Characters in Othello: Colors and Shapes

The color and shape I chose for Othello are silver and the indifferent shape. I thought about it for a while and this indifferent shape fits othello perfectly for many reasons. Like Othello this is the outsider of the group since it has no real shape. The shape’s physical appearance is different from the rest, just like Othello is since he’s a moor and has a different skin tone. Towards the end of the third act Othello starts to lose his stern confidence front and his real insecurities come out. He shows that he feels not confined and proper enough for the whites. Also his age is another big insecurity that he feels when Desdemona’s faithfulness is in question. This relates to the indifferent shape of the group trying to front like its a shape when really it’s not. Silver best describes Othello with the following characteristics honorable, chivalrous,and romantic. These are displayed when Othello woo’s desdemona with his story and by his high ranking in the venetian army. I chose lavender, pink, and a circle to represent Desdemona’s character. Desdemona represents perfection in the story with her looks and appearance. This is why the circle with no rough edges and a perfectly drawn out figure fits Desdemona perfectly. Desdemona is completely the opposite of Othello she comes from a prominent and perfect family. While Othello has grown up with no silver spoon, (even thou ironically thats his color), he was raised into slavery and the army. These trials and tragedies Othello overcame shaped him into the shape he is. Also like the inside of the circle Desdemona’s character lacks depth and seems somewhat empty. Some character traits Desdemona does display are affection for Othello when his life story moves her to the point of tears. She shows compassion by saying she will do whatever her lover asks of her and simply cannot say no to him. She also comes off as a romantic when she disobeys her father to be with her lover and runs off. The shapes and colors that best go with Cassio are yellow and a triangle. Cassio is a triangle in my opinion because he has a high stature which means everything to him. Like the stature of an equilateral triangle in math and if the triangle loses one angle it messes up the whole triangle. This is sort of like how Cassio messed up once in Othello’s eyes and lost everything. Yellow best fits Cassios’s character which is happy go lucky flirt. He was optimistic throughout the whole story and was very people orientated, maybe even too much. this was his biggest character flaw and his downfall thanks to Iago’s evil scheming. Iago is the most evil character in the play hands down, but he might also be the smartest. I chose dark blue, black, and a square to represent him. Black is the color that represents evil which Iago is for turing everyone against each other and making evil conniving plans behind there back. Just because he’s evil doesn’t mean he’s not smart. Iago is very intelligent he single handedly played everyone. Like a square Iago seems things from every angle (front back and side to side) and has full vision. So dark blue which means intelligent, responsible, and self reliant seemingly fits him. If I had to pick colors and a shape to represent me I would choose the same shape as Othello, beige and mint green. Although I didn’t choose the same shape as Othello for the same reasons. My reasoning behind my choice for that shape are I don’t really ever plan much out, I bend and just go with the flow. Also this shape is different from the rest and thats how I see myself, different from the rest. My colors represent me an the way I am which is more quiet and laid back than most people. These colors also fit my personality. Which I consider kind hearted and quiet even though I cant always make everyone happy I always try.

Bright Light Innovations: the Starlight Stove

Opportunity analysis and critical issues hidden in this case As the increasing pace of globalization, more and more companies seek opportunities to involve in the international trade. Expanding the market share and maximize the profits is the purpose of those companies. However, it is unlike the education. Most universities especially public universities are non-profit organization. Their purpose is not to earn enough money; on the contrary, the purpose of universities is to provide training and knowledge for students in order to benefit the society.In return, students pay appropriate fees and government provide monetary support to the university so that university can gain the ability to do the research and develop its hardware and software. In this way, university can have a sustainable development. So university can benefit from seeking opportunities in international expansion. First, students from different countries and cultural background can share their experience. It is a goo d chance for students and universities to participate in international market.Secondly, international universities can share resource with local universities. On the one hand, it can help develop the universities from developing countries; on the other hand, international universities can also gain advanced experience they are lack of. Thirdly, international universities can maximize their influence by cooperating with local government or some research institutions. In this case, Bright Light Innovations aims to opening its market in Nepal. In order to explore this market, the company considers a series of criteria.The first one is the â€Å"total population† and â€Å"population growth†. This factor established the foundation of consumption power. Jianfa Shen points out that the population is one of the factors to affect the market demand (Jianfa Shen, 1998). The more people live in the country, the larger potential market exists. The second one is the â€Å"natural climate†. Climate change determines the consumer’s consumption behavior to some extent (Seljom, 2011). Considering that the temperature of Nepal is very low, the Bright Light Innovation provides stove to local people who are in the need of warm.The third one is the â€Å"living habit of local people†. According to Jaime Alonso-Carrera’s study, â€Å"individual preferences are subject to both habit formation and consumption spillovers† (Jaime Alonso-Carrera, 2004). The case shows that most people in Nepal uses firewood as the main source of the energy. Due to this reason, the products of stoves meet the needs of local people. What’s more, the company also considers â€Å"political policy†. Whether the local government support or against the kind of products is the factor to affect the entering in the international market.The fourth hidden critical issue in this case is the â€Å"infrastructure† in Nepal. Well infrastructure contr ibutes to the potential growth of the company (Weiland, Scott J. 2012). If the company needs to set up a factory in the local place, infrastructure including electric, water, traffic and others should be considered. Finally, â€Å"income† determines the purchasing power in the local market. More income means more potential consumption to some extent. Alternatives and product lunch in foreign marketThe reason why Bright Light selects Nepal as its target market is that the market and the company can benefit from each other. Following factors can be contributed to the access of the products to Nepal. First, the local government can benefit from the company. Bright Light decides to set up a plant in local place; it helps the government solve the problem of employment. More people can be employed as the factory setting up; besides, the company can reduce much cost by setting up a factory in local place. Second, Bright Light helps protect the environment to some extent.As its stove is more efficient than traditional one, people will use less firewood. In this case, the forests can be protected and the environmental problem can be solved. Thirdly, family productivity increased 20 percent or more per day. People can have more free time to do other jobs rather than logging. Fourthly, Bright Lights contributes revenue to the government. The government can gain revenue from the tax. Finally, the stove can produce electric and the generated electric can be widely used in the home or in the school.The new products bring benefits to the government and the local people and the company gain revenues and profits from selling the products to the local people. The relationship between the company and the customers and government seems very important. Without permission, the company cannot enter this new market. In regard of the government (Nepal) that will not provide permission to try the new product, the company can consider other ways to enter this market. The Bright L ight can follow other companies which have been in Nepal and familiar with the local policy and culture.In this way, the Bright Light can build a partnership with that company; besides, the Bright Light also need to know the export or import policy of the Nepal so that it can fits the regulation by doing some changes. These two ways help the company meet the requirement of the government and have the right to enter the new market. Product promotion and advertising recommendations In rural areas, adult literacy rate is low in developing countries. A study shows that high literacy rate has significant positive effect on foreign direct investment inflow (CHEE-KEONG CHOONG, 2010).People in this area don’t know the words. So they don’t know the brand and the instructions of the products. It will lead to the low brand loyalty and cause a series of problems of products recognition. Some people may don’t understand how to use it and some people may don’t know how to solve the problems when something wrong with the stove. In other words, it directly affects the marketing strategy plan of the company. Schmitt, Natalie M. points out that the advertisement of the brand or label should be easy to recognize for customers so that it helps build up the brand-loyalty (Schmitt, Natalie M. 007). Following ways with advertisement can solve the problem. Focusing on verbal and audio can be a way of advertisements. In this way, people can better understand how the products functions and gradually set up the brand-loyalty to the products; besides, newspapers and videos also an efficient measure to send information to final customers. The usage and instruction of the products can be advertised on the newspaper in the form of pictures so that local people can easily understand. Other forms of advertising may also function well.The Bright Light can exhibit its products on the local trade fair or other expos. In this way, people can not only know the products, but also can try the new products. Although the goal of the company is to maximize its profits, it should devote itself in the social charity. It is not only a kind of social responsibility, but also is a kind of advertisement. The report of such philanthropy is an efficient way to improve the image of the company and it helps to build up a brand-loyalty to customers. Furthermore, becoming the sponsor of special event is another way to make a promotion.Special event always attract large number of audience and media. In this situation, it can be advertised on the display boards. It is a useful way to expanded publicity. Pricing strategy and competitive situation analysis In order to price the product, Bright Light should consider the costs and profits when selling to the customers. As customer feel that the product is worth of the money, then the product or the brand will impress the customers. The cost of a stove manufactured is $60. The company decides to sell the stove at $80 but worries about the margin profits.If the company set the price at higher level, fewer consumers are willing to buy. Customers may choose substitute instead of the new product (stove). In this way, the Bright Light may lose the market share; however, sometimes consumers are willing to afford the high price because of the special features added to the product. Draganska illustrates his point in his study that customer are willing to pay the comparatively high price when the product has special characteristics and satisfy the consumer’s preference (Draganska, 2006). The new stove has such feature that it can generate electric as well as heat.In consider of the purchasing power of Nepal, the company decides to find a micro financing organization to provide loan for local people who are willing to purchase the stove. It is a way not only help the poor people afford the stove, but also stimulates the consumption on stoves. Pricing strategy should also put the competitive situation into consideration such as the â€Å"threat a price war†, â€Å"channel conflict†, or â€Å"legal or ethical considerations†. If Bright Light set its price for the stove, other competitors may follow tis price and even set the lower price to compete with Bright Light.In this situation, Bright Light may lose its customers. Direct competitors also can imitate the products designed by Bright Light; however, if Bright Light has better quality with cheaper price, the product can be competitive. Because the target market could be low-income family, low price strategy and loan strategy can meet their requirements. Substitute products of the starlight stove from other competitors should also be considered to the pricing strategy. It is a kind of indirect competition. Substitutes can quickly dominate the low income market share; however, Starlight stove has its core competence.The new product (stove) is more efficient and it needs less firewood, what the most important i s that it can generate electric. Core competition plays a significant role in improving the barriers for other competitors and R&D capability is regarded as the most important source for core competence. Due to this reason, it is obvious that the company makes innovation on the new product and the starlight stove is a competitive product. The company needs to pay attention on constantly innovation to make sure the company stays ahead of potential rivals (Yu-fen Chen, 2007).In order to keep its core competence, the company needs to apply for the patent from the Nepal government so that the company can raise barriers to imitation. In general, by analyzing the strength and weakness of the competitors and figuring out the opportunities and threats of its own, the starlight stove can be outstanding with competitive price and accepted by the local people. References Chee-Keong Choong and Siew-Yong Lam. (2010). The Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment in Malaysia: A Revisit. Global Ec onomic Review, 39(2), 175-195. Draganska and Michaela. (2006).Consumer Preferences and Product-Line Pricing Strategies: An Empirical Analysis. Marketing Science, 25(2), 164-174. Jaime Alonso-Carrera. , Jordi Caballe and Xavier Raurich. (2004). Consumption Externalities, Habit Formation and Equilibrium Efficiency. The Scandinavian Journal of Economics, 106(2), 231-251. Jianfa Shen. (1998). China's Future Population and Development Challenges. The Geographical Journal, 164(1), 32-40. Marywood U. , and Weiland, Scott J. (2012). An examination of the relationship among perceived infrastructure, perceived business climate, perceived workforce, and business growth in Northeastern Pennsylvania.Dissertation Abstracts International Section A: Humanities and Social Sciences, 72(7), 2489. Pernille and Seljom. (2011). Modelling the effects of climate change on the energy system–A case study of Norway. Energy Policy, 39(11), 7310-7321. Schmitt, Natalie M. (2007). Consumers' freedom of cho ice–Advertising aimed at children, product placement, and food labeling. Journal of Public Health, 15(1), 57-62. Yu-fen Chen. (2007). An empirical analysis of core competence for high-tech firms and traditional manufacturers. Journal of Management Development, 26(2), 159-168.

