Making Moral Decisions

There are many things we must consider before we make any type of decision. First off, we must think about how our actions are going to affect us and those around us. We must follow the golden rule, â€Å"do unto others as you would have them do to you†. We should also be sure that we have fully good intentions, but we must remember that good intentions do not justify evil means. In addition, we must think about performing the action around our loved ones and try to decide if they would approve or disapprove. If you were to follow the golden rule, â€Å"do unto others as you would have them do to you†, decision-making would be simple. In reality, however, we all know that making a decision is actually quite difficult. Often, we do not think of the other person in the situation, we only think of ourselves and how it will affect us. If we followed this rule with all of our decision-making, the outcome would be less likely to hurt anyone or anything. Another important point to consider before making a decision is that we must remember to always have good intentions. We must also remember that good intentions do not justify evil means. This means that even if we do something we good intentions and the outcome is evil, the action is still evil. If we have truly good intentions during our decision-making, the outcome will be good and moral. If we have any bad intentions at all, then the outcome will reflect these bad intentions and the situation will turn out evil. A smart thing to ask ourselves before making a decision is, â€Å"Would I be proud to do this in front of my mom? † If our answer is no, then the decision we have made probably is not a good one. If we know that our mother wouldn’t approve of what we are doing or what we are about to do, then why would we do it at all? If we think of this question during a time when we are making a decision, we are more likely to make a good choice. If we use all of these techniques in our decision making, we will be able to make better choices. We will hurt others less, and furthermore hurt ourselves less. We will also be able to stay on track and stay moral. We will always keep our good intentions in mind and push out the bad ones. Lastly, we will be able to make better choices in our lives and lead ourselves down a better road.

A Case Study on Tesla Motors

A CASE STUDY ON TESLA MOTORS Cost/Benefit Analysis In concern, every determination that has to be made requires thorough rating. And one of the most convenient and straightforward methods to make this is through Cost/Benefit Analysis. In CBA, an appraisal of the entire value of all the benefits of a certain undertaking is compared to that of the value of the costs that are needed in order to recognize such undertaking ( Watkins, n.d. ) . In order for the assessor to come up with a better angle of comparing, these values must be expressed into a unvarying unit of measuring. Normally, in calculating CBA, the values of the cost and benefits are converted into their pecuniary value. Once all the costs and benefits of the undertaking have been taken into consideration, comparing may be done. If the value of the benefits outweighs that of the costs, it means that the undertaking is a worthwhile enterprise. The following point of rating would be the computation of the break-even point – the clip at which the benefits of the undertaki ng pay off the costs ( Hill, 2012 ) . It would be most preferred to hold a shorter payback period. By and large, CBA helps concern people to make up one's mind whether or non to set about a peculiar undertaking. It allows them to border the best and appropriate undertaking aims. Furthermore, CBA can be used to fix the necessary resources every bit good as develop before and after steps of the project’s success. For illustration, the move to advance more ecological operations and procedures for the company may necessitate a Cost/Benefit analysis to find the chance of its realisation. As the corporate universe is going more and more aware of the effects of Climate Change, companies are looking to implement environment-friendly patterns in their offices. The same holds true for immense fabrication companies. CBA allows the companies to measure likely additions and losingss that these actions may convey. Tesla Motors: A Case Study in Environmental Impact Background and Operations of Tesla Motors Leading the coming of a more sustainable transit system and its inventions, Tesla Motors has established rather a repute in the automotive industry. Since its constitution in 2003, the company has grown to be the biggest maker of electric autos in the market. It has contributed more than 50,000 autos in roads all over the universe as of today ( Tesla Motors, n.d. ) . Its chief end is to make a transit system that is more environment-friendly and sustainable. Electric autos are charged at place and do non necessitate refuelling of gasolene unlike the autos designed by other makers. Quite expectedly, these zero-emission autos were non easy accepted in the market as they were deemed impractical, non to advert consumers were non truly impressed with their instead tacky design. Fortunately, Tesla Motors was able to toss that equation. By let go ofing their trailblazer electric athleticss auto for the high-end market, the Tesla Roadster, they were able to capture the attending of auto partisans and alter the face of the green auto market. After let go ofing the Roadster, Tesla pushed for more infinite in the industry by let go ofing their luxury saloon, the Tesla Model S in 2012. More and more consumers are looking to purchase electric autos because of the inventions that were done by the company. In fact, reserves for their following theoretical account releases are already stacking up. There is much expectancy for the Tesla Model X and Model 3 releases. How Green is a Tesla Green Car? The really intent of an electric auto is to advance energy invention ; and Tesla Motors’ end is to accomplish this without doing any negative impact on the environment. However, a new engineering such as the advanced green auto production can non be made to go through without being exhaustively criticized by the populace. Green autos are, by rule, more environment-friendly than the conventional fuel-based autos. The procedure, by which it is being manufactured, on the other manus, says otherwise. Furthermore, green autos do run on electricity. But, how is electricity being processed? Does it non come from coal and crude oil excessively? All things considered, is a Tesla green auto viridity after all? The company admits that the grade of being environment-friendly of their autos – take the Model S for illustration, largely depends on where and how frequently the auto is being driven. In the US, each province has a different mix of energy beginnings that fundamentally goes into their grid. In other words, a â€Å"cleaner† beginning of electricity makes a Model S a more environment-friendly auto. By and large, it is still cleaner than the internal-combustion design of their rivals in footings of emissions-per-mile ; sing the efficiency of battery-powered autos in change overing stored energy into a utile signifier ( Oremus, 2013 ) . Tesla Motors and the Campaign for Environmental Sustainability Tesla Motors have established its run to advance a greener personal conveyance system through its electric vehicles ; but how does it impact the environment in the industrial context? Are its procedures and operations considered as environment-friendly? The company is really much aware of the fact that they are indirectly let go ofing C emanations through power workss – sing that electricity is the chief power beginning of the vehicles. This is the ground why Tesla moves to advance the absolute remotion of indirect C emanations by utilizing Supercharger Stations that merely uses grid electric power from solar panels ( Walsh, 2014 ) . Furthermore, Tesla is teaming up with SolarCity to supply electric auto proprietors an option to bear down their autos utilizing solar panels in their several places. This is like hitting two birds with one rock. By extinguishing the demand for coal-based electricity beginning, they are indirectly cut downing C emanations in the ambiance ; and they are advancing the usage of renewable energy beginning at the same clip. Tesla is fundamentally work outing the world’s dependance on gas. Through their radical inventions in electric vehicle engineering, they have addressed an issue that has been thought as an improbableness for many old ages. By doing more convenient accommodations in their electric autos, and at the same clip turn outing that electric autos are so effectual, Tesla has convinced more consumers to sponsor their merchandise. The company is winning more and more conflicts as they advance into bigger ventures. In order to provide to their turning consumer demands, Tesla is constructing their very foremost Gigafactory. Panasonic will be a immense investor in this undertaking, along with Tesla’s other major spouses. The best thing about this gigafactory is the company’s program to run it chiefly on air current and solar energy. Nevada is the perfect site for the mill because it is where the biggest solar power works in the universe is located. Tesla does non merely function as a leader in electric auto engineering, it is besides going a theoretical account for other companies to see more environment-friendly procedures. Coal excavation and processing has created many environment-related issues and are still doing jobs in many topographic points around the universe. If Tesla becomes successful in extinguishing the demand for non-renewable beginnings of energy in order to bring forth electricity, it can alter the face of the car industry everlastingly. Not merely will it dramatically cut down the C emanations that are released to the ambiance, it will besides extinguish the issues that are brought about by the processing of electricity that is coming from natural resources. Tesla Motors and the Competitive Industry Of class, Tesla Motors is non the lone company that has entered the green auto market. Even though the industry for green autos is non that large compared to the conventional car market, it can be said that competition is non excessively slack. In fact, Toyota, Ford, Nissan, and Honda are considered as the biggest rivals for Tesla. Audi, Volkswagen, and BMW are looking to fall in the green auto industry shortly. And these are reasonably immense companies. Can Tesla maintain its topographic point in the industry without being squeezed out by elephantine auto makers? What is its competitory advantage? Unlike the remainder of the car makers, Tesla is 100 % in the green auto industry. Therefore, their focal point is merely within that market. Research and development is entirely dedicated for this intent, leting the company to make better inventions. Besides, Tesla has about 5-year caput start over the other companies. While other companies are still constructing their green auto designs, Tesla is already smoothing its ain. The hereafter of the automotive industry is tilting towards the use of renewable beginnings of energy. This fundamentally means that other companies who are on the other side of the industry are at a immense disadvantage. Oil is about to run out ; but solar power is limitless. Sooner or subsequently, they will hold to switch to a more sustainable beginning of energy. Tesla Motors and the Future of Green Car Technology At the minute, Tesla’s precedence is to maximise its production in order to run into the demands for the Model S and Model X in the market. They are holding problems in run intoing client demands with their very limited production. But the populace can rest assured that Tesla will non halt making better inventions for their merchandises. Once the gigafactory has been installed, Tesla’s following focal point will be on the development and betterment of machine-controlled driving engineering. As a affair of fact, the company’s CEO, Mr. Elon Musk has announced the release of their partially self-driving vehicle by 2017 ( Boyadjis, Rassweiler, & A ; Brinley, n.d. ) . As the engineering for zero-emission autos advancement, the issues sing the car companies’ impact on the environment is being addressed bit by bit. Someday, there will come a clip when vehicles will entirely depend on solar power – among other renewable energy beginnings. It may non wholly work out Global heating, but it will assist the universe get at that place one measure at a clip. Mentions Boyadjis, M. , Rassweiler, A. , & A ; Brinley, S. ( n.d. ) . Object moved. Retrieved from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.ihs.com/articles/features/tesla-motors.html Hill, R. ( 2012, September ) . Attention Required! | CloudFlare. Retrieved from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTED_08.htm Oremus, W. ( 2013, September 9 ) . How green is a Tesla? Electric cars’ environmental impact depends on where you live. Retrieved from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2013/09/how_green_is_a_tesla_electric_cars_environmental_impact_depends_on_where.html Tesla Motors. ( n.d. ) . About Tesla | Tesla Motors. Retrieved from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.teslamotors.com/about Walsh, T. ( 2014, November 1 ) . Investing in Socially Responsible Companies: Tesla Motors Inc. Retrieved from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/11/01/investing-in-socially-responsible-companies-tesl-2.aspx Watkins, T. ( n.d. ) . An Introduction to Cost Benefit Analysis. Retrieved from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/cba.htm

