Retention Mangement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Retention Mangement - Essay Example It also evaluates the involvement the person can put together in the direction of organizational accomplishments. The present article considers the turnover, its causes and its complete analysis. In the present scenario where the competition is on its climax, to procure good working hands and individuals with sound knowledge, skills and temperament is a tough task. Further tougher is to retain the skilled hands, those who are well acclimatized and adjusted to the organizational norms, culture and with co-workers (Smith; Managing staff turnover and retention). It is imperative to keep the employees motivated and they should have encouraging self-esteem with their work appropriately rewarded. The most challenging tasks which organizations in present epoch are observing encompass retention of skilled and competitive employees. In order to appreciate superior staffing, lesser expenditure enhanced drive and an improved awareness and understanding, retention of able and talented employees is necessary. Staff turnover is expected and could be advantageous, but excessive is expensive in requisites of staffing and training assets. Turnover varies with the economic cycles; during the time of recession it falls causing masquerade the fundamental tribulations like distressed staff. Therefore, it is essential to manage issues related to turnover. It is desired for enhanced management of employees in an organization and working out approaches and procedures to retain staff. Turnover can be classified in three ways based on the nature of problems: 2. Employee’s way- due to work atmosphere, dissatisfaction, low salary, lack of recognition, too demanding or involving work, not able to cope the competitive stress. This could be addressed with 5 P’s as- Poor equation between job and the individual, Poor fit in the culture of the organization, Poor coalition between

Scams in India Essay Example for Free

Scams in India Essay Everything seems to be dank and dark today. Every political party is being exposed in corruption issues, some small, some large, some beyond comprehension. Inflation is rampant, IIP is down, GDP growth is shrinking, reforms seem to be in cold storage, the sovereign ratings of the country head south, the rupee is struggling, FDI inflows come down to a trickle. There is nothing to cheer about, it seems. Yes, there is, if you look hard enough. Take the case of former BMC chief Subodh Kumar and his attempt to take a post-retirement job with Essel group. Hindustan Times, in a news report, linked Kumar to an approval that was sought by the Essel group, using his discretionary powers. That was the end of that. The Subodh Kumar episode demonstrates that, in today’s environment, there is little that will escape scrutiny by media. It might be a small, insignificant episode, but it is a pointer of the state of the nation and the nation’s attitude towards corruption. There is no more ‘respect’ for the ‘sanctity’ of the office of the prime minister, as has been proven by the attempts to gherao his residence as if he were no different from the manager of a factory in West Bengal in the Left agitations in the 1970s. As far as media is concerned, there is no holy cow any more. News media, in all forms, does not hesitate to name wrongdoers and alleged wrongdoers, starting with the lowliest of government servants and rising to the office of the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister himself. It is only a CAG who can fearlessly interrogate the government. That is why the founding fathers of the Constitution have provided that the CAG cannot be removed and he has to be impeached in the same manner as a Supreme Court judge,† says former Solicitor General Gopal Subramaniam in The Hindu. Institutions of government, too, have no fear of politicians and those in positions of power. It is now normal and routine for the government (central and state) to be pulled up by the CAG, by courts at every level, by news media, by social activists and ‘RTI’ activists. There is no more ‘respect’ for the ‘sanctity’ of the office of the prime minister, as has been proven by the attempts to gherao his residence as if he were no different from the manager of a factory in West Bengal in the Left agitations in the 1970s. Each of these developments point to an India that will be forced to become more accountable and less corrupt. Attempts by some sections, such as the BJP, to jump on to the anti-corruption bandwagon and project themselves as an honest alternative to the Congress have come to naught, with both activists and the media bracketing the BJP with the Congress when it comes to corruption. Social media is playing a significant role as well, in amplifying the reach of the critics of the political classes. A constantly biased news media is close to impossibility – critics can reach millions of their followers in milliseconds, who in turn, spread the anti-establishment messages and debunk the official spin. No political party is safe. As far as the business community is concerned, the Adarsh scam, the 2G scam and Coalgate all send telling signals. Corrupting politicians and bureaucrats is no longer a guarantee for quick and easy licenses and profits. The scams are exposed with regularity, and we see, increasingly, ill-founded decisions being reversed – which reverses the fortunes of the corrupter. We’ve seen this is the Adarsh scam and the 2G scam – and we’ll doubtless see this in Coalgate. The frenetic pace of change, beginning with Anna Hazare’s fast in April 2011, has caught the political establishment off-guard. They’re unused to the intense and unrelenting scrutiny, in misdemeanors large and small. The last few months, beginning with Coalgate, have underlined that this is the new state of affairs. Wrongdoing will be caught, sooner or later. There is nothing and no one that is sacred and out of bounds. The toothpaste is out of the tube, and it cannot be put back. This heralds a new India. Even without the Lokpal, the corrupt (in the large cases of corruption) are being exposed and brought to book. More will be exposed and more will be caught. This means that we will see more of such headlines, more politicians exposed and more of the corrupters finding themselves tangled in the web. It’ll mean months of pain – perhaps even years of pain. But, in the end, we will see India becoming less corrupt and we will see politicians more accountable. It may seem dank and dark today, but the thought that, as a result of all that is happening today, we could see a brighter and more prosperous India, is a spectacular sliver lining.

How Priestly Uses the Characters to Represent His Own Views on Society :: An Inspector Calls Edwardian Society Essays

How Priestly Uses the Characters to Represent His Own Views on Society The play "An Inspector Calls" is set in 1912 but was written in 1945. Edwardian society at that time (1912) was strictly divided into social classes and over two-thirds of the nation's wealth was in the hands of less than 1% of the population. Below the very rich were the middle classes (doctors and merchants, shop workers and clerks), after that came the craftsmen and skilled workers. At the very bottom of the social ladder was the largest class of all - the ordinary workers and the poor, many of whom lived below the poverty level. The men of industry treated the workers very badly and they were paid pittance. This caused workers to become better organised and strikes were becoming more frequent as they demanded better conditions and higher pay. J.B. Priestley was writing the play for a middle class audience and was trying to speak up for the working class by showing how the Birlings and Gerald Croft were all involved in making a young working class girl's life a misery. Priestley wants to show us that we have a responsibility to others to act fairly and without prejudice and that we do not live in isolation. Our actions affect others. This is the concept of collective responsibility. Priestley says, 'things could really improve if only people were to become more socially responsible for the welfare of others'. We have to confront our mistakes and learn from them. The play starts off with the Birling family celebrating their daughter's engagement to Gerald Croft. The family included Mr Birling, Mrs Birling, Eric Birling, Sheila Birling and Gerald Croft. Arthur Birling is glad because Gerald is the son of his business competitor and it will be a merger of businesses. Through the middle of the dinner there is a knock at the door. This is where we meet inspector Goole. He tells the family that a girl has committed suicide and that in one way or another they are responsible. Mr Birling was responsible for sacking the girl from his factory. Sheila Birling was responsible because she got the girl sacked from a shop where she works. Eric Birling was seeing her but the broke it off, and Gerald Croft was having an affair with her but he also broke it off. All of their morals are tested and they are all put to the test because none of them really know the truth about what they have done until the inspector brings it out of them. After the inspector goes the family finds out that he was a fake and that no girl had died.

Creative Writing; Point of View from a Stuffed Animal Kitten

Sitting up high, I felt like the king of the world. All of my peers sat below me and some sat at my side like Louis the XIV’s assistants would sit by him. Because they were all below me, they all looked up to me. I would see that they leave my land happily with welcoming denizens who carefully picked them out. A plethora of young aliens would frequently skip back and forth along my lane, picking up and hugging my soft and furry subjects with glee. Occasionally some of my peers found themselves laying lonely on the ground, but help always came.A much taller, weathered-looking alien came by and swept the helpless up and put them back on their shelves. I never fell though, of course. Nothing could touch me at the time, until I met the day that would bring my demise as a king of my land. It was a normal day like every other. I was watching over my peers with full intention of protection when I noticed a peculiar little alien. This alien was different and very unlike all other litt le aliens that came through my land. He wore a frown on his round face and stomped his feet out of displeasure to the middle of the lane.After a quick perusal, his zealous eyes threw angry glances towards me as I remained patient while enduring utmost disrespect. Before I could register in my mind what was happening to me, I was being squeezed by the fractious alien’s hands. He squeezed and pinched every part of my body: ears, nose, whiskers, tail, and paws. I was violated over and over as I was scanned and thrown into a plastic bag. Leaving my kingdom, I felt uncomfortable warmth all over my body. I couldn’t see through the translucent bag, but the bright light which passed through blinded me.I was roughly tossed into what I now know is a transportation vehicle, hitting my head. Quickly, the vehicle turned on, made a loud noise, and began moving. It hit many bumps and I hit my head continuously leaving my entire body sore. I was being smothered by the plastic bag I wa s contained in and soon lost consciousness. Within moments, my life had gone from greatness to nothing. I was once the beloved king of my people, but quickly became an obsequious slave. I was thrown at walls, wailed into furniture, stomped on the floor, and dropped in dirt.My face would be drilled into the mud many times over the years. Sticky juice and soda pop would be spilled on my once soft, clean fur. My long whiskers were cut, and my white fur was dirty. I felt more ugly than I looked. The giant family dog and the alien boy often played tug-of-war with my sore body, pulling me back and forth ripping the stitches at my limbs. Thick dog slobber would drip down my snout, further dirtying my fur. All I wanted was to be loved. All I wanted was to be cared for. It wasn’t too long until the alien boy stopped playing with me.The dog forgot about my existence as well. The feeling was bitter-sweet. I wasn’t being mistreated anymore, and I wasn’t constantly exposed t o pain and discomfort, but I felt alone more than ever. Minutes felt like hours, hours felt like days, and days felt like weeks. I laid in a dusty corner for months facing the banal wall, only able to hear my surroundings. This feeling was common, common to anyone forgotten and mistreated. This is how I thought I would spend eternity. Soon life would change once more for me.One morning I found myself in a large bag with many others like me. There were teddy bears, toy horses, dolls, and cars. I was surprised to find out that they had been treated the same way I had been by the alien boy. Just like me, they all once had good lives which were ripped away from them by the alien. They were beaten and dirtied, but eventually forgotten. We were taken to the transportation vehicle and tossed into it. It started up, and within minutes we were at our destination. After being emptied out of the bag, my eyes met the faces of many little girl aliens.They rhapsodized over us, for their faces wer e filled with smiles as â€Å"oohs† and â€Å"ahhs† poured out of their mouths. They bounced up and down with excitement and anticipation. One alien gently grabbed my body and hugged me tightly to her chest. For the next several hours she swung me on the outside swings and took me everywhere she went. In the evening she would put me back on the top of my shelf – my new kingdom – for a respite and get me down again the next day. All of the new little aliens brought something to me I never had before. They brought me love that I had yearned for.

