Thursday, October 31, 2019

Critical Evaluation of Supply Chain Design, Management and Resource Essay

Critical Evaluation of Supply Chain Design, Management and Resource Planning at Kraft Foods - Essay Example The company was founded in 1923. Previously, this company had focused on the industry of ice creams in North America and expanded the organisation to enter the dairy market. Kraft Foods basically produces various delicious foods according to the demand and the mood of the consumers and the company also promises a superior quality of the produced food. Kraft Foods has recently took over Cadbury and the company has an objective to spread its businesses all over the world. Kraft Foods is one of the most well known company which deals in branded beverages and foods. It is the largest food manufacturing organisation in the United States, and the second largest organisation in the world within the food manufacturing industry (Kraft Foods, 2011). In the study the major objective would be to highlight and to critically evaluate the various operational functions of Kraft Foods, and their importance in accruing a better competitive advantage. The study also involves the Enterprise Information System (EIS) and its critical evaluation to analyse the knowledge management system of the company. The paper would also include recommendations to support the argument along with conclusion (Kraft Foods, 2011). Discussion Critical Evaluation of the Organisation’s Operational Management Structures and Systems in Relation to the Theoretical Principles, Concepts, Models/Framework Kraft Foods ensures a good and effective operational segment within the organisation. The company has focused on the quality, the design, and the effectiveness of the products produced by the organisation. Alike every other company, Kraft Foods also has certain operational functions, which help the company to gain a growth in the market as well as help to achieve a competitive advantage. The various operational areas involve product and service design, product quality, capacity planning, inventory control, resource planning and supply chain management (Kraft Foods, 2011). Product and Service Design Pro duct and service design are few of the most important areas in operational activities of a company. Product and service, these are the two important factors which link an organisation to its customers. Designing a product is the process of generating new ideas to create a new product and it depends upon the needs and the demands of the customers. Product design involves certain steps, such as, design brief, specification of the design, designing the concept, testing, designing the detail, further testing, manufacturing and sales. Each and every organisation generally follows these steps. Similar to product design, service design is also an important factor in organisational operations. Service design is the process of innovation of a new product or improving the existing product for making them more usable for the customers. The major goal of the service oriented companies is to design their service properly before delivering it to the customers, and it is also important to provide after sale service to the consumers (Moritz, 2005). Kraft Foods also ensures a good product and servi

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

How poverty effected mozrts music and life... Essay Example for Free

How poverty effected mozrts music and life Essay Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had been one of the most prolific musicians of all times. Mozart was the son of Leopold and Anna Maria Mozart and he was born in Salzburg Austria. At the young age of four Mozart already showed his prowess in music and it is in this regard that his father, Leopold (also a renowned musician) had been so proud of him and did everything in his power to expose Mozart into the musical field. (Moss, 2007). Mozart had been a great success in the field of music and tons of people admired his prowess in composing music as well as on his ability to master many musical instruments. It is in this regard that at the age of fifteen Mozart earned a post in the orchestra that works for the Archbishop of Salzburg. However things did not work well between the Archbishop and Mozart and thus Mozart was kicked from his position and left the archbishop’s premises even though it is against his father’s wishes. Mozart had also been a success in Vienna even after he had grown up. However, life did not bode well with Mozart in spite of all his successes in his musical career. Poverty had been one of Mozart’s constant companions during most of his life especially since he do not know how to manage his money well and also according to his mother he would give almost all of his money to his friends if one would only let him be. (Chew, 2007) In spite of Mozart’s brilliance in the field of music he was snubbed in the court of England. Thus, he went to Manheim wherein he met and fell in love with Aloysia Weber. However, life had not been kind to him as his mother died in Paris and he was also rejected by Aloysia. (Microsoft Encarta, 2001). However, even though he lost his job in the Archbishop’s place he still continued living in Vienna. And from there in the year of 1782, he composed the Abduction from the Seraglio which had been a great success. Following that, he married the sister of Aloysia, Constanze. However, poverty did not make their lives any easier and it made it even harder by Mozart’s constant illnesses. Poverty greatly affected Mozart’s life as well as musical career. It is due to poverty and through lack of patronage that his music for the years to follow had not been very popular and consistent. It is in this regard that Mozart was forced to rely on the kindness of his friends in order to continue to survive. Mozart returned to his teaching careers since income from his performance had not been very steady. Poverty even forced him to stop performing and thus he spent most of his time writing compositions. However, in spite of his many compositions money still did not trudge their way. It is hard to believe that after living a life of extravagance and luxury Mozart died in illness and poverty. One of the primary reasons why Mozart’s music ceased to be a success in Vienna is the fact that people found his music too complex and thus in his latter life of poverty Mozart adapted simplicity on to his music making Vienna love his music once more. However, Mozart still died at the early age of 35 and he died full of debts and still living a life of poverty. It was said that Mozart was buried in an unmarked grave. Mozart’s influenced reached musicians such as Haydn, Schubert, and Strauss. (Encyclopedia Brittanica). Basically, poverty greatly affected Mozart’s life. Used to living an extravagant life he was reduced to a life almost similar to that of a pauper. Due to poverty Mozart was forced to stop doing the thing he most wants to do (performing in public). However, Mozart did not let poverty rob him of the right to compose music and thus in spite of his poor life he still managed to compose a lot of musical items. Although poverty made Mozart and his family’s life hard, it still did not lessened Mozart’s genius in terms of music and thus he still went on writing music that is nice on the ears and he even remedied the one flaw Vienna public found on his music (his music being too complex for the people of Vienna). Thus, to conclude even though poverty has greatly affected Mozart’s life and musical career he still went on doing what he knows best (even though he was struck with poverty and certain illnesses), composing. References: Chew, R. (2007). Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Austrian Composer [Electronic Version] from http://www. lucidcafe. com/library/96jan/mozart. html. Encyclopedia Brittanica. WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART [Electronic Version] from http://www. britannica. com/eb/article-9108745/Wolfgang-Amadeus-Mozart. Microsoft Encarta. (2001). Wolfgang Amadeaus Mozart [Electronic Version] from http://home. comcast. net/~cjwin1/ilike/mozart/mozart. html. Moss, C. K. (2007). Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart [Electronic Version] from http://www. carolinaclassical. com/articles/mozart. html.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

