Garment Industries of Bangladesh free essay sample

In the field of industrialization, role of ready-made garments (RMG) industry is found very prominent in both developed and developing countries. Economic history of Britain reveals that in the 18th Century the cotton mills of Lancashire in Britain ushered in the first industrial revolution of the world. Moreover, during the last 200 years or more many countries of the world have used RMG industry as an engine for growth and a basis for attaining economic development. Over the past few years garment industry is found to have played such an important role in the process of industrialization and economic growth. The growth of garment industry in Bangladesh is a comparatively recent one. RMG business started in the late 70s as a negligible non-traditional sector with a narrow export base and by the year 1983 it emerged as a promising export earning sector. 2. Presently the RMG sector is the life-blood of Bangladesh economy achieving higher export growth every year. We will write a custom essay sample on Garment Industries of Bangladesh or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The sector is now the largest contributor not only to overseas trade but also to the national economy. Bangladesh textiles and RMG industry comprises 155,557 units 148,000 handlooms units, 3,284 mechanized primary textile units, 5150 export-oriented readymade garments manufacturing units and 273 garments washing-dyeing units. The sector is a major foreign exchange earner for Bangladesh contributing 77 per cent to the countrys net exports. At the end of the fiscal year 2011, total export of Bangladesh garments was worth US$ 23 billion, a 43 per cent increase over the previous year, accounting for almost 25 per cent of the GDP (gross domestic product). The overall impact of the readymade garment exports is certainly one of the most significant social and economic developments in contemporary Bangladesh. Although the industry is one of the largest in Bangladesh and is still expanding, it faces massive challenges, principally because the country does not produce enough of the raw materials necessary, unfavorable trade policies, and inadequate incentives for expansion. However, the potentials in the RMG can be realized only if the challenges in some areas like – infrastructures, compliances, workforces supply, suppliers’ performances, raw materials, political stability are tackled. After giving a bird’s eye view on the RMG sector of Bangladesh, this paper would try to analysis the impact of RMG on the economy of Bangladesh. Then the paper would contemplate critically on the problems faced by RMG sector and solutions. Aim 4. The aim of this paper is to discuss about the ready-made garments (RMG) industry in Bangladesh, problems faced by this sector and plausible options to overcome. An Overview of Ready-Made Garments in Bangladesh 5. The Rise of Ready-Made Garments in Bangladesh. The growth of garment industry in Bangladesh is a comparatively recent one. In the British period there was no garment industry in this part of the Indo-Pak-Sub Continent. In 1960 the first garment industry in Bangladesh (Then East Pakistan) was established at Dhaka. From 1976 and 1977 some entrepreneurs came forward to setup 100% export oriented garment industry. Both domestic and international environment favored the rapid growth of this industry in Bangladesh. Some important phases of the Bangladesh RMG industry: Period| Event| 1977-1980| Early period of growth| 1982-1985| Boom days| 985| Imposition of quota restrictions| 1990| Knitwear sector developed significantly| 1995-96| Child labor issue and its solution| 2003| Withdrawal of Canadian quota restriction| 2005| Phase-out of export-quota system| Currently, there are more than 4,000 RMG firms in Bangladesh. More than 95 percent of those firms are locally owned with the exception of a few foreign firms located in export processing zones. The RMG firms are located mainly in three main cities: the capital city Dhaka, the port city Chittagong and the industrial city Narayangonj. . Products of RMG, Trade and Contribution in Our Economy. a. Products. Ready-made garments manufactured in Bangladesh are divided mainly into two broad categories: Apparel and knit products. Apparel products are tee-shirt, polo shirt, short pant shirt, pajama, jeans-pant, nightdress etc and also included all kind of RMG products. Knitted products are mainly warm cloths includes socks, trouser, hosiery, bags, mittens, jacket, trouser and sleeves etc. Bangladesh totally exports 35 types of garment products to about 31 countries around the world. Apparel garment products still dominate the garment export earnings of the country. Bangladesh exports its RMG products mainly to the United States of America and the European Union. These two destinations account for more than a 90 per cent share of the country’s total earnings from garment exports. b. Trade and Contribution in Our Economy. The export-oriented readymade garments (RMG) industry has made significant contribution to the economic development of Bangladesh. Bangladesh is the worlds second biggest exporter of clothing after China. Readymade garments make up 80 percent of the countrys $24 billion in annual exports and 15 percent share of GDP in 2012 FY. Also this was about 4. 47 per cent of the global total value of garments exports (EPB, 20011-2012). Currently, the textile industry accounts for 45% of all industrial employment in the country and contributes 5% of the total national income. It is a clear indication of its contribution to the overall economy. The garments industry plays a key role in promoting the development of linkages between small-scale industries. The RMG industry employs nearly three million workers directly and more than ten million inhabitants are indirectly associated with this socio-economic development of the country. 7. Prevailing Situation in RMG Sector. Bangladesh’s textile industry is going through one of the toughest period in decades. Lately, the Bangladeshi Ready-Made Garments Industry is creating headlines in national and international media for the various reasons – massive factory fire, lack of safety measures in work environment, low wages, worker exploitation, etc. In fact, Clothes dyed in blood said by the foreign investors. Over 5000 workers have died in factory fires and other accidents since inception of this sector notably Ashulia unrest, Tazreen garments, Rana Plaza etc. Difficulties Faced by Ready-Made Garments Sector 8. Domestic Level. a. Lack of Modernize Equipment. The inability to timely modernize the equipment and machinery has led to the decline of Bangladesh textile competitiveness. Due to obsolete technology the cost of production is higher in Bangladesh as compared to other countries like India, Pakistan and china. . Safety Problems. Different safety issues especially regarding fire, the carelessness of the factory management and for their arrogance hamper the working environment very much. c. Problems Linked to the Workers. (1)Lack of Knowledge and Skill. There are some problems related to the workers of this sector lack of training organizations for industrial workers, supervisors and managers, absence of easily on-hand middle management, etc. Also most of the illiterate women workers employed in garments are unskilled and so their products often become lower in quality. 2)Wages. Wages in Bangladesh’s apparel industry have been lower than other sector. The average monthly wage of skilled RMG factory workers was 1. 4 to 2 times lower than that of similar factory workers in the textile and other sectors by 30. d. Financial Crisis. (1)Finance Bill. The provisions of Finance Bill 2012-2013 have the provisions like reintroduction of 0. 5% minimum tax on domestic sales, withholding tax on import of textile and articles etc. This would invite unavoidable liquidity problem. (2)Raw Material Prices. Prices of cotton and other raw material used in textile industry fluctuate rapidly in Bangladesh. Due to increase in the cost of production the demand for export and home as well decreased which result in terms of downsizing of a firm. e. Energy Crisis. As a consequence of electricity load shedding the textile production capacity of various sub-sectors has been reduced by up to 30 per cent. Bangladesh Textile Mills Corporation (BTMC) claimed that 60 to 70 per cent of the industry had been affected due to gas load-shedding. Thus the cost of production has risen. . Political Unrest and Social Crisis. Garments industries often pay dearly for political unrest, hartal and terrorism etc. The current political turmoil will lead garment industry to lose out to South and Southeast Asian competitors, including India. Exports and even manufacture of readymade garments have suffered due to the rail-road-port blockade that marked last two months of agitation and also labor disturbances and freque nt disruptions in the Chittagong port remain a source of concern to the apparel exporters. 9. Global Level. a. Lack of New Investment. The unpredictable internal conditions of Bangladesh cause a rapid decrease in foreign investment in textile industry. Due to obsolete textile machineries RMG will require high new investments to stand in competition. b. Lead Time. Lead time refers to the time required for supplying the ordered garment products after the export order has been received. The average lead time is 90-120 days for woven garment firms and 60-80 days for knit garment firms. In China, the average lead time is 40-60 days and 50-60 days for woven and knit products respectively. . Effect of Global Recession. Bangladesh is developing economy in the world, and one of the lowest in terms of the dollar. Bangladesh is actually a very economically diverse country with boasting industries of textiles, agriculture, etc. The recent global recession cause textile product to cut down locally and internationally as well. Plausible Solutions of Difficulties 10. Domestic Level. a. Backward Linkage Development and Capacity Bui lding. This important area needs serious attention for necessary development. Bangladesh needs to produce textile items competitively at home through the establishment of backward linkage with the RMG industry (Composite textile mills). As part of the capacity building some dire issues must be addressed like, management labor conflict, proper management policy, efficiency of the manager and worker, gender discrimination, maintainable time schedule for the product, etc. b. Improvement of Working Environment. Bangladesh needs to concentrate on improving the working environment by establishing HR or PM units throughout the RMGI. Other prerequisites include fair labour practices, suitable building codes for improving health and safety, comprehensive labour legislation and regulation, stricter enforcement of factory laws and more effective procedures for ensuring compliance with them, and effective monitoring mechanisms. c. Finance and Tariff. Bangladesh government should initiate various policy measures such as rationalization of tariffs and taxes on imports of capital machinery, raw materials, dyes and chemicals, and reduction of interest on long- and short-term loans. This will ultimately help to have significant flow of investment both in terms of finance and technology. d. Stable Social and Political Environment. Bangladesh government should initiate various measures such as increase wage, leave the RMG sector out of political crisis to stable the social and political environment in the country. Otherwise RMG will lose the foreign entrepreneurs and their investment. 11. Global Level. a. Reducing Lead Time. Shortening the lead time is the most urgent priority task for Bangladesh. The best way to do that is to develop domestic backward linkages with the aim of reducing â€Å"production and distribution† time. Also by establishing a central or common bonded warehouse in the private sector we can reduce the lead time. b. Product Upgrading and Diversification and Market Diversification. Product upgrading and diversification and market diversification are the next priority tasks for Bangladesh in order to diversify risks and to increase its market share. Bangladesh needs to diversify its markets to include Japan, Australia and other important international markets. c. Specialized Technical and Marketing Research. RMG is highly fashion oriented and constant market research is necessary to become successful in the business. BGMEA has already established an institute which offers bachelor’s degree in fashion designing and BKMEA is planning on setting up a research and training institute. Conclusions 12. The Ready-Made Garments (RMG) industry occupies a unique position in the Bangladesh economy. It is the largest exporting industry in Bangladesh, which experienced phenomenal growth during the last 25 years. By taking advantage of an insulated market under the provision of Multi Fibre Agreement (MFA) of GATT, it attained a high profile in terms of foreign exchange earnings, exports, industrialization and contribution to GDP within a short span of time. The industry plays a key role in employment generation and in the provision of income to the poor. Nearly two million workers one directly and more than ten million inhabitants are indirectly associated with the industry. The sector has also played a significant role in the socio-economic development of the country. 13. Bangladesh’s exports are heavily concentrated in the RMG sector, which has been a main driver of growth and poverty reduction The challenge is therefore to improve competitiveness, both in the RMG sector and economy wide, and diversify exports. Garment industry in Bangladesh has been facing multidimensional problems since its establishment. Acute power crisis followed by non-tariff restriction, chronic labor unrest, lack of infrastructural facilities, inadequate supply of material and accessories, inability or lack of efforts to diversify the products and markets, irregularities relating to customs, bond, and the cost of production significantly. Due to power shortage shipments are sent through air, thereby increasing its cost. 14. To remain competitive in the post-MFA phase, Bangladesh needs to remove all the structural impediments in the transportation facilities, telecommunication network, and power supply, management of seaport, utility services and in the law and order situation. The government and the RMG sector would have to jointly work together to maintain competitiveness in the global RMG market. Given the remarkable entrepreneurial initiatives and the dedication of its workforce, Bangladesh can look forward to advancing its share of the global RMG market. Recommendations 15. Basing on the paper, following recommendations are made to meet the challenges of RMG sector locally and globally: a. Market diversification through exploring and penetrating into new prospective markets. Product diversification through producing and exporting non-traditional and high value apparels. b. Backward linkage development through producing raw materials locally, while reducing dependence on import of the same. c. Institutional and procedural reform through revision of government policies and management of garments sector by a separate government agency.