A Critical Review Of Che Guevaras The Motorcycle Diaries

A Critical Review Of Che Guevara's The Motorcycle Diaries â€Å"The Motorcycle Diaries† is a story of an eight thousand mile trip that begins from Argentina to Peru. The trip involves two people; Ernesto Guevara and his friend, Alberto Granado, whom they travel together using a motorcycle as they pass through different countries with different landscapes. The young men are on a duty to explore the different parts of the world they had never visited before. The quest of the adventurers in the movie is to see the things they had only read from books about the continent on which they live, more so the physical landscapes of different regions. The Change in Physical Landscapes The physical landscapes change as Ernesto and Alberto travel from Argentina to Chile, and to Peru. The two travel through five different countries starting with Argentina. They pass through the mountains, for example, the Andes where they had to endure very low temperatures. Initially, they travelled through a landscape where the sun shined, and the land was quite warm before they reached Chile, a land full of snow. Ernesto and Alberto also travelled through the Pampas; very large and fertile pieces of land. While in Peru, the two went through the Lowlands and the Tropical rainforest. While in Columbia, they came across part of the Andes Mountain. The terrain in Columbia was also mountainous as in Chile. There was no difference for Alberto and Ernesto in Venezuela, which was the last country they travelled through. The country also had a lot of mountains, with the climate being the tropical type. The change in physical landscapes during the journey involving Alberto and Ernesto is evident when their motorcycle turns over a number of times during the trip. In different occasions, the motorcycle skids out from under the two and even land into a ditch. The mountainous terrain and the lowlands could have been the cause of the turning of the motorcycle. Cultural Differences Encountered by Ernesto and Alberto While travelling, Alberto and Ernesto encounter cultural differences as they travel through the region. Firstly, the two come to the realization that the official language spoken by the people in the area they are going through is Spanish. Even the Indians in Chile speak Spanish. Besides, Alberto and Ernesto encounter a culture where strangers are warmly welcomed without fear. For instance, In Chile, the Mesties and the Indians are both very social, and they are willing to make available foodstuff, clothes, and a sleeping place to the strangers. It is in the culture of the people of Chile to wear Chamants; a type of clothing that look like ponchos with lots of colors. In Peru, they encounter a group of people who still practice the ancient cultures. The people in an old city called Machu Pichu, for instance believe in the preservation of cultures. Alberto and Ernesto realize that the city is still very old fashioned, and far behind a lot of things. In Columbia, the two notice that it is in the culture of the nation to practice Roman-Catholic faith. In Venezuela, there are different types of religions including the Indian religion and Christianity. The Change of Mind for Alberto and Ernesto In the movie, Ernesto and Alberto seem to come from an economically stable community that does not value the lives of others who are poor. As they travel, they are surprised by the poverty levels in most of the countries. They also get amazed by the social nature of the inhabitants of the countries they travel through. They notice the alarming difference between the rich and the poor, a situation that does not seem to be in existence in their home country. Alberto and Ernesto encounters a type of life that makes them change their minds about the world. It is during their journey that they realize that there are people who are very poor and engage in different religions. The different landscapes they go through also make them change their views on the physical nature of the world. The two adventurers notice that the people who have almost nothing possess the virtue of sharing whatever little they possess. Alberto and Ernesto learn to care about others and through that, they change their social and economic aspects. The change in mind is evident when Ernesto, under the name Che Guevara, would later go on to become a world-renowned communist revolutionary. He played a vital role in Cuba in 1959 during the communist revolution. Geographical Imagination of Latin America The film reinstated my geographical imagination of Latin America given that some of the regions visited by Alberto and Ernesto have the natural resources I ever imagined. The two adventurers visited Chuquicamata Copper mine that I did not have a clear idea of its Location. It is apparently Chile’s source of wealth. My imagination of the varied terrain in Latin America was proved to be true by Alberto and Ernesto, who travelled through mountainous terrains and lowlands in the region. In conclusion, the film is an incredible drama that hopefully is a lesson to viewers. The experience Alberto and Ernesto go through changes their lives, and more lives may be changed by the film, as it happened to Ernesto; an iconic communist revolutionary.

Oceans And Climate Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Oceans And Climate Change - Essay Example The paper clearly shows that Ocean Current is a constant movement of ocean water, towards a particular direction, and is generated by forces such as the wind, salinity, temperature etc. The Gulf Stream is a strong, narrow, warm, fast-moving and swift ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico or North of Grand Bahamas Island, where the Florida Current and the Antilles Current meet and flows into the Atlantic Ocean. Equatorial Current is the ocean current which is controlled by the winds and flows towards the West near the equator. The Labrador Current can be described as a cold current, flowing south from the Arctic Oceans along the coast of Labrador passing from Newfoundland. It continues flowing south and along the eastern coast of Nova Scotia. The warm water of the tropic region is carried into the colder regions through the Ocean Currents. During this traveling, their heat is escaped into the atmosphere. One such example could be the coast of California. The flow along the coast of California helps the cold water to rise from the bottom of the ocean. This is the reason why the beaches along this coast do not have warm water even in the summers. The wind then takes this cool temperature towards the land and as a result, the coast of California has a temperature range of about 50-75 degree Fahrenheit throughout the year. The understanding of these oceans currents and their effects help in determining the possible changes to the global climate and their possible impact on the people.

Distribution Channel Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Distribution Channel - Case Study Example Both of the afore mentioned examples suit various different class of companies / firms and this element of the Distribution Channel could be decided by distinguishing the class, price range, quality, company's capacity, etc. That is, the Distribution Channel is closely related to the Place, Price as well as the Product differentiation elements of the Marketing Mix. (Rolnicki) Direct Selling concept: This element of the distribution channel generally refers to the door to door selling concept. Although, new authors have also included Telephone sales, e-mail sales, direct mail sales, and online (e - commerce) sales within this concept. Via Agents: Agents acts as middle - men between the company and either end user or wholesaler. That is, they purchase goods from producers (manufacturers) and sell them to interested sellers (sometimes within specific geographical boundaries, as a company may appoint many agents, but according to ethical principles, it is always in the best interest of everybody to clearly distinguish and identify the geographic regions for each) with prior (usually written) consent from the company. Retailer: Within this normally 3 concepts are involved: The first being, a manufacturer directly sells his good to retailers, this is usually in case if the production capacity of the Manufacturer is medium to lower levels. Second concept here could be self-retail prospects, through which a manufacturer could sell his goods at his self owned retail store / s. Another concept which has been added by the author of this report is, retailing through previously recognised and somewhat legendary retail franchisees such as our Case Study of TOPSHOP. Allotment of regional Distributors: Through the means of this concept a company may depute various distributors on a regional basis, this is quite similar to the agent concept; but is used where a much larger geographical coverage is required (minimum at State level / National Level), and has normally been seen effective where the manufacturer has a huge brand name. Whole selling: A company may also opt to choose wholesalers to market their