The involvement of IMF in the Economic development of Nigeria

The involvement of IMF in the Economic development of Nigeria Has the economic integration and trade liberalisation of Nigeria by IMF enhanced its economic development? Research Issue: This question has contested several evoking and vigorous answers- following the ambiguities and contradictions of the IMF concepts that have riddled its purpose, and has therefore, created an enormous uncertainty and complexity which evidently is raising new anxieties and threats to human security and development especially in underdeveloped economies. Method: My main source of information will be from secondary data such as: Google books, articles, books and journals. I will apply a qualitative method approach. Purpose: The objective of this term paper is to analyse some economic indictors such as GDP, inflation and other economic variables from these secondary data to see if the integration and trade liberalisation of Nigeria by IMF has enhance the economic development of Nigeria or rather distorted its development. Keywords: Globalisation, Economic Development, IMF, Nigeria, GDP, Economic growth, Inflation, dependent theory, Liberal Theory, Abbreviations GDP: Gross Domestic Product SAP: Structural Adjustment Programme OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development GATT: General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade WTO: World Trade Organisation IMF: International Monetary Fund CBN: Central Bank of Nigeria NEEDS: National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy MNCs: Multi National Companies LDCs: Least Developed Countries PRSP: Poverty Reduction Strategy Programme FDI: Foreign Direct Investment OAU: Organisation of African Union MAN: Manufacturing Association of Nigeria NEITI: Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative NACCIMA: Nigeria Association of Chambers of Commerce. Industry, Mines and Agriculture NIEC: National Economic Intelligence Committee NASSI: Nigeria Association of Small Scale Industrial 1. INTRODUCTION The economic of Nigeria and as other British colonies has been under great influence dating back to 1846 when the protective barriers or duties on agricultural imports were abolished. By 1860, all trace of restriction on trade and tariff restrictions were removed and an era of free trade imperialism treaties begun .The imposition of the Free Trade by the British on its colonies and informal empire to obligatory maintain low tariffs by treaties with the chief aim of reducing their sovereignty in commercial matter and giving extraterritorial right to foreigners (Angus Maddison, World Economy, April 2001). The two world wars shattered this liberal order and caused the collapse of capital flows and the beggar-your-neighbour trade system. However, by 1950 to 1973 a significant fast growth in the world economy was recorded and that era was referred to as the golden age. This growth was due to several reasons but mainly because of the creation of a liberal international order by advanced capitalist countries with explicit and rational codes of behaviour and institutions for co-operation (OEEC, OECD, IMF, World Bank and the GATT) in order to avoid the incur of the beggar-your-neighbour behaviour of the pre war years(Angus Maddison). However, Nigeria and the rest of the 168 countries of the world were considered falter in their economic development because of the alarming deterioration in economic performance of these countries after the golden age. This liberal international order is known as globalisation today. The issue of the faltering economies of this heterogeneous group of 168 countries has brought questions, opinions and views of pros and cons of globalisation. Some believe that globalisation has made the world healthier while other believes the contrary. Theodore Leavitt(1983) to explain globalisation market state that We live in a rapid globalising world and certain national identifiers like taste, technology, market and finance are no longer constrained by national boundaries. They operate on a global basis. The defining features of globalisation are interdependence and connectedness of the economics, politics and culture of nations and not uniformity of markets and taste of a single country (Yong M, 1989). The more these economies integrate, on the one hand; the more new ideas about politics, education, entertainment and services and expansion of local culture perimeters are reinforced and diffused. On the other hand, the international network becomes increasingly complex and unpredictable. Beside, as is known fact that, virtually all humans are opportunistic; hardly would nations work together and not want to outwit one another either to gain an economic, social or military advantage. While considering the complexity of economic growth through integration. The question will be, is it possible for underdeveloped economies to transform into vibrant economies for growth and development amidst this complexity? Well, base on the complexity and competitiveness of the developed economies over those of the underdeveloped economies and the implicit backing of these developed economies by international global institutions such as the OECD, WTO, GATT, IMF, and World Bank, a sustainable economic growth of these underdeveloped economies is slim. This has aroused great criticisms and close examination of the impact of globalisation on the development process of these underdeveloped economies because of the continual retardation of these economies. This persistent situation has resulted to the debt crisis of many of these economies and had led to sheer poverty, squalor, deprivation, frustration and worst political instability. 1.1 Globalisation The term globalisation is frequently used but seldom defined because of the vast interpretation of its phenomenon and perhaps its multiple manifestations of its prevailing trend. It has become a buzzword of the century often use to describe everything that is happening in the world today. Since its advent, a once thought big world is made into a much smaller place where the interaction between different countries and economies of the world are increasingly integrated by factors like internet, TV, radio and mobile phones and the creation of institution like World Trade Organisation (WTO), World Bank and International Financial Institutions (IFIs) has expanded international trade and also portfolio of investment such as foreign loans, international policies Brittan (1998:2) viewed globalisation as a whirlwind of relentless and disruptive change which leaves governments helpless and leaves a trail of economic, social, cultural and environmental problem in its wakes. My own interpretation of globalisation is that: Globalisation is the marginalisation of the underdeveloped economies by the developed economies for their self sustainability purposes. 1.2 Research Question Has the economic integration and trade liberalisation of Nigeria by IMF enhanced its economic development? 1.3 Research Issue This question has contested several evoking and vigorous answers- following the ambiguities and contradictions of the IMF concepts that have riddled its purpose, and has therefore, created an enormous uncertainty and complexity which evidently is raising new anxieties and threats to human security and development especially in underdeveloped economies. 1.4 Research Objective The objective of this term paper is to analyse some economic indictors such as GDP, inflation and other economic variables from these secondary data to see if the integration and trade liberalisation of Nigeria by IMF has enhance the economic development of Nigeria or rather distorted its development. 1.5 Paper Design There are about six different research designs (Philosophical, Literature review, and Case study, Survey, Evaluation and Experiment) but I will be choosing two among these six research designs. Philosophical: its often used to examine a research issue from another perspective because it is based on existing literature. Literature review: this design aim at summering data already collected for a particular topic. When data are qualitative, the analysis of this data can create new knowledge and perspectives on the matter previously put forward. 2. PROBLEM STATEMENT Nigeria, a country located at the trigger point of Africa and the envy of all African states was forecasted by economists to transcend ahead of most of the African states in her economic development to become the giant of Africa and the international economic trade centre such as Dubai, central Asia and China of today. These believe and forecasts were not just based on mere passive ideas but on concrete facts of the availability of natural resources, human resources and huge market base in Nigeria. With the boost in agriculture and earning top dollar from the exportation of black gold, Nigeria discovered oil; the money spinner, at Oloibiri in present Bayelsa state in 1956. Nigeria got her independence in 1960 and was seen as nature goes perfect blessed with good climate and vast fertile agricultural land almost twice the size of England with high human resource index and huge market base. With the abundant untapped natural resources, it was logical for anyone and not only economist to have thought that the involvement of economics experts such as the IMF and the World Bank in the running of Nigeria economy will accelerate its transition to attained socio-economic stability being that these institutions main goals and objectives are to provide avenues for proper allocation of resources, monitoring of balance of payment, evaluating and rendering technical assistance through economic Structural Adjustment Program (SAP). However, as the saying goes à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦with great wealth comes greater problems. Today, the oil-rich Nigerian economy suffers from long hobbled political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor macroeconomic management. There is an acute growth in income poverty and worse of all, human poverty- this implies, the denial of choices and opportunities to live a tolerable life (United Nations, 1997) and the fundamental freedom of action and choice to influence key decision affecting their lives. Apart from oil, the strength of Nigeria economy lies in its rich agricultural resource base. From the 1980s agricultural productivity was recorded to be on constant declination due to abandonment for oil and that gave raise to rampant rural poverty. This has rendered the economy vulnerable to external shocks which emanates from the fluctuations in world oil prices and the rising of imports prices, therefore creating an external and internal imbalances. These imbalances manifested difficulty in balance of payment, unemployment and low utilisation capacity in all sectors, and deterioration in purchasing power. Between 1982 and 1994, the debt stock of Nigeria rose at an average rate of 17% which means, stock of external debt increased by a factor of 33 in 22 years aside from domestic debt (Iyoha, 1997). Today, Nigerias public debt is more than 75% of its GDP with the effective debt to export ratio being more than 200%. This ironically has shoot up Nigeria to be Africas biggest debtor with about $ 28.5billion to its external creditor and debt service payments of $3.3billion in 2002 alone and that is expected to be on constant rise (Debt Management Office, 2002). The growth rate of Nigeria external and domestic debt was 9.4% in 2002 against the GDP growth rate of 3.3% and the external growth rate of -6.7% with the average GDP per capita annual growth rate of -0.4%(CBN Annual Report, 2002). Figure : Growth Rate of GDP, Income Per Capital and Total Dept Source: CBN Statistical Bulletin 1999 and CBN Annual Reports and Statements of Accounts 2002 During the 1960s, Nigeria never observed double- digit inflation. By 1976, the inflation rate stood at 23%. It decreased to 11.8% in 1979 and gun shoot to 41% and 72.8% by 1989 and 1995 respectively which marked the early period of the IMF Structural Adjustment Programm (SAP). Trend of gross domestic product of Nigeria at market prices Table : Inflation, GDP and Exchange Rate Year Gross Domestic Product US Dollar Exchange Inflation Index (2000=100) Per Capita Income (as  % of USA) 1980 50,849 0.78 Naira 1.30 7.22 1985 98,619 2.83 Naira 3.20 1.87 1990 286,374 8.94 Naira 8.10 1.49 1995 1,928,642 54.36 Naira 56 1.28 2000 4,676,394 102.24 Naira 100 1.11 2005 14,894,454 131.01 Naira 207 1.96 For purchasing power parity comparisons, the US Dollar is exchanged at 150.00 Nigerian Naira only.(IMF) Based on the impact of inflation, the per capita GDP today remains lower than in 1960 when Nigeria declared independence. By 2005, Nigerias inflation rate was estimated to be 15.6 percent and the GDP was composed of the following sectors: agriculture, 26.8 percent; industry, 48.8 percent; and services, 24.4 percent. (NEEDS) It is to be observed in the first graph; the growth in GDP from 1970-1978 was recorded to be 3.1% annually and 1972 to 1973 was the oil boom era; there was a remarkable growth in GDP of approximately 6.2% annually. However, in the 1980s to the 90s, Nigeria started to have negative GDP growth rates. This period constitutes the Structural Adjustment Program and economic liberalisation in Nigeria by the IMF and since then the economic has responded to a 4.0% positive GDP growth rate. The aim of this paper is to analyse the impact of the structural Adjustment Programmes introduced by IFIs (IMF) through globalisation on economic development of the underdeveloped economies (Nigeria as case study). This will be by the application of two economic theories (dependency, liberal) and observation of the three economic development variables. The two economics theories will help to give more light on the analysis of the persistent poverty in the underdeveloped world, Nigeria especially, while the variables to demonstrate economic development. My choice of Nigeria as a case study is due to its idyllic background as a country of immense natural and human resources but 70% of its population live below the poverty line (World Bank). I will concentrate on IMF conditionality and its influence on the economic development of Nigeria. 3. LITERATURE REVIEW 3.1 Economic Development There are numerous definitions for economic development as there are people who practice it. Economic development means different things to different people, which today makes the definition of economic development harder than ever in a more concrete and salient terms. Gonà §alo L Fonsesca at the New School for Social Research defines economic development as the analysis of the economic development of nations. The University of Iowas Centre for International Finance and Development states that: Economic development or development is a term that economists, politicians, and others have used frequently in the 20th century. The concept, however, has been in existence in the West for centuries. Modernization, Westernization, and especially Industrialization are other terms people have used when discussing economic development. Although no one is sure where the concept originated, most people agree that development is closely bound up with the evolution of capitalism and the demise of feudalism. From other perspective, economic development involves the allocation of scarce resources land, labour, capitol and entrepreneurship in ways which has positive effect on the level of business activity, employment, income distribution patterns, and fiscal solvency. 