47% of news items were resulted from PR activity. Davies (2008) commissioned expert researchers from the journalism department of Cardiff University to study a sample of the news running through the British media in 2008. It focused on five daily newspapers; The Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Mail and The Daily Telegraph. They chose two random weeks and examined each domestic news item put out by these newspapers, a total of 2,207 pieces. The study found that 54% of news items showed signs of being sourced from PR activity. It also found that only 12% of news stories in newspapers were independently sourced. Schedule 3/5 7/5 8/5 12/5 13/5 17/5 18/5 22/5 23/5 27/5 28/5 1/6 2/6 6/6 7/6 11/6 Preparation Reading literature Note taking Designing Questionnaire Data Collection Distribution of Questionnaire Collection of Questionnaire Data Analysis Analysis of Questionnaire Results Evaluation of Questionnaire Results Writing Introduction Methodology Literature Review Analysis Study Limitations Conclusion Recommendations Proof Reading Chapter Plan Abstract Introduction Methodology 3.1 Research Design Literature Review The Influence of the News Agenda in Australia The Influence of the News Agenda in USA The Influence of the News Agenda in Britain The Relationship Between PR Practitioners and Journalists Changes in Employment in Journalism Changes in Employment in PR Reasons for the Change in Influence of the News Agenda Primary Research Findings of Questionnaire Sent to Journalists Findings of Questionnaire Sent to PR Practitioners Analysis How common is it for news in media outlets to be as a result of PR activity? Do PR practitioners generally have a good relationship with journalists? Has there been a shift in employment in PR and journalism? Is the influence of the news agenda being transferred from journalists towards PR practitioners? Study Limitations Conclusion Recommendations Bibliography References Appendix

Essay on the Evil in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown -- Young Goodman

The Evil in Young Goodman Brown  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      In my interpretation of the story, I will be discussing three main topics: the beginning conversation with Faith, the devilish character, and Brown’s wife’s meaning in the story.   Young Goodman Brown is about to take a journey like many others before him, across the threshold separating the young unknowing boys and the elderly sages.   This, however, will not be without peril, because aging is a testing process defined by trial and error, and the errors’ prices are sometimes significant.   This errand he is undertaking has an evil purpose.   It seems as though this night has been foreseen long ago by both Faith and Goodman Brown.   The wife begs him that, of all nights, he should stay this one home because she senses trouble.   The purpose of the journey is not discussed, because it is the passage b... ...; The last paragraph of the story indicates that this was not just a journey to mature, because he died like a heathen, away from the religious community.   He strayed his faith and he was punished for this.   Gloom is a big part of this story, symbolizing the forest, unknown, and evil.   The fact that every person in Salem, sinful or pious, was present in the forest can reflect some humor.   They act as zombies by night, and normal people by day, pretending one faith in the gloom, and returning to church at dawn.        

The Maturation of Tom Sawyer :: Adventures Tom Sawyer Essays

The Maturation of Tom Sawyer Tom Sawyer, a mischievous, brave, and daring boy that goes through adventures in love, murder, and treasure. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain is about a boy maturing from a whimsical troublemaker into a caring young man. In the "conclusion" Mark Twain writes, "It being strictly a history of a boy, it must stop here; the story could not go much farther without becoming a history of a man" Tom is now maturing throughout a span of adventures in love, treasure, and everyday life that make him more of an adult, then a boy. Tom's acts in love are childish and immature. At first, Tom's love for Becky Thatcher is just a crush. He tells Becky about his "marriage" to Amy and it starts a fight. After that, they both play a game of "hard to get". After this, Tom is too proud to apologize. Also, Tom makes good decisions. First, when Becky accidentally rips Mr. Dobbins' book a, Tom takes the blame, and this ends their feud. Another mature event takes place in McDougal's cave. When Tom and Becky are in the cave, they become lost. Then Tom takes responsibility for himself and Becky's life. These events are part of becoming a young man. At the beginning of the treasure hunt, it was fun, now it takes maturity. One mature act is when Tom and Huck stay close with Injun Joe to catch him. Also Huck is maturing when he decides that he must go for help because he over heard Injun Joe's plans for Window Douglas. On the immature side, when Tom and Huck realize that Injun Joe, the murderer, has the treasure, they aren't mature enough to get adult help. They feel that they're strong enough to handle it. The treasure hunt is a controversial adventure that Tom endures. Tom can now start to show his maturity everywhere, including at home. In the beginning, Tom is running from Aunt Polly's punishments, hurries through chores, and plays hooky from school. When he convinces kids to do his job of whitewash the fence for him, it shows immaturity. Also when he runs away from home to the island, he doesn't leave a note.