A Whisper in the Dark by Louisia May Alcott Essay

A Whisper in the Dark by Louisia May Alcott - Essay Example The different components of a literary piece can be conveyed to support the themes represented in the short story. Louisa May Alcott is an American novelist in the 1800s who explores the wealth of her period through presentation of the said scenario in the literary works that she had accomplished. The short story is about an heiress who had been orphaned and was left in the cared of her uncle. The character that is her uncle reflected and expressed the Gothic conflicts of the story. It revolves in the plans and betrayals undertaken by her uncle. Aside from the suspense and thrills incorporated in the short story, the element of romance can be observed between Sybil and her cousin Guy. The title can be based on the message that is sent to her by her mother who had been known dead though the truth is that she had been in a mental institution. As compared to other stories of suspense, greed and value of wealth and money can be considered as the main element of importance presented by th e antagonist in the story. Based on form and content of the short story, it can be considered of standards short story structure of Gothic romance representation. The belief in woman’s independence in terms of the decisions made can be observed which can be considered related to the author’s belief in the capabilities of the women and their rights in the society. This can be attributed to her other writings which discuss and showcase the woman as the main character and in the story the narrator. Although this is the case, the representation of Alcott in the character of Sybil can be considered as a traditional female protagonist who in most cases is overwhelmed and driven by her emotions. Based on the composition of the character of Sybil, the author had been able to capture the conflicts and struggles of woman not only of her era but through history. One side is the one seeking independence which is exhibited when Sybil

Law Case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Law Case - Essay Example The radio stations are protected under section 2(b) which guarantees the freedom of the press. However, the Broadcast regulator can intervene and incase the radio stations are not in compliance with the law or are infringing on the rights of the others. The paper thus discusses the issues of charter and administrative law in relation to the cancellation of the license of a radio station by the broadcast regular after the use of sexist and disparaging remarks by its host. The broadcast regulator is a tribunal and it has the powers of canceling the license of a radio station in case it operates contrary to the law. Although the radio stations are protected by section 2(b) of the Charter of rights and freedom, it has to ensure that its contents are in accordance with the legal provisions. The radio stations are also in business and it is supposed to act in a manner that is lawful (Willes, & Willes, 31) The radio station breached the provisions of section 2(b) which promotes the freedom of expression and freedom of the press. The use of disparaging and sexist remarks damages the public image of the celebrities involved. This is indicates that the business activities of the radio station is responsible for the defamation of character of the celebrities. The station also acted in bad faith when it ignored the complaints that had been raised by the celebrities affected by the sexist and disparaging remarks of the radio host. Since the radio station failed to stop the radio host from using the sexist and disparaging remarks it was right for the broadcast regulator to cancel the license of the station. As an administrative tribunal the Broadcast regulator had the right to intervene although the matter deals with the issues of the constitution. According to section 1 of the Charter Claims and Administrative Law, there should be a balance between the benefits and deleterious effects. The use of the

DARE Program Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

DARE Program - Essay Example It has become an immediate hit with kids, schools, parents and the police. In the 1986 study of the National Institute of Justice, researcher William DeJong found positive results on the DARE program. Soon thereafter, the Bureau of Justice Assistance of the Justice Department gave the program $140,000 to make it into a nationwide program and started training officers over the country to introduce the program in schools and deliver the curriculum. (Aue, p 25) The police officers received training for the facilitation of the program in schools. This benchmark has been carried out throughout the country and excellent reviews have been received by DARE officials. Support filtered up to Congress and politicians who stand against drugs and crime showed support to the program. Due to the huge amount of support DARE received, the National DARE Day was celebrated in 1989. In 1992, the funds increased to $10 million and the National DARE Day came thereafter. (Roleff, 2005) Name 3 The idea of h aving police officers to facilitate the program is a brilliant idea since students look of to authorities. The credibility of the program is instilled in the minds of the young kids that have been carried out for years. Although good reviews have been received by the program, there were a number of criticisms that were against the program.

The Rise of the Tablet PC in the U.S. Market Essay

The Rise of the Tablet PC in the U.S. Market - Essay Example carriers like AT&T Inc., Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel Corp. and T-Mobile USA (Kharif). The United States tablet PC market is in a growth succession and has became very trendy and a great competitor for computer companies, and by 2015, tablet users are anticipated to develop from an expected 26 to 82.1 million. The market is presently dominated by Apple Inc., yet they will shortly have a new contestant challenging them to come down off their thrown thanks to China’s second-largest manufacturer of mobile-phone gear, ZTE Corporation, publicized its plan to uncover an Android tablet in the U.S. before the end of 2011. Apple’s tablet, the Ipad 2 achieved a market share of 75% in September 2011, leaving only a 25% market share for its rivals. Android based tablets, like the notorious Ipad, will soon be eligible for purchase for a surprising $499 which will get the attention of a lot of tablet lovers, yet there is other competition and brands to consider when this new Android gadget launches because the tablet can be found at Dell, Hewlett Packard, Gateway, Ace r, and other well-known computer and electronic distributors, so a really competitive attitude and business strategy will have to be in place for Apple to stay at the top of the list of the world’s preferred company to buy tablet computers and other Apple made products and services. Despite ZTE’s current success and future plans, one of the greatest aspects about Apple Inc. is that they really strive hard to satisfy their customers because they are not only a leader in making fine PC equipment, yet they provide exceptional 24 hour customer service, have many different certifications and employment opportunities all over the world for anyone interested in becoming employed at their company, and their corporations are in place throughout the globe along with millions of products sold at national and international stores. However, ZTE, based out of Shenzhen, feels that they will rise to the

Operations Management Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Operations Management - Coursework Example The client is an organization engaged in providing hotel services and accommodations in each of their twelve holiday centres spread over the Mediterranean and the Caribbean. Each holiday centres also provide water sports facilities including restaurants, bars, entertainments and retail establishments. The engagement is to automate the production of quarterly reports for submission to Headquarter and to provide real time daily reports to local management and weekly reports to senior management stationed at the Headquarter. The proceeding pages will indicate the integration definition of the organization (Podeswa, 2008). Part of the engagement is to overcome the following challenges that need to be resolved quickly. Improve if not overhaul the image of the organization to negate the impact of disgruntled customers that obliterates their ability to have repeat customers. The primary focus is to determine what part of the business is having difficulties if not the part of the business where customer experience is at its worst. Gathering data related to customer satisfaction is an essential foundation for the solution that will be recommended since its success or efficacy can only be determined if a baseline performance has been measured. A primary solution that can be implemented to resolve the reporting requirement is to automate the frontline portion of the process to get an accurate data capture process that can provide reliable data. The same mechanism or process can also be employed to measure key performance indicators (Bissessur, 2010) that are primarily designed to measure customer satisfaction. Customer complaints and feedback methodology will also be used to determine if not validate the data reflected by the metrics that measures the key performance indicators for customer satisfaction. Customer Satisfaction rate = Customer Complaints received/Total

Auditory Attention Essay Example for Free

Auditory Attention Essay The ability to localize sound sources is of considerable importance to both humans and animals; it will determine the direction of objects to seek or to avoid as well as indicating the appropriate direction to direct visual attention. The precision of sound localization is remarkable, particularly for brief sounds or for those occurring in noisy or reverberant surroundings. While the most reliable cues used in the localization of sounds depend upon a comparison of the signals reaching the two ears, there are also phenomena of auditory space perception which result from monoaural processing of the signals. Localization refers to judgments of the direction and distance of a sound source. Like when headphones are worn, the sound image is located inside the head. Headphones allow precise control of interaural differences and eliminate effects related to room echoes. Using two ears we are able to selectively attend to sounds coming from a particular direction while effectively excluding other sounds. This ability is particularly important in noisy surroundings or when there are several sound sources competing for our attention. Our acuity in locating sounds is greatest in the horizontal dimension, fairly good in the vertical direction and least good in the depth dimension. Aside from this ability we are also able to judge the direction of a sound source and to some extent estimates its distance. Many everyday experiences indicate that auditory localization can be influenced by conflicting visual cues. At a cinema for example, the loudspeakers are usually placed behind the screen or in its center yet the sound still appears to come from the actor’s mouth as he moves about the screen. Similarly, the loudspeaker in a television set is located to one side of the screen but the sound does not appear to be detached from the visual image. Thus, it might be possible that exposure to conflicting auditory and visual cues for a period of time may lead to an after-effect in which the localization of sounds is systematically displaced. This may occur during experiments wherein sound may be generates from one area but a cue may say otherwise and given the effects of practice and priming, experiment results into auditory localization may not be valid. Early findings on the study of orienting pure auditory attention have yielded no significant change in performance. Posner (1980) did not find any advantage in the use of auditory pre- cueing of auditory targets. Others have failed to find a benefit for the detection of sounds coming from expected vs. unexpected locations (Scharf, Quigley, Aoki, Peachey and Reeves, 1987). Buchtel and Butter (1988) found that informative auditory cues provided a benefit in the detection of visual targets; however they failed to find a benefit from cues on auditory targets. Klein, Brennan and Gilani (1987) also found no benefit in the detection of auditory targets with the use of uninformative cues using both visual and auditory cues. However, the use of auditory and visual cues together on tasks has been promising. Previous researches on multisensory instruments have found that it can optimize performance rather than using one sensory modality. Recently Duncan, Martens and Ward (1997) found evidence of restricted attentional capacity within but not between sensory modalities. They presented streams of visual and or auditory inputs containing occasional targets to be identified and recalled, for two visual or two auditory streams they found that the identification of one target produced a sustained reduction in the ability to identify a second target. In contrast, when the streams were from both modalities, there was no such reduction in the identification of the second target. The results suggest a modality-specific restriction to concurrent attention and awareness. The results of this study have important implications for the design of complex human machine interface systems. Systems should be designed to take advantage of the spatial presentation of information to the human operator to enhance the detection rate of critical information (i. e. ; warnings). This findings support Rhodes (1987) earlier work on auditory attention where he reported that auditory attention has spatial constraints. He found that time linearly increased to localize a sound as a function of distance from the point of attention; he further proposed that even for sounds, localization is shifted through logical and topographical representations. Information presented in locations where spatial attention has been allocated has both faster and more accurate response in both visual and auditory modalities (Posner, 1980, Ward, 2000, Spence driver, 1996, 1997a, 1997b). Moreover, even if there is a limited human attentional capacity the nature of spatial attention across modalities suggests that if one modality is overloaded the attentional capacity of other modalities are not adversely affected (Duncan, Martens Ward, 1997). Thus, the best way to maximize this modality-specific restriction is to present information using both the visual and auditory modalities. Flanagan, McAnally, Martin, Meehan Oldfield (1998) found evidence of the usefulness of using both modalities. In their study, they reported that visual search times were reduced when spatially informative auditory information was supplied. They used a spatial localization task in which the search for a visual target was aided by either a visual arrow or an auditory cue. They found both the visual and the auditory cues aided in significantly reducing the search times when compared to unaided search. It is however important that the visual and auditory information presented are detectable and localizable. Hence a signal should be localizable when information presented is critical (i. e. ; location of threats such as enemy fighters, missiles etc. ) and that information presented is expected in that location will improve response time and accuracy (Posner, 1980, Spence and Driver, 1996).