3.1.1 The Imperative of Economic development Professor Dudley Seers argues development is about outcomes and development occurs with the reduction and elimination of poverty, inequality and unemployment within a growing economy. The 21st century view of development encompasses a countrys consensus to achieve sustainable growth, poverty reduction, gender equality, human development, environmental protection, institutional transformation and human right protection. To put it concisely, development is the ultimate aspiration of modern economies, it is the upward movement of a countrys entire social system. More to the point, development is the removal of any host of undesirable condition that may perpetrate a state of underdevelopment. Economic growth is a prerequisite for economic development. Facilitating increase in the output of major sectors of production of the economy, such as natural resource and manufacturing either by the improvement of the structural system such as technology, will lead to economic growth. (Todaro, 1994) Kuznets (1971) defined economic growth as a long term rise in capacity to supply increasingly diverse economic goods to its population; this growing capacity is based on advancing technology and the institutional and ideological adjustments that it demands The obstacle facing most of these developing countries is the ability to create a more conducive atmosphere for essential use and harnessing of economic resources. The obstacle has increase anxiety by the increase of economic liberalism that promotes free movement of capital that tends to undermine and marginalise indolent economies. This interdependent global economic dispensation has given rise to disparities among countries of the world on the attainment of economic growth. 3.1.2 Growth versus Development However, before I go further, I will like to state that; there is a considerable difference between economic growth and development. I may just frankly state that, economic development is a terminology used to refer to the underdeveloped countries and while economic growth refers to the developed countries. Economists Peter Bearse and Roger Vaughan write that: Development is a qualitative change, which entails changes in the structural system of the economy, including innovations in institutions, behaviours, and technologies which enhance growth, While Growth is a quantitative change in the scale of the economy in terms of investment, output, consumption, and income Amartya Sen state that: Development requires the removal of major sources of poverty as well as tyranny, poor economic opportunities as well as systematic social deprivation neglect of public facilities as well as intolerance or over activity of repressive statesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Hence, on one hand, economic development can not be achieve without growth because it can be conceived as a multi-Dimensional process or phenomena-increase in per capital income, increase in GNP and improve living standard of the population but, on the other hand, growth is possible without development for the mere fact that it is measured as the increase in GNP, it does not have any other parameter. 3.1.3 Historical development of the term To continue it will be necessary to show how this term economic development has evolved over time to include a wider variety of variables and not just focus on economic growth. Economic development is a term conceptualised as a branch of economics in the early 20th century in reverence to growth and industrialisation in the capitalist society by the classical school of economics. However, this school of thought did not put to consideration countries like Africa, Latin America and Asia but rather an opposite reflection of the developed world that will catch up in time. (History of Economic thought, 2008) Economists after the World War II become more concerned about the low standard of living in so many countries, especially due to decolonisation. The aim of the term changed to include not only the Western world but also the less developed which in fact made most of the population of the globe. Therefore, important reservations were made as opposed to the ultimate objective of the study of economics to include other variable rather than only economic growth. With fast change in the political geography of the world, the need for the formation of supranational bodies (IMF, OECD and World Bank) that would oversee the smooth progress of the developing nations became necessary. The responsibilities of these institutions are to work hand-in-hand with the local government of the underdeveloped nations to sustain and accelerate growth speeding up progress of economic development of these nations. Many believed that economic development started as capitalism but as time went by and changes occurred, the term shifted from capital oriented concept to identify human capital endowments developed by Schultz (1951) as the primary obstacle to the realization of the potential economies of scale inherent in the industrialization of developing countries. Singer (1964) contributed further more to this social development by including health and fertility into the picture. Incorporating elimination of poverty, inequality and unemployment in the equation by Dudley Seers (1969) gave a notable change in defining the term economic development By 1977 Seers developed a structuralised theory which included social development and economic growth to the overall definition of economic development. As of this point, reservations were made for the third world countries because of the distinctive characteristic that differentiated them from the western countries. Later on, privatisation was introduced such as foreign MNCs as a factor in the economic development of least developed countries (LDCs) by the Neo-Liberals in the 1980s. (History of Economic Thought, 2008) Definition of Economic Development I decided to put a definition of Economic Development that would best fit my analysis of a third world country. Economic development is the fundamental process of increasing the factors of productive capacity- land, labour, capital, and technology -through sustainable growth from a simple, low-income to a modern high-income national, state or local economy. Its scope includes the process and policies of using its resources and powers to reduce the risks and costs which could inhibit investment but improves the economic, political and social well-being of its peoples. 3.2 Economic Theories The crisis facing the underdeveloped countries can not be accurately and properly analysed without the examination of some theories underpinning the problem. These crises have triggered scholar and writers with different theories, explanations and research projects aimed at solving and bringing to light the causes and complexities surrounding these crises. (Baran, 1957, Frank, 1971) maintained that dependency theory is the best for understanding the causes of the crises. While others argue that development theory (Rostowe, 1960) or economic explanations (Offiong, 1980) give a more lucid view. Yet, there are others who contended that political explanations (Migdal, 1988) or the liberal theory (Burchil, 1996) is of most important. For the purpose of this paper, I will consider the dependency and liberal economic theories 3.2.1 Dependency theory The economy of Nigeria is in doldrums from the recent pandemic crisis of capitalism. Though it has always been a battered economy which has been suffering from a form of Dutch Disease socio-economic hardship and where the poor masses benefited nothing from the boom in the annals of Nigeria. Nigerians naively thought that for not being fully integrated into the world economy, they could at worst receive a mere scratch from this contagious capitalism crisis. However, this economic maelstrom was made truly global by globalisation. Andre Gunder Frank, one of the earliest dependency theorists, made it quite clear on this point, historical research demonstrates that contemporary underdevelopment is in large part the historical product of past and continuing economic and other relations between the satellite underdeveloped and the now developed metropolitan countries. Furthermore, these relations are an essential part of the capitalist system on a world scale as a whole.(Andre Gunder Frank, The Development of Underdevelopment, in James D. Cockcroft, Andre Gunder Frank, and Dale Johnson, eds., Dependence and Underdevelopment. Garden City, New York: Anchor Books, 1972, p). 3. This view shows that capitalism promotes greed and blind pursuit of profit. The enforcement of international division of labour is the one proof but the most explicit manifestation of this doctrine is the Comparative Advantage characteristic. This division of labour (dependent and dominant states) is largely responsible for the underdevelopment of large areas of the world. The osmotic act that occurs in this system provides at large an ultimate explanation for the persistence of poverty in these areas of the world. The dependent states are made to supply cheap minerals, agricultural commodities, and cheap labour and these economies also serve as the repositories of surplus capital, obsolescent technologies and manufactured goods. This flow of goods, money and service into the dependent states are considered functions which orient these economies towards the outside. However, these dependent states have little or no influence to determine the allocation of their resources; it is rathe r determined by the economic interests of the dominant states. This division is considered by the capitalist a necessity for efficient allocation of resources. Dependency theory can be an explanation of economic development of a state in term of the external influences (political, economic, and cultural) on national development policies. (Osvaldo Sunkel, The Journal of Development Studies, Vol. 6, no. 1, October 1969, p. 23) Dependency can be define with emphasis on historical dimension asà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ an historical condition which shapes a certain structure of the world economic such that it favours some countries (Dominant states) on the detriment of others(dependent) and therefore limits the development possibilities of the subordinate economics. This a situation which the economy of a certain group of countries is put under unfavourable condition by the development and expansion of another economy, to which their own is subjected. (Theotonio Dos Santos, Readings in U.S. Imperialism, 1971, p. 226) However, there are serious disagreements among the various strains of dependency theorists. Although there are some core propositions which seem to underlie the analyses of most dependency theorist, nonetheless there are vigorous and challenging debates among the liberal reformers (Prebisch), the Marxists (Andre Gunder Frank), and the world theorists (Waller Stein) on the dependency theory. 3.2.1.1 The Core Propositions of Dependency Theory There are contestable numbers of propositions, which form the core of dependency theory. I will take two out of these numerous propositions because the suit my paper: 1. Underdevelopment is a condition fundamentally different from undevelopment. The latter term simply refers to a condition in which resources are not being used, while Underdevelopment refers to a situation in which resources are being actively used, but used in a way which benefits dominant states and not the poorer states in which the resources are found. 2. The distinction between underdevelopment and undevelopment places the LDCs countries of the world in a profoundly different historical context such as behind or catching up to the developed countries of the world. 3.2.2 Liberal Economic Theory Capitalism has failed to develop Nigeria, despite it huge natural and human resources. The Nigerians with necessary lesson incur from capitalism needed an alternative for economic -oriented revolution. The neo-liberal saw this as an opportunity to present itself as an economic alternative system for Nigeria and Africa as a whole. Since then, Nigeria has been compelled to swallow one economic prescription after the other such as IMF and World Bank imposed reforms; SAP (Structural Adjustment Program), PRSP (Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers) etc. and now NEEDS (National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy), yet poverty still persist. The World Banks seminal report title: Sub -Sahara Africa (1999) signified an ideology that retain both emphasis upon domestic sources of economic malaise and the faith in liberal economic policies which has a twin resemblance to belated centrality of state and accountable government to sustained the capitalist development.(Sandbrook, 1993:2) This report claim that Africa needs not only good governance but better governments that will concentrate more on trade liberalisation and not on direct intervention. Hence, a proposal of the conversion of the monopolistic Africa states by IMF and World Bank into liberal democracies linked to enlarge and rejuvenated private sector and to build a reformed states institutional capacity are formulations of neo-liberal capitalist to teach poor nations the good old fashion fiscal discipline. To say in a clear statement, liberal economic theory is manoeuvre of the western capitalist to have continuous clutch on the underdeveloped countries championed by the Financial Institutions (IFIs). The major argument is that economic liberalization has provided the flow of foreign investment into the underdeveloped countries, as the means of reducing trade and exchange restrictions. This idea was that in the process of homogenizing the political economy of every member states of the international community, the creation of a market society on a global scale is achieved (Biersteker, 1993). Professor Mason Gaffney, a renowned America economist stated that the neo-classical economics present us with choices often too hard a dilemma. According to him, these dilemmas are choices of sacrifices that are not favourable for government to undertake and at the same time developed. For efficiency, government must sacrifice equity; to attract business government must lower taxes so much as to cause the closure of libraries and starve the schools; to prevent inflation government must keep a huge unfortunates rate of unemployment; to make jobs government must chew up land and pollute the world; to motivate workers there must be unequal wealth distribution and so on. These dilemmas have provided the solid reasons that contribute to the present poverty in the underdeveloped countries and these are by imposition of free market strictures on the underdeveloped countries by the powerful trans -national bodies (IFIs) which personify free trade liberalism as part of their governing ideology. They lock peripheral states into agreement which forces them to lower their protective barriers thereby preventing the underdeveloped nations from developing trade profiles which diverge from the model dictated by their supposed comparative advantage. Burchill et al, (1996) stated that; the IMF and the World Bank for example, are responsible for the provision of finance assistance(or more accurately debt) to underdeveloped societies upon