Should Animals Be Kept in Zoo

houldTopic: You are a member of your school’s debating club. Write a debating speech on the topic â€Å"Animals should never be kept in zoos†. You can either choose for or against the motion. Honorable adjudicators, Ladies and gentlemen, Today’s motion is â€Å"Animals should never be kept in zoos†. Our team totally oppose to the motion. Mind the word ‘never’ is used, which gives a very extreme meaning. Our opponents may say that animals come from nature. They deserve and have to live in their own habitat to make sense. We, human beings, should never disturb them.There should be a clear boarder between them and us. However, is the really practical? The following arguments will explain. First of all, zoos keep animals for educating the public. Zoos are not amusement parks or circuses, animals are not required to be trained to perform. I hereby show sympathy for animals which are mistreated. Ladies and gentlemen, Animals in zoos are real, which attracts the public to visit. There is information about each species and visitors can know more about a variety of species if they read the descriptions.Even if not, at least they know they exist such kind of animal on earth and appreciate the biodiversity of nature. Zoos can also organize programmes and activities to enable participants to understand more about certain species in detail. Clearly, animals in zoos are valuable for educational purpose. Secondly, zoos can preserve animals. Apparently, animals can evade not only predators but also natural disasters like earthquake, hurricanes and so on so forth. This helps them to breed. Then, animals are not endangered or to face extinction.We can now protect what the nature gives us, as this is also our responsibility. In order to safeguard a diversity of species, it is of no alternatives but to keep some of them in zoos. Ladies and gentlemen, we have destroyed the nature enough since industrial revolution, it is time for us to repay and protect animals by simply keep Thirdly, animals in zoos obtain research values. Scientists are conducting researches on numerous animals. This facilitates us to understand deeply in animals.It would be difficult to randomly capture a suitable wild animal, in good condition, for experimental uses or observations. Employing animals in zoos alleviates time constraint and inadequate manpower. Ladies and gentlemen, the more we know about animals, the better we can treat them. Of course, we definitely try to preserve their habitats in nature. To achieve that, researching is the first step. My teammates Peter will further elaborate on the part of education and Mary will give more details of operating zoos.Most of us, if not all, disagree to confine all animals on earth in zoos, which is actually no possible. We just capture a few of each species for preservation, just like the seed bank for plants. Our opponent may the argue people treat them cruelly and we also cannot create the exac t same environment for animals to live in. it is undeniable that artificial environment is not the exact same copy of the nature, which is what animals craving for.However, with advanced technology and better knowledge, we believe it is possible to simulate the nature for animals to live. It is not practical to refuse any degree of confinement of animals. Ladies and gentlemen, we anticipate a balanced sustainable development, which is on both environmental and economic sides, and we ignored the latter in the past. Conserving the nature has become our obligation and zoos are one of the best ways to complete this eternal task. Therefore, ladies and gentlemen, today’s motion must not stand. I rest my case. Thank you.

Equipment & Accessories Basic location essays

Equipment & Accessories Basic location essays Equipment The range of equipment and accessories used for each photographic shoot will depend on various factors such as location, lighting, time limitations and quality of desired image. Also the type of shoots being undertaken. Such as Press, Wedding, Studio (Still life For example the 35mm SLR is a small camera, which has the bonus of being able to change both the lenses and film with ease and speed. It is easy to handle and has the option of additional features such as a motor winder and a camera flashgun. These might be used in press and sports photography when the action may happen quickly and only a small window may be available for images to be recorded and a larger medium format camera would not be suitable. (Zoom lenses would be used if action were at various distances). A range finder camera would be suitable if the shoot was one of reportage/ candid work. Or a standard 35mm camera with a wide-angle lens may do the job if action was shot indirectly. The 35mm negative would produce images of enough quality for newspaper print. When shooting in a press and sport style environment a fast film speed should be chosen. This is because a faster film works faster in poor light conditions where a slow film will need better light conditions to work at the same speed. The slower the film speed the finer the grain quality (this should be taken into consideration). Also instead of a tripod, a monopod might be used as floor space maybe in great demand. The Medium format camera offers a massive increase in quality of the image. When using this type of camera more time has to be allocated to each shot and should increase the photographers control. This increase in quality, and also its portable format, makes the camera ideal for weddings and portrait ...

The smoothie industry Essays

The smoothie industry Essays The smoothie industry Paper The smoothie industry Paper The smoothie industry has and is still experiencing exponential growth. This case analysis will delve into the industry by observing its external and internal environment. Utilizing Griffins Model as a guideline; eco-environment, economic, technological, political/legal, social/cultural, international dimensions and its task environment will be closely analyzed. A. External Environment: I. Eco-Environment: Since the smoothie industry relies heavily on fresh fruit and juices for its ingredients, the eco-environment definitely has an important role. The climate can either limit or help the industry thrive depending on the fruit(s). Fruits such as oranges thrive during summer season and strawberries flourish in the winter season. The seasons not only affect the ingredients that go into the smoothies but also affect the amount of people drinking the smoothies. According to Bill Winter, One of the risks in juice bars is seasonalityjuice bar sales plateau when the weather cools (Business Review Weekly, Australia 2001). II. General Environment: A. Economic Dimension: The market for smoothies has grown by more than 30 per cent each year since the mid-1990s (Ehlrich). Juice Smoothie Association (JASA) predicted back in 2001 juice bar sales would surpass $1 billion. Dan Titus, director of Juice Gallery Multimedia and JASA, also adds, We have been following the juice/smoothie segment for several years now and predict that 2002 will continue to exhibit positive growth and revenue picture (Business Wire, 2001). B. Technological Dimension: Astute Solutions , a leading provider of eCRM solutions, created the software program Power Center(tm) for management use in multi-channel customer contacts. PowerCenter is a powerful consumer response and tracking system that integrates multiple channels of communication and multiple customer databases (Business Wire, 2002). Incentive Systems is another technology that provides spreadsheet system. Nina McIntyre, vice president of worldwide marketing at Incentive Systems, says Potentially its data stream from point-of-sales systems, from cash registers systems, wherever [users] capture the transactions that are being measured. We can integrate with those software packages, the data flow into our incentive management system, and then we calculate the incentive payments (Managing Customer Service, 2001). Technological research studies have indicated that isoflavones (found in soy) may actually prevent the growth of estrogen-dependent breast cancer cells as r eported in March 2000 issue of the Journal Cancer Research (The Desert News). C. Political/Legal Dimension: Smoothie industry must follow regulations. Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) regulation is that foods must have to have at least 6.25 grams of soy protein per serving and must also meet other criteria in being low in fat, cholesterol, and sodium (The Desert News). Regulations enforced by OSHA also have salient stimuli to the industry. Federal and State regulations are also salient, regulations such as Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Time Off to Vote, Federal Family and Medical Leave Act and California Labor Code. D. Social/Cultural Dimension: Smoothies have become an alternative in Americans health conscience. In recent past years, they have been conscientious about their fat-in-take. Smoothies provide a healthy indulgence packed with fruity flavors and nutrients that comply with societys taste and health conscience. Good health is the principle factor behind smoothie producers growing interest in soy bases for their products (Dairy Field). According to Liz Zamites, marketing manager of brand development for cold beverages, Baskin-Robbins USA, Glendale, Calif., The experience of watching a smoothie being made reinforces the perception that you are using quality ingredients, that its not full of preservatives and that there are actually fresh fruit in there. E. International Dimension: In Great Britain, diluted products masquerading as smoothies are capitalizing on the lack of product definition (PR Newswire, 2001). This is because British Soft Drinks Association does not recognize smoothies as its own category. Manufacturers are labeling drinking products smoothie just because they have fruit in them. III. Task Environment: A. Competitors: The smoothie industrys main competitors are; Fantasia Fruit Juice Company- its juices have herbal and vitamin supplements such as vitamin C and St. Johns wort (thought to have calming effect), reported to have been said by Barnhorn, their mission is to nourish the Midwest community we grew up in. Planet Smoothie-127 locations in 21 states and plans to open 30 more locations in the New Orleans area, Smoothie King- operates in vitamins and nutritional supplements retail, has 276 locations and was founded more than 30 years ago, annual sales of $60 million (Ronette King). ZiA Juice Co.- lower-cost alternative to Jamba Juice(Nations Restaurant News), ZiA has taken pride in providing Customerization and LifeSTYLING for its customers, ZiAs menu consist of signature fruit smoothies with supplements such as Siberian ginseng and soy protein, along with frozen coffee-blended beverages and freshly made fruit and vegetable juices (Nations Restaurant News). VIP Smoothies- although a newly developed company, has already developed a plan of attack on selected markets with product national initial distribution with FSI coupons and billboard and radio advertising (Frozen Food Age). Other notable competitors are Juice it Up and Juice Stop, they too have a share in dominating the market (Business Review Weekly- Australia). Freshens Smoothie Company- it is an Atlanta based company and has 500 stores in operation, which is becoming the nations fastest growing smoothie chain. Freshens has collaborated with MET-Rx and developed a full line of nutritional boost-ers especially designed for Freshens (Dairy Field). B. Customers: Dairy Field reports, Bucking the trend toward fatty on-the-go refreshments, todays consumers are reportedly slurping down smoothies with increasing frequency. A typical smoothie drinker has been narrowed down to ages between 18 to 34 with a higher household income, and is more likely to be female (Zamites). A survey conducted by AC Nielsen showed that, The intent to purchase was over 70 percent Among households with children under 18, it was over 80 per cent. What they found astounding from this survey was that almost half of those surveyed were not regular smoothie drinkers. The other half of the percentage drinks at least one smoothie a week. C. Suppliers: Whole Foods- has been identified as being the worlds largest retailer of natural and organic foods. According to Angi McMurray they feature foods free of artificial flavors, colors, sweeteners, and synthetic preservatives, and unbleached grains and grain products. Southwest Traders- a firm based in Temecula provides and delivers fresh fruits and vegetables such as oranges, lemons, carrots, celery, etc. It also supplies napkins and cups. Southwest is one of the nations largest suppliers to ice cream and yogurt shops and juice bars as reported in The Business Press/California. D. Regulators: Food and Drug Administration (FDA)- regulates the labeling of foods. As reported in The Desert News, in year 2000, the FDA allowed the soybean industry to say that 25 grams of soy protein eaten daily, in conjunction with a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease. This salient because since then soy protein has been in high demand and the smoothie industry quickly capitalized on this. For the average diet of 2000 calories a day, the World Health Organization, USDA and other leading authorities recommend that 55-60% of calories come from carbs, 10-20% from proteins, and 20-30% from fats. Plus, studies show that diets low in sodium, containing a good source of potassium, may reduce the risk of stroke and high blood pressure!(www.jambajuice.com) Occupational Safety Health Administration- oversees the well-being of employees and customers. Strict regulations are enforced constantly by OSHA inspectors. They make often visits to store sites unexpectedly. E. Strategic Allies: One known strategic ally is Amazon Advertising. Jamba Juice has teamed up with Amazon Advertising to handle branding and some advertising (ADWEEK). Lynda Pearson, creative director at Amazon in San Francisco said that Jamba is an ideal client because it offers people on the go on an appealing alternative to burgers and french fries. F. Labor Market: In an interview with Rodney Moore, district manager of Orange/San Diego 1, the labor market consist of ages 16 to 22 year olds. Jamba Juice takes pride on hiring employees that exemplifies the companys core values and attitude. G. Labor Unions: This is not a factor in this case because Jamba Juice employees are not unionized. H. External Owners: After an interview with Rodney Moore, Jamba Juice does have external owners but their identities are classified since it is still a privately owned company. B. Internal Environment: I. Owners: Given that Jamba Juice is a privately owned company; its internal owners identities are unidentifiable. II. Board of Directors: Only two of the five members of the board were identified. They are Kirk Perron and Paul Clayton. Kirk J. Perron Founder A visionary from the start, Kirks passion for health and fitness led to the creation of Juice Club. At the age of 27, he opened the first Juice Club store in San Luis Obispo in the spring of 1990. Since then, Kirk has contributed greatly to the organization by fulfilling various roles from Store Operator to CEO to Chairman of the Board. As the Founder, he is actively involved in company affairs ranging from store design to brand development, and currently chairs the Jamba Wellness Advisory Board. His passion and commitment to providing the best possible experience for all customers remains the standard to which Jamba Juice aspires every day (www.jambajuice.com). Paul E. Clayton, Jr. President and Chief Executive Officer Paul joined Jamba in February 2000. Prior to joining Jamba, Paul spent 16 years with the Burger King Corporation where he held a variety of marketing and general management positions. In 1994, Paul was appointed Senior Vice President, Worldwide Marketing and in 1997 he was appointed President, Burger King North America. He was responsible for operations, new store development, marketing and franchise relations for more than 8,000 restaurants in North America. Paul started his career as a Restaurant Manager for McDonalds in Bonn, Germany. He received his B.S.B.A from Boston University in 1980 and his MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1984. III. Employees: Employees from day one, go through an orientation of the company and the store, trained to be highly skilled in preparing smoothies and to be knowledgeable of ingredients and products, procedures and policies. Current 25 employees range from ages 16 to 26. Majority of the employees live within proximity of 5 miles to the store. The workforce is well diversified, employees having Asian/Pacific Islander background, African-American descent, and European ancestry. Employees from day one, go through an orientation of the company and the store, trained to be highly skilled in preparing smoothies and to be knowledgeable of ingredients and products, procedures and policies. The stores general manager is Carrie Gentry age 21. She has been with the company for 2 years and was transferred from Thousand Oaks. She now resides in Santee. Our newly acquired assistant general manager is Gary Smith age 25. He is new to the company.