Never Giving Up

It has been said that life can never be carried out and truly lived to its fullest unless there has been some sort of suffering and pain. Mistakes are to be learned from, and a hard past can only result in a stronger present. Though many might find themselves alone in their misery the truth is they are not, everyone has struggles. We all have our ups and downs, but it is how we react to them that truly matters. Life is life and no matter what, giving up on lifelong dreams and aspirations because of a few bumps in the road should never be an option. It isn't where you come from; it's where your going that counts,† stated a very wise woman by the name of Ella Fitzgerald. This may be hard to believe but even people with great success like Ella Fitzgerald, can come from a troubled background. Before her career took off, this superstar Jazz singer known as the â€Å"first lady of song† was just another troubled teen forced to cope with the early separation of her parents. Fro m there things only got worse for Ella and in 1993, her mother died from injuries she had suffered from a car accident. It was not long before tragedy struck Ella's life once again, this time she mourned the loss of her mother's boyfriend and her half sister's father. From there it was all down hill for this sixteen year old and it was not long before she found herself in trouble with the law. â€Å"You may be disappointed if you fail but your doomed if you don't try. † These words spoken by Beverly Sills had to have somehow found their way into Ella's head because no matter what came her way, she did not give up. With a little patience, Ella was on to launching one of the largest music careers in the business. Perfection is boring, if a face doesn't have a mistake it's nothing,† stated Kevyn Aucoin. Nowadays, the success of those emerging from a troubled past is greater than ever. After all, who could forget American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino's shocking past confessions in her enormously famous autobiography, â€Å"The Fantasia Barrino Story; Life is not a Fairy Tale? † Fantasi a's traumatizing childhood seemed to be weaved with stories of pain, lies, and betrayal everywhere she turned. At an early age, Fantasia was a victim of rape and divorce. She pursued a music career in her small town of North Carolina but found that she just did not tand out from among the other teens. With low self-esteem, it was not long before Fantasia fell into the wrong crowd and found herself a seventeen-year-old, pregnant, illiterate, high school drop out. Fantasia faced a lot of criticism when she was considered for America's idol, but she did not let that bother her and continued on to become an idol for those who like her have come from a hard background. Like Helen Keller once said, â€Å"No Pessimist ever discovered the secret of the stars or sailed to an unchartered land. † Fantasia Barrino has proven that â€Å"life is not a Fairy Tale† but you can sure make it one. It is not just celebrities that can overcome a troubled past and live up to their potential it is also people just like us. Who knows, the big shot lawyer next door could have been the one bullied in school and told time and time again that he was not good enough. It is all about strength and perseverance, believe despite the odds and what others say. To find success in the outside world you must first find it in yourself. In Ella Fitzgerald's own words, â€Å"Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong. â€Å"