Friday, October 25, 2019

Free College Admissions Essays: A Time of Growth :: College Admissions Essays

A Time of Growth    After months of waiting, I found out that I was one of the few individuals selected for a public-health internship at the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland.    I arrived in Geneva at the end of May, and began my internship at that time. On my way to work I passed by the United Nations complex, the International Red Cross and Crescent Museum, and many other international edifices. As I strolled into the World Health Organization for the first time, I was in disbelief, the WHO is the epitome of the health arena.    Public Health itself is, of course, extremely interesting to me, but more specifically one personally intriguing area is Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs). I worked all summer in the department of STI Surveillance and Epidemiology. My specific project was to redesign and create a new global database for the surveillance of STIs. I completed my project and gave a presentation. I also created a CD-Rom to instruct new users on the details of the database, and a Microsoft Power Point version print out is included in this summary. In addition to the tremendous amount of knowledge I attained specifically while working on my project, I also gained vast experience in the complete functioning of a mass public health structure and international health issues. My co-workers and I easily established a professional relationship and soon became friends. I was invited into their lives and homes as they opted to share their food and culture with me.    Throughout my time abroad I also made the most of the opportunity to explore Europe. My WHO supervisors were very receptive and encouraging of my desire to travel. I had the opportunity to travel to various places in Italy, Spain, France, Monaco, and Switzerland.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Aids Awareness – 2