Wet Seal Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Wet Seal - Case Study Example The product will be a success because, as Maxwell (2008) says, the market is turning from synthetic juices and turning to more organic foods and drinks due to health needs. According to Evanson (2012), market data indicates that an increasing number for people are willing to pay more for a drink as long as they can be sure that it is an organic drink. This, as Stevenson (2011) asserts, is very important in the marketing of natural organic drink because the production of such drinks is more expensive as opposed to the synthetic juices and this is an important factor because the prices for the product have to meet the production costs and the profit margin. The main challenge in marketing Fruto Natural Drink will be overcome market barriers caused by customer loyalty to the existing products. According to consumer insights, a great number of Americans are loyal to specific brands and find it hard to change from one brand to another (Wilson, 2009). However Fruto Natural Drink will be able to overcome this problem because it will be targeted to the younger people who are more willing to explore more possibilities. This will however not be a complete advant age in itself because once these customers have switched to Fruto Natural Drink; the challenge will be to make them loyal customers as the product grows. Fruto Natural Drink will benefit from the previous success of ClaraFoods and the wealth of management and marketing skills of ClaraFoods management. Fruto Natural Drink will also benefit from the strong brand of ClaraFoods and this will give it an opportunity to have a strong start in the market. The increasing concerns by the public on the kind of food they eat will also be another positive point in marketing Fruto Natural Drink because it is a natural and organic drink. Fruto Natural Drink will therefore take advantage of the fact that more and

Stewart v Secretary of State for Scotland 1998 Appellant's Argument Essay

Stewart v Secretary of State for Scotland 1998 Appellant's Argument - Essay Example Appellant contends that the narrower interpretation of the word â€Å"inability† is â€Å"supported by earlier legislation inasmuch as it produced a comprehensive code for sheriffs principal who demitted or was removed from office because of physical or mental infirmity†. He further asserts that if the wider interpretation is to accrue â€Å"an anomalous result would be reached†. He clarified that the word â€Å"inability† is not intended to mean â€Å"unfit for duty due to behavioral infirmity† as used in his case but to describe the natural consequence of not being able to perform a sheriff’s duty due to health reasons or disability. Appellant likewise assert that the Lord President and the Lord Justice Clerk erred and committed procedural lapses in their investigation. He asserts that he was not properly informed of the actual charges against him and that the charge was â€Å"inability† rather â€Å"than misbehavior† or †Å"defect in character†. He further contends that he was not given the opportunity to face and respond to the allegation of the Lord President and the Lord Justice Clerk’s sources. ... Sheriff Courts (Scotland) Act 1838 repealed this provision in particular by letting the sheriffs continue even after the death of the appointing officer. Under the then new law, the Sheriff has been made eligible to receive an annuity provided that they completed a minimum of ten years. In the same length, the same law also provided for instances where the sheriff was removed from office due to old age or permanent infirmity that disabled them to exercise the demands of their office. In Section 5 of the Sheriff Courts (Scotland) Act 1877 the word â€Å"inability† was first mentioned. The provision of this law provided â€Å"that no sheriff should be removed except by a Secretary of State for inability or misbehavior upon a report of the Senior Judges†. Consequently, â€Å"Inability or Misbehaviour† was used in section 18 of the Small Debts Act 1846 in relation to the removal by Lord Chancellor of a county court judge. Section 38 of the Sheriff Courts (Scotland) A ct 1853 empowered the Treasury to grant an annuity to a sheriff principal in circumstances where annuity could have been paid to a sheriff under the Act of 1838. Then in section 1 of the Sheriffs Tenure of Office (Scotland), Act 1898 empowered the Secretary of State on a report by the senior judges to remove sheriff principal who was by reason of ‘inability or misbehavior unfit for his office’.

Response Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Response - Article Example There are quite a number of benefits that can be derived from online dating sites such as aspects related to privacy and security. Geographically dispersed people can date each other and the choice of the desired match is wide. There are likely chances that if you search patiently, you will get your match. More interestingly, online dating removes unfavorable elements such as fear and confidentiality is guaranteed. However, there are also certain disadvantages of online dating. It exposes other people to cyber bullies and the victims may live under constant fear which can eventually lead to psychological distress. Online dating can also promote multiple sexual activities which in turn exposes the people involved to health risks. In my own opinion, I think community dating sites are essential during the contemporary period. They help people to get perfect matches and the other benefit is that these sites are easy to use and maintain. During the contemporary period, it can be seen that organizations are operating in environments that are characterised by stiff competition. Likewise, advertising is also gaining prominence since it can be observed that companies use this communication strategy to attract customers to buy their products. However, some companies are manipulating advertising through creation of weasel images that are far from the truth. As such, I concur with Lutz who suggests that some advertising messages are manipulative and they are meant to deceive the customers into buying the products offered. For instance, the sincerity of advertisements used in marketing alcoholic beverages in particular is questionable. From my own perspective, alcohol is not good to our health. No matter how much effort is put to portray alcohol consumption in a positive light, I think this beverage remains detrimental to our health. It is just a marketing gimmick by marketers of brands like Heineken and Tusker to present their brands

Animal rights Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Animal rights - Assignment Example Animals can talk as they talk to their like kind. Just because humans cannot understand them does not mean that an animal should not be able to defend themselves. This may be hard for someone believing animals have no rights to understand. It is important to consider that people who believe that animals have no rights are of a different mind frame then other who do. This can be further explained when discussing poachers. People who hunt an animal that is soon to be extinct obviously do not care about animal rights or the sustainability of humans. When an animal leaves the environment this creates a gap in the food chain. The gap in the food chain creates a problem for other animals. If an individual does not care about animal and human life why should they care about animal rights? It is important to consider the different types of individuals that are against animal rights. There whole outlook on life is different. It is likely that a disagreement with someone on animal’s rig hts is likely to cause a disagreement in other topics of conversation. Since this is likely it is important to bring facts when arguing a certain topic. Facts are important when discussing a topic such as animal rights. Animals Do Have Right Similar To the Rights of Humans There are many different factors to agree upon when discussing why animals have right. As mentioned in the paper by Tibor Machan, animals act in a way that humans do. Animals are able to love, show compassion, and protect. Since animals show feelings similar to humans, why should they deserve less? The answer to that is that they don’t deserve less. They have the right to the same rights as humans. Would this be different if animals were able to speak better and be understood by people? It may be human’s ignorance of animal speech that creates a communication boundary. It is possibly that a human own ignorance towards animals allows for the thought that humans are more superior. This is where I have the strongest argument. There are some people that are able to study animals and communicate with them. Being able to communicate with animals break the barrier and allows other to be shown that the animals have feelings. Animals are no less than a person. Animals are here to protect, provide food, love and obey. Since animals are owned by humans it is the humans right to take care of the animals. Taking care of the animals means sticking up for the rights of animals. Acting in humanly to animals should be punished just like any other wrong act. Animals are alive just like humans. Taking a life from animals for game reasons and testing should be punishable by law. Animals were put on this earth to enable human survival and not to be used in a game or testing. These acts are cruel and it takes a cruel person to perform such acts. It is not just the rights of animals that is important to focus on but the nature of what is right and wrong. As mentioned in the paper, parents teach their children to be kind to animals in some parts of the world and are honored in other parts for killing for fun. That said it is the parent responsibility to ensure that children are taught the correct morals and values that honor life. Being taught to respect animals can lead to the respect of other things in life. It is wrong to think that killing animals for pleasure is okay. This type of thinking is not okay and can lead to other wrong violent behavior. Killing is killing regardless if it is a human or animal. Since it

According to contract law, can the injured party claim damages for Essay

According to contract law, can the injured party claim damages for every loss which is caused by a breach of contract Discuss, with reference to case law - Essay Example The victim has choices. The victim may avow the agreement or accept the repudiatory breach and consider the agreement as at an end. For contracts apart from sale of goods contracts, an individual, having full breach knowledge, is perceived to affirm the contract where he decides to go on with it in any case (Png, & Stanford University, p342). The obligation to repudiate in such a scenario is finally mislaid. The responsible individual may, of course, still consider bringing an act in damages for the breach and repudiate the contract for all breaches in future. Mitigation: the party that brings the claim cannot in any way be compensated for any loss arising from his part which he may have overcome by taking the necessary actions. This is termed as the duty to mitigate. Two limbs exists in duty to mitigate which usually arise after the breach has taken place: The party complaining about contract breach should take sensible steps in order to minimize her loss; the expenses incurred in taking such steps may also be compensated, and the complainant must not take unrealistic steps that increases the amount of loss. Causation; the complainant about contract breach must prove on a scale of probabilities that the loss was as result of the breach. In most occasions, the court will often first look at what would have occurred ‘but for’ the breach. If this technique will not bare fruits in terms of having certain finding, the court will be left with the option to consider ‘lost chance’ methodology which considers any chances for what may have taken place. Remoteness; whichever loss that has occurred should not be too remote the prove recovery process to be futile. This means that damages must arise in accordance to normal happenings arising from contract breach itself or may sensibly be ought to have been in the contemplation of the involved parties when the contract was made. Hadley v