“Lord of the Flies”: a Microcosm to Our Society Essay

William Golding s novel Lord of the Flies significantly symbolizes characters, objects and the setting to represent our world as a whole. Golding uses those symbols to make the island similar to society and to show the difference between living in a civilised society and savagery. The novel takes place on an island during World War II, this is significant since the isolation forms a sort of civilization and community, a sort of microcosm to the real world and to human civilization. Lord of the Flies island is similar to our society in many ways. There are certain objects that link the island and our society. Firstly William Golding portrays the conch as a symbol for power, order and authority. This is because whoever holds it becomes the only one with the authority to speak. That rule is official when Ralph says, And another thing. We cant have everybody talking at once. Well have to have Hands up like at schoolthen Ill give him the conch. (Golding 31) This is much like standing at the podium or holding a microphone in our civilized society or raising ones hand in school. The conch also represents the organization found in a democratic Government. Since the conch was discovered it has created order and rules and brought the boys together as a society. Jack says well have rules! he cried excitedly. Lots of rules! Then anyone who breaks em- (Golding 32) As the conch starts to lose its power the tribe splits into two groups, just as the community would have if the government would no longer have control. The rise and fall of the conch symbolized the rise and fall of a system of rules, regulations and order in a society. It provided a parallel universe showing how important the rules and regulations are to a successful society. Therefore the conch is a symbol of human civilization thus making Lord of the Flies a smaller version of society. Another symbol of civilization are the glasses belonging to piggy. It symbolized knowledge and insight. They represent societys reliance upon technology and the weakness of human beings. They were created to make piggy s life better, without them he can hardly see. When Jack snatches the glasses off piggy s face, Piggy replies Mind out! Give em back! I can hardly see! (Golding 40) The glasses are symbolic to technology which makes ones life more convenient or improves their quality of life. Without the glasses  the boys would have not been able to start a fire since no one else knew another way to do so. After asking around for matches Jack points suddenly at Piggy and says His specs-use them as burning glasses! (Golding 40) The concept that the boys would be helpless without the glasses symbolizes how helpless people become when they dont have technology to aid them . Also the clothes are a symbolic link to the survival of civilization and a symbol of conflict in society. In our society today, the clothing someone wears tells a lot about them. People are judged to be rich or poor, intelligent or unintelligent, or even neat or messy just by the clothing they have on. The boys arrive with clothes, but gradually they all wear less and less. This is symbolic of their becoming more savage and less in touch with their former civilization. One who does not wear pants in our society would be arrested and considered to be uncivilized. Another use of symbolism in clothing is that Jack and his group all dress alike and act alike makes them into a separate group from the rest of the boys. They carry out different jobs and have a different ideology. This conflict of a separate group in the society which Ralph trys to organize eventually leads to the break up of the boys into completely separate groups. This is symbolic of the different cultures we have in our society today. As the novel is an allegory, each character signifies an important idea or theme. Each character is symbolized clearly as someone in our society. Piggy is the scientific and intellectual aspect of society. He is a thinker, philosopher and someone who always advises for good. He was also like Albert Einstein, people did not care that he thought the atomic bomb was a bad weapon just like no one cared about what piggy said or did. While Piggy was trying to explain himself to Ralph, Jack turned on him. You shut up!, he yelled. (Golding 46) Another main character Ralph is like Franklin Roosevelt , who could not stop the World war two from breaking out. He is the allegory of the confused that are always confused in the recognition between good and evil. He also represents democracy and is responsible. He is the politician who relies on social order and government, and his political failures show that he cannot control the evil within the other boys. Jack was a symbol of Adolph Hitler. He w as a crazy leader who killed many people because he wanted power, No one moved. Jack shouted angrily. I said grab them! (Golding  198) Like Hitler, Jack was a dictator and ignorant. Jack is the hunter, protector and the Soldier who is consumed by his own fear and the greater force of his own capacity for evil. Roger is even worse than Jack, even though he isnt like that from the beginning. Hes similar to Satan or even Dr. Mengele who was Hitler s worker and did very bad operations on people. Roger is so cruel and has gone far beyond from being a savage when Roger purposely with a sense of delirious abandonment, leaned all his weight on the lever, resulting in Piggy s death. (Golding 200) Simon is a Christ like figure who discovered the truth but unlike Christ he is sacrificed before he can deliver it to the others. The impulses and the behaviour of the boys are those of adults. The struggle between Ralph and Jack is symbolic of the struggle between the forces of civilization and anarchy, or the struggle between moral conscience and his heart of darkness and also world war 2. The tussle between Jack and Ralph for leadership is the allegory of our political leaders who always fight and kill for the sake of power. The way the boys are being seduced by Jack, the leaders of our world exploit the masses. Our world is very fertile like the island, but in their ambition to get the power the leaders destroy this world just like the boys who burn the whole island to ashes without realizing that they are destroying their own means of survival. The division of the boys in litluns and big’uns is the allegory of the classes in our world. Litluns symbolize the common people, while the big’uns are the allegory of the ruling, powerful and political classes. The island on which the boys find themselves is allegorically our world in miniature. Since the island is a microcosm, Golding uses it to reflect our world and give comments on it and his view of human nature. In order to achieve this symbolism, Golding uses objects that have symbolic value as references to ideas, characters that symbolize important historical and religious people, and the setting which frames the conflicts on the island, all have parallels in the real world. They show that what happened in the story is just not a story. They help prove the authors belief that humankind is savage and evil is under civilization. Thus the Lord of the Flies is a microcosm, a smaller version of society and human civilization. BIBLEOGRAPHY: Lord of the Flies, William Golding