World AIDS Day, observed on 1 December every year, is dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS  pandemic  caused by the spread of HIV infection. Government and health officials observe the day, often with speeches or forums on the AIDS topics. Since 1995, the President of the United States has made an official  proclamation  on World AIDS Day. Governments of other nations have followed suit and issued similar announcements. AIDS has killed more than 25 million people between 1981 and 2007,[1]  and an estimated 33. million people worldwide live with HIV as of 2007,[2]  making it one of the most destructive epidemics in recorded history. Despite recent, improved access to antiretroviral treatment and care in many regions of the world, the AIDS epidemic claimed an estimated 2 million lives in 2007,[3]  of which about 270,000 were children. [4] World AIDS Day was first conceived in August 1987 by James W. Bunn and Thomas Netter, two public information officers for the Glo bal Programme on AIDS at the  World Health Organization  in Geneva, Switzerland. [5][6]  Bunn and Netter took their idea to Dr.Jonathan Mann, Director of the Global Programme on AIDS (now known as  UNAIDS). Dr. Mann liked the concept, approved it, and agreed with the recommendation that the first observance of World AIDS Day should be 1 December 1988. Bunn, a broadcast journalist on a leave-of-absence from his reporting duties at KPIX-TV in San Francisco, recommended the date of 1 December believing it would maximize coverage by western news media. Since 1988 was an election year in the U. S. , Bunn suggested that media outlets would be weary of their post-election coverage and eager to find a fresh story to cover.Bunn and Netter determined that 1 December was long enough after the election and soon enough before the Christmas holidays that it was, in effect, a dead spot in the news calendar and thus perfect timing for World AIDS Day. On 18 June 1986 KPIX'S â€Å"AIDS Lifel ine† (a community education project initiated by Bunn and KPIX Special Projects Producer Nancy Saslow) was honored with a Presidential Citation for Private Sector Initiatives presented by President Ronald Reagan. Because of his role in â€Å"AIDS Lifeline† Bunn was asked by Dr. Mann, on behalf of the U. S. government, to take a two-year leave-of-absence to join Dr.Mann, an epidemiologist for the Centers for Disease Control, and assist in the creation of the Global Programme on AIDS for the United Nations' World Health Organization. Mr. Bunn accepted and was named the first Public Information Officer for the Global Programme on AIDS. Bunn and Netter conceived, designed, and implemented the inaugural World AIDS Day observance – now the longest-running disease awareness and prevention initiative of its kind in the history of public health. The  Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS  (UNAIDS) became operational in 1996, and it took over the planning and prom otion of World AIDS Day. 7]  Rather than focus on a single day, UNAIDS created the World AIDS Campaign in 1997 to focus on year-round communications, prevention and education. [7][8] In its first two years, the theme of World AIDS Day focused on children and young people. These themes were strongly criticized at the time for ignoring the fact that people of all ages may become infected with HIV and suffer from AIDS. [7]  But the themes drew attention to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, helped alleviate some of the stigma surrounding the disease, and helped boost recognition of the problem as a family disease. 7] In 2004, the World AIDS Campaign became an independent organization. [7][8][9] Each year, Popes  John Paul II  and  Benedict XVI  have released a greeting message for patients and doctors on World AIDS Day. [10][11][12][13][14][15] In 2007, the  White House  began marking World AIDS Day with the iconic display of a 28-foot AIDS Ribbon on the building's North Portico. [ 16]  The display, now an annual tradition, quickly garnered attention, as it was the first banner, sign or symbol to prominently hang from the White House since the  Abraham Lincoln  administration. ———————————————— [edit]Choosing the theme From its inception until 2004,  UNAIDS  spearheaded the World AIDS Day campaign, choosing annual themes in consultation with other global health organizations. As of 2008, each year's World AIDS Day theme is chosen by the World AIDS Campaign's Global Steering Committee after extensive consultation with people, organizations and government agencies involved in the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS. [7]  For each World AIDS Day from 2005 through 2010, the theme will be â€Å"Stop AIDS. Keep the Promise. â€Å", with a yearly sub-theme. 7]  This overarching theme is designed to encourage political leaders to keep their c ommitment to achieve universal access to HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, care, and support by the year 2010. [7] This theme is not specific to World AIDS Day, but is used year-round in WAC's efforts to highlight HIV/AIDS awareness within the context of other major global events including the  G8 Summit. World AIDS Campaign also conducts â€Å"in-country† campaigns throughout the world, like the  Student Stop AIDS Campaign, an infection-awareness campaign targeting young people throughout the UK.Today many people around the world are infected with a serious disease called  AIDS. Unfortunately, the disease has led to many deaths worldwide and yet it still remains untreatable. Many Public Health Departments are now taking the lead in publicizing education about AIDS. Public awareness and prevention programs are possible solutions to the spread of AIDS. The issue of this paper is on AIDS Prevention Programs that target women. One outlook is that prevention programs that tar get women will reduce the number of infections around the world.People opposed to this believe that prevention programs should aim more towards males. The disease is obviously an important social issue which impacts people worldwide. Certain associations and studies believe that women are more at danger then men for contracting HIV/AIDS. They believe prevention programs should be focused merely on women. AIDS cases for women are increasing each year and women are one of the fastest growing populations being infected. At the end of 2002, UNAIDS, a Joint United Nations Progamme on HIV/AIDS, reported that 38. 6 million adults are infected with HIV or AIDS worldwide.Roughly 50% or 19. 2 million are women. Globally speaking, most women infected with HIV or AIDS are from developing countries. The fastest spread of AIDS among women is in sub-Saharan Africa. In 1999, for the first time more women than men were infected with HIV. Out of 22. 3 million people infected in sub Saharan Africa 12. 2 million, or 55%, are female. Of the 1. 1 million youth infected in south Asia, 62% are female. According to research by the CDC, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the amount of AIDS cases in women have more than tripled in the United States.Since 1985, 7% of women were affected to 25% in 1999. With the number of AIDS cases in women increasing, organizations are relying on prevention programs aimed towards women to be the effective solution to prevent the spread of the virus amongst men and women. We can write a custom essay on AIDS for you! In contrary to the opposing viewpoint, reports by UNAIDS felt that men should be the main focus in the prevention programs. In 2000, UNAIDS commenced a World AIDS Campaign which pushed for men to become more involved in preventing the spread of the AIDS outbreak. We must stop seeing men as some kind of problem and begin seeing them as part of the solution,† according to Dr Peter Piot, the head director of UNAIDS. â€Å"Working with men to change their behavior and attitudes has tremendous potential to slow down the epidemic. It will also improve the lives of men themselves, not to mention those of their families. † There are several reasons why men should remain the main target to the prevention of the epidemic. The focus is mainly on changing sexual behaviors amongst men. Men grow up with certain beliefs and attitudes on how they should behave when dealing with intercourse.Dr. Elvira Belingon, Department of Health STD/AIDS Coordinator in Cordillera explained that worldwide studies prove that men are at a greater risk of spreading the disease because they are likely to have more unprotected intercourse and sexual partners than women do. â€Å"Too often, it is seen as ‘unmanly' to worry about avoiding drug-related risks, or to bother with condoms,† said Dr Piot. UNAIDS feel these cultural beliefs and expectations allow men to become vulunerable to AIDS which endangers their own health or the health of their partners and family.This vulnerability has already affected gay and bisexual men in the United States. Sexually transmitted diseases such as syphilis have rose for the second year in a row. The government feels that gays and bisexuals are more susceptible to these sexually transmitted diseases and with the help of these prevention programs they can decrease that number. In order to help control the AIDS epidemic, organization’s feel prevention programs should focus more on men’s behavior. I believe that prevention programs should be aimed towards women because of he steady increase of infections year to year. Women are more susceptible to HIV infection for several reasons. Biologically, females are estimated to be eight times more likely of receiving and HIV transmission from a male compared to female-to-male transmission. In 1997, the CDC reported that 38% of women received HIV through heterosexual intercourse opposed to 7% of men. Women are more at risk because the surface area in a female’s genital tract is greater exposed than in males. During intercourse larger amounts of semen fluids are released than in vaginal fluids.This puts women at risk because semen contains a higher amount of HIV. Also, women often have sexually transmitted infections that are left untreated, which increases exposure to HIV. Women who have STDs, sexually transmitted diseases, especially those that cause ulcerations make it easier for HIV to enter the body. Genital sores and immune reactions related with STDs face a greater risk of HIV infection. Treatment of STDs can be an efficient HIV prevention tactic if prevention programs educate women on this exposure. Other biological factors deal with young women among the ages of 13 to 19.Girls in Charge coordinator, Judah-Abijah Dorrington, explained that 49% of all the AIDS cases reported in the United States since 1997 were among these young women. This age group is infected because they have not fully completed their biological development. Many of the women obtained HIV in their teens because of â€Å"having an underdeveloped cervix and low vaginal mucus production. † In the report by AIDS Weekly, young women are found to have three to five times higher HIV infections than among boys. â€Å"Young women really are being viewed as the population with the largest number of new infections,† said Dr.Cynthia Gomez, professor for the AIDS Prevention Center at the University of California at San Francisco. â€Å"They don't realize they're at risk, partly because we've only emphasized certain groups, rather than behaviors. † Women are vulnerable to infection for their lack of power within sexual relationships and sexual violence. Women’s lack of power makes it difficult for them to negotiate safer sex with partners. Women tend not to discuss condom use within relationships in fear of rejection or loss of economic support. When women are in committed relationships, they mainly focus on the intimacy in their relationship.They assume they are in a monogamous relationship with their partner. Unsafe sex becomes more important than protection against HIV. This dependence of men increases the risk of AIDS for women. A report from Secretary General of the United Nation, Kofi Annan concluded, â€Å"The gender dynamics of the epidemic are far-reaching due to women's weaker ability to negotiate safe sex, and their generally lower social and economic status. † Studies in Africa have uncovered that many married women have been infected by their husband. The powerlessness of women to reject sex with their husband has been a major cause of transmission to women.Women's dependence on men makes women less able to protect themselves against AIDS. Typically, men make most decisions about when, where, and how to have sex. In developing countries, women usually maintain little control over their bodies and hold little decision-making power. Violence against women increases their helplessness to HIV and decreases their ability to defend themselves against infection. According to a study, â€Å"physical and sexual abuse were ‘disturbingly common’ throughout life among women at high risk for HIV infection†¦women who have been abused are more likely to use crack cocaine and have multiple sex partners. This puts women are at greater risk for rape or sexual force. Also, some women are forced to enter into sex work or short-term partnerships to exchange sex for economic gain or survival including food, refuge, and security. In many cases, women are in danger merely because they are reliant on their husbands for survival and support. This hinders and restricts their decision making and negotiating control. Sex workers are at a high risk for infection, mainly when they do not have the ability to negotiate with customers who refuse to wear a condom.In order to prevent the spread of AIDS I feel public health ag encies need to raise public awareness by promoting prevention programs for women. If women are educated on the biological and social factors of AIDS, women may have more of a chance to change their behaviors before the possibility of becoming infected with HIV. Programs that specifically target women will have a positive impact on women in the long-run. As new AIDS cases are increasing quickly through heterosexual contact focus on the prevention programs will take on even greater importance.People that agree with the statement that AIDS prevention programs should target women believe that women are vulnerable to HIV infection biologically and socially. To decrease infections of the AIDS virus women change their standard of living especially for women in developing countries through these prevention programs. Those that disagree focus HIV prevention efforts on heterosexual male sexual behavior. By changing male cultural and socialization patterns interventions can be effective. A wid espread HIV prevention policy uses many essentials to protect as many people at risk for HIV as possible.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