Concumer Behaviour and Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Concumer Behaviour and Marketing - Essay Example Culture plays a multidimensional phenomenon which is much more than nationality of a country. Today, marketers, functioning in a multicultural scene are commonly confronted with two questions; â€Å"What is culture in the marketing context?† and â€Å"What is the role of culture as a factor influencing individual ethical decision making?† (Srnka, 2004, p.1). The project makes an analysis of the cultural differences between nations and how they influence the marketing strategies of companies launching products in those countries. It discusses about how a particular marketing strategy impacts on its consumers. It explains to what extent the global consumers culture prevails in society. Finally, it makes an analysis of the various options present before the marketers of companies when they launch a new product in a different country having a different culture. Key points in global consumer culture Consumer culture refers to the system where a common â€Å"set of behaviour s† is found across all the places. Culture refers to a uniform set of values that exists among a selected group of individuals (University of Northern Iowa, 2008). The concept of global consumer culture gets impetus from the expansion of the businesses across all the global corners. According to Mazzarella (2004) global consumer culture is â€Å"at one and the same time, ideology and social process, as something continuously made and remade through constantly shifting relations, practices, and technologies of market mediation†. To be more specific the dissemination of the global consumer culture is shaped by the flow of varying cultural resources which are referred by Appadurai (1990) as mediascapes, ideoscapes, technoscapes and financescapes. Globalization is mainly envisioned as few selected global brands like Mc Donald’s, Coca-Cola and Nike. To some extent this is a result of the marketing executives in America who view global village as one where people trave l in the same car; have same food; and have a similar television program viewership. These views are further reinforced by a group of international editors and journalists who associate globalisation with Mc Donald’s and Coca Cola pictures which indirectly refers to the gradual spread of the small American brands throughout the world. These two American brands rank forty-second and thirty-first respectively and represent the face of globalisation. As per Belk, a uniform global culture leads to homogeneity of global consumption. The consumers are increasingly listening to a similar type of music, adopting the same fashion technique, dining in the same restaurant etc. As per Alden, Steenkamp and Batra look upon global consumer culture as common sets of consumption linked symbols that facilitate to categorise members. Financescapes refer to the international flow of currency, capital and different financial instruments which facilitate running of the market. The examples include remittance business, flourishing derivative markets etc. Technoscapes refer to the flow of mechanical and informational techniques across the globe. A common example here can be the global revolution of cell phone. Smith (1991) states that a global media helps in the spread of global consumer culture thereby developing its global identity. Mediascapes

Psychiatric Nursing Reflective Journals Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Psychiatric Nursing Reflective Journals - Essay Example She appeared inattentive to my instructions and needed three repetitions of what I had said for her to understand me. When she had obeyed my instructions, I admired volubly her pretty appearance and hugged her. To my queries, she had just stared at me as if she was scared but today she called me up. Seizing the opportunity, I moved up. Nervously pulling me to her side and looking around to ensure that nobody was within hearing distance, she whispered in my ear. Her neighbor was plotting to kill her and her husband, it seemed. She had heard noises from her backyard which sounded like gunshots when she had been in the kitchen at home. Her movements appeared jerky and speech was not incoherent but appeared monotonous. Realizing that her suspicious and guarded nature was characteristic of her condition, paranoid schizophrenia, I pretended to be a good listener to gain her confidence. She claimed that the neighbor of around her age was attracted to her and was eyeing her sexually. Several times he had approached her for sexual favors. She had told her husband about this but he did not believe her. At times the neighbor had thrown stones at her house when she was alone and had rung the doorbell several times. Each time she went to the door, there would be no one. Saying all of this at one go, she quickly pushed me aside when she noticed the nursing supervisor arriving. When the supervisor had left, Mrs. Jones again strode up to me and caught my attention. She told me that her husband was a good man but he did not believe her stories and told me to keep what she told a secret. Half an hour later, Mrs. Jones did not appear to want to talk with me. When I smiled at her, she seemed to have no recognition. I was a little taken back by the stony look on her face. Her husband had told me that she was a receptionist in a hotel and very much appreciated by the others and customers. Believing that she was then well, she had stopped her treatment. He had not noticed the medicin es not being taken. This had triggered this episode. She had also not kept her appointments with the psychotherapist. Anyone would have believed this lady the way she told the stories. They would have been credible had they come from a normal person. The fact that she was admitted for paranoid schizophrenia reminded me that the stories could be delusions. Though I had studied about schizophrenia and its various forms and symptoms, this was the first time that I was in close contact with a person with schizophrenia. Having no physical deficiencies, Mrs. Jones could easily pass on the road without anyone realizing the depth of mental illness that she had, the extent of trouble that she could create and the magnitude of suffering that she went through. What she needed was sympathetic people around her and proper pharmacological and psychological treatment. A person who did not know her to be a patient could even irritate her unknowingly. This was the situation for most psychiatric diso rders. When we were taught psychiatry, we never realized that most psychiatric patients became ill only occasionally and that most of their lives; they were presumably fine and able to work like Mrs. Jones. Treatment allowed them to be a part of normal society. However the treatment schedules should never be missed. I also noted that psychiatric patients should never be allowed to consume drugs without supervision. A family member had to take responsibility. This was another of my new learning. It would serve

Human Resourse Management Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Human Resourse Management - Dissertation Example There is more to human resource management as compared to just dealing with people in an organization. (Dessler, 2000) These factors all combined are to be done in such a way that the best output from the employees will be realized. For a bank that has an international presence it is very much important to have good human resource practices and management. In the course of people’s existence there are many situations that call for collective efforts in the tasks that are undertaken. These situations are the primary reasons that necessitate for aspect of good human resource management. Most of these circumstances occur in the workplace among other environments. There are also other circumstances when the importance of teamwork comes into perspective. This is when different individuals each with their own ability come together for the purpose of achieving a common goal. (Jackson, 2003) This is especially important since the individuals are all endowed differently and so will con tribute for the overall good of the group. With the incorporation of effective and efficient human resource management the set objectives may as well just be achieved. In this same regard it is very much important to build good relationships between the employees and the employers. In this same connection there are some characteristics of an effective human resource management program which cannot go without mention. One of these characteristics is that there is purpose of unity which is laid out clearly to all the staff members. In this case the members understand clearly the objectives of the organization. The other characteristic is that the employees are very much conscious of the operations and requirements of the organization. In this case it will be seen that the organization will occasionally stop its operations to examine and evaluate its past performance of its employees in relation to their current performance. (Golding, 2010) Problem Statement The management of the human resource department is something that is very much critical for the proper functioning of an organization and also the achievement of its goals and objectives. (Wing, 2005). If this fact is not upheld by the organization then chances of dismal performance are very much possible since the driving force of the organization is going to be crippled. At the end of it all the ball is thrown back to the management of the organization. This is particularly in relation to whether it has the right tools that will enable it manage its workforce efficiently. Some of these questions that may be asked pertaining the human resource management program that a firm has will go a long way in pointing out some of the defects that may be there in other areas of the organization. One such area is particularly to do with the management of the organization. This is most important because at the end of it all it is the top brass of the organization that will be charged with the responsibility of making som e of the decisions which will affect the different departments in the organization key among them being that of human resource. (Davis & Goetsch, 2010) One critical observation that may come from this is the portrayal that the management does not have the requisite skills when it comes to dealing with the members of staff and the result of this is that the results that are observed are rather dismal. Aim of the Research The major aim of this project is to establish the impact which human

Weather and Monsoon Season Essay Example for Free

Weather and Monsoon Season Essay The winds can knock down trees and even do some damage to peoples houses or buildings windows may be broken and trees may fall on houses. The floods also cause people serious problems. People may be walking down the street, wading through waist-deep water. The floods from the extreme rain can spread bacteria as well. The dirty water that hundreds of other people have been wading through can be a good breeding ground for harmful bacteria and it helps spread deadly diseases. Mosquitoes breed in water, so there might be an over-population of mosquitoes that can carry diseases, as well. Despite the dangers that monsoons bring, they can still provide clean drinking water. With all of the benefits that they bring to India, they still have disadvantages but the monsoon is actually looked forward to in Indian communities. All the good that the monsoons do for them has caused the people of India to create holidays, festivals and other celebrations to welcome the monsoon season. Some of the celebrations that the people of India have are called Teej and Adiperukku. Teej celebrates the onset of the monsoon season, and all of the good that it brings to the people of India. Adiperukku, which is a different type of celebration, is meant to celebrate the life-giving water that the monsoon season brings. Those are just two of the many festivals that the people of India celebrate to welcome in the sacred monsoon season. The seasonal changes in weather are so important to the people of India, the agriculture and the animals, that their lives depend on monsoons. Although monsoons are generally the most severe in India, there are still many other places in the world that experience the pouring rain and the damaging winds of monsoons mostly countries in southern Asia, like India.