Biography of Sargon the Great, Ruler of Mesopotamia

Biography of Sargon the Great, Ruler of Mesopotamia Sargon the Great was one of the worlds earliest empire  builders. From roughly  2334 to 2279 BCE, he ruled a civilization called the Akkadian Empire, consisting largely of ancient Mesopotamia,  after conquering all of Sumer (southern Mesopotamia) as well as parts of Syria, Anatolia (Turkey), and  Elam  (western Iran). His empire was the first political entity to have an extensive, efficient, large-scale bureaucracy to administer his far-flung lands and their culturally diverse people. Fast Facts: Sargon the Great Known For: Creating an empire in MesopotamiaAlso Known As: Sargon of Akkad, Shar-Gani-Sharri, Sarru-Kan (True King or Legitimate King)  Sargon of Agade, King of Agade, King of Kish, King of the LandDied: c. 2279 BCE Early Life Almost nothing is known of Sargons early life. There is no birth date; the dates of his reign are approximate; and the end of his reign, 2279, is only presumably the year of his death. His name at birth also is unknown; he adopted Sargon later. Although his name was among the most famous in antiquity, the modern world knew nothing of him until 1870 CE, when Sir Henry Rawlinson, a British army officer and scholar of the Orient, published the Legend of Sargon, which he had found in the library of King Ashurbanipal  of Assyria while excavating the ancient Mesopotamian city of  Nineveh  in 1867. The Legend of Sargon, engraved in cuneiform on a clay tablet, supposedly represented his biography, though its often described as folklore. It reads, in part: My mother was a changeling, my father I knew not...My mother conceived me in secret, she gave birth to me in concealment. She set me in a basket of rushes, She sealed the lid with tar. She cast me into the river...The water carried me to Akki, the drawer of water. He lifted me out as he dipped his jar into the river, He took me as his son, he raised me, He made me his gardener. Sargons mother, said to have been a priestess in a town on the Euphrates River and perhaps one of an order of sacred prostitutes, couldnt keep the child. She hit upon an option strikingly similar to one involving Moses, although her baby supposedly floated down the Euphrates instead of the Nile. The future founder of the  Akkadian Empire was discovered by a gardener who served Ur-Zababa, the king of  Kish, a massive subterranean city on the island of Kish off the coast of Iran. Rise to Power Sargon eventually became Ur-Zababas cup-bearer, a servant who brought a king’s wine but also served as a trusted adviser. For unknown reasons, the king felt threatened by Sargon and tried to get rid of him: When Lugal-zage-si, the  king  of Umma who had conquered and consolidated many city-states in Sumer, came to conquer Kish next, Ur-Zababa sent Sargon to deliver a  clay tablet to the king, supposedly offering peace. The tablet, however, contained a message requesting that Lugal-zage-si kill Sargon. Somehow the conspiracy was thwarted, and the Sumerian king asked Sargon to join his campaign against the city. They conquered Kish and Ur-Zababa was deposed. But soon Sargon and Lugal-zage-si had a falling out. Some accounts say Sargon had an affair with Lugal-zage-si’s wife. At any rate, Sargon captured  Uruk,  an ancient land in southern Mesopotamia on the Euphrates River, from Lugal-zage-si and then defeated him in battle at Kish. Expanding His Realm A large part of  Sumer had been controlled by Uruk, so with both Ur-Zababa and Lugalzagesi out of the way, Sargon was the new ruler of an area from which to launch military campaigns and expand his empire. But Sargon also wanted to maintain the lands under his control, so he established an efficient  bureaucracy by placing trusted men in each Sumerian city to rule in his name. Meanwhile, Sargon expanded his empire, defeating the  Elamites to the East, who inhabited what is today western Iran. To the West, Sargon conquered parts of  Syria  and  Anatolia. He established his capital at Akkad, near Kish, becoming the first king of the Akkadian Dynasty. The city, which lent its name to the empire, has never been found. He conquered the nearby city-states of Ur, Umma, and Lagash and developed a commercial trade-based empire, with unifying roads and a postal system. Sargon made his daughter Enheduanna a high priestess of Nanna, Urs moon god. She was also a poet and is considered the world’s first author known by name, credited  with creating the paradigms of poetry, psalms, and prayers used throughout the ancient world that led to genres recognized in the present day. Death Sargon the Great is said to have died of natural causes around 2279 BCE and was succeeded by his son Rimush. Legacy Sargon Akkadian Empire lasted a century and a half, ending when it was displaced by the Gutian dynasty of Sumer during the 22nd century BCE. One of the results of Sargon’s conquests was the facilitation of trade. Sargon controlled the  cedar forests of Lebanon  and the silver mines of Anatolia, which provided valuable raw materials for trade in the  Indus Valley, as well as in civilizations in Oman and along the Gulf. The Akkadian Empire was the first political entity to make extensive use of bureaucracy and administration on a large scale, setting the standard for future rulers and kingdoms. The Akkadians developed the first postal system, constructed roads, improved irrigation systems, and advanced the arts and sciences. Sargon also is remembered for creating a society where the weak were protected. Stories say that during his reign, no one in Sumer had to beg for food, and widows and orphans were protected. Rebellions were common during his reign, though he reportedly said his enemies faced a â€Å"lion with teeth and claws.† Sargon the Great wasn’t regarded as a hero from humble beginnings who gained power to save his people, but his empire was considered a  Golden Age compared to those that followed. Sources Zettler, Richard L. Reconstructing the World of Ancient Mesopotamia: Divided Beginnings and Holistic History. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 2003.Sargon of Akkad: Familiar and Legendary Tales of a Famous Mesopotamian King. Ancient Origins.Sargon of Akkad. Ancient History Encyclopedia.Sargon: Ruler of Mesopotamia. Encyclopaedia Britannica.