Program Design and Narrative Essay Example for Free

Program Design and Narrative Essay To achieve the objectives for our Healthy Pomona Kids Partnership program, the city of Pomona will utilize the methods outlined below. These methods have been proven effective by the Healthy RC Kids Partnership for the city of Rancho Cucamonga, where their client population is Latino. Representatives from this organization assisted in the development of this project and we have also provided an in depth timeline to this proposal. Objective One See more: how to start a personal narrative essay examples Ensure that children from low income families have access to fresh and nutritious foods in before and after school programs. †¢Healthy Pomona Kids Partnership will hire a program supervisor and two fulltime bilingual program assistants to establish a community outreach committee. †¢Appoint four community outreach committee leaders that are culturally competent, with two of the leaders needing to be bilingual. †¢Staff will develop a plan for local farmers markets and community gardens. Objective Two Educate families on the importance of good eating habits and the dangers or risks pertaining to childhood obesity; to promote healthy eating and reduce childhood obesity. †¢Staff will coordinate weekly health classes to educate and promote healthy living. †¢Staff will develop a formal feedback system so voices and concerns can be heard. †¢Staff will track participant’s progress on a weekly basis. Objective Three Engage community leaders and local police to help residence feel safer in their community to encourage exercise. †¢Staff will develop group walks within the community to meet three times a week. †¢Encourage local leaders to build walking trails.  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Meet with local schools to educate students about the benefits of exercise.