History and Description of a Subordinate Group Member Essay

Throughout the history of North America, there has been one ethnic group who has given up almost everything to the European settlers. Land, home, resources, and dignity were stolen from Native Americans. The long history of the American Indian is being written, even today. Approximately forty thousand years ago, the earliest ancestors of Native Americans migrated across the Bering Strait from Asia on pack ice (Hoerder, 2005). The population rose steadily, and by the time the first substantial settlement of Europeans was established in the New World, Native Americans lived throughout the continent. In the search for more farmland, European immigrants quickly pushed the native population out of their traditional homelands. This migration began the crowding of other native bands, forcing eastern natives to move beyond the Ohio River, thus starting a series of relocations for the Native Americans that continued through the next two centuries. Less than fifty years after the end of the American Revolution, many of the tribes in the northeastern United States sold their land under pressure from the newcomers. Before 1850, these natives migrated west of the Mississippi River. If you traveled to Oklahoma today you would find the same bloodlines that once roamed the New England hills (â€Å"Indians† The Reader’s Companion to American History, 1991). Wanting to live apart from the natives and expecting them to remain controlled, reservations were established, including an Indian Territory (est. 1825) in present-day Oklahoma. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was enacted to populate these newly established areas. President Jackson ordered the forced migration of Native Americans from multiple southeastern tribes. Approximately 4,000 Cherokee Indians perished in 1838-1839 on their 800-mile march, or during their succeeding internment. This tragic event has become known as the â€Å"Trail of Tears†. (American Indian Policy, 2002) Trying to â€Å"Americanize† instead of segregate the Indians, in 1887, Congress passed the Dawes Act, which broke up reservations and gave land to individual Indian families. The idea of the Dawes Act was to assimilate Indians by giving them land from which they could profit. What followed were laws, over the next few decades, which dissolved tribal governments and placed Native Americans completely under the jurisdiction of U.  S. laws (American Indian Policy, 2002). The reservation system is one distinctive aspect of the Native American culture that materialized from their relationship with other Americans. The United States has 310 reservations within its borders. The federal government owns 298 reservations and 12 belong to the states in which they are located. A total of 437,431 Indians resided on reservations or trust lands. That is approximately 22 percent of the Native Americans defined by the 1990 census (Shumway & Jackson, 1995). The United States has proven itself unreliable on its policies and treatment of Native Americans. The government teeters between a policy of segregation, under which Indians are treated as a self-sustaining culture, and assimilation policies, which try to integrate Indian and European cultures. The United States acknowledged Indian sovereignty and established treaties with them. Unlike foreign nations, Indians shared the continent with the quickly growing nation who needed resources, and were quick to form treaties, giving Indians land rights and territorial sovereignty but repeatedly found ways to revoke those privileges.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Customs Regulations for Bringing Tobacco Into Canada

Customs Regulations for Bringing Tobacco Into Canada When returning to Canada, residents are generally given a personal exemption on goods they bring back with them from another country. But when it comes to tobacco products such as cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos, tobacco sticks and loose tobacco, this general exemption does not apply. However, Canadian residents and temporary residents of Canada returning from a trip outside Canada, as well as former Canadian residents returning to live in Canada, are allowed to bring a limited amount of these tobacco products into the country without having to pay duty or taxes under certain circumstances. When considering your return to Canada, remember that this duty-free allowance applies only if the tobacco accompanies you, and you have been outside Canada for more than 48 hours. Duty-Free Allowance When Returning With Tobacco A special duty will apply to cigarettes, tobacco sticks or manufactured tobacco unless the products  are marked DUTY  PAID CANADA DROIT ACQUITTÉ. Tobacco products sold at duty-free shops are marked this way. When returning to Canada with tobacco, these products are considered in units. Each bulleted item is considered one unit, and residents can return with  all of the following units: 200 cigarettes50 cigars or cigarillos200 grams (7 ounces) of manufactured tobacco200 tobacco sticks Bringing More or Other Tobacco Products Into Canada You may bring in more than the personal allowances of tobacco listed above as long as you pay full duties, taxes, and provincial or territorial fees on the extra. Canadian-made products marked DUTY PAID CANADA DROIT ACQUITTÉ are taken into account when customs officials calculate what you must pay. You can also bring unmarked tobacco products into Canada, and they will be assessed a special duty rate and taxes. Your personal duty-free allowance does not count for these unmarked tobacco products, and the limit for this tobacco is five total units from the bulleted list above.​   Tips for Clearing Customs With Tobacco To speed things up and simplify your return, have your tobacco products available for inspection when you arrive at the border.Be sure to declare all tobacco on a CBSA Declaration Card.Only residents 18 years or older can bring any tobacco back to Canada.Contact the  Canada Borders Services Agency  with any additional questions.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Statistics and Soft Drink Essays