Enhancing Competitive Abilities for Airline Companies

Enhancing Competitive Abilities for Airline Companies Case of Air China Abstract This study examines the strategic, performance and learning issues confronting the Air China, in the aftermath of the Open Skies agreement between China and the United States. It uses a comparative perspective of United Airlines to examine Air China and the Chinese airline industry in context of ‘open skies, and in contrast to the wider global airlines industry. This is a questionnaire based study that uses both qualitative and quantitative data but relies more on the latter. The study is limited in its scope and implications primarily due to a small sample size, and the resulting inability to use inferential statistics. The study provides some focused recommendations on strategic thrusts and choices that could augment Air Chinas growth and performance as an international player. Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Background In the year 2008 the aviation industry forecasts show that Air China is the only Chinese airline that is likely to make a profit. Even Air China the Chinese flagship airline has been underperforming on international routes for some time now. While air travel is increasing on the backs of economic growth and the Olympic Games, fuel prices and competition under the ambits of international agreements like the ‘open skies between the US and China seem to have found Chinese airlines on the back foot for the moment. The fast expansion of the Chinese aviation market has seen investment flow in and international parties becoming interested as partners, investors and competitors in the sector. Chinese Airlines have responded with forays such as exploring alliancing, and strategic restructuring to respond to this duality of opportunity and threat. The open skies agreement in general implies â€Å"unrestricted access by any carrier into the sovereign territory of a country without any written agreement specifying capacity, ports of call or schedule of services† (Murali, 2005). Thus, theoretically, when the skies are open, any foreign airline can land any aircraft at any airport, with no restrictions on frequency and seat capacity. The frame of reference for the US China open skies agreement is the central provinces of Anhui, Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Henan, and Shanxi. As per the terms of the agreement they are completely open to US airlines. Being open to the American enterprise means generous funds flow but harnessing this implies capturing the air routes and the passenger traffic. Major US airlines including the United maneuver to do this with their greater experience, resources and air traffic exposure alongside Chinese airlines. The latter have the advantage of being domestic players and thus have the local advantages that come with the same (Ahmed et al, 2006). Coordination and configuration issues also affect highly transnational international airlines in both positive and negative ways (Porter, 1985, 1986). One is by having greater experience of reaching out to new markets and the other is inevitable increasing challenge of synthesis and adjustment as each fresh market is encountered. The domestic flagship carrier Air China also has the advantage of national prestige just like Lufthansa has for Germany and British airways for Great Britain: â€Å"Air China is the only airline company which carries the national flag to fly. It has the first rank of brand value among domestic airline companies (the world brand laboratory evaluated it in 2006 as 18.896 billion RMB), and it is among the leading position of air passenger transport, freight transport and related service† (airchina.com, 2008). The advantage shows in it being at least better performing than other domestic airlines. However, the international experience and resource strength of players like the United Airlines is considerable. United operates more than 3,700 flights a day on United, United Express and Ted SM to more than 210 U.S. domestic and international destinations from its hubs in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Chicago and Washington, D.C hubs (AsiaTravel.com, 2007). With key global air rights in the Asia-Pacific region, Europe and Latin America, United is one of the largest international carriers based in the United States. United is also a founding member of Star Alliance With the Star alliance, United is clearly in elite company where international code sharing, passenger traffic movements, innovations, and control of international hubs are the forte of a group of heavily resourced carriers. International alliancing is rather nascent as a strategy in the case of Chinese airlines with Air China having but recently joined the Star Alliance. Furthermore, within the Star Alliance also competition is not nullified among alliance partners. With the squabbling over alliances in domestic market viz. between Air China and China Eastern Airlines, the market seems dangerously susceptible to foreign takeovers unless either performance improves or government takes safety measures through anti-trust clamp down. The trust in a government safety net have often resulted in airlines facing major crisis like for instance, the German carrier Lufthansa in 1990s where a leadership change and strategic turnaround of a seminal nature were required to save it (Mintzberg et a l, 2003). With the domestic carriers making a loss even for the flagship carrier Air China it is imperative to make sure that it does not sit easy on its asset of existing brand recognition that stems primarily from carrying the national flag. It is reported, at present in the Chinese and American aviation routes, the domestic operators is relatively disadvantaged. Neither the passenger transportation nor freight transportation have been able to raise profits and even made losses, the situation being particularly acute in the Chinese context. Low occupancy in flights returning from the United Stated is just one reason among other operational and strategic aspects like fuel prices, customer preferences, quality perceptions, pricing, and alliancing effects, to name a few(ATKearney, 2008). Since the open skies agreement the need to strengthen the Chinese airlines competitive position has been seen as key to both the airline industry and to the validation of the strategic intent of China to successfully globalize its key industries. 1.2 Motivation The aviation agreement between China and the US signals the intention of the Chinese Government to take on global competition for larger gains. With a five fold increase in airline frequency proposed over six years commencing the onset of the agreement in 2004 it is probably the right juncture to examine the state of the Chinese airline industry in the aftermath of this strategic drive. Air China being the flagship carrier makes for an ideal setting to be examined with a comparative frame of reference of United Airlines of the United States. The agenda is to look at strategies, performance, and impact across a range of indicators to reflect on competitive performance, and issues therein for the Chinese aviation industry. The perspective of the China US agreement is also a case that has implications for other open skies agreements that China has entered into like with the European Union in 2005. The consequences of Chinas opening up and joining the World Trade Organization in 2001 are also implied in issues, challenges and performance related reflections that are to stem from this study. The motivation for this study in its chosen research site of Air China, in a comparative reference with united airlines in the main, and under the US-China open skies agreement is thus of great relevance to industry and economic scenario. 1.3 Research Questions In light of the aforesaid the following research questions will deliver the examination of Chinese Airline industry. This in context of the open skies agreement using the case of Air China in the main, with a comparative reference to United Airlines, and with a view to generate implications for the Chinese aviation industry as a whole. What has been Air Chinas strategy in light of the open skies agreement? What are the issues affecting the performance of Air China in particular and of the Chinese airlines in general, in the aftermath of the open skies agreement? What are the issues affecting Air Chinas global brand development and recognition? What are the lessons that Air China can draw from United Airlines as a sample of what the Chinese airline industry can learn from more experienced international carriers? The first two research question clearly relates to the examination of Air Chinas strategic choices in light of the open skies agreement and how these have resulted in the realized performance. The next question relates to the idea of stretching of the domestically acquired- flagship status based, brand recognition into an internationally acclaimed brand. A key indicator for the same is quality and value that is associated with the brand. The final question is in the domain of lessons learned more-so strategic lessons in the aftermath of the open skies and with a comparative context of more experienced transnational carriers. This completes the loop by looking at learning in context of strategic choices and performance 1.4 Outline of the Dissertation This dissertation presents a literature review in the next chapter. The chapter takes off by a review the global airline industry, open skies agreement and the airlines under purview with reference to past information and research. This is in addition to and an extension of the background presented here. The literature review then contextualizes extant research broadly in the areas of strategy, organisation learning and transnational aspects as discussed under the discussion on research questions above. The methodology and approach chapter that follows the literature review moves forward to discuss how the indicators from a synthesis of the literature review are developed into an instrument, and associated, data, sampling, approach and methods in analyses aspects, among other aspects. The findings chapter provide an objective outlay of the analysis from a questionnaire study and then the discussions chapter provides and interpretative discussion on the same. Finally the conclusions reflect back on the aims of the research as operationalised under the research questions to also provide recommendations for strategy and for future research in the area. Chapter 2: Literature Review 2.1 Global Airline Industry, Open Skies and Air China The AT Kearneys (2008) report on the global outlook for the airline industry presents several noteworthy points. It posits that returns are lower than the cost of capital, and that oil prices have caused a dramatic decline in US business conditions with consumer confidence at an all time low since 2001. It further argues that growth looks better in emerging markets like China, tight credit norms are affecting U.S and Europe while excess capacity is a big issue to tackle with efficiency lifts being very critical across the board. In addition the argument for open skies to intensify competition is also driven home. This comprehensive scenario suggests that there is an opportunity for airlines in the growing/emerging markets to usurp dominant international carriers if they pull their act together. The overall crisis scenario has more negatives for the bigger carriers that are outside emerging markets. However, experience, network and resource muscle are keeping them ahead. The Chinese a irline market is probably the biggest opportunity to gain fresh turf and revenues given its relative robustness in recent times. The Chinese flagship carrier ‘Air China today is the new generation of what was the â€Å"Air China† established on 1988. It has come together as a merger of the erstwhile Air China, National Aviation Company and China Southwest Airlines. With this strategic reshaping event in the aviation history of China that happened in 2002, air China has taken giant leaps in trying to become a globally recognized player in the airlines industry over a short time frame. Its sustained profitability is a matter of pride and a signifier of the potential in and of emerging markets. Despite global downturns in profitability which have been a concern for Air China also, its performance is much better than most other global and all domestic players (Airchina.com, 2008). The company has strategic targets that indicate its ambitious designs despite its nascent lineage. However, these, that of competitive lead, continuous quality, service and profitability improvements with unique and memorable experiences for customers (Airchina.com, 2008) are but rather generic across airlines and also conjoint agendas. Operationalising this strategy has seen quality impetus that we will discuss later, trying to learn from and network with other airlines, among others. This national carrier of China has joined the Star alliance in 2007 and its cooperation with leading airlines around the globe has seen it expand massively to nearly nine hundred locations around the globe. It has its catch phrases to help keep strategy and performance feedback simple and translatable into new initiatives and improvements. One such aspect is to do with service and is called ‘four hearts- implying reassurance, satisfaction, easiness and sensation (Airchina.com, 2008). Other config uration aspects that link with the sales network expansion, working to fine tune the much used frequent flyer tactic, and using supplier and partner networks to improve capacity utilization and efficiency. It has tried to outdo professional and technical capacities deployed by international airlines, whether it be pilot and staff training, motivating service operations and innovations through awards, and as aforesaid, using symbolic emblems for quality in general that can make the strategic intent transmittable through the organisation at all levels. Branding at a global level has always been a concern worked at audaciously with domestic dominance never being in question (Ahmed et al, 2006; Airchina.com, 2008). In 2007, Air China reported an increase of about fourteen percent in its operating revenue. The growth in passenger and cargo services fuelled by economic growth and also the impending Olympics seem to have contributed. Managing efficiency to make sure that capacity utilization and efficiency in operations given the fuel crisis deliver to their best might have paid off to some degree. However, rising operating costs have taken hold given the oil price scenario. While hedging has helped counter fuel price impact it is not a stable measure (ATKearney, 2008). The current scenario is not bleak by far the overtime trends are of concern given the uncertainties that prevail in the aviation market and the intensifying competition under the open skies agreement. Air China has focused on transfer traffic to increase passenger uptake while opening up steadily on international routes. Nearly thirty five percent of its routes are now international operating across nearly thirty countries. The revenue chunk from domestic operations stills makes the bulk. Having joined the Star Alliance recently Air China has made path breaking improvements in quality, service and has upgraded both its fleet and support infrastructure like under the new terminus at Beijing also hosting the alliance. The operating performance of Air China is markedly higher than other Chinese airlines including Eastern China Airlines. Domestic competition had defeated efforts at alliances here but the climate of uncertainty that has had international airlines pitching for co-operation saw Air China enter the prestigious Star Alliance. The inclusion was also triggered by promise in the emerging markets as aforesaid. Being the largest carrier in China with over 20000 employees and well trained crew who are more abreast with international service norms and issues holds Air China in good ground when making internationalization efforts. Domestic market is a stable resource mooring for the Airline that seeks to become a globally renowned brand in the industry. It makes for a perfect alliance partner for international majors given that at the onset of the decade China was recorded to have the highest percentage increase in passenger traffic of about 11.50%. US on the other hand had the lowest at -6.30% (Ahmed at al, 2008). Since 9/11 things have finally shaken the slumber in the U.S but fresh crisis of rising fuel prices and capital crunch have nullified the recovery. 