3 ways HR professionals support line managers and their staff Essay

Recruitment: The process of selection and appointment of suitable candidates for jobs in an organisation, in a short span and cost effectively manner. The process includes analyzing the requirements of a job, attracting employees to that job, screening and selecting candidates, hiring and integrating the new employee to the company. It is a critical activity not only for the HR function but also for the line managers and various departments involved. The most important responsibility of the HR function is to find the right people for the right position. Defining targets and approaching the target with a view to hire does this. An HR professional’s ability to attract new talent that fits the needs of a company, they are trained to be proficient when organising orientation manuals, pre-employment screens and other steps prior to employment of a new hire. Thus the organisation gains the best talents on board be it internally or externally which maximizes the overall growth. â€Å"The key for us, number one, has always been hiring very smart people.† – Bill Gates, 1993 Training and Development: Learning and development strategy articulates workforce capabilities, skills or competencies required and how these can be developed, to ensure the run of a successful organization. The HR function helps in developing the mindset and skills to support the business in its evolution. They ensure that all the employees leave every session with a tangible skill they can  put in place immediately when they return to their desk. This gives a competitive advantage and adapt to economic circumstances. These are achieved by conducting seminars, boot camps, master classes and incorporating social media into content to understanding audience behaviours. The HR team ensures that these are designed and delivered by experts inside business or respected external figures. As key element of an organisation’s learning strategy they will target the long–term development of those identified as exceptionally high-performing individuals, who are critical to long-term business success. Hence this will widen employee’s knowledge and helps drives high performance level for a long-term successful business. â€Å"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.† – Nelson Mandela, 2007 Employee Engagement: Employee engagement is a workplace approach designed to ensure that employees are committed to their organization’s goals and values, motivated to contribute to organizational success, and are able to simultaneously enhance their own sense of well-being. The HR function makes sure that the employees have an engagement with the organization and engagement with their manager, which automatically increases the competency and results in high performance. They are able to analyze the key drivers of engagement and plan activities or initiatives that will have the greatest impact of engaging the employees. The HR team engages the employees by arranging fitness activities, cultural events, mentoring activities, book clubs, family activities, charity run, volunteering activities, visits to other departments, company lunch, etc. This gives an opportunity to a good needed break from their routine, which is essential for employees. Thus this leads to increased productivity, increased quality, greater innovation and better customer service. â€Å"On what high-performing companies should be striving to create: A great place for great people to do great work.† – Marilyn Carlson, former CEO of Carlson Companies, 2014 The following report tells, as to how HR professionals support line managers and staff Communication: Organizational communication refers to the forms and channels of communication among employees of organizations. Studies have found a strong relationship between the levels of communication in an organization and job performance and satisfaction. Organizational communication takes place upward, downward and horizontally. The HR function helps to bridge the gap between the management and direct employees or vice versa. The HR department has the responsibility to encourage management at all levels to communicate with employees regarding all matters of concern, including various company actions such as layoffs, promotions and important subject matters such as benefits, company policies and employment stability. Excellent communication between HR personnel and the company’s employees keeps them constantly well informed. Employees need to be listened at all times so that it will not demotivate them. Hence communication done with the help of HR function has been shown to be linked to good company’s success. â€Å"The art of communication is the language of leadership† – James Humes, 2011 Performance Management: Performance Management encourages the continuous improvement of business processes and of individuals’ skills, behaviour and contributions. This evaluation system is an invaluable tool for all business. An annual performance review places all employees on an equal field and allows the managers to see which employees are creating the most value for the organization. HR function plays an important role, by ensuring that the  process is far, accurate and managed appropriately. It motivates employees and helps in the development of the organization in the right direction. The goals and tasks of managers and employees should be aligned with the business strategy. HR function helps in setting departmental and individual performance targets, evaluates the whole process to improve effectiveness and also encourage business heads to award the right employee. This is like a key delivery mechanism associated with the management behaviours instrumental in driving performance, such as listening, coaching, communicating and creating relationships based on trust and respect. By giving such support, the line managers and organization will be definitely benefited. â€Å"A process, which contributes to the effective management of individuals and teams in order to achieve high levels of organizational performance.† – Armstrong M. and Baron A. (2004), Managing Performance: Performance Management in action, Institute of Personnel and Development. Job Analysis: Detailed examination of the task, that makes up an employee role also what the job requires in terms of aptitudes, attitudes, knowledge and skills of an employee. It is the first step in a thorough understanding of the job and forms the basis of job description. Job analysis is important primarily because of its influence on organisational structure and also the interrelatedness of it and job design. Without detailed information gained from job analysis, structuring an organisation and understanding where potential duplicity occurs in roles and functions will be difficult. Job analysis is used to: Establish and document competencies required for a job. Identify the job-relatedness of the tasks and competencies needed to successfully perform the job Provide a source of legal defensibility of assessment and selection procedures. It allows departments to identify paths of job progression for employees interested in improving their opportunities for career advancement. Thus line managers and heads are encouraged to consult with HR function for guidance at every step in the job analysis process. â€Å"The entrepreneur builds an enterprise; the technician builds a job† – Michael E. Gerber, (2001), The E-Myth Revisited: Why most small business don’t work and what to do about it, Harper Business Hence the HR function would be grateful, if it is still retained in the organisation. As mentioned the above functions and roles will improvise the growth of the company.