Role of Job Satisfaction on Employee Behavior

Role of Job Satisfaction on Employee Behavior In todays complex work environment maintaining satisfied employees that will continue to serve an organization is the ultimate goal of any human resource department of a company. Job satisfaction is the most frequently studied variable in organizational behavior research (Spector, 1997). It has been considered in a variety of ways, and is defined differently in various studies. Thus in order to understand and appreciate the role of job satisfaction on employee behavior this study has been undertaken. The researcher has introduced the concepts of Attitude and Behavior and then moved further into explaining the three main components of major Job Attitude which consists of Job Involvement, Organization Commitment and Job Satisfaction. The Dimensions, Antecedents and Measures of Job Satisfaction have also been touched upon in detail. The researcher has also gathered information on various motivation theories that are applied in organizations by the managers There is enough discussion on the impact of Job Satisfaction and Dissatisfaction on employee behaviors which in turn affects the workings and performance of an organization. To conclude with the researcher has discussed job satisfactions necessity for an employee since it not only affects his/her work life but also his personal life. It is very important for organizations to identify the determinants of job satisfaction in an effort to optimize the productivity of their employees and avoid the costs of employee turnover. Restructuring of activities and jobs in organizations and the human resources to suit the specific demands and needs of such structures is of vital importance to both the employees and managers. The viewpoint of many managers and employees from various articles has been taken into consideration. INTRODUCTION Organization Behavior (OB) is a very important study and application of knowledge about how people as individuals and as groups act within organizations. It studies what people do in an organization and how their behavior affects the organizations performance. It endeavors to identify ways in which people can act more effectively. It is an applied behavioral science that is built on contributions from a number of behavioral disciplines. It provides a useful set of tools at many levels of analysis. For instance it helps managers understand the behavior of individuals working within an organization. It also aids their understanding of the complexities involved in interpersonal relations. People, structure, technology, and the environment in which the organization operates are the key elements in the study of organization behavior (Robbins, Judge and Sanghi, 2008). In todays work environment, organizations focus a lot of their attention towards ensuring job satisfaction for each of their employees. The cost of dissatisfied employees is extremely high for any organization. Satisfied employees are believed to be more productive, perform better and are more likely to perform acts that lead to customer satisfaction. Dissatisfied employees on the other hand, are those that are not satisfied with their working conditions for a variety of reasons and the consequences of having them in an organization are very disastrous in nature (Newstrom and Davis, 1993; George and Jones, 1999; Bennett, 1991). ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR Attitudes are the feelings and beliefs that largely influence as to how the employees would perceive their working environment, commit themselves to designated actions and behave as a result. They are evaluative statements in nature which can be either favorable or unfavorable- concerning objects, people or events. They basically reflect as to how an individual feels about something. Attitudes is formed by three main components: cognitive component which talks about the opinion or belief segment of an attitude, affective component stresses on the emotional or the feelings segment of an attitude and finally behavioral component talks about having an intention to behave in a certain way towards some or something. These components, together, help in understanding the complexity and the potential relationship between attitudes and behavior. In organizations, attitudes are important because of their behavioral component. In order to explain the linkage between attitudes and behavior, Leon Festinger proposed the theory of Cognitive Dissonance in the late 1950s. This theory refers to any incompatibility that an individual might perceive between two or more attitudes or between behavior and attitudes. Recent researches have confirmed to Festingers belief by evidencing that attitudes significantly predict future behavior and also that relationships between employees and the organization can be heightened by taking into concern moderating variables. Important Attitudes that reflect fundamental values, self interest, or identification with individuals or other groups that a person values are considered to be very important in nature. Attitudes that the individuals consider important tend to show a stronger relationship to behavior. The link between the two is even stronger when the attitude and the behavior are very specific in nature. For instance asking an employee about their intention to stay with the concerned organization for the next few months is going to help in predicting the turnover for that person as compared to if they were asked about how satisfied they were with their pay. Attitudes that are easily thought of or are often showed by an employee play a key role in predi cting behavior than those attitudes that are not easily accessible in the memory. Variances between attitudes and behavior are quite likely to occur when social structures stress people to behave in certain ways. This tends to qualify behavior in organizations. Also the attitude-behavior relationship is likely to be much stronger if an attitude refers to something with which the individual has direct personal experience. Attitudes are usually used to evaluate and understand after an action has taken place instead of using it before so as to guide an action. Organization Behavior concentrates on only a limited number of work-related attitudes even though a person could have an unlimited number of attitudes. Either may it be positive or negative evaluations that an employee carries about his/her work environment are captured by these work related attitudes. Job Satisfaction, Job Involvement and Organizational Commitment are the three main attitudes that have been studied by a lot of scholars and researchers. MAJOR JOB ATTITUDES JOB INVOLVEMENT JOB SATISFACTION ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT JOB INVOLVEMENT Job involvement helps in measuring the level to which people psychologically relate themselves with their job and conceive their self worth with the perceived level of performance. It has been evidenced that employees who are highly involved with their jobs strongly identify themselves with their work and value its worth in their life. Because of their attachment with their work they highly engross themselves in their jobs, invest valuable time and energy in them and view work as a fundamental part of their overall lives. Higher level of job involvement and psychological empowerment leads to higher to organizational citizenship and job performance by the individual. Holding meaningful jobs and performing them well are important to their own self image which helps to explain the traumatic effects of job loss on their esteem needs. People involved in their jobs participate in following the code of work ethics of their workplace; exhibit high growth needs, and also enjoy their involveme nt in making decisions. Thus, job involvement also helps in lowering the absenteeism rate and turnover rates. Also a managers high involvement in the job leads to higher job satisfaction of his employees thus making it an important factor for an organizations effectiveness in a highly competitive environment. ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT Organizational Commitment is usually defined as the strength of ones identification and involvement with their respective organization (Mowday et al., 1979) as cited by Silva. P (2006). Its the state when an employee identifies himself/herself with a particular organization and its goals and sees he/she working with that organization in the future also. It is a way by which an employees willingness to remain as a member of that organization for the future also is evaluated. It often reflects the employees belief in the mission and goals of the firm, willingness to put in effort in their accomplishment and intentions to continue working there. Under the case of high job involvement an employee identifies with ones specific job, while under high organizational commitment an employee identifies with ones employing organization. It has been identified that a positive relationship exists between organizational commitment and job productivity. Employees who are organizationally committed u sually have low absenteeism rate, low turnover rates and also have a willingness to adhere their concerned companys policies. JOB SATISFACTION Take away my people, but leave my factories, and soon grass will grow on the factory floors. Take away my factories, but leave my people, and soon we will have a new and better factory Andrew Carnegie (as quoted by Brown, 1996) Job satisfaction, in the words of Ivancevich and Matteson, 1990, is an attitude that individuals carry about their jobs. It results from their perception of their jobs. Various aspects of a job such as pay, promotion opportunities and co-workers plays a role in forming the base of job satisfaction. Also factors such as of the work environment such as the supervisors style, policies and procedures etc. affect a persons level of job satisfaction. It details other determinants of job satisfaction such as promotion, co-workers, managerial styles and policies/procedures. Job Satisfaction is a set of favorable or unfavorable feelings and emotions with which employees perceive their work. Job satisfaction is an affective attitude- a feeling of relative likes or dislikes. It can be viewed as an overall attitude or it can apply to the various parts of an individuals job. Job satisfaction is related to the positive feeling an employee perceives about ones job resulting from an evaluation of its characteristics. Jobs require interaction with coworkers and bosses, following organizational rules and policies, meeting performance standards, living with working conditions. It has been identified that a positive relationship exists between a persons job satisfaction level and holding of positive feelings about the same concerned job whereas a person dissatisfied with his job carries negative feelings about the job and organization. Every organization works towards having satisfied employees. There are multiple reasons for the same such as increased employee performance as pointed out by George and Jones (1999), higher motivation levels as found by Bennett (1991) and longevity in tenure with the organization as stated by Robbins (1996). All of the above are essential for any organization especially in case of the hospitality industry where employee performan ce, high levels of motivation and saving costs incurred in replacing employees are vital. Dimensions of Job Satisfaction Job Satisfaction is a complex concept and not easy to measure at the same time. Job satisfaction is different from motivation. It is more of an attitude, an internal state. It could, for example, be associated with a personal feeling of achievement, either quantitative or qualitative whereas motivation is more of a process which may lead to job satisfaction as a result. It is not clear whether job satisfaction consists of a single dimension or a number of separate dimensions. But there surely seems to be a positive correlation between satisfaction and different areas of work. But some workers may be satisfied with certain aspects of their work and dissatisfied with other aspects. Level of job satisfaction gets affected by a wide range of variables related to individual, social, cultural, organizational and environmental factors. These factors all influence job satisfaction of individuals in a given set of circumstances, but not necessarily in others (Mullins. L, 2001). It is important that managers know the tremendous discrepancies that seemed to exist in the past between what they thought workers wanted from their jobs and what workers said they actually wanted. It is also important that they realize what effect an economic or other change has on these priorities. One may generalize at this point that individuals act on the basis of their perceptions or interpretation and not on the basis of reality itself. One of the main reasons behind understanding the study of behavioral sciences is that they help in getting our perceptions to realism. Therefore, by bringing their perceptions closer and closer to reality- what their people really want- managers can often increase their effectiveness in working with employees. Managers just cannot make and act on their own self made assumptions. They have to know and understand the factors that motivate their employees (Hersey. P and Blanchard. K, 1992). ANTECEDENTS OF JOB SATISFACTION A lot of researchers and scholars have carried out studies to determine and understand the variables and factors affecting an employees job satisfaction. A wide range of individual, social, organizational and cultural variables have been identified as factors affecting an employees level of job satisfaction. These factors affecting an employees job satisfaction can be divided into internal and external factors. Internal factors usually refer to the factors that can affect the employees job satisfaction within the organization and are always focused around the environment of the organization, working conditions, relation with other members in the organization, benefits that employees receive as outcomes to their work and many other factors. Factors outside the organization like employees family/social life, the identity and image of the organization in the outside market are categorized under external factors affecting an employees level of job satisfaction. It is not important that the employees may be satisfied with their job but may not have the same feelings about all the aspects of their job (Spector, 1997). George and Jones (1999) found that there are four main factors that affect the level of job satisfaction namely, personality, values, the work situation and social influences. These can also be broadly grouped as non work and work related determinants of job satisfaction. Determinants of Job Satisfaction Source: www.google.com Five main components of job satisfaction, that is, work, supervision, coworkers, pay and promotion play a very key role in affecting an employees job satisfaction levels. Personal factors such as age, health, length of job experience, emotional stability, social status, leisure activities, and family and other social relationships also play a certain role in influencing job satisfaction. Even role ambiguity and role conflict are considered to be vital in influencing an employees job satisfaction. An employers behavior at the workplace in many ways can also to some extent affect an employees job satisfaction. Outcomes such as organizational commitment or intention to leave are some of the end results that come into being because of these factors. Personality also plays an influential role in forming as an antecedent of job satisfaction since it is subjective to individual experience and expectations (Judge, Heller Mount, 2002). An employees personality traits can influence satisfaction or dissatisfaction at work. Employees with Type A personalities are usually more aggressive in nature. They believe in setting high standards for themselves and therefore are more prone to job dissatisfaction. Whereas employees who are quite relaxed in their attitude fall under the category of Type B personalities. Their personality shows its effect on their attitude towards work in a very relaxed way. People who find themselves in jobs which fit according to their attitudes and personalities stay more satisfied and committed to their work. The characteristic of the job also influences ones attitude towards it which may include the aesthetics of that workplace. Financial Rewards are viewed as satisfactory only when it is equitable and is in li ne with the expectations of the workers (Khandewal. V, 2008). The use of sound selection methods and having a good match between employee and jobs can ensure right person for the right job which in turn would help in enhancing job satisfaction. Job satisfaction factors for employees keep changing over time. Thus it is the responsibility of the managers and the employers to keep in pace with their changing needs and demands so that they remain committed to the organization. MEASURES OF JOB SATISFACTION To evaluate an employees satisfaction or dissatisfaction at work is a complex process which consists of assessing a number of discrete job elements. One of the popular methods to evaluate the attitudes of employees is by the use of attitude surveys. It helps in drawing out responses from employees through questionnaires as to their feelings about their jobs, work groups, supervisors and the organization. Managers are provided with valuable feedback on how employees perceive their working conditions by using attitude surveys on a regular basis. It helps in revising an organizations policies and procedures so that they work in favor of the employees. In research literature, the two most extensively validated employee attitude survey measures used are the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) which questionnaire widely used to capture job satisfaction data that was created by Smith, Kendall Hulin (1969). It measures ones satisfaction in five facets: pay, promotions and promotion opportunities, coworkers, supervision and the work itself. JDI is a very reliable method. Some more job satisfaction questionnaires include Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) created by Weiss, Dawis, England Lofquist (1967), the Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS) And the Faces Scale. The MSQ method has the advantage of skillfulness. All of these measures have led to greater scientific understanding of employee attitudes and it has proven to be very successful for many practioners and researchers (www.wikipedia.org) Many organizations often wish to obtain a more detailed assessment of employee attitudes in order to ensure employee satisfaction as an end result. It is very important to analyze and interpret effectively the data obtained from these employee attitude surveys in order to understand the results and in turn take appropriate actions to improve employee attitudes and job satisfaction. Employee surveys used effectively can act as catalysts for improving employee attitudes and producing organizational change. Survey feedback and action help support and drive organizational change (Ulrich, Brockbank, Yeung, Lake, 1995). IMPACT OF JOB SATISFACTION AND DISSATISFACTION ON EMPLOYEE BEHAVIOR When employees are dissatisfied with their jobs, lack job involvement and are low in their commitment to the organization, a wide variety of consequences follows in. Dissatisfied employees may engage in psychological withdrawal, physical withdrawal or even acts of aggression and retaliation for presumed wrongs. Many researchers and authors like Davis Newstrom (1989), Lawler (1977), Porter Steers (1977), Newcomb, Betts Cano (1987) have attributed job turnover, absenteeism and job burnout to a lack of job satisfaction. Satisfied employees may provide acts of consumer service beyond the call of duty, have sparkling work records, and actively pursue excellence in all areas of their jobs. Some specific outcomes of job satisfaction and dissatisfaction in a workplace are explained as under: Job Satisfaction and Job Performance The relationship between Job satisfaction and Job performance is one of the most researched topic by many scholars (Judge, Thoresen, Bono, and Patton, 2001). According to Landy (1989) their relationship in the field of Industrial psychology was described as the Holy Grail. The satisfaction-performance relationship is more complex that the simple path of satisfaction leads to performance. Thus it is wrong to assume that high satisfaction always leads to high employee performance. Satisfied workers actually may be high, average or even low producers will tend to continue the level of performance that brought them satisfaction before also. The study of the relationship between job satisfaction and job performance has a very controversial history. In 1930s the Hawthorne studies conducted helped the researchers in becoming aware of the effects of employee attitudes on their work performance. According to Newstrom and Davis (1993), one way to view this dimension is in believing the relationship that high performance contributes to high job satisfaction. This sequence states that better performance typically leads to higher economic, sociological and psychological rewards. If these rewards are seen in a fair light then the overall employee satisfaction improves. On the other hand if these rewards are seen inadequate for ones level of performance then dissatisfaction tends to arise. It is important for managers to devote its efforts to aid its employee performance, which will likely produce satisfaction as a by product. In 2001, Judge et al identified seven different models that can be best used to describe the job satisfaction and job performance relationship. Some of these models view the relationship between job satisfaction and job performance to be unidirectional which states that either job satisfaction causes job performance or vice versa. Job Satisfaction and Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) Job satisfaction is considered to be a major determinant of an employees organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). A modest relationship exists between job satisfaction and OCB. Satisfied employees seem more likely to talk positively about the organization, help others, and go beyond the normal expectations in their job. They are also very likely to go beyond the formal requirements of the job just in order to reciprocate their positive experiences. They voluntarily engage in behaviors that work in favor of the organization. Job Satisfaction and Customer Satisfaction Customer satisfaction is a very important requirement for many firms. Their performance gets marked by keeping their customers satisfied and happy. Employees of service based organizations often interact with their customers, thus the satisfaction of these employees is very important in order to keep the customers loyalty to the concerned organization. Satisfied employees increase customer satisfaction and loyalty. Service organizations know that satisfied and loyal customers are highly dependent on how frontline employees deal with their customers. Satisfied employees are more likely to be friendly, upbeat and responsive in nature which the customers appreciate. Since satisfied employees have high retention rate, customers are more likely to encounter familiar faces and receive experienced service. All these qualities build customer satisfaction and loyalty. The dissatisfied customers can increase an employees job dissatisfaction in a similar fashion. Many service based companies like, FedEx, Southwest Airlines, Four Seasons Hotels are American Express very customer oriented companies who go out of their way in order to please their customers. In order to provide that great impeccable service to their customers they focus on building employee satisfaction- recognizing that employee satisfaction will go a long way towards contributing to their goal of having happy customers. These firms seek to hire upbeat and friendly employees, train the employees in the importance of customer service, reward customer service, provide positive work climates and track employee satisfaction on a regular basis through various attitude surveys. Job Satisfaction and Absenteeism/Tardiness A consistent negative relationship exists between satisfaction and absenteeism. Dissatisfied employees are more likely to be absent at their work, other factors have an impact on the relationship and reduce the correlation coefficient. Employees who have less job satisfaction tend to be absent more often. But this connection is not sharp for a couple of reasons. Some absences are caused by legitimate medical reasons and therefore a satisfied employee may have a valid absence at times. Tardiness is another way by which employees may exhibit their dissatisfaction with job conditions. A tardy employee is one who arrives late at work. Tardiness is a type of short period absenteeism ranging froma few minutes to several hours for each event, and it is another way by which employees withdraw from active involvement in the organization. This may impede the timely completion of work and disrupt productive relationships with coworkers. Job Satisfaction and Turnover Satisfaction is also negatively related to turnover, but the correlation is way stronger than that in the case of job satisfaction and absenteeism. Yet there are various factors such as labor-market conditions, expectations about alternative job opportunities, and length of tenure with the organization are important constraints on the actual decision to leave ones current job for some other work. Evidence indicates that an important moderator of the satisfaction-turnover relationship is the employees level of performance i. e, it is said that level of satisfaction is less important in predicting turnover for superior employees as compared to the poor performers. But studies suggest that job satisfaction should be more important in influencing poor performers to stay than the superior performers because regardless of level of satisfaction, the high performers are likely to remain with the organization only on account of receipt of recognition, praise and other rewards. Job Satisfaction and Withdrawal Behaviors Numerous studies have shown and proven that dissatisfied employees are more likely to quit their jobs or be absent than satisfied employees (eg. Hackett Guion, 1985; Hulin, Roznowski Hachiya, 1985; Kohler Mathieu, 1993). Job satisfaction shows correlations with turnover and absenteeism. It also appears to be related to other withdrawal behaviors like lateness, unionization, grievances, drug abuse, theft or decision to retire. Using different methods that statistically measure the financial impact of employee attitudes on organizations, practioners can reveal costs of low job satisfaction and the value of improved employee attitudes on such outcomes as absenteeism and retention (Saari Judge, 2004). Job Satisfaction and Workplace Deviance Job dissatisfaction predicts a lot of specific behavior, including unionization attempts, substance abuse, stealing at work, undue socialization and tardiness. Researchers say that these behaviors are indicators of a broader syndrome that is usually termed as deviant behavior in the workplace. If the employees do not like their work environment then they world respond in some way which could either be in favor or not in favor of the organization. If the employers want to control the undesirable consequences of job dissatisfaction, they have to attack the source of the problem i. e. the dissatisfaction rather than trying to control the different responses. Source: An overall model of the Job Dissatisfaction-Job Withdrawal Process www.geocities.com The consequences of job dissatisfaction are very long term in nature. Mowday (1984) suggested that the negative effects of job turnover on organizations may include increased costs in recruiting, selecting and training new employees, demoralization of remaining employees, negative public image of the organization, disruption of day-to-day activities and decreased organizational opportunities to pursue future growth strategies. Thus it is important to have a thorough understanding of the factors that lead to job satisfaction and dissatisfaction so that it would help in putting a stop on the negative consequences associated with job dissatisfaction (Davis Newstrom, 1989; Mowday, 1984 and Berm, 1989). MOTIVATION THEORIES It has been evidenced to consider Job satisfaction as one aspect of life satisfaction because what a person does on the job reflects while he is off the job. A persons job satisfaction can actually impact his life, a person works to earn a living and therefore his entire personal and professional life depends upon his job therefore a single factor leading to dissatisfaction can cause a great deal of damage to his overall life satisfaction and vice versa (Davis and Newstrom, 1989). Similarly, it is important for managers to monitor the employees attitudes towards their life along with their attitude towards their job and also work environment. Motivating employees so that they work more productively and efficiently is one of the crucial problems facing todays organizations. This in turn helps in increasing their feelings of satisfaction, involvement and commitment. Two Factor Theory (Motivator-Hygiene Theory) The two factor theory, also called as motivation-hygiene theory proposed by psychologist Federick Herzberg was used in order to understand the factors affecting peoples attitudes about their work. This theory states that satisfaction and dissatisfaction are driven by different factors that are intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Intrinsic factors which are also known as satisfiers are related to job content (work itself). It also includes achievement, recognition, work itself and responsibility. It is stated that motivation can be seen as an inner force that drives individuals to attain personal and organizational goals (Hoskinson, Porter Wrench). These motivating factors those aspects of the job that make people want to perform, and provide people with satisfaction. While the extrinsic factors which also know as the hygiene factors are related to the job context (work environment). It involves company policy, administration, supervision, salary, interpersonal relations and working con ditions. According to this theory, the factors leading to job satisfaction are separate and distinct from those that lead to job dissatisfaction. The opposite of job dissatisfaction is, no job dissatisfaction but instead: not satisfaction (Herzberg et al, 1959). Job Characteristics Model (JCM) The Job Characteristics Model was proposed by Hackman Oldham which is widely used in many organizations to study how particular job characteristics impact the job outcomes, including job satisfaction. The model states that there are five core job characteristics (skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy and feedback) which impacts three critical psychological states (experienced meaningfulness, experienced responsibility for outcomes and knowledge of the actual results) which in turn influences the work outcomes of the employees (which covers aspects like job satisfaction, absenteeism, work motivation etc). These five core job characteristics can be combined to form a motivating potential score for a job which can be used as an index of how likely a job is going to affect an employees attitudes and behaviors. Attitudes are generally acquired over a long period of time. Similarly, job satisfaction or dissatisfaction emerges as an employee gains more and more information about the workplace. Nevertheless, job satisfaction is dynamic, since it can decline even more quickly than it dev