Issac Newton and Paving the Way for Modern Physics Essay

Issac Newton and Paving the Way for Modern Physics - Essay Example It is thus no exaggeration to say that Newton paved the way for Modern Physics. The rest of this essay will flesh out this claim. Although retrospectively, Isaac Newton’s genius and legacy are now accepted facts, there was no inkling during his early years that this was destined him. Born in Woolsthorpe, England on a Christmas Day in 1642, there were odds stacked against Newton’s survival. He was born premature and his survival was uncertain. Just prior to his birth his father had expired. Even his youth was nothing illustrious, as he even ventured briefly into managing his family farm. The turning point for Newton’s life in science came with his enrolment in Cambridge University in 1661. Here, he came under the charge of distinguished cleric and mathematician Isaac Barrow, who mentored and inspired the young man, especially in mathematics. It was under the guidance of Barrow that Newton would conceive and articulate some of the most groundbreaking scientific dis coveries of the modern era.i As per an autobiographical account written for his nephews, the major streams of Newton's scientific work were all initiated during the plague years of 1665--66, when Cambridge was closed down due to an outbreak of plague and the young Newton went home for a short break. It was during this time that some of the cornerstone discoveries and inventions of modern physics came about. During this period, the inquisitive and penetrative mind of Newton started working on the laws of universal gravitation, the development of calculus, and the nature and behavior of light. The findings he made on these projects would enable him to make vital contributions to mathematics, theoretical physics, astronomy and experimental physics. Given the magnitude of some of these contributions, it is fair to say that Newton opened new vistas in these subjects and spawned the development of modern physics. In other words, he began to invent â€Å"a set of mathematical techniques, including what we call the binomial theorem and differential calculus. He did a set of optical experiments that demonstrated that white light is composed of a mixture of all colors of the rainbow. And he theorized that the Moon is maintained in its orbit around Earth by the same force that causes heavy objects near Earth's surface to fall to the ground--in other words, he began to think about the law of universal gravitation.†ii Although there is no precise answer to the date of origin of modern physics, a strong case can be made that it started in 1647 with the publication of Isaac Newton’s Philosophie Naturalis Principia Mathematica. In recognition of the momentousness of this publication, the Encyclopedia Britannica called Newton â€Å"’the culminating figure of the scientific revolution of the l7th Century’, and describes Principia Mathematica as ‘one of the most important works in the history of modern science.’ From its inception, modem science has quite simply dominated the human mind.†iii The sweep and influence of Newton’s work on subsequent scientific developments can be gleaned from the list of his important works. In Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica, Newton gives a concise account of his discoveries in terrestrial and celestial mechanics, which is a cornerstone for modern physics. In it, he explicated how universal gravitation is operant upon objects on earth as well as in the celestial space. Further, â€Å"

Conseptual analysis Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Conseptual analysis - Article Example Flow charts carry a similar function like other types of diagrams. They help in visualization of a process hence helping the user to understand deeper the meaning or flow of that process (John, 1984). There are different types of flow charts and each has its own design and national conventions. There are two common types of boxes in a flowchart. The first type is a processing step identified as an activity. Its denotations are rectangular in shape. The second type is a decision that is denoted as a diamond. Flowcharts are described as cross-functional where the pages in use are divided into different swim lanes (John, 1984). The lanes must be describing the control of different organizational units. For example, a symbol appearing in a particular lane is identified to be within the control of that organizational unit. Flowcharts depict certain aspects of processes (John, 1984). They are completed by drawing diagrams. Flow charts can be document flowcharts, data flowcharts, system flowcharts, or program flowcharts. They help best explain how a given system works by the use of a visual diagram. They are also helpful in brainstorming of ideas and plans. They demonstrate a high level of strategy application (John, 1984). They are graphic representations of flow of data through an information system. They help in creation of an overview of the system to be later elaborated. They show what information to input and output from a give system. They also show how the data will be either inputted or outputted and where the data will go or get stored. They are used in analysis and design phases of information processes (John, 1984). A visual image or document uses image as it primary means of communication. In other instances, visual images use the interaction of texts and images for communication. The goals of any visual analysis are to demonstrate an understanding of how the art communicates its message and meaning. This is done by breaking the

Guidelines for device based therapy of cardiac rhythm abnormalities Research Paper

Guidelines for device based therapy of cardiac rhythm abnormalities - Research Paper Example Recommendations in guideline for the device based therapy of cardiac rhythm abnormality has proved to be beneficial for reducing the risk of sudden cardiac death and has improved quality of life. However, multi-centric clinical trials are needed to find an optimal timing for the implant for an indication. Guidelines for device based therapy of cardiac rhythm abnormalities. Cardiac arrhythmias are still a major threat to human health and are so deadly that they are responsible for 50% of all the cardiovascular deaths related to the cardiovascular system (Piccini, Al-Khatib, Myers, Anstrom, Buxton, Peterson, & Sanders, 2010). Arrhythmias are not always pathological; they can be physiological like bradycardia in athletes and tachycardia during anxiety. Physiological cardiac arrhythmias usually do not need any treatment, they are recovered spontaneously but, pathological arrhythmias require heroic management. Anti- arrhythmic drugs and anti-arrhythmic devices are employed as a treatment strategy for arrhythmias. Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator, pacemakers and cardiac resynchronization therapy are the devices used to prevent death from arrhythmia; use of anti-arrhythmic devices are significantly associated to reduce mortality associated with arrhythmia (Piccini et al., 2010). Devices are used to prevent arrhythmia according to the guidelines of the American Heart Association, published in 2008. Guidelines for device based therapy of cardiac rhythm abnormalities were designed by experts from the American College of Cardiology in collaboration with the American Association of Thoracic Surgery and Society of Thoracic Surgeons. The Recommendations were made after a thorough literature search so that treatment strategy can be standardized and clinical evaluation of patients can be made easy. The Guidelines aim to reduce inappropriate decisions for implantation of cardiac devices, provide confidence to cardiac consultants.When related to devices, guidelines are mea nt for promotion of their appropriate use and to abandon it’s under and over use (Epstein et al., 2008). Critical evaluation of all diagnostic procedures, diagnostic scales, and guidelines is necessary because it is directly related to appropriate health care delivery ( Epstein et al., 2008). Evidence based critical evaluation of guidelines is a scientific means to judge effectiveness of the guideline in promoting good patient care. Critical evaluation of the guidelines for device based therapy is inevitable to judge the pros and cons of the guideline; it also helps to find any danger, if associated with the recommendations. Scientific critics of the guideline are important means to generate new recommendations in order to make the guideline more favorable. Since it is related to the cardiology, critical evaluation of the guidelines for the implanted anti-arrhythmic devices are more demanding because negligence may take a patient's life in a few minutes. The nursing staff is usually the first hand care providers in hospital settings. Being medical professionals, it is inevitable for them to understand the importance of guidelines; they should know the recommended guidelines of device based management of cardiac arrhythmias because after treatment, patient’

IMAX CASE STUDY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

IMAX CASE STUDY - Essay Example Large screen formats are a relatively new concept and it offers a wide range of exciting opportunities. There are very few players in this segment and it is primarily dominated by IMAX which is in this business for a long time now. PESTEL analysis is done to understand the current situation. It has been established from PESTEL Analysis that technology is the most crucial factor for large screen formats. US is a tech savvy nation and hence this was the first market which was targeted by this industry. IMAX has developed superior technology in due course of time which provides a competitive advantage to it. With the growing popularity of movies like Avatar and Alice In Wonderland new players are lining up to take advantage of the opportunity. Vertical Integration is a prime charecterstic of this industry and IMAX’s biggest buyers Regal and APC are coming up with their own large screen formats. Next the report tries to identify the internal factors which affect IMAX. IMAX’s strength and weakness is established in this part. It is followed by understanding the opportunities and threats that IMAX has. Political: The Federal Communications Commission has plans to implement a National Broadband Plan ensuring internet for all (Hanchard, 2010).This would mean that pay per views would increase which might affect box office sales. Economical: America has been through the worst financial crisis. However it is on a recovery path with things getting back to normal. The per capita income of US in 2009 was $39,138$ (Bureau of Business & Economic Research, n.d.). US has the highest number of movie audience per capita of population which stands at 5.3 films each year. Out of this if people who didn’t watch atleast a movie in one year, then the figure goes to 8.6 films. Legal: Piracy is a major problem in US. Motion Picture Association of America estimated an annual loss of more than $3 billion because of piracy. The

SUMMARY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

SUMMARY - Essay Example Petersen also notes the students have problems with their listening skills. Native Americans speak quickly and fluently, and with vocabularies, but the international students lack a background on such complex terms. Listening then becomes difficult if they cannot follow and understand what lecturers and other students are saying (Petersen). The international students also shy away from speaking in front of others. They are aware of their problems in pronunciation, fluency, intonation, and word stress. They know they cannot fully understand what others say and cannot express what they mean correctly. Their participation in class, therefore, becomes limited. The author, Lissa Petersen, also indicates that the students have problems in reading comprehension, using idioms and grammar. If, however, the students can apply Benjamin Bloom’s strategy of thinking, they can overcome some of the problems. Lastly, Petersen points at rhetorical differences as another hindrance to effective learning by the international students. American academic writing features several differences with other cultures. Although most of the international students are taught English grammar in their countries, the teaching is not up to the American standards. Their English can, therefore, seem to be illogical and disorganized, but is acceptable in another culture

MAKE UP SCHOOL POLICY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

MAKE UP SCHOOL POLICY - Essay Example It should also be noted that behaviour is one of the dominant discourses in schooling (Ball, Maguire and Braun 98). This public, high school, student behaviour policy aims at promoting high standards of behaviour to enhance a secure environment for all, which is orderly and safe. The behaviour policy contains the following elements. ... not use bad language Both students and school staff should respect each other The policy includes the major stakeholders of the school, and this includes; Students Teachers and Other School Staff Parents According to the policy, various stakeholders should perform the following roles as outlined; Principal Ensure that there is a safe and a peaceful atmosphere for both students and staff Implement and monitor this behaviour policy Ensure consistent disciplinary actions for those act contrary to this behaviour policy Teachers and Other Staff Take part in the implementation of the student behaviour policy and instil good behaviour among students Report cases of disruptive behaviour for punishment Students Follow the guidelines provided in the student behaviour policy and comply with directions Demonstrate respect for teachers, colleagues, and other staff, and should not engage in any form of misconduct Parents Offer support to schools during the student behaviour policy implementation T he school rewards and offers acknowledgment certificates to those who encourage good behaviour and discourage unacceptable behaviour. PART II: ARGUMENT IN SUPPORT OF THE PROPOSED SCHOOL POLICY An orderly learning environment is necessary for every school to enhance smooth learning, without interruptions. Student misbehaviour in high schools is a significant cause of learning disruptions. It should be note that student misbehaviour is an international concern. According to (The Guardian par 5), student misbehaviour disrupts lessons in sixty percent of the schools in world. Students enjoy classes where there is no disruption, but this is not always the case for some schools because of student misbehaviour. Student misbehaviour has led to negative consequences in the achievement of

SUMMARY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

SUMMARY - Essay Example Petersen also notes the students have problems with their listening skills. Native Americans speak quickly and fluently, and with vocabularies, but the international students lack a background on such complex terms. Listening then becomes difficult if they cannot follow and understand what lecturers and other students are saying (Petersen). The international students also shy away from speaking in front of others. They are aware of their problems in pronunciation, fluency, intonation, and word stress. They know they cannot fully understand what others say and cannot express what they mean correctly. Their participation in class, therefore, becomes limited. The author, Lissa Petersen, also indicates that the students have problems in reading comprehension, using idioms and grammar. If, however, the students can apply Benjamin Bloom’s strategy of thinking, they can overcome some of the problems. Lastly, Petersen points at rhetorical differences as another hindrance to effective learning by the international students. American academic writing features several differences with other cultures. Although most of the international students are taught English grammar in their countries, the teaching is not up to the American standards. Their English can, therefore, seem to be illogical and disorganized, but is acceptable in another culture