How to Become a Good Parent

In this world, parents consider as torchlight for their children. Parents try to do everything for their children whether it is hard or easy for them. Parents gave them directions how to start their new life by themselves. To become a good parent, a person must have all good qualities which are necessary for their children. There are various steps to become a good parent. The first step is to always take care of your children properly. Parents need to give food to children at proper time in an adequate amount. Never leave them alone till age of maturity. Always keep an eye on their daily activities. Parents also need to take information about their children such as who are their friends in schools and neighborhood. They must find out are they good natured students? The second step is that parents must tell their children what is good for them or what is bad. In this way, children can remain safe without anybody else’s care. If children have already known about bad things, they never do any bad habits. They will always remain far away from bad habits like smoking and gambling. Sometimes, some students start to do bad habits because nobody told them the difference between good and bad. However, parents must tell the disadvantages of bad habits to their children. The third step is to help them in their study. Parents always help their children at the time of any difficulty in their study. Also parents need to decide whether or not children need part-time tutor for their homework. If parents can’t help their children in any difficulties regarding studies, they need to ask the teacher to teach them again on parent’s day. The fourth step is to show your love and also gave them examples of their life experiences. Parents should not shout at their children in front of others. If they will be doing this, children felt their insult and it will lessen their love towards parents. Parents should always teach them in positive way which means with a lot of love. Parents never put so many burdens on their children so that they will become like a burning candle, for example- job along with study, house responsibilities. The fifth step is to teach children, how to survive in this complicated world. Parents teach their children, how to face the difficulties in their life. The guidance and motivation always remains in the mind of children forever because they learned guidance during growing up. Parents must teach their children to think deeply before doing anything, for example- While taking any decision regarding their life goals. In conclusion, by following these steps which are take care, recognizing of bad and good habits, helping them in their study, love, a person can become a good parent. These steps will make a good parent for children who are going to start a new life. The past experiences of parents become lessons for their children in future.