Motivational Strategies of Microsoft Essay Example

Motivational Strategies of Microsoft Essay Example Motivational Strategies of Microsoft Paper Motivational Strategies of Microsoft Paper Essay Topic: Bishop the Fish Introduction Microsoft has become one of the giants in the high tech field. Microsoft has become a household word which started in January of 1975 when Bill Gates, a sophomore at Harvard, starting writing software to enhance the use of personal computers. The company has grown from its humble beginnings to the software giant the company has now become. Microsoft uses employee empowerment, the company’s ability to foster teamwork, and creative incentives and rewards to motivate the company’s employees to be productive. Employee Empowerment Microsoft is a company well known for its innovation in software and technology. However, Microsoft is also a company that has remarkable innovation in regard to employee empowerment. Microsoft realizes that without its employees they are nothing and to keep these employees within the company, thinking up new ideas and creating revenue they need to feel empowered. Not only empowered but also a sense of trust in their management. Microsoft values their employees so much that they entrust recruitment of new employees to current employees. The mantra â€Å"Spread the Love,† which speaks to employees spreading the word about Microsoft, as well as the recruiting organization giving back to our employees to enable and recognize their ambassadorship† (McLeish, J. 2008). This speaks highly of both Microsoft employees and management. This statement, made by a Microsoft executive, lets it be known that they have an abundance of confidence in their employees so much so that they lo ok to them to recruit future employees. That is empowerment at its finest. Letting ones employees know that they trust them to bring the best of the best to the company and shape the future of the company is a big responsibility and Microsoft does this willingly. The preceding example is only one way in which Microsoft empowers their employees. Microsoft knows that an empowered employee means an employee who is well taken care of and knows his or her value to the company. Microsoft takes this philosophy to the extreme with tremendous benefits and options for its employees. Microsoft has outstanding stock options for its employees. Nothing empowers employees more than owning part of what they are working for. This makes employees feel like they are not just putting forth all their energy for some top executives but themselves as well because they own part of the company. This also motivates them to work harder and be loyal to the company. Microsoft allows employees to buy from 1% to 15% of the employee’s after-tax salary to purchase Microsoft stock at a 10% discounted rate (Microsoft official webpage). Microsoft offers many other financial benefits to its employees however; the preceding example is the most relevant to employee empowerment. The company also offers an extensive medical package to its employees. Microsoft offers a web page to its employees so they may see all their current and past medical information. This web page puts the employees in real control of what is going on with their healthcare and expenses. The web page also offers a link to refill prescriptions. This is an important factor in employee empowerment because it let’s employees feel more secure about their and their families’ healthcare, which helps to empower them at work and in their daily life. In conjunction with this Microsoft also offers an employee 24-hour health help line and an employee assistance program, which offers counseling to its employees. Lastly, Microsoft offers excellent benefits for those employees with families or those who want to start a family. The company offers paid maternity leave, parental leave for fathers. Microsoft also offers dependent care flexible spending account, adoption assistance, childcare discounts, family care backup, and resource referral services. All these programs help employees believe that no matter the circumstance their company has a program or service to help them take care of their family and personal needs and this instills a real sense of empowerment. Not only do employees need to feel a real sense of empowerment from excellent benefit packages but also from trusting their management. Microsoft does this by providing every opportunity to all employees. The message that Microsoft sends to its employees is that they can trust that everything will be handled is the best way that they know how. Just reading all the options and benefits that are available to employees it becomes easy for one to see that Microsofts management cares about its employees. In a statement Microsoft states how important to them as a company that their employees are happy and well taken care of, this instills trust within the mployees to know they are cared for. â€Å"Microsoft benefits are generous and personalized, to give our employees the coverage they need to keep them healthy and happy (Microsoft official webpage). † It would be hard for an employee to not trust an employer who does care so much about their happiness not just at work but also at home. Microsoft knows that in order for employees to be successful at work they need to be more than just happy with their job, but rathe r with their lives and Microsoft helps their employees achieve that. Microsoft’s ability to foster teamwork Not only does the motivational strategy that is used by Microsoft put an emphasis on the empowerment of it’s employees, Microsoft has also found success with motivating employees by encouraging and implementing teamwork. A key ingredient to the continued success of Microsoft has been in the company’s ability to foster teamwork. Microsoft’s motivational strategy of fostering teamwork among its employees has produced a workplace that values the employee and recognizes the employee’s competency level and reliability. As stated in an article written by Steve McConnell, â€Å"Motivating yourself and other employees is part of the Microsoft corporate culture. Microsoft doesn’t have an explicit practice of asking team members to commit or â€Å"sign up† for a project, but it isn’t uncommon for an employee who expresses doubt about meeting a deadline to be asked whether he or she is signed up. Microsoft avoids the problem of phony-sounding management motivational speeches because as often as not, the question doesn’t come from a manager; it comes from the person who will have to do the work if the person in question doesn’t do it. (McConnell, 1996) Microsoft has strategically designed the workplace that makes every employee an important asset to the team process. Through the encouragement of teamwork Microsoft is able to influence the morale and motivational level of the employee by recognizing the skills, reliability, and level of competency each employee contribut es to the team concept. Unlike other companies that demand the presence of management with everything that goes on within the workplace, management at Microsoft recognizes the ability and competency of the employee and more often than not will allow the employee to make critical or key decisions. The recognition of the employee’s ability also provides the employee with an opportunity to learn and grow, two ingredients critical for morale and employee satisfaction. Employees at Microsoft also understand that the company trusts in the ability of the employee to perform. This trust between the company and the employee obligates the employee to perform at the highest level possible. The company of Microsoft also understands that as technology continues to advance the companies hugest asset, the employee, will help propel the company into the future to remain competitive and successful. As stated on the Microsoft home page, â€Å"At Microsoft, we’re motivated and inspired everyday by how our customers use of software to find creative solutions to business problems, develop break through ideas, and stay connected to what’s important to them. We are committed long term to the mission of helping our customers realize their full potential. Just as we constantly update and improve our products, we want to continually evolve our company to be in the best position to accelerate new technologies as they emerge and to better serve our customers. (Microsoft, 2008) By allowing the team to explore new ideas and improve the components on existing products the company is able to indirectly inspire the employee through creativity and vision. The company of Microsoft also will motivate the team member through accountability