Springs Industries Inc. :: Business Management Studies

Springs Industries Inc. Springs Industries Inc. is a $2.2 billion textile company that is headquartered in Fort Mill, South Carolina. Springs Industries focuses its efforts into the production of the home furnishings market, and operates under well-known brand names such as Wamsutta, Springmaid, Disney, LizAt Home and Bill Blass. Their home furnishings segment account’s for nearly 82% of the company’s revenue, and remains one of the leading producers of bedding, bath and other home furnishing products in the United States (McFarlan, pg. 1, 1997). In 1995, Springs acquired several additional companies in which they could facilitate the introduction of new and complementary products that would provide them with a distinct set of product offerings. However, integrating these new companies into the existing operating environment would pose significant challenges. â€Å"Presenting one face the customer† was of the utmost importance to Springs and fusing the â€Å"back-office, administrative, and marketing efforts of its acquisitions† would present numerous complexities (McFarlan, pg. 1, 1997). Knowledge Building The home furnishing market which Springs competes in is extremely volatile. In the home furnishings market, earnings are directly related to fast and flexible product development, short production cycles, and ability to replenish stock supplies quickly. Recently, Springs industry rival WestPoint Stevens was making waves in the marketplace from the payoff of their heavy investments the past five years into technologies that increased their current capacity 12%. To further stress the need for Springs to re-work their existing structure, one must first understand that in this industry it is critical to present a strong product lineup because retailers increasingly wish to purchase from fewer suppliers. This is evidences by another competitor of Springs, Pillowtex, in recent times acquired additional smaller companies which will allow the expansion of their current offerings, and position them to compete directly with Springs in the existing home furnishing market (McFarlan, pp. 1-3, 1997). Wanting to remain competitive and on top of their respective market, in 1997 Springs Inc. hired up and coming executive Crandall Bowles to lead them into the new millennium. Bowles top priority was to direct her efforts on the company’s information systems and determine both the breadth of expenditures and the pace of innovation necessary in order to increase profit by quickening the pace of its application of new technology and sources of information to marketing, customer service, and inventory management (McFarlan, pp 1-2, 1997). Springs deals specifically with large retailers, the likes of Wal-Mart, Kmart and Target. These companies demand that suppliers manage their existing inventories according to current purchasing trends, which are identified though the collection of Point of Sale (POS) data and the use analytical sophisticated Information Technologies (IT).