2.2 United Airlines: The lineage and Chinese Context United is one of the oldest airlines. It claims its genesis in W.T. Varneys airmail operations in the later 1920s. United went with the fortunes of the times whether it be the Wars or the economic boom thereafter which saw rapid expansion on the one hand and monopolistic competition on the other. The 1970s were true crisis times for United as it went through several leadership hands and tried to remain afloat during turbulent economic times. The era of stability thereafter has seen United become the largest employee majority owned company in the world. While this has had positive implications on service quality, it is also not without its downsides. Arguably employee lobbies resulted in factionalism at times but overall the service philosophy due to this ownership has taken great leaps, and the ‘friendly skies slogan got replaced with a more ambitious slogan of ‘rising. This was probably as much aspiration based as it was given deregulation across the World. New economies and markets beckoned with domestic competition being as intense as ever. The 9/11 crisis probably hit the United the hardest. However, with government support, employee cooperation and smart financial management United managed to stay afloat and recover as a strong player in the international market. While it shares the industry downturn of recent times, experience and employee ownership hold it in good grounds to face competition and explore new markets (United.com, 2008). In March 2008 United Airlines won the duel with other US based airlines like the Continental- to run daily flights between Washington D.C and Beijing. The implications for the United home the Dulles airport is massive. This includes a boost through employment among other things much needed in the slumping economy. With the Beijing Olympics then just around the corner this meant even more money. Despite the open skies agreement the number of carriers from US in Chinese air space are limited by the government and the routes that open up thus draw fierce competition amongst prospective airlines (asiatravel.com, 2007). Besides increasing communication, this has special implications for international carriers that are facing the brunt of global oil price rise and uptake of luxury class travel (ATKearney, 2008). The forecast of emerging markets being the place to be discussed before has seen airline industries queue up for the Chinese airspace. The success is not only in winning amongst peers but also by getting a bulk of revenue off Chinese airlines like Air China who have local advantages but when it comes to international travel where the clientele is mixed they have less experience. The bids draw great political clout that pitch in with one airline or the other. With nearly 90000 people moving between China and Washington the market is serious. Us airlines like Continental, American and Northwest are serious contenders for the overall Chinese air space and are carving out their own niche for instance the connection between Shanghai and New York that continental offers (Asia travel.com, 2007). The star alliance connection between Air China and United comes to the fore here as this alliance allows United to access more routes around Beijing. Clearly the alliance has a cooperation agenda at the fore but competition remains within alliance partners also. On the one hand they rope in customers based on loyalty points, better cumulative resource strength, and wider route configurations, among others while on the other they vie for getting more and more alliance passengers as primary to themselves. 2.3 Network effects, Quality and Service Value Quality drives with an international value paradigm are a key indicator of aspirations to become a globally renowned brand. Network effects like that of prestigious alliances and by virtue of passenger traffic in the area given events such as the Olympics and generally favorable economic climate also augment the potential. Air China identified key business activities to enhance service quality and by extension value perceptions in customers. These were: â€Å"flight service (including off flight), people management (employee satisfaction leading to better customer service); supplier network management; technology adoption and integration; passenger perception management; and customer satisfaction measurement and complaint handling† (Ahmed et al, 2006). Under these, customizing services for individual customers is considered important. At the same times basic satisfying aspects are to be ensured before specialist and high order services are to be configured. This is in line with the ‘hygiene -motivators theory of Frederick Hertzberg (1959). Working to deliver a unique experience through incorporating attractive cultural aspects that are also internationally appealing has also been on the agenda fueling creative insights and challenges in the process. It has not been without innovation meeting efficiency and operational bottleneck for example to stretch customer choices by providing onboard menus that met with some embarrassing failures to keep adequate stock of items. This was reworked with considerable focus on database management to record past preferences. Employee satisfaction and involvement at this stage is pivotal as they are central to service and in the airline business front end employee interface is critical for rep eat business and reputation building. The people management agenda at Air China is closely juxtaposed with quality, the role of the manager in tying together people, and productivity and excellence stemming from motivated employees are all key tenets practiced with the adage that performance and quality issues begin at the top (Ahmed et al, 2006). As far as network effects are concerned the company seeks to establish long term relations with suppliers for stability, assuredness and cost effectiveness. The product life cycle of the key artifact the aircraft also merits such an approach. Improvement needs, maintenance needs and incorporating new technology are connected issues where in-house capabilities are also important. The excellence 2008 programme works to look at technology as a nonhuman aspect and emphasizes the need for connection with people as pivotal in realizing developing capabilities. Processes and initiatives are kept simple for easy of delivery and communication from the staff and to the customer respectively. The network effects Air China seeks stretch out to the customer through loyalty programmes and horizontally to partners with exchange and amalgamation of routes, loyalty points and information among others (Airchina.com, 2008). Brand image as a natural and desired culmination of the aforesaid efforts takes number one priority, followed by scheduling which is closely connect with capacity utilization and efficiency. Interestingly pricing is at number six preceded by on and off board services and plane model (Ahmed et al, 2006). Clearly the agenda is to drive on quality first and be realistic about the associated price. This is a model very distinct from low cost short haul airlines and also some airlines in other emerging markets like Russia. This is also a bold step that underlines the agenda for brand recognition through quality and service value with a close perspective on customer needs. 2.4 Organisational Learning: Strategic Choices and Performance feedback Organisational learning is understood as learning within the organisation and is complimented by the idea of learning by organisations as a distinct concept (Cyert and March, 1963; Senge, 1990). Overall the literature on learning with reference to organisations has a rather expansive lineage that is outside the scope of this study. In context of this study it is important to keep in mind the context that of learning from competitors and partners, learning from the experience of initiatives like those related to quality within the organisation, and learning from past direct and indirect experiences to counter environmental threats. These three issues will be central to the main research site Air China in context of learning. Competitive, growth and recognition aspirations that we have broadly contextualized so far will be of concern The literature on organisational learning and learning by organisations as distinguished above can be viewed from several lenses. The first is the human development lens which is at the heart of Air Chinas people management orientation that drives everything else. The emphasis on simplifying inputs, delivery and adoption are all tied into the concern of this perspective. The individuals orientation, capacities and motivation to learn are at the core of this lens. Also the stages and enablers that make learning effective are design issues to be implemented and monitored (e.g. Kolb, 1979; Argyris, 1978, 1986, 1992; Talbot and Harrow, 1993; Dixon, 1994). The management science is essentially about information management. It is important to generate feedback from processes and operations again an important but not central issue. This is because while people management is supposed to motivate this automatically at Air China, the importance of effective processes to say generate employee and customer feedback cannot be ignored (e.g. Huber, 1991; Nonaka and Takeuchi, 1995). There are other lenses like the one that looks at organisation as a societal being and another that considers organisation from a productivity perspective only as far as learning is concerned (Easterby Smith, 1997). Both have consequences for efficiency and performance but alone do not suffice to deliver the needed learning for sustaining performance (e.g. Pettigrew, 1973; Hedberg, 1981; Talbot and Harrow, 1987; Buzzell and Gale, 1987). Easterby Smith (1997) has generated other perspectives from his extensive review of the growth of body in learning with reference to organisations. These include cultural and strategic lenses that are critical to appreciate given the globalization agenda to hand. The cultural multiplicity within organisations and the areas they operate is juxtaposed with increasing competitiveness as globalization becomes the order of the day for design and configuration of organisations and their goals (e.g. Shibata et al, 1991; Hamel and Prahalad, 1989,1993). While I explore these lenses here in context of the Chinese aviation industry and Air China in particular it is useful to refer back to the comparative frame of United Airlines being used. The context of learning also becomes important as experiences, the feedback and the realization of this feedback into improvements are not imitable but need to be adapted (Nickerson and Zenger, 2002; McDermott and ODell, 2001). With Air China drawing on conventional strategic and tactical threads used in the airline industry to fuel its mindset in this nascent stage of development care should be taken to recognize that it is a different organisation especially when indirect (experience of other airlines) are learned from (Schwab and Miner, 2001; Rogers, 1997). This is important because learning needs to translate into fine tuning the strategic frame. Choices that work need to be distilled from choices that dont. However there is the simplicity agenda to contend with here (Miller, 1993). Overtime this implies bracketing and focusing on an industry wide panacea or select aspects which are considered pivotal to performance while others are made dormant. A non-performing element whether it be pricing that takes a back seat to people management may be the cutting edge one is looking for when the aspect of employee management has been honed by all competitors to an extreme. Innovations lie in such dormant aspects and creativity within the organisation needs to be fuelled to encourage bouncing of new ideas outside the confines of what is taken as doing well in the present time (March, 1991; Miller, 1990, 1993). The globalization agenda makes this even more crucial as performance feedback is subject to more ambiguity than ever before. Outside once domestic arena interpretation of performance is often more difficult and mistakes can be costly. For Air China its bold steps like alliancing, technology and excellence drive that seems to be driven around dominant features of what has worked in the Airline industry may be risky. The learning agenda from United that is decades older than it could be to examine the shocks it faced when threading a similar path rather than what works for it and other more experienced transnational airlines (Mintzberg, 1979) 2.5 The transnational context: Establishing global recognition and competitiveness Globalization is a phenomenon that most industries and major companies therein choose, strive for and adapt to. On the one hand lies the legacy of domestic or local experience and competencies shaped in that mould, while on the other lies the challenge to customize and adapt this ‘strategic configuration to market realities of different international markets (Mintzberg, et al, 1998; Mintzberg, 1979). The multiple subsidiaries and spread across countries creates the need for multidimensional competencies that are flexible. These also come with the principle competency of being able to choose the right mix and leverage it to local realities. The relationship between intermediaries and with the parent /home unit is important resource strength. The perspective of being able to adapt, and at the same time identify with the parent organisation brings to the fore the important aspect of creating a balanced interdependency (Bartlett and Ghoshal 1987). Going trans-national thus needs to be a carefully crafted initiative with the aforesaid issues and a host of variables to be considered. These variables include the economic climate, and industry level variables. Baden fuller and Stopford (1991) provide a set of considerations that impact on the profitability of a global strategy (figure 1). While these are generic considerations that point that is again emphasized in shaping of this framework is that competing in the transnational market is a very distinct foray than domestic competition. Being a domestically profitable and successful firm will not imply that the same success will be repeated in the international market (Rangan, 2000). The company has to carefully stretch and leverage (Hamel and Prahalad, 1993) its value set and configurations (Prahalad and Hamel, 1990) so as to maintain a balance between the stability of its configuration and at the same time coordinate the diverse subsidiaries to gain maximum synergy and interdependent benefits (Porter, 1986). Air China with its nascent lineage that goes back just two decades, in its present form it being around for only a few years has a lot of lessons to draw on. Its dominance as the dom estic player in China has spurred it on but its transnational success is still an early call to make. The importance of being part of the Star alliance brings a novel perspective to going transnational. The interface with more experienced airlines and the trade off of benefits from hosting each other in home countries is mutually beneficial. Alliances are crucial not only given the airline industry needs but also they bring a novel enabling and risk averse perspective to global business. How this tells on competitiveness amongst the partners is also rather unique in the case of the ai