and reliability. Microsoft prides itself on the reliability of its product and similar to the company’s product dependability the company also stresses the importance of the reliability of its employee. This teamwork concept motivates the employee to contribute to the team process and suggest new ideas. Microsoft also understands that by encouraging teamwork within the workplace and among employees has a direct affect on morale and motivation as employee have a tendency to motivate one another to perform. Employees are motivated to perform understanding that in order for Microsoft to be profitable and successful every team member must put forth the maximum effort and contribute to the overall team process. As stated in an article by Charles Duncan, â€Å"Teamwork is often overlooked but is something which must be given a high priority and to which attention must be paid. Every member must understand the importance of working together in a unified and coherent manner if the effort is to be successful. Each member of the team must be dedicated to the whole, be willing to act in an unselfish manner, and committed to the success of the project. When challenges arise, as they most certainly always do, the team must have the resources, accountability, and commitment to deal with the issues in a constructive and positive manner. This philosophy of team work is essential and will play an integral role in the success of the project. (Duncan, 2007) Microsoft has been successful in recognizing the important role that each member plays to the team concept and shows the employee that the skills, ability, and level of performance that is brought to the workplace, on a daily basis, is critical to the efficiency and productivity of the company. Unbeknownst to the employee this concept of team benefits the company in several ways. Not only is the team concept cost ef fective for the company, Microsoft also uses this team concept as a motivational strategy to inspire and drive employees to perform at the highest level possible. Creativity with rewards and incentives Microsoft has a large amount of benefits and rewards for employees to keep them motivated and retain the brightest of the high tech industry. â€Å"The company has long touted its benefits package as the best in the high-tech industry, and most of the items on the long list ranging from the 401(k) matching program to full medical coverage to free health-club membership remain unchanged despite the latest adjustments. † (Bishop, 2004). The type of Extrinsic Motivation used at Microsoft keeps employees motivated. The benefits are different from rewards because every employee is given the benefits just for working at Microsoft. The benefits are to attach and retain a large pool of talented workers to the high tech company. Microsoft does not use just monetary rewards as a standard reward for hard work. They expand on every opportunity to go above and beyond to keep the employees motivated. â€Å"Money isnt the only way to motivate employees to work harder or smarter. Perhaps youve got a young parent working for you who could benefit from flexible hours or the opportunity to work from home one day a week. Maybe your salesperson has just put in a lot of long days to make a big deal happen and would prefer extra time off to a bonus. When you show youre willing to be flexible to meet your employees needs youll likely discover your employees will reward you† (Motivate Your Employees to Help You Succeed). Microsoft uses different extrinsic rewards based on the situation. The different needs of an employee can be used to motivate an employee on a case by case basis. The benefits Microsoft gives employees like flexible hours, paid healthcare, and free sodas have to be managed wisely. Microsoft has in the last few years slowed in revenue growth thus forcing Microsoft to cutback on the benefits employees receive. â€Å"Microsoft Corp. renowned for its industry-leading employee benefits, plans to scale back in some areas as part of a broader effort to cut costs and improve its profit margin even as revenue growth slows. Dont worry, the soft drinks in the break rooms are still free. But the company yesterday said it will reduce the discount employees receive when they buy Microsoft stock, shrink the window in whic h they can take their four weeks of paid parental leave, require a co-payment when they choose brand-name prescription drugs over approved generic equivalents and trim the vacation time received by new hires† (Bishop, 2004). The motivation of the decrease in benefits could work in two ways. The positive effect would the employees could cut cost as they can to increase operating cash flow or the employees become more productive. The negative affects can be employees leaving the company for a different job or the employees could become resentful toward the company. Conclusion In conclusion, Microsoft has different ways to motivate employees. Microsoft uses employee empowerment, the company’s ability to foster teamwork, and creative incentives and rewards to motivate the company’s employees to be productive. With the motivation factors listed, Microsoft has become one of the top high tech companies in the world today. â€Å"Bringing together the right information with the right people will dramatically improve a companys ability to develop and act on strategic business opportunities† (Gates). The right motivation given to the right people will improve a company too. Microsoft has found the motivation to keep some of the brightest employees in the high tech field though the use of extrinsic and intrinsic motivations. References Bishop, T. (2004, May 20). Microsoft Trims Benefits to Cut Costs. Retrieved April 26, 2008, from Seattlepi. com Web site: http://seattlepi. nwsource. com/business/174131_msftbenefit20. html Duncan, C. (2007, September 26). The Concept of Team in the Work Place. Retrieved April 27, 2008, from associatedcontent. com Gates, B. (n. d. ). Employee Quotations.. Retrieved April 28, 2008, from AfterQuotes Web site: afterquotes. com/great/quotes/employee. htm McConnell, S. (1996, September/October). Microsoft: A Highly Motivated Environment. Retrieved April 27, 2008, from http://stevemcconnell. com McLeish, J. (2008). Microsoft Leverages Engaged Employees to â€Å"Spread the Word†. Retrieved April 26, 2008, from, www. employeefactor. com. Microsoft (2008). Microsofts Business. Retrieved April 27, 2008, from microsoft. com Motivate Your Employees to Help You Succeed. (n. d. ). Retrieved April 26, 2008, from Microsoft Web site: microsoft. com/australia/smallbusiness/themes/build-your-business/motivate-your-employees-to-help-you-succeed. mspx

Ancient and Indigenous Mathematics Research Paper

Ancient and Indigenous Mathematics - Research Paper Example However, a massive and countervailing pressure was the culmination of European supremacy in the shape of political control in large areas of Asia and Africa. Out of this supremacy, the ideology of European pre-eminence emerged and permeated a wide range of economic and social activities and also enhanced the unique role of Europe in providing the spirit for science discovery (Peat, 2006). This paper is going to discuss how mathematics has developed through ancient times and some of the factors that have led to the development of modern mathematics and also address the role of mathematics in other disciplines. Many social needs require numbers and calculations. Therefore, mathematics automatically came into play with the evolution of social systems. A well organized operational system is required to handle numbers and calculations. Nonetheless, as fascinating as the basic theories of counting may be, the origins of mathematics include more than just counting, enumeration and arithmetic. The human needs that instigated mankind’s initial efforts at mathematics were: calculations, counting and measurement (Kline, 2012). For example, an inheritance could not be distributed certain basics of division are known or a temple cannot be built if certain facts about squares and volumes are known. Mathematics was born from practical needs such as the ones above. Others argue that the central part of indigenous mathematics is based upon two simple questions: How much and how many? It is a convincing argument that long before our early ancestors had need to count their cattle or sheep, their unsophisticatedly organized social systems had simple rituals based on priority and rank. Also, according to Breasted (1988), it is evident that some socialized animals of diverse groups such as the red deer and baboon have some elementary sense of order of precedence, referred to