Statistics and Soft Drink Essays Statistics and Soft Drink Essay Statistics and Soft Drink Essay CASE 1 DEMAND ESTIMATION and ELASTICITY: Soft Drinks in the U. S. Demand can be estimated with experimental data, time-series data, or cross-section data. In this case, cross-section data appear in the Excel file. Soft drink consumption in cans per capita per year is related to six-pack price, income per capita, and mean temperature across the 48 contiguous states in the United States. QUESTIONS 1. Given the data, please construct (a) a multiple linear regression equation and (b) a log-linear (exponential) regression equation for demand by MS Excel. (20%) 2. Given the MS Excel output in question 1, please compare the two regression equations’ coefficient of determination (R-square), F-test and t-test. Which equation is a good (better) fit? Which equation shows the stronger overall significance to predict the future demand? Which equation will you choose for a better demand estimation? Explain your answer in the language of statistics. 20%) 3. Given your choice of equation in question 2, please interpret each coefficient of independent variable in the soft drink demand estimated equation. (10%) 4. Given your choice of equation in question 2, how many cans/capita/year on soft drink should be for a state in which 6-pack price=$2. 45, Income/Capita=$36,500, and Mean Temp= 68Â °F? (20%) 5. Given your choice of equation in question 2 and the numbers in question 4, please calc ulate the price elasticity of demand and income elasticity. Comment on whether the demand is elastic or inelastic and whether soft drink is necessity, normal good or luxury good. (10%) 6. Now omit the price and temperature from the regression equation then run the regression again. Given the Excel output of only one independent variable, income, should a marketing plan for soft drinks be designed that relocates most canned drink machines into low-income neighborhoods? Please explain your answer in the language of economics. (20%)

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Cartoon Channels Essay Example for Free

Cartoon Channels Essay With the advent of satellite broadcasting technology during the mid 1970’s it became possible for Television networks to air their programs all over the world. By the 1980’s, Television established itself as a powerful medium of communication and new strategies were devised by television companies to stay ahead in the game. One such strategy was the development of programmes that targeted specific sections of the community. A few of the television channels decided to focus on children and began developing programmes that would appeal to them. It was to leverage this niche market that channels like Cartoon Network came into existence. It was launched in October 1992 in the US by one of the world’s leading media companies, Turner Broadcasting System. It offered animation programmes from TBS’s extensive library of more than 10,000 Warner Bros, Hanna-Barbera and MGM cartoons. Over the next few years the channel launched in different parts of the globe showing not only their famous cartoons, but also developing original shows. Cartoon Network entered India in October 1995, sharing airtime with Turner Network Television (TNT). As the pioneer in the Indian cartoon and animation market, Cartoon Network quickly gained popularity and had a huge fan base in the metropolitan cities. When Cartoon Network entered India, there were no established players and it was not very difficult for the Network to entrench itself in the minds of the children and register itself as a channel synonymous with cartoons. It established itself very quickly as a major player in the Indian satellite Television market and became a household name. In the 1990’s the entry of other leading children’s channels like Kermit and Nickelodeon created intense competition and Cartoon Network had to rethink their strategy to stay ahead in the game in the Indian cartoon market. The strategy that it worked out was the emphasis on ‘localization’. It localized the content by dubbing its cartoons first in Hindi to appeal to the Hindi-speaking audiences and then taking its localization efforts further it introduced Tamil-dubbed shows in 2000. The first dubbed programme was ‘Toon Tamasha’ and very soon it started offering localized versions of its popular cartoons. Localization is the key to success in television programming. Localizing the content to suit the needs and tastes of the audiences is the key to garner more viewership and television rating points. When Cartoon Network introduced Tamil-dubbed shows, Kathy McClaure, Vice President Programming, Turner Network, Asia, said, â€Å"The bringing in of Tamil-dubbed cartoons is to further reinforce Cartoon Network’s commitment to bring localized programming. † Some of cartoon shows that were dubbed in Hindi and Tamil were Scooby Doo, Flintstones, Swat Kats, The Mask, The Addam’s Family, Johnny Quest and Captain Planet. On account of its growing popularity it started its 24-hour non-stop service in July 2001. The 24-hour service was part of the channels global strategic mission to place cartoons and animation in level with general entertainment that appealed not just to the children but to the adults also. Today the appeal of cartoon network is not just to children between 4 and 14 years, but also to the teenagers and adults who constitute 30 to 40% of the channel’s viewership. Cartoon Network in India is the most popular cartoon dedicated television channel in India. Chutti TV was launched on April 19, 2007 and is a 24-hour Tamil language television channel owned by the Sun Network. It is Sun TV Network’s first ever television channel for kids. The target audiences are children aged between 3 and 14. It is a free-to-air channel available on most local cable television networks. It broadcasts cartoon shows of foreign countries and networks translated into Tamil. Some of the famous and most popular shows are Jackie Chan, He-Man, Astro Boy, Avatar, Dora the Explorer, Bob Morane, Lucky Luke, Spider Man, Bumba and Danny & Daddy. Disney XD or Disney Channel is another famous cartoon channel and it telecasts cartoons like The Donald Duck Show, Dennis and Gnasher and television shows like Shararat Karishma Ka Karishma, Shaka Laka Boom Boom and many more. The Donald Duck Show is based on the typical Mickey Mouse Series and there are other shows like Chip and Dale, The Rescue Rangers and Dennis the Menance. POGO is a cable and satellite television channel created by Turner Broadcsting, a unit of Time Warner for India, which primarily shows animated programming. It was launched in January 2004 as a children’s entertainment hannel like its sister channel Cartoon Network and its primary target audience is children aged 3+ to young adults aged up to 40. Pogo airs in multiple languages in India. The channel carries a number of popular animated shows as well as live action shows. Turner produces exclusive shows for Pogo under the brand name Pogo Originals. The Music Art and Dance show M. A. D. is India’s No. 1 do-it-yourself show. A super-hit 2D animated series is ‘Chhota Bheem’ which won the Best Animated TV series award at the ‘Golden Cursor Awards 2009 held in Mumbai. Chhota Bheem is produced by Green Gold Animation, Hyderabad. Cartoon Channels. (2018, Oct 16).

Friday, October 18, 2019

Marketing Week 4 Discussion Questions & Summary Essay

Marketing Week 4 Discussion Questions & Summary - Essay Example However, hailing from a highly disciplined family and community where such practices are strictly shunned and their negation had become a part of my belief; I decided not to copy the report. My colleague on the other hand did not hesitate to do so because this was a part of her belief system. I have been enlightened on the concepts of education and lifelong learning. I have realized the significance of a graduate degree and the learning that accompanies it. Today, people respect my view more than ever before. As a well-informed person my opinions are sought after. DQ2: Please describe where you have experienced a professional team conflict Explain what happened and its resolution I prefer you share a situation where you did not like the outcome of the decision, what would you have done differently We were a group of three people for our report. It required a lot of work and effort. We had distributed the work accordingly. However, one member of our group was just not cooperating. He(A) did not even bother to sit down and talk with us about the report. We were so bogged down by the work that we could not run after him. Therefore; we let him be and completed the work ourselves. So much so that he did not even accompany us when we had to conduct interviews of industry personnel. We were really angry at him but had no time to deal with him. At last, the report was ready. However, we did not put his name on the report. We felt that it was only fair since he had done no work. Because of this A failed the course! I feel that this situation could have been handled differently. We could have taken out time to force A to do some work for the report. As a team this was the least we could have done. What we did was a violation of team spirit. We should have counseled him, and tried to ma ke him work by giving him logical reasons. It would have made things different! DQ3: Describe the changes you have gone through while enrolled at the University of Phoenix While at the University of Phoenix I have matured. I have begun to see the world in a totally different light. Before, my views and ideas were skewed. I used to have a one-track mind and would often jump to conclusions. Now, I have become enlightened. University of Phoenix has helped me develop as an individual. It has made me look at things with an open mind. To look at all perspectives and to be confident and positive about things. It has taught me to respect others for what they and accept them with their faults and drawbacks. It has made me understand that what is important is what I have given to the society and not what the society has given to me. Earlier, I used to see a university degree as a means of better financial achievement. It has taught me the value of education beyond a means of earning money. It has molded me into a confident and inquisitive young woman who is not scared of challenges. From someone who would barely ever question and was used to taking things at fac e value. It has helped in my overall development. It has harnessed my potential and made me reach new heights. It has impelled me aspire and dream! SUMMARY paragraph based on answering the above questions and the class topics and courses completed for BS in marketing. At University of Pheonix I have learnt the concepts of