Emotional intelligence and its role in leading, performance and Essay

Emotional intelligence and its role in leading, performance and wellbeing 2211 - Essay Example Intelligence, of any kind cannot be measured; however it can be assessed by asking different questions. Similarly in the case of EI as well, the most feasible way of measuring an individual’s emotional understanding capabilities is by asking different questions. Psychologists are often seen to follow this technique to understand and map the emotions of patients and understand exactly what kind of emotional problems they are undergoing. Different parameters are set and the responses provided by individuals are compared against the responses provided. It is then estimated whether the emotional intelligence quotient of individuals are high or low. Individuals must themselves be able to understand their emotions well so that they can accurately recognize the emotions of others (Schutte, et al., 1998). According to the studies conducted by Salovey and Mayer, emotional intelligence can be described as the sophisticated mental process whereby information regarding one’s own and others emotions are understood and meanings are derived. Emotional intelligence helps perceiving the feelings and thoughts of others and accordingly adapt with the people around. Understanding the emotions of others plays a significant role in the manner we behave and respond to them (Mayer, Caruso and Salovey, 1999). The ability model of emotional intelligence was proposed by Salovey and Mayer. They had developed an EI model describing the development of emotional intelligence from childhood to adulthood. The model is based on four branches. These are described as follows: Perception- Emotional intelligence requires an individual to perceive the emotions present in themselves and in others in a highly accurate way. Identification of emotions is seen to enhance and positively benefit the behavioural conduct of an individual. Perception involves understanding the body language, facial expressions, tone and manner of speaking so that adequate

To Kill a Mockingbird Essay Example for Free

To Kill a Mockingbird Essay Frank Barron, a professor in Psychology once said, â€Å"Never take a persons dignity: it is worth everything to them, and nothing to you. † Scout Finch is a wise, young and respectful girl who lives in a little town in Alabama called Maycomb. Scout lives with her older brother Jem Finch and her father Atticus Finch. Scout has a fuse when it comes to her temper, so when something sets her off she shows it. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the character of Scout Finch is revealed to the reader as a respectful character through standing up for her father, and respecting her Uncle Jack in forgiving him for what he had done wrong to her. Scout is respectful and also loyal to her father Atticus. By standing up for her father to whoever has a negative opinion about him, Scout shows how loyal and courteous she really is to her father. Scout may not be too fond with the fact that Atticus is helping out an African American man, but she does respect his decision and intends on supporting her father regardless. Scout will always support Atticus if she has to and shows every person in the town of Maycomb just who really is the bigger person in the entire situation. Scout shows respect for her father when she declares to her immature cousin â€Å"he is not! I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about but you better cut it out this red hot minute† (Lee 110). Just as Scouts respect is seen toward her father Atticus, it can also be seen towards her Uncle Jack. Scout is reverential and also forgiving of her Uncle Jack. By giving her Uncle Jack a second chance after he decided to give Scout a beating for a crime that she did not commit against her cousin, Scout is being a merciful person. Scout is also considerate about the situation because she is aware that her uncle does not know the entire story or the truth of what actually happened between Scout and her cousin. After Scouts uncle attempts to reason with Scout about the situation and Scout tells her uncle the truth, the problem gets resolved. Scout shows real character and how respectful, forgiving, and how fair of a person she really is when she admits to her Uncle Jack â€Å"I reckon I love you even after what you did† (Lee 112). Because of Scouts reaction to this incident and how she was able to resolve it, Lee created Scouts character in this book to show how forgiving, understanding, and respectful someone could be. Harper Lee once said â€Å"Im no idealist to believe firmly in the integrity of our courts and in the jury system that is no ideal to me, it is a living, working reality. Gentlemen, a court is no better than each man of you sitting before me on this jury. A court is only as sound as its jury, and a jury is only as sound as the men who make it up. † Lee portrayed the character of Scout Finch as the way she did to demonstrate to the readers of To Kill a Mockingbird that all people in this world are different, yet the same, and it does not matter if a person is black, white, tall, short, fat, skinny, old, young, redneck or hillbilly, no matter who the person is because that person is a human being and has all of the same rights as everyone else in this world. Scout Finch shows the readers that she may not be sure about a lot of different things but she does understand that no two people are alike and Scout demonstrates that throughout the entire book with the different ways she deals with different challenges which may come her way. In Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout Finch is portrayed as a young girl of morals and mature wisdom in her life and her surroundings. A girl like scout in today’s society may be seen as a rebel for speaking her mind and standing up for what she believes in. Though family loyalty still exists in today’s society, it has become less and less of a forgiving and compassionate society toward others. Scouts compassion for loyalty, truth and forgiveness help her to stay grounded and work through life which are strong characteristics for anyone. In today’s society, these characteristics are more important than ever because today’s standards are good, better, and the best.

Is Cloning Really Worth It? :: essays research papers

Cloning: Is it Really Worth It?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There is much controversy over the issue of cloning. Is it really worth it? Scientists say yes, but I think not. There are a lot of questions to be answered before we continue the process of cloning such as the animals’ safety, humans feelings, and the costs, both financially and emotionally.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  First of all, we must think of the poor, defenseless animals scientists are experimenting with. It is one thing to kill them for survival, but it is totally wrong for them to die just to â€Å"experiment†. That is just as wrong as murdering an animal to make a few coats. Out of the many animals that the scientists have tried to clone, very few have survived and the ones that have are dependent on the scientists for everything down to oxygen.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Let’s think about humans for a second. Say your son, daughter, relative, or friend has passed away. Would you want his or her body cloned? A lot of people might say yes but I give that a huge no. Even though the body of the loved one you lost is there, there is no way to really have them back. A clone is just another person that looks like them. A person’s character is built by experiences he went through and people he has met. I think many people would be disappointed at the fact that it’s just not the same person.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another thing to think about is money. The taxpayers are paying out millions of dollars on this idea that has no guarantee. What about the taxpayers who oppose cloning? I know I do not want my hard earned money invested against my will into something that I feel is wrong and unjust.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I think that people should be informed on all of the negatives as well as the Is Cloning Really Worth It? :: essays research papers Cloning: Is it Really Worth It?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There is much controversy over the issue of cloning. Is it really worth it? Scientists say yes, but I think not. There are a lot of questions to be answered before we continue the process of cloning such as the animals’ safety, humans feelings, and the costs, both financially and emotionally.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  First of all, we must think of the poor, defenseless animals scientists are experimenting with. It is one thing to kill them for survival, but it is totally wrong for them to die just to â€Å"experiment†. That is just as wrong as murdering an animal to make a few coats. Out of the many animals that the scientists have tried to clone, very few have survived and the ones that have are dependent on the scientists for everything down to oxygen.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Let’s think about humans for a second. Say your son, daughter, relative, or friend has passed away. Would you want his or her body cloned? A lot of people might say yes but I give that a huge no. Even though the body of the loved one you lost is there, there is no way to really have them back. A clone is just another person that looks like them. A person’s character is built by experiences he went through and people he has met. I think many people would be disappointed at the fact that it’s just not the same person.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another thing to think about is money. The taxpayers are paying out millions of dollars on this idea that has no guarantee. What about the taxpayers who oppose cloning? I know I do not want my hard earned money invested against my will into something that I feel is wrong and unjust.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I think that people should be informed on all of the negatives as well as the

From their perspective: Children dealing with divorce Essay -- Social

The decision between a husband and wife to end their marriage due to irreconcilable differences has become an issue of epidemic proportions in the world today. Divorce is affecting people of all ages from the oldest to the youngest, tearing families apart. While the husband and wife getting the divorce are putting an end to what many of them once thought would be the best thing that would ever happened to them, it is their children who reap the most severe consequences. Children who were once looked after by both parents must adjust to living with one parent or moving back and forth between the two along with numerous other adjustments. The effects of divorce are not limited to practical adjustments alone, but research also indicates that children who go through the divorce of their parents experience physical and psychological troubles as well. According to recent research if current divorce rates remain steady, one in four children will go through the divorce of their parents befor e they are sixteen (Doweling & Gorell-Barnes, 1999). Another statistic shows that between 1972 and 1997 more than a million young children were involved in divorce each year (Zinsmeister, 1997). It is imperative in our society that is experiencing divorce so rampantly that we understand through research and observation the effects divorce has on children. The effects of divorce on children has been an issue of great controversy among professionals and parents alike. Research is inconclusive in many areas but enough evidence has been gathered to conclude that divorce does indeed have an impact on children. The effects of divorce, how much a child is impacted and how long the impact of divorce lasts, hinges largely on the age of the child when they ex... ...hat a child may experience after a family breakup (Jost & Robinson, 1991). Though the research presented here has focused on the negative effects divorce has on children there are instances where children hardly experience any ill effects from divorce. This is usually the case when the child’s parents are in abusive relationships or they are able to continue healthy relationships with both their parents. Sadly this is the exception and not the rule for children dealing with divorce. Despite the fact that there are several different opinions concerning the effects divorce has on children the majority of researchers agree that having married parents offers many benefits to children. These include but are not limited to, a higher standard of living, exposure to effective parenting, less stress overall and are more likely to succeed in school (McGuiness, 2006).