Foundations of Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Foundations of Marketing - Essay Example Price - Product packaging plays an important role in per unit price of a chocolate brand. The availability of bite-sized, large-sized and a bag of chocolates packaging for world-known brands enables price flexibility and affordability. Using this packaging strategy, consumers can easily avail of the product depending on their consumption capacity and budget. Place - Chocolate and confectionery shops are the foremost selling venue of chocolates. World-known brands are available in retail shops, like supermarkets and convenience stores, for easy and mass consumption using the distribution channels in efficiently delivering their products to the end consumers. Customised chocolates are sold in chocolate shops. E-commerce also provides a virtual venue in chocolate shopping. While world-class chocolate manufacturers, because of its mass production and distribution method transact in business-to-business setup, majority of local chocolate shops conduct business to individual transaction on the web. Promotion - Global chocolate producers use the push strategy in promoting their products. It is by advertising via the mass media that they are able to promote their product. Local chocolate producers utilise more personalised approach, using promotional offers and the Internet. 2. Positioning Map With this position map, we can see how the each chocolate firm can effectively execute its marketing efforts. Upon knowing their current position in the business environment they are in, they can create ways to maximize their promotion to this defined segment and act efficiently to this. Let us take the above position map to expound on the benefits of positioning a company. Based on the map above both Cadbury and M&Ms should heavily rely on advertisement... Foundations of Marketing Let us take the above position map to expound on the benefits of positioning a company. Based on the map above both Cadbury and M&Ms should heavily rely on advertisement and other mass promotional schemes to market diversified products that will cater to the different segments in the global market. Their globally known brand names and extensive production capacity brought about by its global chocolate market dominance, they have the edge in doing business on a large scale. In spite of several advantages of marketing segmentation, there are still visible disadvantages of marketing segmentation. One of these is the possibility of inflexibility with regards to the variations in the market. Even a minimal shift in the number of population or preferences of customers can create marketing problems, which if not addressed immediately can immensely affect the company’s marketing campaign. Another problem of concentrating marketing activities in a single market segment is its difficulty in market expansion. There is a tendency for the firm to be stuck in a single consumer base, which can entail vulnerability to profit loss, especially in the currently dynamic business environment. In short, mass marketing minimises a company’s susceptibility to inflexibility to the ever-changing market. However, the present marketing campaigns of multinationals which are likely to perform this method because of its capitalization on the benefits of economies of sc ale, involve the localisation and segmentation of their marketing campaign in a particular country.

Linguistic Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Linguistic Analysis - Essay Example An analysis of the underlying lexicogrammatical signatures within linguistic corpora(Gilquin et al, 2007: 322) is facilitated through error tagging systems. One example of an error tagging system that is devised by Nicholls is a three-tier system specifying the error domain (the form, grammar, lexis, etc), the category of the error (for instance, whether tense, gender or number) and the word category (adjective, noun, verb, etc), which offers tremendous potential in teaching of English as a foreign language. One of the findings that has emerged from learner corpora is that some linguistic features are common to learners from all foreign language groups, which may be developmental, while some appear characteristic of particular linguistic groups. Riney and Takagi (1999), have highlighted the results of various studies that have examined the correlation between global foreign accent and voice onset time in Japanese EFL speakers. One of the findings was that VOT did not change over time in Japanese speakers of English, suggesting that there may be a phonological similarity between Japanese and English diaphones. While voice onset time might be similar, however, the specific pronunciation of some of the words reveals the distinct differences arising as a result of differences in dialect. Carter and McCarthy(2006) offer the view that spoken grammars have uniquely special qualities that distinguish them from written grammar and these are sometimes elements perceived to be errors in written speech.