Process Implemented In Shell Pakistan Management Essay

Process Implemented In Shell Pakistan Management Essay This chapter discusses the change management process implemented in Shell Pakistan. It also highlights the issues of necessity to change, the risks faced during the transformation and the effectiveness of change management. The behavioral responses and attitude of stakeholders towards change management in the industry have also been covered in the report with a comprehensive analysis on the features that have helped or hindered the changed process within Shell. The findings presented here are mostly based on the research conducted through 20 interviews includes both the face to face interviews and questions being asked through telephone and recording feedback. I tried to interview people who are closely related to the topic of change in the business. In addition, twenty five questionnaires are distributed amongst employees as well in order to understand the change process that took place from converting from JD Edwards to SAP within the organization. 4.2-Factors that resist change One of the most common problems which business executives face during implementing plan is the employee resistance to change. Such resistance could be in different forms like persistent reduction in output, increase in the number of quits and requests for transfer, chorine quarrels, sullen hostility, wildcat or slowdown strikes, and, of course, the expression of a lot of pseudo logical reasons why the change will not work. All this actions can result in a negative outflow or a reduced net worth of any organization. A survey was conducted by the author in Shell Pakistan to identify the most common factors from the employees which act as a resistance while adopting change. The approach adopted for this research was more direct as one to one session of interview was held with the individuals. The feedback received was mixed. The most common reasons for the resistance were as follows Lack of communication between the management and staff on change issue Fear of losing the task after change is implemented is always there Fear or losing their job status and job security is also a concern Too much pressure and work load is tough to handle Change of working environment and disruption in culture is a concern. Conflicts of personalities Benefits are not communicated Others Results are illustrated below by using a pie chart and followings are the findings So according to the results illustrated by the pie chart, it is clearly understood that the fear of losing and the concerns regarding job status and job security are suppose to be the biggest barriers for managing change. After that the benefits of change not being communicated properly, act as a resistance to change. Rest of the reasons identified through the survey were more linked to the human behaviour, like mental stress, personal conflicts, culture disruption etc 4.3- Necessity of change in Shell In any organization managing change process, asks for planning before implementing the change steps. Every organization has different circumstances and the change situation varies a lot but still there are few logical steps which could be used during change management process. The process of change normally starts with a change Trigger. The change trigger highlights the necessity of change in a specific organization. The change trigger included two types of events. These are the external and the internal events: External Events: Changes in economic conditions (Inflation, GDP, Interest rates, etc) Changing laws and regulations, influencing the business cycle Strong competitive strategies from competitor and threat from a new entrant in the industry Technology introduced, changes in Research and Development Internal Events Changes in top level management giving rise to different operational strategies, changes in priorities, and new leadership styles. Introduction of a new technology and having a changed working style and environment Opening more branches of business both in the same country and overseas Introducing new diversified products or services These triggers will push management to opt for change. The questions which is to be answered by management is if they really think change is required to improve the situation, or if it could be handled without implementing change. Shell being a global organization wanted to streamline standardize its processes around the world. Prior to the use of SAP the organization had been using different ERP in different parts of the world like JD Edwards in Asia, Oracle in Australia etc. This made the operational reconciliation processes different but since the organization has the vision of standardizing simplifying its processes it prompted the top management to implement SAP Also SAP had been customized for Shell is being implemented with the name of GSAP i.e. Global SAP. It helps the organization in simplifying operations standardizes its processes around the globe. In short, the following are the factors which pushed Shell to opt for change to accomplish their goals more efficiently: Simplification of the operational process by removal of a lot of redundant activities, and getting rid of activities which were not adding value to any product or service of shell. Standardization of processes across the Globe, this helped Shell in removing complexities which arose from using different systems. Cost Cutting Saving with standardization of processes and removal of non value adding activities. Adapting to the latest of technology in the ERP World i.e. Use of SAP. Reducing the fixed overheads is helpful for any organization in terms of Cost Savings. In the case of Shell Pakistan, organizational restructuring resulting in reduced head count due to process simplification e.g. Prior to SAP implementation there used to be two General Managers for Supply Distribution for operations in Pakistan but now there is only one General Manager for Supply Distribution who covers India, Pakistan Oman Dubai. 4.4-Models dealing with resistance to change There have been many different approaches of managing the resistance to change. Below included are few models presented by different authors during their time which were used as a tool for managing the process of change. Kotter Schlesinger;s (1979) Presented a 6 step model which is used to reduce, eliminate or minimize the resistance. The following steps were suggested in this model for managing resistance. Education Communication: The resistance is the result of ignorance, and in order to control this it was suggested that communicating the vision of change and the potential benefits will help the cause and control resistance Participation Involvement: The idea is to get people involved in the change process and their participation matters Facilitation Support: Offering counselling services to those feeling stress and difficulties is one major example of facilitate, support could involve training procedures, providing technical assistance etc. Negotiation and agreement: According to (Economist, 2003) long before the economic slowdown of 2008-2009 the United Auto Workers Union some extraordinary pay rises and improved medical health care in response to agreeing for managements closure of plants. The General motors and Ford were in competition with non unionized Japanese subsidiaries, and needed to improve their productivity Manipulation Co-optation: The resistance is controlled by the way information is presented or by a political process Coercion, Implicit Explicit: This works best when the management is powerful, the change decision is enforced on the employees forcefully and they are left with no other option but to accept it. (BPP, 2008, P-402) Another model used for carrying out the change process was introduced by Kurt Lewin (1951), He presented a 3 stage model to explain the important steps to be taken while implementing change. Lewins concept about organizational change was based on the perspective of the organism metaphor. His model is widely used by managers in the industry. According to him an organization can go through three different stages during the process of change. Theses stages are: Unfreeze Initiation Creation of the right Environment Lewin has linked this process of change to the human behaviour and believes that motivation should be put before planning and implementing the change process. The unfreeze process defined by Lewin should start with breaking down of the existing status of organization and start building up a new environment. Unfreezing was the process which was used by Lewin to present a new approach in shape of force field analysis. A force field analysis is suggested by Kurt Lewin presented which helps in considerate of change in an establishment. According to Force field analysis a process of change in any organization is stuck in between two types of influencing forces (1) Driving force which is the positive force for change. The other force is the Restraining force which is an obstacle to change, so according to Lewin before the change process the forces are in equilibrium. Lewin also suggested that whenever the driving force is stronger compared to the restraining force, the equilibrium or the status quo will change. Making Sense of Change Management (2004, p.110). The figure below illustrates the work of Lewin on Force field Analysis. This is and example of an operating organization. Thomas (1985) said regarding the force field analysis that the model has been widely used in very different contexts but there is not link of this model to the overall strategy. Maslen and Platts (1994) used force field analysis and applied this to the manufacturing strategy. forceFieldAnalysis Force Field Analysis Model Change Adoption, Supporting change to required state Lewin knew that change was a process rather than a one off event. He termed this process as transition. According to Lewin at this stage the people are unfrozen and moving towards a new beginning. He also suggested that at this stage people are also uncertain and fearful so this is also the hardest stage of the model as it is tough to convince people for change John B Miner (2004, p.110). Re-freeze Acceptance strengthening to anchor the change The refreezing stage is concerned with establishing and maintaining stability once the change process has been implemented. The top management support is required in during this process. Besides that those sources must be identified which supports change and also the barriers supporting the revolution must be identified). The figure below shows the 3 staged model presented by Lewin. Refreeze Unfreeze Change Lewins Model of Change: http://picsicio.us/image/58bf1359/ Lewins work has been widely accepted and is more frequently used in the industry by management during the change implementation process. However the 3 staged model is not the only one used for managing change and Greminis 4Rs is another approach used in the industry. Gouillart and Kelly were Management Consultants and they describe the process of business transformation (major change) in four different stages. The framework presented by them is known as Greminis 4 Rs According to the framework a conversion process should establish a new corporate vision, bring in new opportunities for an organization and new ways of performing activities should be carried out. Gouillart and Kelly suggested that such a process will require four Rs to be present if it is to be successful. Gemini 4Rs is as follows: Reframing Restructuring Revitalizing Renewal Reframing Reframing will give rise to questions about the nature of the organization and what its reason for existence. Following elements should be present in reframing Achieving Mobilization: Giving rise to the will and having desire to change Creating a Vision: Current status of the organization must be reviewed in detail Building a measurement system: Progress will be measured and compared against the set targets Restructuring This will start removing the non value adding activities from the organization. The fundamentals are to consider the organizational structure but it might also look at cultural change. The activities involved in Restructuring are Building of an economic model: This is to look at how the assets are organized and is more focused on the financial aspects Aligning the physical infrastructure with the long term plan. Creating value: redesigning the overall work architecture in order to make processes interact to create value Revitalizing: This portion is concerned with exploring the new products and markets, and making sure a good fit with competitive environment. Activities will include: Focused on exploring new opportunities in marked. Inventing in new businesses and products. Using the knowledge to change the directions of rivalry Renewal: This section talks about the procedure of developing individuals, to make sure that their skills are aligned with the organizational requirements. Activities should include: Building a system for remuneration to focus on staff motivation Introducing organizational learning to progress learning as competence within the organization 4.20- Comparing JD Edwards and SAP Based on a study about comparing both the ERP solutions, it has been found that both have certain features, advantages and disadvantages in comparison to each other, allowing organizations to derive certain benefits based on which software is implemented. It has been noted that ERP vendors are now more focused on other elements of the organization as well such as supply chain and customer relationships as a result of which new modules and improved versions of existing modules have come into play. Both SAP and JDE have focused on these elements with the knowledge in hand that customer is the core focus within any business because this is how an organization runs.