Impact of the Internet and Media for Modern Youth

INTERNET ON MODERN YOUTH The content of the current media culture is often blind to a young person’s cultural,economic and educational background. The concept of a media culture has evolvedowing to the increased volume, variety and importance of mediated signs and messagesand the interplay of interlaced meanings. In the world of young people, themedia are saturated by popular culture and penetrate politics, the economy, leisuretime and education. At present, the global media culture is a pedagogic force that hasthe potential to exceed the achievements of institutionalized forms of education.AsHenry Giroux puts it:â€Å"With the rise of new media technologies and the global reach of thehighly concentrated culture industries, the scope and impact of theeducational force of culture in shaping and refiguring all aspects of  daily life appear unprecedented. Yet the current debates have generallyignored the powerful pedagogical influence of popular culture,along with the implicat ions it has for shaping curricula, questioningnotions of high-status knowledge, and redefining the relationship  between the culture of schooling and the cultures of everyday life. 6The concept of media culture encompasses not simply symbolic combinationsof immaterial signs or capricious currents of old and new meanings, but an entire wayof life7 in which images, signs, texts and other audio-visual representations are connectedwith the real fabric of material realities, symbols and artificialities. 8Media culture is pervasive; its messages are an important part of the everydaylives of young people, and their daily activities are structured around media use.Thestories and images in the media become important tools for identity construction. A  pop star  provides a model  for clothing and  other style choices, and language used  bya cartoon character becomes a key factor in the street credibility of young people. Under the present circumstances, there are few places left i n the world where onemight escape the messages and meanings embedded in the televised media culture.In a mediated culture, it can be difficult for young people to discern whose representationsare closest to the truth, which representations to believe, and whichimages matter. This is partly because the emergence of digitalized communication and the commoditization of culture have significantly altered the conditions under whichlife and culture are experienced. Many are still attached to the romantic image of  organic communities in which people converse with one another face-to-face and livein a close-knit local environment.Digital communication is gradually undermining thistraditional approach:â€Å"Most of the ways in which we make meanings, most of our communicationsto other people, are not directly human and expressive, butinteractions in one way or another worked through commodities andcommodity relations: TV, radio, film, magazines, music, commercialdance, style, fashion, co mmercial leisure venues. These are major  realignments. † 9In the world of young people, the media culture may be characterized primarilyin terms of three distinct considerations. First, it is produced and reproduced bydiverse ICT sources.It is therefore imperative to replace the teaching of knowledgeand skills central to agrarian and industrial societies with education in digital literacy. A similar point is made by Douglas Kellner, who contends that in a media culture it isimportant to learn multiple ways of interacting with social reality. 10 Children and young  people must be provided with opportunities to acquire skills in multiple literacies toenable them to develop their identities, social relationships and communities, whether  material, virtual, or a combination of the two.Second, the media culture of youth extends beyond signs and symbols, manifestingitself in young people’s physical appearance and movements. The media cultureinfluence is visible in how youth present themselves to the world through meansmade available by prevailing fashions; the body is a sign that can be used effectivelyto produce a cultural identity. Furthermore, various kinds of media-transmitted skillsand knowledge are stored and translated into movements of the body. This is evidentin a number of youth subcultures involving certain popular sports, games andmusic/dances such as street basketball, skateboarding and hip hop.The body is highly susceptible to different contextual forms of control. Whilethey are in school, pupils’ movements are regulated by certain control mechanismsand cognitive knowledge. In the streets, youth clubs and private spaces, however, their bodies function according  to a different logic. Informal knowledge absorbed throughthe media culture requires some conscious memorizing but also involves physicallearning, quite often commercialized. 11Third, in the experience of young people, media culture represents a sourceof pleasure and relative autonomy compared with home or school.As P. Willis states:â€Å"Informal cultural practices are undertaken because of the pleasuresand satisfactions they bring, including a fuller and more roundedsense of the self, of ‘really being yourself’ within your own knowablecultural world. This entails finding better fits than the institutionally or  ideologically offered ones, between the collective and cultural senses  Ã¢â‚¬â€the way it walks, talks, moves, dances, expresses, displays—  and its actual conditions of existence; finding a way of ‘beingin the world’ with style at school, at work, in the street. 12Experts on young people have long appreciated the complexity of the conceptof youth, especially when examined from a global perspective. The best summation is  perhaps that the concept of youth today is historically and contextually conditioned;in other words, it is relative as well as socially and culturally constructed. 13 In the presentmedia culture, the age at which childhood is perceived to end is declining, and the  period of  youth seems to be  extending upward.It is useful, however, to recall that the majority of young people in the worlddo not live according to the Western conceptions of youth. For them, childhood andadolescence in the Western sense exist only indirectly through media presentations. The same media culture influences seem to be in effect outside the Western world,  but their consequences are  likely to be somewhat different owing mainly to variationsin definitions of childhood and youth and to the different authority relationships  prevailing in individual cultures.Children and young people are often seen as innocent victims of the pervasive and  powerful media. In the extreme view, the breakdown of the nuclear family, teenage  pregnancy, venereal disease, paedophilia, child  trafficking and child prostitutionspreading through the Internet, drug use, juvenile crime, t he degeneration of manners,suicide and religious cults are all seen as problems exacerbated or even inflicted upon