Schindlers List And Saving Private Ryan

Schindlers List And Saving Private Ryan Both films demonstratively take on a time in history and rework it in the name of memory. The power of both movies lies in their label of authenticity. Schindlers List is based on the true story of Oskar Schindler and Saving Private Ryan is in part based on the true story of Friz Niland. The factual historical figures are not the only interplay between fact and fiction. Scenes in classical Hollywood film standards stand in contrast with the integration of various devices originally belonging to a documentary. An example for a scene in Schindlers List that can be easily identified as fiction or as a classical Hollywood scene is when the women and children are taken to Auschwitz-Birkenau due to a mix-up of lists. They are told to take a shower. Spielberg spends a good deal over this scene showing the womens frightened faces with the violins playing in the background and the womens cumulative screams. At the end, water flows from the shower heads and the frantic screams get replaced by laughter. Supporting the idea stated in the review, this scene was there to make the event more dramatic. It created an element of fiction. In Saving Private Ryan one noticeable classical Hollywood mode is the movement of the camera. It breezily moves alongside the characters, which helps the viewer through the narrative dialogues. The real story of Friz Niland becomes a narration and with this a mixture between fiction and fact. Both movies are considered classical Hollywood films, however, Spielberg also integrates various devices originally belonging to documentaries. In Schindlers List almost the entire movie is shot in black-and-white. Leon Wieseltier addresses Schindlers Lists use of black-and-white in Close Encounters of the Nazi Kind: Its renunciation of color is adduced as a sign of its stringency; but the black and white of this film is riper than most color.(p. 42) The rejection of color is riper than most color because of the way it increases the historical feeling. Since all of the pictures we have from that time are not in color, we have only seen the Holocaust in black and white. This puts the film closer to reality. Shooting in black and white is a device normally used in documentaries. With using something originally used by documentaries, Spielberg creates the image of portraying fact and a slice of reality. In order to achieve a more historical texture in Saving Private Ryan, Spielberg mani pulates the film stock. The images of the past are presented in reduced brightness and a flatter contrast. Besides the reduced brightness he also uses a camera movement typical for documentaries. As an example, I want to look at the scene of the invasion of Normandy. The camera, unable to keep up with the speed of death, dashes from man to man. At times the images even lose their corresponding sound to simulate the effect of being shell-shocked. Additionally, the battle scenes are captured with a hand-held camera. This camera style resembles a documentary film and claims to portray the truth or to have direct access to the reality of what happened during the invasion of Normandy. Furthermore, Steven Spielberg breaks away from the Hollywood convention of a neatly divided diegesis between good and evil. Oskar Schindler is a war profiter. He wished to profit from evil, but as the plot develops he uses his financial profits to save the people who helped him win them. It is just when his jews are to be sent to Ausschwitz that he becomes the good character and uses his money to buy them back. In Saving Private Ryan, Spielberg breaks away from the typical Hollywood convention of introducing us to a protagonist (whom we can follow through the diegesis) in the first few minutes. Instead, he leaves the audience confused. In the first thirty minutes of the movie, we cannot identify with any character. Instead, Spielberg gives us the impression of being alongside the characters. The use of various different devices lets the line between fact and fiction become less and less recognizable. It creates an illusion of portraying the past as it really was. This illusion makes us believe that the picture of World War II is captured authentically in both movies. My last argument is on the ground that both films employ their themes in similar ways. First of all Im going to look at the use of color. Schindlers List uses color or the absences of color to create a moral reawakening in the main character. With the film almost entirely in black and white one image strikes out- the girl in the red coat. She is one of the few color images in the entire film. Our attention is drawn to her even if she is but one of a hundred people in a long shot. She is the pure innocence, walking unnoticed through the Nazi Regime. Schindler follows the small figure as she walks aimless and alone amid the madness and horror in the street. At the end he sees her lying on a small wagon besides other murdered prisoners. She touches his soul in a way the shear amounts of numbers couldnt. Her image stands for all of the mass murder of millions of people. She is a symbol for all the 6.000.000 victims, who died, who had families, who had lives and who had dreams. It is at t hat moment that Oskar Schindler begins to change. He changes his dedication from his capitalistic fantasies to the saving of as many Jews as possible. He becomes the good german, an individual that is able to save lives. In Saving Private Ryan no character is presented as the only colorful image in a black and white sequence. However, color is used in an artistic way since most of the movies color is saturated. The opening and final scene, when present-day Private Ryan and his family visit the American Cemetery and Memorial, is shot in unreduced color. This scene shot against the bright light of Colleville-sur-mer in France stands out sharply. It seems to convey the image of a slice of todays reality. The foregoing footage in bleach bypass stands in contrast to it. The color makes a clear difference between what happened in 1944 and what is happening today. While the greater part of the movie captures the brutality of war, the final scene focusses on the survival. The bright color, which conveys a slice of reality, emphasizes the survival of soldiers, while the saturated color supports the senseless and gory picture of war. A second way in which Spielberg employs themes is through the use of long shots and close-ups. We learned that technique is never just technique. It retains a responsibility towards the presented picture. Spielberg uses the difference between long shots and close-ups in both movies- a technique that lets us understand and identify the different themes. I want to take a look at one scene in particular. Spielberg uses parallel editing to interwove Izaak Sterns waking up and Amon Goeths speech with each other. The sequence is presented as a point-of-view sequence, in which Stern is taken as the witness of the preparations for the transportations going on in the Ghetto. Emphasized by a close-up, Stern puts on his glasses and turns towards the window. The following shot is an extreme high angle shot from his vantage point. It takes the window and curtain as the frame. After a shot of rows of chairs and tables being stet up, the camera comes back to a medium shot of Stern, who turns away f rom the window. Throughout the sequence Goeths speech was used as the tone. The scene ends with reconnecting Goeths voice to his body. Quoted in the book Critical Perspectives on Schindlers List Goeffrey H. Hartmann says that: To see things that sharply, and from a privileged position, is to see them with the eyes of those who had the power of life and death.(p 98) Later in the movie, Amon Goeths position and view is represented in a similar way of long shots and close-ups. It presents us with the power he has over life and death. This technique makes the viewer feel uncomfortable, who is able to see how Goeth randomly shoots at people. In Saving Private Ryan I want to look at the use of long shots and close-ups in the shell chock scene at the invasion of Normandy. The camera lies in a mid shot on Captain Miller, played by Tom Hanks. It then changes to a mid shot of two soldiers, whose face cannot be seen. It is a subjective point of view shot as it is through Tom Hanks eyes. Going over to a long shot, we can now see the characters whole body as they try to run away from an explosion. After we see Tom Hanks in a mid shot again, the shot transfers to a long shot showing a soldier who has lost his arm and other soldiers hiding behind dead bodies. At the end the scene ends in a close up of Tom Hanks face. His facial expression is serious and has a look that says lets do it. The camera carries us through the mind of an soldier. We can see the things he sees, switching from one event to another. With the close up of the face, the decision to stop looking but fight for the survival is made. Through the difference in long shots and close-ups, Spielberg is able to emphasize the decision of life and death. It helps to employ themes and an unforgettable experience. Last but not least, I want to look at the opening and closing scenes of both movies. The opening scene in Schindlers list is a close-up of a hand lighting a pair of Jewish Sabath candles. Then a man recites the prayer over the wine in the presence of his family. The family vanishes from view and in another close-up shot we see the candles burn lower and lower until they burn out, sending a hint of smoke into the air. The obliteration of the candles is a symbol for the obliteration of the Jewish people. (, which employs the theme of death). The final scene is set in present- day Jerusalem. One of the last shots is one of Schindlers grave, which stands in a christian cemetery. The camera encompasses the large cross attached to the cemetery, which looms against the blue sky. Just prior to the credits, a hand places a rose on Schindlers grave. In a long shot we see the Christian cemetery filled with crosses and we are able to read on the screen: In memory of the more than six million Jew s murdered. The targeting of the crosses seems to say that if Christians would have followed their christians beliefs, not so many Jews would have died. However, the last scene also honors one Christian, who risked his life and helped Jews to survive. Through the opening and closing scene, Spielberg employs the theme of death and survival. The candle turns out at the beginning of the flim, which stand for the death of Jewish people. The bright sky of Jerusalem picks up the light from the first scene and stands for the survival of Jews. Saving Private Ryan both ends and begins with the American Flag. The opening and closing scenes are both set in the American Cemetery in Normandy. An elderly veteran and his family are walking through the cemetery. The tombstones represent the amount of loss experienced during World War II, while the veteran, Private Ryan, stands for the people who survived. The movie is framed by the glorification of the American flag. Within this frame, however, the film acknowledges that the attempt to save private Ryan comes at the expense of soldiers. So while the American flag is there at the beginning and the end it is not clear what it means. One can portray the controversy in the film to America. On the one hand, it has a Declaration of Independence, that people have a free will, and on the other hand it has Federalist 10, which orders people to go to war. Spielberg ultimately ends and opens his film on a note that people survived.

Old Leisure - Literary Devices :: essays research papers

History has seen advancements in technology, philosophy, and industry, all of which radically changed the lives of those witnessing such developments. Slower, more relaxed lifestyles have given way to lifestyles of a faster paced nature. George Eliot describes her preference for the leisure of the past, conveying the message that the rushed leisure of her time is hardly leisure at all. She accomplishes this by using several stylistic devices, including personification, imagery, and diction. The most obvious stylistic device used by Eliot is that of personification. She uses this device to create two people from her thoughts on old and new leisure. The fist person is New Leisure, who we can infer to be part of the growth of industry in the 19th century. He is eager and interested in science, politics, and philosophy. He reads exciting novels and leads a hurried life, attempting to do many things at once. Such characteristics help us to create an image of New Leisure as Eliot sees him. Old Leisure is quite contrasting to New Leisure. Being a stout country squire of the 18th century, he is laid back, simple minded, well fed, and financially well off. He reads but one newspaper and favors Sunday services that "allow him to sleep." "He never went to Exeter Hall, or heard a popular preacher, or read Tracts for the Times or Sartor Resartus." He is not bothered by his "inability to know the causes of things" and sleeps "the sleep of the irresponsible." Eliot describes Old Leisure more than New Leisure because today's readers are familiar enough with living a life as hurried and fast paced as New Leisure's. Her description of Old Leisure is nostalgic of a slower paced way of life. While Eliot uses human characteristics and actions to describe Old and New Leisure, she also creates images of both personages to further depict their contrasting lifestyles. The images of Old Leisure include him "scenting the apricots when they were warmed by the morning sunshine." They also depict portraits of life in Old Leisure's era as "slow waggons," "spinning wheels," and "pedlars, who brought bargains to the door on a sunny afternoon." They also tell of how Old Leisure "fingered the guineas in his pocket" and was "fond of sauntering by the fruit-tree wall." New Leisure, on the other hand, does not live in a world where such images are present. He is ""prone to cursory peeps through microscopes" and is "prone to excursion- trains, art museums, periodical literature, and exciting novels.