Harbor Seals Essay example -- Animals Sea Wildlife Descriptive Essays

Harbor Seals Harbor seals are marine mammals that have spotted coats in a variety of shades from silver gray, black to dark brown. They reach 5 to 6 feet in length and weigh up to 300 pounds. Harbor seals are dimorphic, with the male being slightly larger than the female. They are true, or crawling seals, which means they have no external earflaps. True seals also have small flippers, and move on land by flopping along on their bellies. They breathe at the surface and hold their breath while diving. They can dive to 1,500 feet for up to 40 minutes, although their average dive lasts 3 to 7 minutes. Their scientific name basically means 'sea calf' or 'sea dog.' This nickname is fits them well, as these seals closely resemble a dog when their head is viewed at the surface of the water. When the harbor seal pup (baby seal) is born, it has a coat that closely resembles the adult coat. Some have a longer, softer white or gray coat (lanugo) when born, but they shed that coat within about 10 days. Harbor seals are found across the Northern Hemisphere in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In the northeast Pacific, they range from Alaska to Baja California, in Mexico. They live near-shore coastal waters and frequent sandy beaches, mudflats, bays, and estuaries. Some harbor seals even live in certain areas of Europe such as Finland. The total harbor seal population in the northeast Pacific is estimated to be 330,000, in California the estimated population was 40,000, and in Europe the estimated population was 6,000 in 1997. Harbor seals spend about half their time on land and half in water, and they sometimes sleep in water. They may sleep most of the day on the beach to keep safe from the predators that hunt them, and go into the water only a couple of times each day to hunt for food. Harbor seals don?t have a permanent place to live but they usually are found in small groups, but sometimes occur in numbers of up to 100 to 500. Their average life span is around 25 years, although some have lived for over 30 years. However, males seem to live shorter lives, probably because of the added physical stress of fighting during mating season.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Harbor Seal is both a predator and a prey. They are very vital in the food chain. Seals eat a lot of fish and prevent over population, and they are a great source of food to animals such as orca whales, great... ... high tolerance to carbon dioxide in the tissues, they have the ability to store large amounts of oxygen in the muscle tissues, and they have the ability to make their lungs collapse when air is expelled before they dive, which helps to prevent the bends. To help see in dark and murky waters, the seals have special adapted eyes that make them able to see in such conditions. To guard against very cold water temperatures, harbor seals maintain a thick layer of fat beneath their skin, giving them a thick sausage shape. To make the harbor seals less noticeable to predators, their coats sometimes blend in with the rocks or sand they?re lying in. To help them find food easier, they have a keen sense of smell. Without these adaptations, who knows if the Harbor Seal would still exist today. Works Cited: *Hanan, D. (1999). Pacific Harbor Seals. Alolkoy Publishing Co. PP 12-59. *King, J. (1983). Seals of the World. British Museum (Natural History) and Cornell University Press. PP 20-26. *Internet: Sea World web site. www.seaworld.org/animal_bytes/harborsealab.html April 20, 2001 *Internet: The Marine Mammal Center web site. www.tmmc.org/harborsl.htm April 20, 2001

No Restraint Needed in Our Response to Terrorism Essay -- September 11

No Restraint Needed in Our Response to Terrorism Many liberals have called for restraint in responding to the September 11 attack on the United States. These groups proclaim that we must not ask "who" committed these horrible crimes but instead ask "why" the killers were so angry at the United States. In other words, what has America done to lead these people to the conclusion that murderous terrorism is the only appropriate action. The liberals contend that the terrorists feel that such monumental wrongdoing have been inflicted upon them, their families and their way of life by the United States that such calamitous actions are the only remedy. The statements by these liberals directly implies that the terrorists who killed more than 5,500 innocent Americans were not themselves responsible for the bloodshed inflicted last September 11 but rather that American actions and policies have unjustly driven otherwise peace-loving human beings to commit unprecedented mass murder - the worst act of terrorism the world has ever seen. In response to these liberals' claim that America is at fault, we would like to point out a few of the American actions that Osama bin Laden has used as a motivational tool to drive his evil co-conspirators into violent, suicidal missions. Perhaps then we can decide whether or not these innocent Americans were truly asking for it, as The statements by these liberals seems to claim. This is the list of "monumental wrongs" that the United States has committed: 1) America supported British and U.N. actions to create the State of Israel in 1948. We have helped provide and protect this homeland for the Jewish people following the slaughter of six million Europe... ..., we were savagely and inhumanely attacked; Bush and company have since reserved judgment to make certain we identify the correct perpetrators before responding in an appropriate and effective manner. The outpouring of faith and patriotism are the only things that are helping those who have been bereaved move on with their lives in these dark days. We hope you liberals, would be ashamed to meet the families of 3,500 victims or to the exhausted firefighters who have been digging mutilated bodies out of the wreckage of two 110-story buildings and the Pentagon. At this moment of grief and pain we should all be proud to stand together and support our fellow Americans. Our leaders need our prayers as do the victims and workers. We don't need divisiveness, nor do we need cowardice masquerading as conscience. May justice be served and God Bless America.

A Teacher Affects Eternity :: Teaching, Education, Admissions

A Teacher Affects Eternity As graduation was approaching, the question running through my mind was, "What am I going to do with my life?" I knew this was an important decision, and I wanted to make sure I made the right one. I knew that I wanted to attend college, but I was debating between Physical Therapy, and Education. In making this decision, I reflected back to my Junior year in high school, when I tutored a Kindergarten class. I hadn't realized the impact that these ten kindergartners had made upon my life. With their cute sayings, their many hugs, and the excitement on their faces when learning something new; helped me to decide that Education is what I wanted to do. When I enrolled into college, I realized that becoming a teacher is a very important task. Teachers are forming the mold of future doctors, lawyers, teachers, and much more. When I become a teacher I want to portray positive characteristics that will be beneficial to my students. I want to be the type of teacher that shows compassion toward my students. I feel to portray this characteristic I must know each of my students learning capabilities, and what kind of learning strategy works for each child. I feel it's my job to make sure that my classroom is a safe haven for each child. I never want one student to be excluded. I feel being excluded would make coming to school a very terrifying experience for the child, and I want to make my classroom comfortable for everyone. I want to always go the extra-mile to help my students, and I want them to feel that if they have a problem they can always come to me for help. I want to be the teacher who offers daily encouragement. I feel encouragement is imperative when dealing with children. I feel they need encouragement so that they know they can accomplish anything they set their mind to. I want to be the teacher who makes phone calls home to parents to tell of the accomplishments that their sons/daughters are achieving. I feel that giving encouragement will make my students work harder, and they will be more successful.