My Grandmother Essay -- Creative Writing Personal Narrative Essays

My Grandmother My grandma has a bobcat. It lives on her roof. She’s called the police twice; they told her that bobcats don’t live in her climate. I imagine the police at the station rolling their eyes, groaning to their colleagues that Gloria from Cherrywood Lane is calling again. Or maybe they put her on speakerphone so everyone can laugh. So Grandmother called my mom to say that a bobcat lives on her roof. My mother asked her â€Å"Do you really think it’s a bobcat?† â€Å"No† my grandmother said, â€Å"It might be a lynx.† My grandmother is a four-foot tall, three-foot wide Jewish woman with long white hair. She wears flea market jewelry to the point of capacity. Her arms are several pounds heavier than need be because of the twenty or so gold bracelets she wears around her wrist. I live in awe of the fact that her body has not separated from her head due to the gigantic golden bust of a sphinx she wears around her neck. She smokes Moore cigarettes, lighting one off of another. My grandmother is strange. She’s what prudent people call a â€Å"character† and blunt people call a â€Å"nut job†. For one thing, her house is filled with stuffed animals. I don’t mean that she has a lot of stuffed animals. I mean that her house is full of stuffed animals the way that a body is full of organs. There are no places to sit. There are no surfaces on which to eat. She names them, she dresses them - her house is FULL of stuffed animals. My mom and I used to eat there every other Sunday. In addition to the animals, my grandma collects cuckoo clocks. There are several in each room but none accurately tell the time. We would shout to her over the constant and cacophonous chiming and gonging. Our voices had to travel not just ... ...onder, though, about the breakdown of our unit. Is it better for my mother to entertain my grandmother’s stories purely out of a sense of duty? Or is it okay to write someone off, even a family member, who doesn’t contribute happiness to your life? Do you have to love someone because they gave birth to you? After all, my grandmother has certainly caused my mom a great deal of heartache. I don’t know the answer. In light of my grandmother’s craziness I can only be thankful for my mother. Were she to imagine the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man on her roof I would be on the next plane home. I’d build a proton pack out of cardboard and sit with her and comfort her until he went away. I’d dine with her in the living room, eating with my back turned to her so she’d still be comfortable. I’d help her name her stuffed animals and wind her clocks so they all chimed at once.

Antitheatricalism and Jonsons Volpone Essay -- Jonson Volpone Essays

Antitheatricalism and Jonson's Volpone Crossdressing in England was mostly opposed by the Fundamentalist branch of the Protestant Church known as the Puritans. The Puritan dogma, much like the concept of transvestism, was constantly challenged. Puritans found resistance in the religious authorities of the Church of England and the English government. Before 1536, the Roman Catholic Church was unimpeded and always won over Puritan proposals regarding legislation. Without a cooperative political ear, the Puritans resorted to experimental spiritual expression by changing their social behavior and structuring. Due to these changes, a formidable way of attacking the theater's use of crossdressing was developed- public preaching and pamphlets. Other individuals and groups (like the Juvenalians) supported the moral and social reform movement by speaking and writing essays and books on the subject. Due to the nature the actor's role in Ben Jonson's Volpone, the play was also implicated in this moral battle. The ideology behind the Puritan protest was based on biblical sentiment and the patristic literary tradition of Roman writers like Tertullian and St. Augustine. The Puritan's religious banner for combatting gender transgression was Deuteronomy 22:5- 'The woman shall not wear that which pertains to a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment' (Tiffany 58). In general, pagan myths were also associated with crossdressing. Puritans like William Pryne labeled these actors as "beastly male monsters" that "degenerate into women" (Tiffany 59). Further, the Puritans feared that men dressing as women caused the men in the audience to lust for real females and to form homoerotic desires for the male actors (the re... ...goal of the Antitheatrical movement in the Renaissance, was both supported and denounced by Jonson in various ways. However, the general perception is that Jonson (unlike Shakespeare) fueled the fires of degradation- implicating women with the weakness, lack of intelligence, and reason they were believed to exude. In the annals of theatrical history, Jonson's metadrama could be said to perpetuate this social stereotype. Nevertheless, Jonson's crossing of the gender line and sexual scenes like Volpone's "flashing" of Celia were enough to have religious, moral, and social commentators screaming blood murder. Two issues demand prominence in the play. While outwardly a play driven by blatant genderless controversy, the inward thematic, character-driven nature of Volpone suggests a conformity and adherence to the intellectual and theological moralism of the time.

Mind on Fire Critical Thinking Exercise

Mind on Fire Critical Thinking Exercise Harmonizing to Brown and Adler, the manner pupils learn has changed. Describe what Learning 2.0 is and how we can utilize Web 2.0 resources to back up acquisition. Learning 2.0 helps teachers to learn pupils through independent assignments and coaction it besides motivates and gives pupils a higher degree of thought. Web 2.0 tools allow pedagogues and pupils to larn new ways to portion common involvement, such as pictures, podcasts, synergistic postings, sketchs, and portion them online with others. Teachers can utilize web 2.0 resources to better acquisition by leting pupils to portion thoughts, create web logs, and fitting people with common involvement through societal media. This method of instruction creates a new manner of larning in today’s universe of technological instruction that supports all acquisition and coaction attempts. Harmonizing to Brown & A ; Adler, ( 2008 ) , the manner pupils learn has changed with the accent being on societal concept of instruction frailty single perusal and through on-line resources and coaction. As stated by Pestek, Kadic-Maglajlic & A ; NoA?ica, ( 2012 ) pupils have embraced Web 2.0 and actively utilize it in everyday ‘ life by altering the manner they communicate within and outside of school, through many Web 2.0 applications. These applications are emerging with educational possible thanks to alone chances of Web 2.0 for betterment of instruction tools in pattern, coaction, communicating, single look, and literacy. Web 2.0 tools offer ways to personalise categories and demonstrate instructional presence. Some of the more widely recognized tools include web logs, wikis, RSS feeds, picture and exposure sharing, embodiments, microblogging, societal bookmarking, and societal media. This coevals of free, easy accessible Web-based tools allows users to entree every bit good as create and contribute information to sites. In an on-line schoolroom scene, Web 2.0 tools enable teachers to interact with pupils in a assortment of advanced ways. Rather than passively sing information, pupils collaborate and learn as a schoolroom community harmonizing to Tunks, ( 2012 ) . Describe the perfect storm of chance that Brown and Adler province is brewing and how it can transform instruction into an unfastened, participatory ecosystem. Provide specific illustrations from the article to back up your averments. The perfect storm that Brown and Adler province is brewing in the educational universe is based on the whole entree of information that is now available on the cyberspace. There is an overpowering sum of information available online to pupils that can be used in the preparation and educational. Many new ides in engineering has open in today’s society. The universe has made assorted constructing blocks to steer us in a new transmutation of engineering tools to our advantage. We are so fortunate to hold entree to all the new engineering that is offered to supply and back up acquisition. The usage of the cyberspace has provided many new ways to portion and communicate globally. The latest development of the Internet, the so called Web 2.0, has blurred the line between manufacturers and consumers of content and has shifted attending from entree to information toward entree to other people. New sorts of on-line resources such as societal networking sites, web logs, wikis, and pract ical communities have allowed people with common involvements to run into, portion thoughts, and collaborate in advanced ways. Indeed, the Web 2.0 is making a new sort of participatory medium that is ideal for back uping multiple manners of larning as stated by Brown & A ; Adler, ( 2008 ) . As stated by London, ( 2013 ) Web 2.0 engineerings can advance productive acquisition procedures in which squad members are unfastened to new thoughts, explore new ways of interacting, and use their acquisition. Web 2.0 engineerings can advance productive acquisition procedures in which squad members are unfastened to new thoughts, explore new ways of interacting, and use their acquisition. Define and depict societal acquisition and discourse some of the Web 2.0 tools from the article that support societal acquisition. Describe a societal acquisition activity utilizing a Web 2.0 tools mentioned in the article that you might utilize in pattern. Support your pick with commendations from the article. Social acquisition is being involved with others in society to portion and larn new thoughts. Social larning usually occurs through societal interactions, observation of behaviour, and communicating. Many people assume that societal acquisition occurs within a societal circumstance and considers that people learn from one another, including such constructs as experimental acquisition, reproduction, and representation. As stated by Brown & A ; Adler, ( 2008 ) what do we intend by â€Å"social learning† ? Possibly the simplest manner to explicate this construct is to observe that societal acquisition is based on the premiss that our apprehension of content is socially constructed through conversations about that content and through grounded interactions, particularly with others, around jobs or actions. The focal point is non so much on what we are larning but on how we are larning. Students, who studied in groups, even merely one time a hebdomad, were more engaged in their surv eies, were better prepared for category, and learned significantly more than pupils who worked on their ain. A societal acquisition activity utilizing a Web 2.0 tool that was discussed in the the article that I would integrate in my schoolroom would be blogging. I teach a preschool and kindergartens, their age scope from five to six old ages old. I besides work with pupils up to the 6th class in the afternoon. My occupation is funded through United Way. For the New Year we got twenty five new computing machines and a computing machine room to work in. This is the 2nd hebdomad I’ve gotten a opportunity to travel in talk and show how to put up the web log with the pupils. After making some research on blogging I ran across a web site called Kidblog.org for pupils. I haven’t started working with them yet. I’m still waiting on two more permission faux pass t be signed and returned with parents permission to acquire on-line. Kidblog.org is free, easy to put up, and safe for pupils to utilize. The childs are so aroused and seem to be motivated about it. I plan on allowing the pupils work in groups of two. Then each pupil can work on their ain diaries and book reappraisals on the books we check out of all time Tuesday during our field trip to the library. Hopefully all goes good and by Spring interruption we should be join forcesing with other categories and the pupils can show what they have learned. Harmonizing to Choi, Gale & A ; Kariv, ( 2012 ) persons populating in society are bound together by a societal web and, in many societal and economic state of affairss, persons learn by detecting the behaviour of others in their local environment. This procedure is called societal acquisition.Learning in uncomplete webs, where different persons have different information, is particularly ambitious: because of the deficiency of common cognition persons must pull illations about the actions others have observed, every bit good as about their private information. Mentions Choi, S. , Gale, D. , & A ; Kariv, S. ( 2012 ) . Social acquisition in webs: a Quantal Response Equilibrium analysis of experimental informations.Review Of Economic Design,16( 2/3 ) , 135-157. doi:10.1007/s10058-012-0122-x London, M. ( 2013 ) . Generative squad acquisition in Web 2.0 environments.Journal Of Management Development,32( 1 ) , 73-95. doi:10.1108/02621711311287035Brown, J. S. & A ; Adler, R. P. ( 2008, January/February ) . Minds on Fire: Open Education, the Long Tail, and Learning 2.0. EDUCAUSE Review. hypertext transfer protocol: //net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ERM0811.pdfPESTEK, A. , KADIC-MAGLAJLIC, S. , & A ; NOA?ICA, M. ( 2012 ) . IMPLICATIONS OF WEB 2.0 USAGE IN HIGHER EDUCATION. International Journal Of Management Cases, 14 ( 1 ) , 3-12.Tunks, K. W. ( 2012 ) . An Introduction and Guide to Enhancing Online Instruction with Web 2.0 Tools.Journal Of Educators Online,9( 2 ) ,