The Technology Trends

Coursework Questions to Alan I. Taub, Automotive Materials: Technology Trends and Challenges in the 21st Century, MRS Bulletin, Volume 31, April 2006, 336-343 Read this article and answer the following questions on its basis: 1. What is the percentage of automotive vehicles that are powered by petroleum products? 2a. When did the area end where automobiles were a cost + margin = price business? 2b. Into what did this equation change to? 3. What is the primary challenge in improving automotive propulsion systems? . What higher degree does Alan I. Taub hold? 5. Define the concept of mechatronics in one sentence. (Direct quotes are OK. ) 6. Who has been the largest user of nanomaterials in the world for the past five years? 7. What are the two major advantages of the hybrid gasoline/electric propulsion technology? 8. What is an OEM? 9. Why are fuel cell propelled cars called â€Å"zero-emission vehicles†? 10. What kind of technology is expected to avoid crashes in the future? 11. What are the two challenges that arise as soon as fuel cells are reduced to a manageable size and weight? 12. How much more efficiency (in percent) can be squeezed out of the gasoline engine? 13. Approximately, how many microprocessors are in current high-end cars from General Motors? 14. By how much (in percent) needs the vehicle mass to be reduced in order to improve the fuel economy by 6%? 15. What seems to be the best solution for the hydrogen storage challenges? 16. Roughly, how much of the steel in currently produced vehicles is of high strength? 7. By how much (in percent) did the automotive industry reduce the weight of its vehicles over the past 30 years? 18. Which two light-weight metals replace steel in currently produced cars? 19. What are the amounts of money that manufactures are typically allowed to spend on parts in the automotive industry, the aerospace industry and on satellites? 20. What is the principle process of a fuel cell (not more than two sentences please s ince I ask for the principle – not the many details)