Baseball and Antitrust Laws Essay

Any commerce with operations spanning state boundaries, thus undertaking interstate trade, is governed by antitrust laws. Efforts at monopolizing and controlling trade could be regarded unlawful by national circuit courts as per the Clayton and Sherman Acts. Baseball has always been immune from such antitrust regulations from 1922, upon the Supreme Court’s verdict made baseball winner in Federal Baseball Club of Baltimore, Inc. v. National Baseball Clubs. It was determined that although planning of sports was done across State boundaries, such games constituted intrastate occasions since movement from state to state was not essential (Falk, 1994). The antirust immunity bars MLB from being legally challenged because of national antirust braches. Unless such immunity is removed by Congress, baseball proprietors make whatever decisions they wish because no antirust-related legal proceedings can be instituted against them. Whenever the proprietors attempt to modify baseball, the MLBPA quickly comes in to claim that they were not consulted (Bendix, 2008). Despite the fact that proprietors may do whatever they wish disregarding antitrust regulations, nothing which breaches the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) can be done. Such agreement requires that almost each dispute be mediated, like it is done with numerous labor deals. If the antirust immunity of baseball was cancelled, would this mean the changing of baseball? This is unlikely since the same regulations that govern NHL, NFL, and NBA would continue to govern baseball. The USA at the moment has antitrust regulations meant to bar businesses from controlling specific markets. Nevertheless, US baseball market has been monopolized by key league baseball for ages, thus preventing upcoming players from actually gaining footage. The US Supreme Court has defended Major League Baseball’s (MLB) liberty to monopolize in a number of instances. MLB remains the sole US monopoly in numerous ways, and has remained so from its beginning. Upon the 1903 merger of the National League (NL) with the American League (AL), such partnership immediately proved successful. Such success was surely bound to invite imitation. Therefore a different baseball league almost immediately demonstrated willingness to challenge the NL/AL monopoly. The Federal League began as an insignificant league; however, it espoused key intentions (Anderson, 2002). By 1914, numerous individuals regarded such Federal League to be a main league; the league itself desired to officially confirm this. The Federal League (FL) took legal action against Major League Baseball on 5th January 1915 for disrupting their efforts at hiring players who were between agreements that is, not governed by the Reserve Clause, from the American National League, citing national antitrust law. The case was heard by Kennesaw Mountain Landhis, reputed for his firm observance of the law. However, Ladhis was as well a big fan of Chicago Cubs. He knew that the Federal League’s case was a justifiable one, however, his favorite team, the Cubs, would suffer if FL won the case, and thus Ladhis kept such case under advisement as opposed to immediately issuing a verdict. The FL’s 19156 collapse made everyone happy. The Baltimore Federal League license proprietors tried to buy out a team of the Major League (ML) only to be rejected. They subsequently attempted to purchase a franchise of the International league; they were once more rejected. The proprietor of White Sox, Chalets Chomsky, offended Baltimore city by saying that the metropolis constituted a bad and insignificant league. Charles Ebbets, the proprietor of Dodgers, added to the insult by stating that the metropolis was among the worst insignificant league metropolis because of having excess colored people. The perspective proprietors then took legal action against ML baseball, alleging a scheme to tear down the FL. In April 1919, a law court declared the Baltimore proprietors the winners of the suit, thus awarding them damages worth $240,000. An appeal was instituted in 1920, with the appeal ruling being made in 1921 (Barra, 2003). The 1921 ruling nullified the decision of the junior court and declared that baseball did not constitute the type of trade national law ought to standardize. The US Supreme Court endorsed such a ruling on May 22nd 1922, thus strengthening baseball’s antitrust immunity. In the Federal Baseball Club v. National League, the Supreme Court gave the verdict that ML baseball remained immune from the Sherman Antitrust Act provisions. Following the 1915 folding of the FL, majority of the FL proprietors were purchased by proprietors within the other MLs, or had received compensation in other modes. For instance, St. Louis FL owner was authorized to purchase the St Louis Browns. Baltimore Federal League club owner did not get this authorization and hence he took legal action against the American league, National League, as well as additional defendants, such as a number of FL officials. The suit alleged a plot to dominate baseball through demolishing the FL (Rovell, 2001). The listed defendants were declared jointly answerable, with $80,000 worth of damages assessed. The figure was tripled to total $240,000 as per the Clayton Antitrust Act provisions. Such immunity, as well as the monopoly of MLB, was unchallenged up to 1972. Curt Flood took legal action against baseball following his sale to Philadelphia Phillies from the Saint Louis Cardinals following 1969’s season. Such a case ultimately reached the Supreme Court, where the initial decision was endorsed with Congress left to rectify the inconsistency. Despite the fact that Flood did not win the case, he set the precedence for wage negotiation, and immediately afterwards, free action. At the moment free agency survives, however such antitrust immunity is as well law. Baseball was not to be awarded antitrust immunity if the Baltimore League squad owners had been reimbursed after the league was disbanded. All other squad’s proprietors were compensated with the exception of Baltimore, thus prompting their filing of the initial antitrust lawsuit. Such immunity is suspect, and several observers are convinced that it may once more be upheld in a law court. Nevertheless, from the Flood case of 1972, no any one case has been even close to being heard at the Supreme Court (Barra, 2006). In addition MLB’s domination has not been challenged by any league since the 1950s unsuccessful Continental League. The National Federal League has been engrossed in majority of the major antitrust court cases, such as, its lawsuits against the US Football League. Such cases have demonstrated that antitrust lawsuits are not essentially fatal. Despite that fact that the NFL lost the two cases, numerous lawsuits have been previously won by sports leagues. In antitrust lawsuits, such leagues have to demonstrate that they did not breach antitrust regulations through demonstrating that their activities generally, served to promote contest more as opposed to inhibiting it. Despite the fact that Al Davis legally defeated the NFL, the NFL could as well have emerged victorious if it possessed an unambiguous guidelines and adhered to them rather than acting because they particularly disliked Al Davis (Bartree, 2005). In addition, despite the fact that USFL legally beat NFL, a mere $3 worth of damages was awarded. If the US Congress completely revokes the antirust immunity of baseball, some interesting enduring consequences could result. Firstly, the key leagues are to be affected. Insignificant-league baseball t the moment relies on the ongoing presence of the Reserve Clause , which permits major-league teams to legally control players even following the expiry of the players’ contracts. Such Reserve Clause permits the existence of deep insignificant-league structures within baseball by permitting such teams to control numerous players not in their key-league rosters. NBA and NFL do not have any minor-league structures. Hockey has insignificant-league squads; however, such are mediated into the joint bargaining of hockey with the players. The Reserve Clause is likely to be legally challenged if the antitrust immunity of baseball is lost. In case such clause is determined to breach antitrust regulations, baseball squads could be forced surrender the legal claims to a number of or even every of their insignificant-league players. With no interest to develop the team members whom they formerly controlled, big-league squads would be less motivated to offer support to their insignificant-league partners through subsidizing their activities (Blum, 2001). This has thus made insignificant leagues lobby Congress to uphold the antitrust immunity of baseball. Without such immunity insignificant leagues would be forced to modify their activities, to become more similar to free insignificant early 1900s leagues rather than be under MLB. Proprietors would have no power regarding discussing with team members due to lack of legal standing to possess a Reserve Clause. When squads have no rights over team members, there will be less willingness to recruit high school players and accord them 4 or 5 development years, particularly if they are forced to dwell much on major league rosters. This could imply a major impetus fro baseball in colleges, and perhaps also for global baseball leagues (Rovell, 2001). Such would form the major MLB’s propagation ground as has been for basketball and football. If the antitrust immunity is revoked, franchise transfer, and particularly contraction, would from the greatest challenge. Close to thirty years have elapsed since a single baseball squad relocated from one metropolis to the other. Since that time, the other 3 games have progressed since the antitrust immunity grants baseball proprietors extra authority to bar squads from relocating than the proprietors have within other games. Such authority was especially apparent in 1992 at the time when the Tampa/St. Petersburg Vince Piazza’s group wanted to purchase the Giants from Bob Lurie at $115 million. The proprietors declined to allow such sale, and then compelled Lurie to accept $100 million from Peter Mogowan for the squad. Piazza instituted legal proceedings against MLB, actually winning the initial round of the case. The court stated that the antitrust immunity did not cover relocations (Belth, 2001). However, the Curt Flood Act currently holds that immunity does touch on relocations. Absence of antitrust immunity makes it hard to bar teams from relocating by the MLB. Attempts to block relocations would surely be met with lawsuits instituted by the cities or teams that were attempting to relocate. Baseball would be tasked with the responsibility to demonstrating that barring such relocation would benefit contest, plus that the resolution was founded on unambiguous guidelines. If Congress repealed the immunity, the contraction war would most likely not be based on Twin’s release and labor deals. Contraction challengers would posit that the proprietors were attempting to get rid of 2 competitors so as to raise profits; this is a typical antitrust breach (Falk, 1994). The proprietors would be forced to defend such relocation arguing that they were enhancing competition within the game. It is difficult to determine whether America or baseball would benefit if the antitrust immunity of baseball is revoked. Attorneys would surely benefit owing to increased lawsuits. The proprietors would benefit since the MLB has previously won against attempts to revoke the immunity and Congress always takes it time. References Anderson, P. (2002). Recent major league baseball contraction cases. Retrieved august 4th 2009, from http://law. marquette. edu/cgi-bin/site. pl? 2130&pageID=474 Barra, A. (2003). Policy debate: Should the antitrust exemption be eliminated? Retrieved august 4th 2009, from http://swcollege. com/bef/policy_debates/baseball. html Barra, A. (2006). Policy debate: Should the antitrust exemption be eliminated? Retrieved august 4th 2009, from http://www. swlearning. com/economics/policy_debates/baseball. html Bartree, H. (2005). The role of antirust laws in the professional sports industry from a financial perspective. Retrieved august 4th 2009, from http://www. thesportjournal. org/article/role-antitrust-laws-professional-sports-industry-financial-perspective Belth, A. (November 26th 2001). Ending baseballs antitrust exemption. Retrieved august 4th 2009, from http://courses. cit. cornell. edu/econ352jpw/readme/Baseball%20Prospectus%20-%20Ending%20Baseball%27s%20Antitrust%20Exemption. htm Bendix, P. (December 3rd 2008). The history of baseball’s antitrust exemption. Retrieved august 4th 2009, from http://www. beyondtheboxscore. com/2008/12/3/678134/the-history-of-baseball-s Blum, R. (June 12th 2001). Why is the antitrust exemption important? Retrieved august 4th 2009, from http://www. usatoday. com/sports/baseball/stories/2001-12-05-antitrust-explanation. htm