Management and Cost Accounting Assignment

B313F focal point and Cost Accounting Assignment 1 Date due29 October 2008 weighting15% of the total marks of the by nature Question 1(25 marks) Mini Case Setos Storage Wareho rehearse Paul Seto owns and manages a commercial storage warehouse. He stores a vast variety of perishable goods for his customers. to a lower place the alive pricing polity, he has ae restraind customers employ a flat rate of $2. 40 per kilogram per month for goods stored. His storage warehouse has 10,000 cubic metres of storage capacity.In the angiotensin converting enzyme-time(prenominal) two years, Seto has become dissatisfied with the profitability of the warehouse operation. Despite the fact that the warehouse remains relatively full, revenues have non kept pace with operating salutes. Recently, Seto approached his accountant, Albert Lo, round using activity-based compriseing (ABC) to improve his pinch of the make believes of be and revise the pricing formula. Lo has goaded that most c ost can be associated with one of quaternity activities. Those activities and their related periodic be, volume measures, and volume levels for 2008 are as follows Activity Cost Monthly vividness Measure Send/receive goods $80,000 metric weight whole in kilograms 50,000 Store goods $8,000 Volume in cubic metres 800 Move goods $10,000 Volume in square metres 500 Identify goods $3,000 bit of packages 500 Lo has also collected rifle months information on the following 3 customers whose goods were alone veritable on the first day of ratiocination month. Customers Weight of Order Cubic Metres square(p) Metres Number of Packages (Kilograms) Sunshine Co. 20,000 600 30 10 Best Buy Co. 20,000 400 20 40 Chows calling 20,000 200 100 160 Seto would resembling Lo to perform some analyses based on the above information and selective information in order to evaluate whether to use ABC. require a. construe the price to be charged to each(prenominal) of the 3 customers chthonic the existing pricing insurance. (3 marks) b. Based on the monthly activity cost and volume data provided, reckon the amount of cost depute to each of the 3 customers. 10 marks) c. Determine the price to be charged to each of the 3 customers using activity-based costing (ABC), assumptive Seto would base the price on the cost determined in part (b) sum a markup of 40 percent. (3 marks) d. Critically talk over whether Setos existing pricing policy captures the costs incurred to provide the warehouse services. (5 marks) e. A cost hierarchy categorizes costs into diverse cost pools on the basis of the disparate types of cost drivers or cost-allocation bases. Describe the four levels of a manufacturing cost hierarchy under the ABC trunk. 4 marks) Question 2(25 marks) shop Furnishings Ltd. is a Yuen Long based manufacturer make ternary unique woods results bed-frames, coffee tables, footstools. These products are completely carve by hand by versatile cra ftspeople who have been conditioned in making these products. Since it takes about a year to train each craftsperson, the lug cost is a fixed production constraint over the short term. For the year ended 31 December 2008, the gild expects to have 34,000 for sale labour hours. The average hourly labour rate is $25.Information regarding the current product military control is as follows Bed-framesCoffee tablesFootstools $ $ $ Selling price900 680 240 inconstant costs institutionalize substantive220 160 60 take aim manufacturing-labour costs 300 275 75 indirect manufacturing-labour costs 80 40 21 early(a) indirect manufacturing costs100 80 20 Variable selling expense 20 15 10 Variable manufacturing costs are variable with look upon to units produced. Variable selling expenses are variable with respect to units sold.Fixed costs Indirect manufacturing-labour costs 80,000 Other indirect manufacturing costs 70,000 Selling & disposition 75,000 Required a. Compute the contributi on boundary line per unit for each of the three products above. (6 marks) b. expect that the market demand exceeds the companys production capacity for all products, determine the number of units of each product that the company should make. (Hint You need to maximize the contribution per unit of the scarce resource. ) deem the profit in the beginning tax based on your last of units of each product. (7 marks) c.Assuming that the company has a policy of devoting between 20% to 50% of its getable skilled labour capacity to one product, determine the number of units of each product that the company should make and calculate the level best profit before tax. (7 marks) d. Discuss how managers ensconce whether a cost is a direct or an indirect cost and withd vulgar the factors that will affect the classification of a cost as direct or indirect. (5 marks) Question 3(25 marks) videodisk Express is a large manufacturer of affordable DVD players. Management recently became aware of rebellion costs resulting from returns of malfunctioning products.As a jump point for further analysis, middling Lee, the controller, wants to campaign different forecasting modes and then use the best one to forecast every quarter expenses for 2009. The relevant data for the previous three years follows 2006Return 2007Return2008Return QuarterExpensesQuarterExpensesQuarterExpenses 1$15,0001$16,2001$16,600 217,500217,800218,100 318,500318,800319,000 418,600417,700419,200 The result of a simple regression analysis using all 12 data points yielded an stop over of $16,559. 09 and a coefficient for the independent variable of $183. 22 (R-squared = . 27, t = 1. 4, SE = 1128). Required a. Calculate the quarterly forecast for 2009 using the steep-low method and regression analyses. Recommend which method Bonnie should use. (15 marks) b. How does your analysis in requirement 1 change if DVD Express manufactures its products in multiple global production facilities to action the global market? (5 marks) c. How do we contend when high correlation exists? Explain whether high correlation is the same as cause and effect? (5 marks) Question 4(25 marks) Quik Printing Inc. , is a rapidly growing company that has non been profitable despite increases in sales.It has chartered you as a consultant to bugger off ways to improve the situation. You believe that the line results from poor cost control and outside cost estimation on pranks. To crumple data for your investigation, you turn to the accounting system and find that it is almost nonexistent. However, you piece unitedly the following information for April Production 1. blameless assembly line 101. 2. Started and completed job 102. 3. Started job 103. ancestry determines 1. Work-in-process inventory march 31 suppose 101 work out material.. $ 2,000 perseverance (960 hours ( $10) 9,600 April 30 barter 103 Direct material.. $ 1,600 Labor (1,040 hours ( $10) 10,400 2. each job in work-in-p rocess inventory was simply 50 percent completed as to outwear hours however, all direct material necessary to do the entire job was charged to each job as soon as it was started. 3. There were no raw-material inventories or finished-goods inventories at either certify 31 or April 30. Actual manufacturing command processing overhead time was $20,000. Cost of goods sold (before enrollment for over-or underapplied overhead) Job 101 Direct material $ 2,000 Labor.. ? Overhead ? measure $ 30,800 Job 102 Direct material ? Labor.. ? Overhead ? Total ? Overhead was applied to jobs using a predetermined rate per labor buck that has been used since the company began operations. All raw materials were purchased for cash and charged directly to Work-in-Process Inventory when purchased. Raw material purchased in April amounted to $4,600. Direct-labor costs charged to jobs in April totaled $32,000.All labor costs were the same per hour for April for all labo rers. Required Write a report, with financial backing calculations, to management to show the following a. The cost elements (direct material, labor, and overhead) of cost of goods sold before adjustment for over-or underapplied overhead for each job sold. (14 marks) b. The value of each cost element (direct material, labor, and overhead) for each job in work-in-process inventory at April 30. (7 marks) c. Over-or underapplied overhead for April. (4 marks)