ITM all case study summary

Those purchasing online have their orders delivered to their coal LOCO store so that the LOCO can maintain its role in ensuring social responsibility and not shipping to minors. LOCO contracted with Robot Systems International to maintain a real-time inventory of products that directly interfaces with the company's warehouse management system. LOCO Senior vice-president Hugh Kelly planned to revamp LOCO. Com to better engage and target its customers through social media.Kelly also planned to bring flat screen kiosks designed to better inform customers about their purchases and get instant feedback. Supply Chain Customers see Vintages and LOCO. Mom first hand; they do not see behind the scenes where technology also plays a key role in the new LOCO. Systems such as the warehouse management system allow them to distribute products in less than a full case, know when a bottle in a case been broken, and accurately reflect the inventory levels so that when a customer orders a bottle of win e they can ensure timely delivery.Other systems allow the LOCO to forecast and replenish stock in a timely manner based on over-the-counter sales information that is fed back to head office. LOCO 2. 0 Internally, the company manages its communications with an extensive intranet that reduces the financial and environmental burdens of paper- based memos and forms. The intranet is used to send internal bulletins, memos, and expense reports, or to lessen the burden on employees when distributing LOCO media reports. It is the primary communication vehicle for the company.APS LOCO on the Go is an app that LOCO provides which allows its customers to browse products from their smart phones. Chapter 2 Information Systems Improve Business Processes at Grocery' Gateway Grocery Gateway is Canada's leader in the online retailing of home and office deliver groceries. Founded by a group of entrepreneurs with the idea that people had better thing to do in life than grocery shop. In 2004, Grocery Ga teway was acquired by Long Brothers Fruit Market Inc, a family owned independent grocery business that has operated physical grocery stores since 1956.Grocery Gateway sells groceries over the internet and deliver them directly to your door. They are open 24 hours, 7 days a week. People who have trouble or cannot have the time to buy groceries such as the elderly find Grocery Gateway to be beneficial. Information Systems Are at the Heart of the Comma/s Business Processes Grocery Gateways has built several key features in its Web site to attract and retain its customers, such as offering an online shopping demo, a getting-started tutorial, and email customer support.Grocery Gateway's Web sites offers a full suite of electronic commerce functionality that allows consumers to browse or find grocery items, see pictures and descriptions of product items (including their price), and to select items in a shopping basket and check out those items for delivery. Grocery Gateway's website must be tightly integrated and coordinate for the Web site to function as a cohesive hole. Using Information Systems to Manage Logistics Business Processes Grocery Gateways focuses on the logistics of quick delivery.Therefore the company has turned to the Descartes Systems Group, an on-demand logistics management solutions provider, to optimize Grocery Gateways selection of delivery routes. The technology allows Grocery Gateway to guarantee its customer a specific 90-minute window of delivery of groceries to their doors, a much narrower window than other retail delivery operations. The software that Grocery Gateway uses must take into account unpredictable delays, such s traffic jams and road accidents, as well as last-minute customer requests or cancellations.GAPS enabled mobile phones allow the logistics software to know the exact position and location of Grocery Gateway drivers to make the best decisions on routes for drivers to follow. The Descartes' software has improve the bottom l ine. Since deploying the On-demand Fleet Management Solution, Grocery Gateway has improved its on-time delivery performance by 14 percent and is exceeding its yearly stops per paid hour by 12. 4 percent. Routes are continually optimized for maximum efficiency. Access to historical ATA ensures that business processes are optimized and customer service needs are responded to more proactively.Chapter 3 Social Media and Gaston Catcher Where celebrities go, fans follow. David Kara noticed after famous artists began using his blobbing service Tumble. Therefore encouraging celebrities to set up accounts on the site has become â€Å"absolutely part of our road map and our business plan,† Kara says. Like Tumble, social sites are going out of their ay to keep the celebrities happy and coming back. Obama on Namespace, Faceable, and Twitter The Obama administration created profile pages on Namespace, Faceable, and Twitter.Namespace has agreed to build ad-free pages and equipped the profi le to get automatic updates from the white House's official blob. Faceable has worked with the handlers of select celebrity members, including CBS news anchor Katie Court and French President Nicolas Karakas, to get feedback on the new design of the site before it was opened to the public. Twitter co- founder Biz Stone credits high-profile users like actor Gaston Catcher and basketball professional Aquiline O'Neal for bringing attention to the site of 140;character messages but says the company doesn't reserve any â€Å"special resources† for them.John Legend Taps Tumble In addition to their promotional value, social networking celebrities represent a potential revenue source for these young startups. Tumble recently helped musician John Legend design a professional-looking blob that matches the look of his promotional site, created by Song Music Entertainment. Inning a website to allow its users to build their own social network. Inning charges its users but many of whom are celebrities $2. 99 a month for their social networks, but charges as much as $59. 9 a month to users who prefer to keep their pages clear of ads or who want to collect revenue generated by ads n their pages. Although Innings services is not exclusive to stars, many of the most successful networks on Inning draw on the fame of their operators, including hip-hop artist 50 cent and Q-tip, rock band Good Charlotte, and Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder BC Penn. Many big names in business, including Dell CEO Michael Dell, use the professional networking site, Linked more as a business tool than to amass legions of followers.Whatever their reasons for being on the site, Linked uses the fact executives from all 500 biggest companies are among its member to encourage other businesspeople to join the site. Chapter 4 Shell Canada Fuels Productivity with ERP Shell Canada is one of the nation's largest integrated petroleum companies and is a leading manufacturer, distributor, and mark eter of refined petroleum products. The company, headquartered in Calgary, produces natural gas, natural gas liquids and bitumen. Shell Canada is also the country's largest producer of sulfur.There is a Canada-wide network of about 1 ,800 Shell- branded retail gasoline stations and convenience food stores from coast to coast. Mission Critical ERP To run such a complex and vast business operation successfully, the company lies heavily on a mission-critical ERP system. Using such a system is a necessity to help the company integrate and manage its daily operations – operations that span from wells and mines, to processing plants, to oil trucks and gas pumps. The ERP system has helped the company in reducing and streamlining the highly manual process of third-party contractors submitting repair information and invoices.On average, there are between 2,500 and 4,000 service orders handled by these contractors per month on a nationwide basis. Life at Shell Before ERP Before the ERP system, contractors had to send Shell monthly summarized invoices that listed maintenance calls the contractors made at various Shell gasoline stations. Each one of these invoices took a contractor between eight and 20 hours to prepare. Collectively, the contractors submitted somewhere between 50 and 100 invoices every month to Shell. This involved each invoice being reviewed by the appropriate territory manager and then forwarded to head office for payment processing.This alone consumed another 16-30 hours of labor per month. At the head office, another 200 hours of work was performed by data entry clerks who had to manually enter batch invoice data into the payment system. More hours of labor were required to decipher and correct errors if any mistakes were introduced from all the manual invoice generation and data re-entry involved. Detailed information about the service repairs that contractors did was often not entered into the payment system – it was often weeks or eve n months old by the time it made it into the payment processing system.As a result, Shell was not collecting sufficient information about what repairs were being done, what had caused the problem, and how it had been resolved. ERP is Solving Issues ERP solved these issues by providing an integrated Web-based service order, invoice, and payment submission system. With this tool third-party contractors can enter service orders directly into Shell's ERP system via the web. With the ERP system it takes only a few minutes for a contractor to enter details about a service order.Contractors' monthly, summarized invoices can now be generated automatically and fed directly into the ERP system's accounts payable application for processing. The ERP system's benefit is its ease-of-use. Shell offered its personnel both formal and informal ERP training. These proved to be invaluable in teaching end-users the mechanics of the system, gassing awareness of the system benefits, and the efficiencies t hat the ERP system could offer Shell. This not only helped promote end-user acceptance of the ERP system, but also greatly increased employees' intentions to use the system in their daily work.With this new system, employees across the company have gained fast and easy access to the tools and information they need to conduct their daily operations. Chapter 5 Supply Chain Management Inc. Helping Canadians Shop Supply Chain Management Supply Chain Management Inc. (SCM Inc. ) operates several large, state-of-the- art distribution centers for Walter Canada. SCM Inc. Is there to support Walter Canada's operations and commitment to its customers. â€Å"We strive to identify efficiencies that contribute to Walters bottom line, so it can continue to serve millions of Canadians and grow its business. Said Dan Gabbed, president of SCM Inc. SCM Inc. ‘s business is logistics, or in other words get the right products to the right place in the right quantity at the right time to satisfy cu stomer demand. SCM Inc. Was founded in 1 994 by the Tibet & Britton Group. SCM and Logistics at SCM Inc. The conveyors and the technology work together with merchandise flow landing, and highly trained and engaged employees, to provide a â€Å"gold standard† service level in logistics and supply chain management for their customers. SCM Inc. Arks closely with Walter's buying and replenishment teams to ensure best-in-class Store in-stock, quality, and supply chain cost levels for general merchandise and groceries, which includes both non- perishable and perishable goods. How It Works How does SCM Inc. Manage the supply chain so that the right product arrives in the right store at the right time for the retail customer to buy? This is accomplished with a combination of technology and processes. Staple Stock Receiving Staple stock items are carried for stores throughout the year.Data on each store?s sales made before 1 8:00 each day are collected and transmitted to Walter's info rmation processing centre in Bonneville, Arkansas. The information for each of the stores supplied by the Calgary distribution centre is sent back to the distribution centre that same evening. The data is used to generate labels for the product picks the next morning and these labels are then picked and placed on the conveyor and sent to the appropriate shipping lanes. Distribution Assembly Receiving Dock The distribution assembly dock has 43 docks for receiving truck shipments.As the trailers are unloaded, with the aid of the Receiving Dock System (REDS), team members scan the bar codes on the vendor cases and enter the quantity for each item in the system; REDS will then print the required number of labels. The team member labels the freight and places it on the conveyor, which moves the freight to the shipping area after about a 12-minute ride on a conveyor Icepack Modules At each of the seven icepack modules, freight is picked from the slots, labeled, and placed on the conveyor to travel to the shipping lanes.The icepack modules work with all of the full case freight created from the previous night's production (label) run with freight that has been ordered in full-case quantities. Put to Light Department This department handles freight that is less than full-case quantities and that has pre-determined distribution to the stores. The department has three modules and each module is set up I sections. When the operator scans the label bar code created by the receiving department, which is placed on the outside of the carton, a light flashes, indicating what quantities to â€Å"put† into the container designated for a store.In this department the team member moves the stock to a stationary box. Pick to Light Also handles freight that is less than full-case quantities. This department on the other hand deals with staple stock items already in the building, based on the previous day sales of the stores that are not in full-case quantities. It uses the sa me technology as the â€Å"Put to Light† department in the order filling process but in this department the store box moves to the stationary vendor freight. Voice Voice is a process created by Walter that enables the distribution of non- conveyable stock.Product is picked directly from the vendor pallet and striation is given through voice commands to the pickers. The system tells each operator where and how many cases to put to each pallet. Each pallet represents a store. Merge Area at the top of the conveyor system where all the cases from all input lines come together. The cartons pass through tow scanners. The first scanner reads the label and sorts the box to either the north or south side of the shipping building depending on its final destination.The second scanner scans the bar code for billing information and then places the freight into the proper window to be diverted into its respective shipping lane. Shipping Lanes Shipping is the largest department in the distr ibution centre and the final destination in the building for the cartons before they are moved into the trailers for shipping. This department is set up so that each door represents one store in Western Canada. In this area, team members cover multiple lanes, using an overhead lighting system to determine lane priority. Trailer Loading Freight arrives at the shipping lanes from many input lines, in no particular Order.This puts pressure on the team members that are loading the trailers as they build secure loads. Team members must build secure walls of freight n the trailers to ensure safe off-loading and minimal in-transit damage to the stock when it arrives at store level. Loading safe trailers and filling them to capacity is a key initiative for SCM Inc. And Walter alike. The Billing Department Even though the freight has made it to the trailer, the processing is not finished. The Billing department takes over and creates the shipping packets from the paperwork that comes to them from the Data Processing department.Once the shipping packets are created, the Billing department also prepares the bills of lading so that the carriers can deliver the freight. In edition, the Billing department processes claims, credits, additional billing and reprinting of invoices. The Dispatch Department Once the dispatch team receives the shipping packets from the Billing department, they schedule the trailers using the dispatch program. When the trailers are scheduled, the dispatchers forward the information to the carriers to confirm delivery.Dispatch also emails the delivery information to the stores and processes all paperwork prior to each trailer leaving. Drivers pick up paperwork prior to each trailer leaving. Drivers pick up paperwork at the dispatch window prior to hooking up to their trailers. Chapter 6 Harnessing Customer Relationships at Fairmont Hotels & Resorts Richards Story Richard was impressed on his stay at Fairmont Vancouver Airport. His credit card was go ing to expire in less than 30 days so an employee asked Richard to leave his new business card at the desk so that his personal information could be updated in his records after he was checked in.Richard was pleased for receiving this care and attention and he wished other businesses could offer the same level of good service. Guest recognition program Fairmont realizes that information systems are critical to the success of a customer loyalty program like President's Club or any other customer relationship initiative. Consolidating Guest Information Fairmont built one centralized database that gathered information from all its various property management systems. The result was the ability to have one, centralized, and consistent view of each guest, regardless of which hotel a guest stayed in.The guest database provided a way to know and talk to guests, to service their preferences and interests, regardless of whether they are repeat customers or if they were checking in the hotel for the very first time. Enhancing Guest experiences Supersonic Networks provided 24/7 customer support to its guest using high- speed internet services at various Fairmont hotel and resort locations worldwide. Use of Information systems to improve guest relations and customer experience is its consideration of self-service check-in kiosks.Chapter 7 The Case for Business Intelligence at Nettling Companies such as Amazon, Nettling, Best Buy, and RIB financial use databases or data warehouses to collect your search data, purchase data, or track your activities, and then by using data mining tools and business intelligence they turn this data into information that can potentially boost heir bottom lines. Reed Hastings and a $40 Late Fee Reed hasting co-founder and CEO of Nettling was hit with a $40 fee for Apollo 13 at Blockbuster Video which got him thinking about the video rental business model.Why did video stores not work like health clubs where you could use the service as much or a little as you wanted for a flat monthly fee? So armed with IIS$750 million from the sale of a former venture, Hastings co- founded Nettling in 1997. The science and the Art of Nineties The box office success of a movie is only a proxy for awareness of a movie's existence; it does not necessarily translate into demand for the movie in the mental market, and box office success or failure does not mean success or failure of the movie in the rental market.Due to these two facts, distribution managers use their experience to formulate a hypothesis of a movie's possible success in the rental market. They then follow this up with the science of analytics to help them make the final decision as to what movies to distribute. The Analytics Cinematic does the following: It defines clusters of movies, connects customer movie rankings to the clusters, and then uses this connection to recommend movies to a particular customer. In addition, Cinematic also insiders Nineteen's inventory condition in its recommendations.Nettling will often recommend movies that fit the customers profile but that are not in high demand in order to take advantage of â€Å"the long tail. † What does this mean? Business intelligence is important to Nettling as it is a part of it secret of success. By collecting customer data in their database and then analyzing the data, Entail is able to have its Web site adapt to the personal tastes of each of its over 25 million customers in North America, and will do so even more with its plans to expand into Latin American markets in 2012.Chapter 8 Leveraging Knowledge at Bell Canada Bell Canada Canada's largest telephone and telecommunications company is constantly threatened by new competitors and innovative technologies. To stay ahead of the pack, Bell recognizes the importance of providing its employees with easy access to the most current information. Bell built the Market Knowledge Centre (MOCK) portal. The MOCK portal provides employees with e asy access to high quality, relevant information in a forum where this information Can be personalized, pushed, pulled, shared, discussed, summarized and integrated with other pieces of information.Bell believes hat such a tool increases the chance of employees making new discoveries, learning new insights, and strengthening their know-how. Objectives of the MOCK portal are: Enable Bell to meet competitive challenges in the marketplace Enrich the company's hiring and training employees Increase technological literacy among employees Provide resources to employees that can help them develop their knowledge and competencies. The MOCK provides information access from each employee's desktop.Employees are not constrained by physical geography, unavailable copies, or hours of operation. The portal facilitates both search and browse functions. Employees can locate documents of interest through a keyword search. The MOCK portal helps employees do their jobs better. The portal provides key strategic and tactical information needed by employee to support their projects. There are also savings for the company in delivering the MOCK portal.The portal eliminates duplicate spending on consultant reports, trade magazines, and industry documents across the enterprise by centralizing subscriptions to online databases and electronic journals and negotiating corporate-wide distribution licenses with suppliers. Features have been added to the portal in recent years include: 1 . Incorporating Google's Mini Search Appliance 2. Integrating news feeds 3. Creating subject pages MOCK staff also provides end-user customer support to employees.This involves fielding more demanding in-depth research questions from employees, rather than answering quick reference questions that employees can easily address themselves. TO ensure the MOCK portal is responsive to company needs, performance measures of client satisfaction are conducted regularly. Moreover, MOCK portal tool helps turn informat ion into knowledge by giving workers easy access to high quality and relevant information, and he ability to work with, share, and discuss this information with others, leading to gains in understanding and the ability to put this understanding into action.Chapter 9 Embracing Privacy at the City of Hamilton Privacy Concerns Recognizing the real concerns of Canadians over how well governments handle and protect the personal information they collect, the City of Hamilton has taken the lead in ensuring that any risks to the inadvertent release and misuse of personal information are minimized. Protecting Citizens A citizen, attempting to renew a dog license using the new online service, exposed a serious unknown technology vulnerability in the application.By entering an incorrect file number, the user was able to return personal information (name and address) for a different dog owner in the community. Municipal staff reacted swiftly in removing the problem functionality. In the followi ng months, staff from both the municipal Freedom of Information (OFF) Office and the City's information Technology Services (ITS) division worked with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPAC) to make the breach public and to redesign and ultimately reinstate, new functionality with upgrades to prevent unauthorized access of personal information.Learning from Lessons Technology is just a tool. If is human behavior (Hacking, purposeful misuse, an inability to take proper measures, or mistakes in design and implementation) that ultimately results in privacy breaches. Privacy Impact Assessment The City of Hamilton commissioned its first ever Privacy Impact Assessment (PIP) to identify any potential privacy risks, before proceeding with a User Adoption and Uptake research project conducted by Master University researchers.The project investigated end-user adoption of the millionth. A portal, collecting data from Web tracking information and personal demographic information from Hamiltonians who agreed to participate in the study. Chapter 10 Project Management and E-Learning The Project Marie Wesley was sitting at her office one day and thought to herself â€Å"l wish more Of our stakeholders understood what went into creating these documents and how time-consuming it is for the company to ensure the accuracy and readability of the information. She put together a proposal and sent it to university Learning Publishers and received $25,000 to develop her e-learning concept. Putting the Parts Together While Marie was at the fitness centre she thought of the concept of a stationary bike, the bike could not function without the other parts. This was similar to her project where she then jotted down capabilities that she needed to complete her project; management information systems expertise; securities commission experts; knowledge about writing for the internet; instructional designers; and educational experts.Putting Advisors in Place Marie had much wo rk to do. She needed to form her advisory Committee, determine her target audience, get quotes for various phases of development f the e-learning tool (and identify those phases), hire someone who manage the project while she wrote the content, determine the timeline for software development and implementation, and the how to assess the quality of the software throughout the development and implementation phases.Marie searched for companies that were interested in completing the part of the project that she wanted to outsource. She then found one, Star Communications. However it was difficult to judge the quality Of Star's work and the capabilities of the designers, as Star provided no work samples to help determine what the possibilities were for the final product. Adding Project Management After much consideration of the risks associated with partial outsourcing versus full service, Marie decided to let Star create the first module.