Organizational chart Essay

The company that I worked for years ago that many people are familiar with was Target. I actually worked in different departments at Target such as the fitting room, the women’s department, the men’s department, electronics, house wares, customer service, and cashiering. I mostly worked at the front of the store at the service desk and cashiering. I would help customers with returns and exchanges, provide information, and cashing out customers products through the register. I really enjoyed the nature of the job. I got a sense of satisfaction when I helped customers and other employees if needed. I believe Target runs a functional organizational structure. An organizational structure consists of activities such as task allocation, coordination and supervision, which are directed towards the achievement of organization aims. I really enjoyed working there because Target would focus on certain categories within each store such as the store atmosphere, cash handling, loss prevention/safety and security, customer service, refunds and returns, visual merchandising, training, and inventoried and stock management. With these different categories that they focus on, make the company run smoothly and easy to work for. The Target store I worked, if you followed the rules then you had nothing to worry about and that’s what I did. That ended up with me being there for almost four years. The only reason I left was because I had finished school and got a job managing another company, other than that, I really liked working with Target.

Hunger in San Diego Persuasive Speech

1 | Page . Attention Step . When will you eat next? Will you be eating dinner tonight? . Need Step . Today, there are over 446,000 people that are going hungry in San Diego County. http://sandiegofoodbank. org/hunger-in-san-diego/ . A story of a fellow San Diegan and her family who are also having hunger problems. 1. Alejandra in her late 20s moved in with her sister Marisol, her husband, and her three kids to help take care of them. 2. Marisol worked days and Alejandra nights so there was always someone to take care of the kids. 3.Marisol’s husband lost his job as construction worker, Marisol was laid off from hers as a housekeeper at a Holiday Inn, and then Alejandra lost her restaurant job. 4. It became hard for them to find work, but eventually Marisol’s husband found few jobs as a handyman and Marisol worked cleaning a few houses. 5. Barely got by, and it was hard for them. 6. Cupboards were generally empty except for a little of rice and beans. 7. Main concern was children, so adults would often eat little or nothing at all so the kids would have enough. . Eventually got support from church and then San Diego Food Bank. †¢ Here is a picture of Alejandra picking up food at the San Diego Food Bank. That is a real story about a real hunger problem. http://sandiegofoodbank. org/newstypes/client-profiles/ 2. Feedingamericasd. org says that: †¢ 1 out of 4 children in San Diego don't know where their next meal is coming from†¦ †¢ Scientific evidence suggests that hungry children are less likely to become productive citizens. A child who is unequipped to learn because of hunger and poverty is more likely to be poor as an adult. . You see†¦. our bodies are like engines, engines need fuel, we need food, and both are required to move forward. 2. So next this quote is from sandiegohungercoalition. org, Ken Hecht, executive director of California food policy advocate says that: â€Å"Given the extent of food insecurity in San Di ego County and across the country, we must not undermine critical efforts to protect families against hunger, and improve health through good nutrition,† You know†¦.. we must all realize that hunger can happen to any of us, all it takes is: †¢ Losing our job †¢ Having a health crisis †¢ Or any other unusual emergency expense. Such as a major car repair. ?And†¦ We must all be aware†¦That it’s important that San Diego County has food bank agencies to provide support to people who are low income or have sudden crises. . Satisfaction Step . We†¦.. Should look for opportunities†¦ to support the San Diego Food Bank. . There are many ways to support the Food Bank, we can†¦ †¢ Donate food items Support them financially †¢ Or we can volunteer. . aThe San Diego Food Bank has been around since 1977 and has been serving ever since because of†¦ People’s food†¦ financial†¦ and voluntary support. . So†¦Y es, this solution will take time out of your day and/or money if you would like to help. But, think of the good you would do by simply donating 10 dollars, taking 3 hours out of your Saturday or Sunday, or even collecting a few cans of food from your neighbors or workplace to just do something good for a local family in need. Visualization Step . So†¦just look around places you go in San Diego, maybe you see a homeless guy asking for money for food, or maybe it’s your next door neighbor who doesn’t have enough to eat, or maybe even a friend who’s hungry but too reluctant to say. †¢ The sad fact is that nearly half a million people in San Diego County don’t have enough to eat. . Imagine that there was a place where all of those hungry people could go to get food. I know of a place, the San Diego Food Bank. . Action Step . Fact is†¦people are hungry†¦. ut the San Diego Food Bank is there to help. . So today, I would like to encourage you to pull out your phones when you leave this classroom today, simply text capital letters â€Å"SD† to 20222, and this will make a 10$ donation to the San Diego Food Bank, just a simple thing, yet that 10 dollars will provide 30 meals for people in need. . This week, I myself am going to make a ten dollar donation and drop off a bag of food to the Food Bank. . If San Diegans work together, we can eliminate hunger in San Diego County.

G topics

G topics A Unipolar World spells disaster for underdeveloped countries like India Is Globalization Really Necessary? What shall we do about our ever-increasing population? Corruption is the price we pay for democracy Foreign television channels are destroying our culture What India needs is a dictatorship With media publishing and telecasting trivia, censorship is the need of the hour Kaun Banega Krorepati is less about knowledge but more about money and personality Beauty contests degrade womanhood The rise of regional blocs threatens independent nations like India Six billion and one ronze!Is dependence on computers a good thing? Should the public sector be privatized? China and India are similar nations with contrasting ways Is India a Soft Nation? Value based politics is the need of the hour Religion should not be mixed with politics How to deal with high oil prices Our cricketers are not to blame for match fixing Why cant we be world players in industry as we are in software? Mu ltinational corporations: Are they devils in disguise? Should there be limits on artistic freedom (the controversy on Fire). Should there be private universities?Does banning fashion shows and New Year parties save our culture? Are Big Dams Necessary? Films are corrupting the Indian Youth A Gandhian State selling liquor is an anomaly Bride burning and dowry may look bad, but are an integral part of India Our Culture is Decaying We are not serious about saving Wildlife/Environment The education system needs serious reforms The impact of MTV on our psyche Showing Violence and Crimes should not be allowed in films and on television Let us legalize gambling Is management an art or a science? The Rush for MBA is really a rush for big moneyEthics in Business are Just a passing fashion The objective of Management is to maximize profits Do professional managers have a chance in our family run businesses? The Internet Is an MBA necessary to succeed in life? Family owned business vs. professi onally run businesses Smaller businesses and start-ups have more scope for professional growth Dot com or doubt com? The Wheel is Turning Round and Round If I was the Finance Minister/Prime Minister There is no right way to do a wrong thing Group Task: How can we have Mount Everest in India?Do Beauty and Brains Go Together? When I woke up in the morning I saw†¦ A ship docked in harbor cannot face the storms Up the Down Staircase Just as we have smoke free zones, we should have child free zones Marriage is a social trap India needs dictatorship or democracy Education and success -direct correlation Indian villages-our strength or weakness Budget-good or bad Role of NGOs in todays world (and India) International Women's Day MBA necessary for successful business? Are beauty pageants Justified? Is coalition politics here to stay?India needs a dictator? Is India moving away from a secularist state? Education in India – or the lack of it What ails Indian sports? The Age of Inf ormation Is Philosophy Just an armchair theory? Success is all about human relations Borderless worlds – Dream or reality? Quality is a myth in India. Education and success – Is there a correlation? We dont learn from history, we repeat it Dowe need a global policeman? Indian villages – our strength or our weakness? Agrarian Economy in India – boon or bane If there were no armies in the world†¦.Open book examination system would eliminate all the ills of present system. (Dept. of Fin. Studies, DO, March'99) Women's empowerment will lead to social development 11M Kozhikode, March'99) Computers result in unemployment (FMS Delhi, March'99) Indians lack a sense of social responsibility (MDI Gurgaon, March'99) Are we raising a generation of burnt out children? (IIMB, Mar 97) Advertising is all glitter and little truth. (MICA, Apr '97) Is bureaucracy a hindrance to economic reforms in India? llMCJuly '97) Film-makers are indulging in cinematic Fortitution in the name of folk culture. (IIML, Mar'97) Under Indian parliamentary democracy it is impossible to ensure balanced regional development. (IIMC, Mar 97 ) In an over-regulated society corruption is inevitable. MICA, Apr 97) For the poorer sections of society, a state-controlled economy is better than a liberalized economy. (IIMC-PGDCM, March'97) With IT replacing middle level management, software Jobs are more lucrative than MBAs (S.P Jain, March'99) Do you think accent holds you back? Would you prefer everyone speaking uniformly? (XIM Bhubaneswar, March'99) Men resent women power at work place (NMIMS, March'99) Youth in India are becoming greedy by the day (MICA, March'99) MBAs should be taxed at higher rates in the country (IIMB April'99) Group Discussion topics asked in SCMHRD on 12/2/2001 IT boom in India. Large Dams are a must for India's development. Leaders should be followers first. Should the Government ban India from playing cricket match in sharJah?Justify. Why more girls choose Human Relations Management. Advertising and ethics. IT  ¤ What does the future hold? Recommendation? Conscription should be made compulsory. Why is patriotism lacking in India? What Ails India more – corruption or Overpopulation. What should India do to preserve its IT command over the World. IIFT GD Topics on 20-02-2001 India makes nuclear bombs, but cannot make quake resistant houses. Role of money in elections Fast changes in Information Technology- excitement or agony?