Johnsonville Sausage Essays

Johnsonville Sausage Essays Johnsonville Sausage Essay Johnsonville Sausage Essay Johnsonville Sausage – Quality Improvement through Change Situation Post 1980, Ralph Stayer began to observe decline in quality due to inattention of the workers as well as ill-maintenance of the equipment in the production unit. With the help of Mr. Lee Thayer, Stayer has planned to implement a major change in the company’s philosophy. Transition from old philosophy purged Stayer’s responsibilities of decision making by decentralizing the power of decision making. The new philosophy was implemented to bring out changes in various departments of the company viz. management structure, personnel, compensation, manufacturing and also systems and controls. According to Thayer’s new philosophy, performance of the personnel and requirement of guidance to personnel to achieve their objectives were the key elements. Management structure was broken down by hiring experienced personnel for the new superior level management to oversee finance, marketing and operation s functions. Stayer emphasized people development as the core element of the new philosophy. Changes in personnel include development of list of responsibilities by the workers themselves and eliminating the performance review process. These changes in personnel function led changes in compensation with the implementation of â€Å"company performance share† program which increased individual responsibility of workers. However this transition was not in agreement among workers while some are excited about it. In terms of manufacturing changes, lead persons were installed at various departments, eliminating supervisors, to seek information and provide necessary measures to train and improve capacities of workers under designated group. Responsibilities of lead person also include development of budget planning and production requirement planning. Job switching and alternating works were practiced to enrich workers’ capabilities and enhance performance and also job satisfaction. System and controls changes included individuals to develop and be accountable for their own budgets and forecasts and also allow them to analyze performance data. In addition, subordinates were needed to self-evaluate their performance to respective managers. Problem The main issue of the case is the resistance shown by the personnel towards the company’s philosophy transition. According to Stayer, upon implementation of new philosophy, workers at all level were expected to embrace the change. Instead, the company faced issues related to the final goal of the implementation, unsuccessful organization structural changes, clash of responsibilities among the workers, participation of less number of employees in the company decision making process and finally lack of high job satisfaction. However, these issues were expected to expire once the transition is complete. Palmer Sausage offered its consolidated business to Johnsonville but the issue here was whether Stayer could handle an expanded Palmer contract. Stayer examined the situation by understanding that in order to run the contract the company would require to recruit and train a big set of people along with existing people acquiring new skills and retain high quality on both the in-house and Palmer products. In order to achieve this, Johnsonville needs to run the production six or seven days a week for more than a year until its new plant was ready. On the other hand, the company may need to run the business at risk i. e. , if Palmer canceled the contract with 30-day prior notice leaves Johnsonville not only with massive layoffs and but also huge inventory with no market for it. Analysis As the year 1980 folded, Stayer recognizes to restructure his management structure for the growing company. Stayer also realized that there was decline in the quality of the products and employees were also demotivated to work. Later on, in collaboration with Thayer Lee, Stayer has planned to implement new philosophy which is focused on performance and helps people accomplish their objectives through well-defined job descriptions, clear understanding on performance standards, and providing the required resources. Johnsonville’s new values are based on deep moral commitment to the individual. The main aim of the transition is to augment people capacities, rather than the business. Stayer changed view of his autocratic leadership to a role as a leader delegating his subordinates rather than directing them. Furthermore, the new philosophy also motivated each worker to commit to the company’s betterment. Upon full transition, Stayer expects to create an atmosphere of constant learning and development. The transition also supports creativity, encourages responsibility, and empowers employees to develop solutions rather than simply follow orders. Over the period of time, the company’s organizational structure was transformed in support to the new culture of worker empowerment. Autocratic management was decentralized in order to become more democratic. Conventional management position were replaced by lead persons and their teams who controlled their own compensation, hiring, firing, quality control, and near-and long-term company goals. Several ground-breaking solutions were instigated and evaluated and each member of the company was involved for the company’s success. Moreover, a rewarding compensation system was implemented to retain employees and hone their skills and performance. Over-the-time, Stayer had achieved a complete organizational transformation successfully. In terms of Palmer’s offer, Stayer has two recommendations – either he can accept or decline to take over the Palmer’s business. If Stayer had taken over the business, they might have the advantages of the opportunity for growth and additional revenue. On this regard, private label business offers a 25% return on assets. Contrariwise, the deal clashes with Johnsonville’s recent business strategy which prevents the company to push private label business over 15%. The company could compete for capital with the rest of the business once it crosses 15%. In addition to this, the company, while in contract with Palmer, is producing at huge capacity utilization. If the deal is on then the company might need to execute two long shifts for six or seven days a week in order to process the new business. Recommendation At this stand-off point, Johnsonville could be advised to accept Palmer’s deal which help the former to tap the revenue and growth opportunities. Stayer’s Johnsonville should continue to implement its new philosophy in a way that it does not affect the previous work-culture. During the agreement, Stayer should continue to involve employees in the decision making process to accept the private label business and planning to handle the additional workload as well. Apart from this, Stayer is required to motivate his teams to meet for evaluating staffing requirements, production and quality goals. With the involvement of workers and assigning responsibility for the important decisions, Stayer will help secure their buy-in for tackling the challenges ahead.