Multinational Acquisition Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Multinational Acquisition - Research Paper Example In 2010, the world witnessed the acquisition of a famous multinational company Cadbury by Kraft Food Products. Kraft Foods, an American multinational, which deals in food products acquired Cadbury, a British multinational dealing in confectionary products, as a way to diversify its holdings. As such, in January 2010, Kraft Foods acquired Cadbury for ?11.9 billion ($19.6 billion) (Merced & Nicholson, 2010). This made Kraft Foods the biggest confectioner in the world. It has been recorded as the biggest food and beverage deal in European history according Reuters. The initial offer of Kraft Foods was 745p, per share which was increase by 14 percent to 850p per share. Initially the acquisition was opposed by the trade unions because they had the prescient concern that such an acquisition would necessarily lead to job cuts. However, Kraft Foods confirmed that the combined company would be able to create more jobs in UK, apart from the existing employees that Cadbury currently employed (J ones, & Dorfman, 2010). Research Objectives The objective of this research is to focus on the issues that arise after a multinational acquisition acquires a different organizational culture, framework, process and system in comparison to the company which has acquired it. The motive would be to analyze the accounting requirements after acquisition, difficulties that arise with reference to preparation of combined financial statements, as well as to separately assess the goodwill of the business combination and other key issues. The objective would also be to study the IFRS and GAAP guidelines which are applicable in cases such as the one that will be studied. Outline of the Study The research study includes a detailed study of the multinational acquisition of Cadbury by Kraft Foods. General analysis of the scenario before acquisition is done; furthermore, the study will discuss the after effects of acquisition within the new business combination. As such, the study will begin with a brief overview of the acquisition that took place in January 2010. The research objective is stated to describe the motive behind conducting the research. Furthermore, a literature review will include analysis of the accounting requirements and the challenges faced by the company in preparing the combined financial statements. Apart from this discussion on the process of evaluating the intangible assets of the company and key changes that are made in the acquired company would be revealed, the study will attempt to give a complete view of the successful objectives required by such an approach. LITERATURE REVIEW Accounting Requirements and Challenges in preparing Financial Statement In the case of the acquisition of Cadbury by Kraft Foods, the holding company is Kraft Foods and Cadbury is the subsidiary. Therefore, the companies in this business combination need to apply for acquisition accounting to the newly united business. Similarly, the holding company is the one which holds ma jority of the shares of the subsidiary company. The holding company must also become responsible for the balance sheet and profit and loss statements of the subsidiar

Toyota Marketing in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Toyota Marketing in China - Essay Example Sales of marketable vehicle in the country are forecasted to grow at a CAGR of around 5.5% during 2008-2010. Based on the past performance, it is projected that passenger car sales will cross 11 Million Units in 2010. China is the world's second largest car market. It overtook Japan just last year and is challenging to become the world's largest automobile market. The industrial revolution in China has prompted development and growth in the middle-class of China and the automobiles have translated into a symbol of prestige. Toyota was a latecomer to the China market. Within its global strategies, North America is the top priority, followed by its home country Japan. China has been included in Toyota's top development strategy in recent years with its first China-made VIOS sedan produced in Tianjin in October 2002. Considering China as an immature auto market, the company had adopted a three-stage development plan -- first to establish a local sales network and launch brand promotions, then to build auto parts manufacturing bases, and, finally, to establish joint ventures (JVs) with local players and produce automobiles. Although a latecomer, Toyota has jumped to the front in terms of imported car volume -- 50,000 units annually (Jiang, 2004). The company stepped into the most important and critical stage -- speeding up the localization of its products, since its rivals, such as Honda and General Motors, started accelerating their saturation into China. After the market entry of the Prado and Land Cruis er with China's First Automobile Works, its manufactured goods with Guangzhou Automobile Manufacturing Co -- Camry, which was a great success in the Untied States, was also developed. Forbes magazine comments on Toyota's success in the US auto market, saying that once the company sets goals, it will manage to exceed the targets. What is more demanding to its rivals is Toyota's approach to realize these goals. That estimation may well apply to its China development. Although Toyota missed the first opportunities, it will likely catch up if it pays more attention to the China market and introduces high-end brands. Toyota may scale back its ambitious target of selling more vehicles in the United States this year than it did in 2007, as damage from an economic slowdown and high oil prices becomes more fully known. Toyota sold more than 4.8 million vehicles worldwide in the first half of this year, up 2% from the same period a year earlier, the Japanese automaker said Wednesday. That exceeded General Motors Corp.'s sales of 4.5 million vehicles in the same period, setting up Toyota to potentially end GM's 76-year run as the world's top automaker by sales (CNN Money, 2007) Toyota, the third-biggest foreign car brand in China, reported investing 3.6 billion Yuan ($526.8 million) to double the production capacity of one of its plants. This should boost Toyota's overall capacity in China to 830,000 units by the first half of 2010. Global requirement for light hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) is estimated to reach 4.5 million units in 2013. Increasing energy costs and greater than before emissions regulations are likely to increase demand for HEVs. The US is expected to experience the highest level of demand for HEVs, estimated at two million units in