AT&T Case Study Essay

1. Introduction In this report we will identify business risk that AT&T experienced due to their divestiture in 1982. We will conduct our analysis based on financial concepts, and finally recommend necessary actions that should have been conducted when the company formulated its financial policy in 1983. 2. AT&T Background AT&T was founded in 1876 by Alexander Graham Bell. Prior to the divestiture AT&T had been a force to be reckoned with for over a century within the telephone service industry. Before the divestiture the company served over 80% of the US telecommunications users. The sale of these services took place at their 22 local subsidiaries. AT&T was the largest enterprise in the world with total assets of $137.8 billion and revenue of $58.1 billion. Given the size of the company they had hired a total of 1,060,378 workers. With a total number of 3,055,495 shareholders, where 95.3% held less than 600 shares each. Ever since 1885 AT&T had continued to pay its dividend to the shareholders, they never lowered the payment. The divestiture that AT&T experienced was a result of an agreement of the Justice Department’s antitrust suit against the company in 1982, which required a major rearrangement of AT&T’s capital structure. The agreement lead to several changes in the structure of the company, and one major change that had a significant impact on the company was how they managed their distribution channels. Prior to the divestiture they sold their services through their 22 local telephone subsidiaries, the company would now be spun off into seven independent regional corporations; NYNEX, (N.Y. Telephone and New England Telephone), Bell Atlantic (N.J. Bell, Bell of Pennsylvania, Diamond State Telephone and four Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Companies), Bell South (South Central Bell and Southern Bell), Ameritech (Indiana Bell, Michigan Bell, Illinois Bell, Wisconsin Bell and Ohio Bell), U.S. West (Mountain Bell, Pacific Northwest Bell and Northwestern Bell), Southwestern Bell (Southwestern Bell) and Pacific Telesis (Pacific Telephone, Nevada Bell). 3. Historical Financial Policy AT&T’s overall financial policy, including target debt ratio and interest coverage, was designed to maintain an AAA bond rating, which allowed them to reduce borrowing cost and in addition make sure that funds were available in periods of severe financial dislocation. The dividend policy was relatively conservative for a utility with a target payout ratio of 60% and an actual payout of 58-67%. Their low payout ratio was determined by AT&T’s large capital requirements and the desire to provide some protection for maintaining the stability of dividends. Stockholders reinvested approximately one third of the dividends. Due to the increased competition and the volatile regulatory climate, AT&T returned to a more conservative financial policy. Between late 1970 and 1980 the managers were reluctant to issue more equity through sales of stocks because the company’s market value was below its book value per share. However, the financial history shows that AT&T allowed in vestors to purchase new stocks using their current dividends at 95% of current market price. 4. Principal Problem AT&T’s principal problem was not the need to raise funds to finance investments, but whether the debt and equity ratios were appropriate for the â€Å"new† AT&T. This needs to correspond with the company’s financial and strategic goals, and be adapted to the market and uncertainties that the company is facing. AT&T’s strategic goal has been to please the potential stockholders categorized as widows and orphans. Widows and orphans are used to describe stocks with a relatively high degree of safety and a stable dividend income. Due to changes in the market and uncertainties that the company was facing, their strategic goals needed to be changed. The change  was however not reflected in their balance sheet. We will further discuss what led to this situation, and give a recommendation on the changes that should have been made prior to the divestiture in 1984. 5. Pre Divestiture Business Risk As a consequence of the governments intervention, the AT&T lawsuit settlement, as well as the shift in the telecommunication industry, it was clear that AT&Ts local telecommunication business was slowly moving away from a monopoly franchise environment. It was moving towards a more competitive environment characterized with more consumer choice and greater competition. Companies such as IBM saw the divestiture of AT&T as an opportunity to provide new telecommunication equipment and services, which would allow them to gain a higher market share. AT&T’s stock had up till then been regarded as a stable utility-type stock because of its steady growth and consistent dividend yield. However, AT&T should have kept in mind that they would not have as much market control in the future as they did prior the divestiture, much due to the intensifying competition and regulatory environment changes. Firstly, the antitrust lawsuit followed by a sudden divestiture could cause uncertainties to wards the company’s future and might change the shareholders perception of AT&T in an unfortunate way. Second, the seven new corporations would be highly independent, and therefore a major rearrangement of the capital structure would be vital. It is likely that every corporation would differ in terms of e.g. management style and financial performance. These changes could mean that AT&Ts reputation of being a safe and profitable investment could shift to become more volatile and riskier for its shareholders. Finally, AT&T had relied for a long time on their old and out-dated patents, which included old machinery, equipment and plants in order to create profit. As more and more competitors emerged with new technologies and services, AT&T needed to keep up with all changes in the market. As a result of the divestiture the R&D was reduced at Bell Laboratories and the development-part was eventually intergraded into the Western Electric division. After these changes many concerns arose relating to the future profitability of Western Electric (WE). Firstly, they were concerned that WE might not be able to attain marketing and product development skills that were vital in operating in the  newly competitive markets. The main reason for this is that the workforce was used to working in a captive market, where competitors were almost non-existent. Secondly, WE’s manufacturing labor force had become unionized at the same time, as their plants were old. This meant that WE would have to invest in R&D to make sure that their competitors did not exceed them. Their unionized workforce would lead to a considerable increase in salary and WE would have to follow the regulations that were set by the labor union. As a consequence these factors would most likely affect both the firm’s market share and eventually the stock price in a negative way. 6. Analysis and Recommendation 6.1 The New Capital Structure Spin-offs often provide a unique setting to assess various capital structures, because one observes the initial capital structure of a mature firm. In a spin-off, a subsidiary is fully divested from a parent and becomes a stand-alone entity. Before this happens, the subsidiary is not able to issue new equity, and is dependent on the parent to finance its capital investments. When the divestiture has occurred, the firm’s assets are divided between the subsidiaries followed by a new capital structure of the independent firms. The total outstanding debt would be assumed divided between the seven regional operating companies, hence the sharply reduced total debt that is projected in the 1984 balance sheet. There is also reason to believe that AT&T chose to reduce $725 million of their total outstanding debt in 1982, which lead to the reduction in the debt ratio the same year. When looking at the projected balance sheet one can see that the total debt would be stable at the sum of $9.3 billion from 1983 to 1988, which equals a decrease of $37.8 billon from 1982. However, due to tax deduction the cost of issuing new debt is lower than using equity. This would mean that AT&T should issue new debt in order to create a balance when financing the investment in R&D, and rather use more of the company’s equity to set up an account with emergency funds that will function as a safety net given the unpredictable times ahead. 6.2 The New Distribution Policy When establishing a distribution policy, one size does not fit all. Some  firms produce a lot of cash but have limited investment opportunities. This applies for firms in profitable and mature industries where few opportunities for growth exist. Such firms typically distribute a large percentage of their cash to shareholders, thereby attracting investment clienteles that prefer high dividends. AT&T was in such an industry, but after the removal of the monopoly, the market became more volatile. During periods of market volatility, there are investment opportunities if you know where to look. In such markets the firms generally distribute little or no cash but enjoy rising earnings and stock prices, and thereby attracting investors who prefer capital gains. AT&T should have adapted to the changes in the market, which required more financial flexibility and a stronger balance sheet. A ‘strong’ balance sheet should consist of liabilities that are considerably outweighed by assets. If a company is having problems, the balance sheet (together with the cash flow statement) will tell you whether it can stand the strain. 6.2.1 Dividend Pay-out As mentioned above, AT&T has had a steady increase in dividends payout until the announcement of the divestiture in 1982. The company decided to reevaluate the amount of dividends and keep it steady at $5.40 per share. AT&T had been a market leader in this industry for a long time, yet their equipment and patents were old, as they had not invested in R&D development. In order for AT&T to have a stronger balance sheet and become more financial flexible in the face of the divestiture, AT&T should have cut their dividend payout much earlier. The company might have been afraid to cut the dividend since this often gives a signaling effect that the firm does not expect high earnings in the future. However, given that AT&T was forced into this divestiture, changes had to be made. An alternative measure could therefore have been to make a change in the dividend policy. This could be seen as a risky move, yet if communicated in an appropriate and thoughtful way the shareholders might understa nd that this was necessary for the company’s future growth. Another supporting factor is that approximately one third of the dividends payout were reinvested by AT&Ts stockholders, which shows that the current dividend payout was not very essential to some of the shareholders. 6.2.2 Repurchase of Stock The firm should also have repurchased stock some years after the dividend cut, to bolster the share price. Repurchase have a tax advantage over dividends as a way to distribute income to stockholders. Repurchase provides cash to stockholders who want cash while allowing those who do not need current cash. Moreover, repurchase announcements are viewed as positive signals by investors because the repurchase is often motivated by management’s belief that the firms shares are undervalued. Finally, repurchases is a effective way to produce large-scale changes in capital structures. 6.3 New Investment Plan The company should at the same time start looking for new possibilities and investments in order to overcome these volatile times. An alternative could have been to invest in R&D e.g. by acquiring a small company with the knowledge and expertise that were required in order to compete and be sustainable in the industry. By doing so they would expand their workforce with people who had more knowledge about the newer technology and therefore been better equipped when facing the challenges ahead. Not only would this allow AT&T to gain more human capital, but they would also gain newer equipment. It is also said that more good investments will most likely lead to a lower dividend payout, which supports our recommendation of changing the dividend policy. 6.4 Maintaining a Top-Level Credit Rating AT&T’s overall financial policy, including target debt ratio and interest coverage, was designed to maintain an AAA bond rating, which allowed them to reduce borrowing cost and in addition make sure that funds were available in periods of severe financial dislocation. As mentioned earlier AT&T worked hard to maintain the AAA rating, both through debt ratio and interest coverage. Although it should be noted that AT&T’s debt ratio of 43% was close to fall under the AA ratings. This would have resulted in an increase in average interest cost of 0.7% equal an expenditure of $335.3 million in borrowing cost. Based on this one can conclude that this was a wise decision given the circumstances, and the company should therefore keep their focus on this in the future. A top-level credit ranking will not only give AT&T better conditions when issuing new debt, but also allow them to emerge as a more attractive investment to current and potential new shareholders. Conclusion Due to the antitrust lawsuit and the shift in the telecommunication industry, AT&T needed to adjust their financial and organizational strategy in order to adapt to the changing environment. The main purpose of this report has been to identify the risk involved with the divestiture, and find ways to face the challenges ahead. The report recommends a new capital structure policy, where AT&T should issue new debt for further investments rather than using equity. For the distribution policy, dividends should be cut and thereafter consider repurchasing stocks. Furthermore, the company should invest in a R&D through an acquisition of a small high-technology firm that will enable them to gain knowledge and be more innovative. Finally, AT&T should seek to maintain a top-level credit rating to reduce borrowing costs, to assure better conditions when issuing debt and last but not least to be a preferred firm for investors.