Art and Religion in Traditional African Society Essay Example

Art and Religion in Traditional African Society Essay Example Art and Religion in Traditional African Society Essay Art and Religion in Traditional African Society Essay Art and Religion in Traditional African Society Throughout the world, changes in peopleâ„ ¢s lives are marked by important events, ceremonies and celebrations. Whether they are called confirmation, communion, graduation, birthdays, initiations or funerals, certain amount of rituals that characterized there activities and make them special are integrated. In Africa, these special activities or rituals constitute an important aspect of a rich socio-cultural and religious life of the people, and are expressed through various artistic means. Every stage of their lives, traditional Africans adhere to certain values, attitudes and thoughts which are products of their past experiences in relation to the environment and forces within and without, with a strong believe that the universe is given life by spirits that inhibit the fields they farm, the cloud that brings rainfall, the rivers from which they gather fishes and the wilderness where they hunt wild animals and build settlements. Given the existence of these spirituals, ways are sought to contact, to communicate and control their powers, thus, they engage in constant and faithful rituals, sacrifices and worship. In most cases, art, whether through performances or tangible objects, becomes the medium and point of contact. Notable among these manifestations of invisible spirits in tangible forms such as carved wood or stones (sculpture), is the power figure called Nkisi, from kongo. It embodies a spiritual force that is to be placed in a container and placed on the abdomen to wade away evil. To the Yoruba of Nigeria, the Geledeâ„ ¢ mask, gives identity and personality to the otherwise abstract and intangible spirits of their ancestors. The Ife people of Nigeria made ceremonial busts of their rulers, who were called Oni, to commemorate the reign of their leaders. The Isangui people from Gabon, produced wooden masks used also in ceremonies for a particular village meant to represent the spirits of all the deceased female ancestors of the village. These representations in mysterious and uncanny forms by the African artist, offers a means through which the emerging forces nature and the power of magic are expressed, thereby evoking an effective source for the spiritual embodiment and stability which provides religion with purpose and meaning, helping people to understand and cope with circumstances and occasionally explains the misfortune and other unexpected events of life. Granted, the traditional belief system that form the basis on which art in Africa is produced, expresses a respect for a universal life force which cannot be contacted directly, except through mediums that serves as intermediaries, these mediums are carved, built or arranged by a special and sacred few. Whether they are the Chiraraâ„ ¢ mask of Bambara meant to appease the spirits of agriculture or the Bundu mask of the Mende society, meant for initiation rites, the symbols, masks and figures of traditional Africa are imbued with power to mediate fertility, wealth, health, and divination. Where these traditional customs flourished, a continuity of the sacred order is sustained through initiations, sacrifices and worship, as seen in the Poroâ„ ¢ society of sierra-Leone and the Ifaâ„ ¢ worship of Oshogbo, Nigeria. The mystical characters encountered in these societies provides only but a surface penetration into their meanings and values. Although the bulk of traditional African art is centered on religions inspiration, yet, there are those whose excellent forms hold no religions significance whatever, such as the Ashanti gold weights, Dahomean brass and appliqueâ„ ¢ cloths, Yoruba house-post and the Cameroon pipe bowls. However, African religions vary in their emphasis, but all include some worship of nature-duties, the recognition of the power of the ancestors, the belief in an ability to foretell the future, and in the efficacy of magic. In the eastern part of the continent, family cults seem to have primacy, while in the western potion; gods who represent the forces of nature are most prominent. Yet both beliefs are found everywhere in Africa, even in the simple cultures of the extreme south. The custodians of these deities, divinations and ancestral figures are specialist whose techniques, shrines and methods very widely. Oracles that are consulted to reward good and punish evil, magic that creates confidence and hope or dispels fear is ubiquitous and finds its expression in the charm, which is wrongly and ignorantly seen us evil because of its fetishâ„ ¢ connotation â€Å" a term derived from Portuguese feiticoâ„ ¢, meaning, things madeâ„ ¢, and from this again the misnomer for the re ligion of certain parts of Africa, fetichism. Furthermore, the esthetic drive and religions expressions of art in Africa is not only rendered or restricted to two and three-dimensional forms of expressions, but are also found in music, dance and storytelling. Everywhere, song and dance contributes immensely to worship. Singing takes the fundamental form of antiphony between leader and chorus, while the drum is sometimes the sole and always the principal instrument played to accompany song. The dance beat known in its ritual forms, is based on great ingenuity in execution of complicated steps and bodily movement, depicting spirituality, victory or quest as in the case of the Chiwaraâ„ ¢ dance, Bambara, Mali. Dancing is the supreme expression of worship in every traditional African religion. African folklore includes myth, tale, proverbs and riddle which are closely integrated into the life of the people, and which are striking in their unity over the continent. Then myths explain the nature of the world and the forces that rule it, thus, sanctioning social structures and the ancestral cults by the account they provide of group origins and early clan adventure. By reference to sacred tales, priest derived authority, ritual force and magical power. The myth of Faâ„ ¢ a being with sixteen eyes as told in the Dahomean folklore, is of important reference on this point. The general belief that African art is a result of inspiration cannot be overemphasized following the treads and development of the African civilizations. Religion is an important part of the cultures that make up the vast African communities, and is interrelated with other facets of life far more intimately than among humans. Thus, the supernatural world is part o the workaday round, to be met without fear and with full knowledge that for every ill there is a remedy, for every problem a specialist who can help with a solution and for every awe, a call for reverence. As such, religion becomes immediate to life, not removed from it; a fully functioning part of universe that encompasses both the living and the dead with a system of that is strong and sure because, for the traditional African, each day of his life is a fulfillment of the pragmatic test to which he continuously experience. REFERENCES M. Hershovits The Background of African Art (University Microfilms international, London 1978) The language of African Art: A Bicentennial Exhibition From Museum of African art 1976 â€Å" 1978 (Davis) Vogel, Susan M. Anesthetics of African Art (The Centre for African art, New York: 1986) Berman, Esme (1993), Bermanâ„ ¢s Art and Artists of Africa, in Charda Jacqueline, 2006, African Art and Architecture, Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation, 2005. Christopher Roy (1999), Art and Life in Africa. www.uiowa.edu/africat. Willet, Frank (2003), African Art: An introduction. 3rd Ed. Thames and Hudson.

The internship assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The internship assignment - Essay Example The internship assignment The customers need their ordered products on time and therefore, vendors have to attain a certain levels of synergy and coordination among various departments in order to achieve the desired outcomes of a specific project. The job that was performed during the internship was all about conforming by the deadlines. I managed to perform the job quite well as I was able to promote teamwork and synergies among the entire workforce. It was significantly challenging for me to combine various members from several departments in order to build cross-functional teams. The team developmental process was halted and jammed more than a few occasions. The difficulties were faced because there was a presence of particular distaste and unwillingness towards the notion of working closely among technical and managerial staff. Both of the groups held on to the point that the other group does not have necessary information needed to comprehend the issues. But I with the help top management sponsored a le arning environment in the overall organization and therefore, played a significant and important role in the completion of delayed projects. My job as a coordinator in a software development company assisted me to get important knowledge about the global industry of software development and sales. The industry has spread in all parts of the world and due to this reason I have gotten an unforgettable chance to interact and communicate with people from various cultures and nations. As a sales representative, I have also noticed a few marked differences in the behavior of people from under developed and advanced nations respectively. The customers belonging from formerly mentioned group of nations set a premium on cost effectiveness of information technology solutions. The buyers from latter type of countries focus on quality and they are least concerned with the price tag of the product. The clientele of the company where I worked is culturally and regionally dispersed. I have found Americans with very professional attitude and they were extremely lenient in terms of providing extension in deadlines. The Chinese and Russian s on the other hand, were very aggressive in handling delays. In short, I have come to recognize that the population of developed nations is far more polite and humble. But the customers from less developed nations are very annoying and they got on my nerves on more than one instances. Yet I remained calm and composed while handling their grievances. More specifically, I have learned that the culture is the software of human mind (Hofstede & Hofstede, 2010) and therefore, people use their cultural and economic experiences for making decisions. The economic conditions of the less developed world have been continuously degrading. The abovementioned trend has forced companies in less developed world to outsource technology to more developed ones. But the companies from less developed world are highly sensitive towards prices and therefore, they always search for the cost effective technological solutions. I have also learned that those companies with poor computer and technological lit eracy cannot use the solutions to the full extent. Nevertheless, I will propose intensive technological training to all companies that are looking to acquire latest infrastructure. In my view, state of the art technology is useless until the staff knows how to use it. In the case of major number of the companies, technology results in less

Criminal Justice Organizations- Assignment 1 Essay

Criminal Justice Organizations- Assignment 1 - Essay Example As noted in chapter 1 of Stojkovic, Kalinich and Klofas’s book police departments are complex public entities. If the county sheriff’s department served me, this would be easier because it is cheaper. It is expensive to starting a police department because it requires a person to have the means to get special vehicles and equipment, garage space and a big office. Stojkovic, Kalinich and Klofas, (2014) assert that criminal justice administrators have to deal with so many obligations even when the laws are difficult to work with for the administrator. Even if the community is small, it becomes hard to provide full-time coverage when there are very few officers. One of the advantages of having a large department over the small department is that there are more officers in large departments since most get a higher pay than those in small departments. Well paid officers depict a motivated workforce who serve the community better and are more committed to their work (Stojkovic, Kalinich & Klofas, 2014). Another merit is that a large department has many officers from different communities; the officers are also from different ethnic backgrounds. Having many officers from different ethnicities makes it easier to curb criminal gangs in many areas since, criminals tends to listen to officers they can relate to through languages, cultures or races. Small departments have high rates of turnover, fewer promotions and new recruits tend to complain that it takes too much time before they learn new things in the