Voice of the self Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Voice of the self - Essay Example Therefore, Gilyard’s personal and professional perspectives of today’s education, especially with regard to Standard English language skills, have great implication for education, in general, and language education for African Americans, in particular. In the sixth chapter of the book, Big Fame and Other Games†, the author introduces various types of language games and poetry writing exercises of his school days. â€Å"The moments were unfolding that would become the central core of my sports memory, visions I can recall more readily and with more exactness than many events of far more recent times.† (Gilyard, 76) All through this chapter, the author provides convincing narration of his experiences in the school and brings out the issues of the African Americans. A reflective analysis of the chapter 6, 7, 8 and 9 of Voice of the Self confirms that the book is a unique blend of memoir and scholarship of the author bringing about the major elements of his edu cation and the issues of language education for African Americans.

NASCAR Diversity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

NASCAR Diversity - Essay Example For more than a decade now, the company still lacks the proper policies and strategies that can adequately enhance diversity. According to Kusz (81) NASCAL has been using a â€Å"Southern Strategy† in its undertakings. According to Canas and Sondak (134) â€Å"NASCAL was born in a time when racial segregation and discrimination was being experienced in every part of the American culture.† This means that the problem of racial discrimination in NASCAL was likely to be experienced in the organization from day one. The organization was initially founded by the southerners in a very racial diverse region. However, this did not help solve the diversity problem since in a seventy year history of NASCAL; only one African American driver ever gained victory in a racing event. Wendell Scott was that driver. Even though Scott had won several other races he was declared to have won just once in his entire career. This is because some of the track owners â€Å"did not want a black man kissing the track queen in victory Lane† (Canas and Sondak 134). Diversity problem in NASCAL therefore is a problem right from the founding of the company. The management of the company, sponsors as well as the aud ience formed the basis of discrimination of the African American drivers as well as the women drivers. Scott as the first African American driver â€Å"was booed by fans when his car broke down in his first race for NASCAL† (Canas and Sondak 134). It is from such incidences that the sponsors would not want anything to do with the African American drivers since they are despised by the fans. The company would therefore be forced not to involve the African American drivers in major leagues. Today, there are still very few African American drivers in NASCAL with â€Å"only five blacks to have started a handful of races since 1986† (Canas and Sondak 134). This has been attributed by different scholars of the world to the insufficient funding following the fact that the NASCAL team

Thursday, October 17, 2019

James Booker Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

James Booker - Research Paper Example ker recognize the art of music playing like never before and although he was pretty talented himself recognition of music at such an early age made that him the musician he was at his prime. Rightfully so music influence in the life of James booker was effectively extended with a saxophone being gifted to him by his mother as a birthday present. He spent greatest of his juvenile age ashore on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, while at the place his father pastored a church. Although receiving a saxophone in in his age his talent with the instrument was somewhat modest but all the while he truly and to the best of his abilities demonstrated a resilient concern in effectively playing the keyboard. It is safe to complement that his first musicals came by performing with a mere organ in his father’s church sermons. The return to his originated birth place the city of New Orleans came in the preliminary rounds of the adolescence age, and he successfully completed his elementary schooling form the prestigious Xavier Academy Institute. He academized many particular fundamentals of the keyboard playing panache from Tuts Washington and Edward Frank. Booker illustrated to become one of the best and utmost masters of classical music and hence was paraded to play Bach and Chopin as one of his ideal composers along the way of his career. He further to such feats he correspondingly become proficient at and committed to memory the more challenging solos of Erroll Garner, and also some enhancing material by Liberace. Booker’s imperative systematic circumstantial upbringing in close to the collected works of many piano masters had fundamentally empowered him to easily and most notoriously create unique, original and conspicuous understandings, implementation and interpretation of jazz and other supp lementary American prevalent music. These recitals and performances by booker shared essentials of stride, blues, gospel and Latin keyboard flairs. Booker debuted his recordings the

[Art subject] Olympic Sculpture Park Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

[Art subject] Olympic Sculpture Park - Essay Example Two sheets of identical weathering steel make the curvy objects that are called Ws or Wiggles. In order to fully appreciate the transcendent beauty of the work, one needs to walk the spaces between the Ws. The space between the two enclosing objects will constantly morph to give a unique experience to the walker. I much enjoyed this novel idea of travel through space. Love & Loss is intended public utility. It is an aesthetically designed public sitting space. The seats and benches are crafted to the shapes of letters forming Love & Loss. Sitting there and simply gazing at the surrounding scenery is a relaxing experience that I quite enjoyed. This work of art was made by Roy McMakin and installed in OSP in 2004. Concrete, paint and enamel are the basic building material. The constant wear and tear of this construction has led to several refurbishing, which have taken the sheen off its original beauty. The Father and Son statue work installed in the midst of a water fountain is poetry and philosophy wrung into sculpture. This masterpiece by Louise Bourgeois is made of a conglomeration of metals steel, aluminum and bronze. The water fountain is conceptually the key, as it reveals and hides the statues of the father and the son to various degrees dynamically. Working to a pre-programmed schedule, the two fountains installed beneath the statues will rise and fall showing either the father or the son at a time. It attempts to symbolically show the innate difficulty in a father-son relationship, where strong bonds are seldom seen. Perhaps the Oedipal impulse in the boy-child never lets him connect strongly with the father. The outstretched arms of the two statues is a moment frozen for eternity and shall never consummate the underlying intent, namely to reach and hold the other figure. This work made me think a lot and I took pleasure in the intellectual stimulation it offered via the dynamic visual

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

NASCAR Diversity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

NASCAR Diversity - Essay Example For more than a decade now, the company still lacks the proper policies and strategies that can adequately enhance diversity. According to Kusz (81) NASCAL has been using a â€Å"Southern Strategy† in its undertakings. According to Canas and Sondak (134) â€Å"NASCAL was born in a time when racial segregation and discrimination was being experienced in every part of the American culture.† This means that the problem of racial discrimination in NASCAL was likely to be experienced in the organization from day one. The organization was initially founded by the southerners in a very racial diverse region. However, this did not help solve the diversity problem since in a seventy year history of NASCAL; only one African American driver ever gained victory in a racing event. Wendell Scott was that driver. Even though Scott had won several other races he was declared to have won just once in his entire career. This is because some of the track owners â€Å"did not want a black man kissing the track queen in victory Lane† (Canas and Sondak 134). Diversity problem in NASCAL therefore is a problem right from the founding of the company. The management of the company, sponsors as well as the aud ience formed the basis of discrimination of the African American drivers as well as the women drivers. Scott as the first African American driver â€Å"was booed by fans when his car broke down in his first race for NASCAL† (Canas and Sondak 134). It is from such incidences that the sponsors would not want anything to do with the African American drivers since they are despised by the fans. The company would therefore be forced not to involve the African American drivers in major leagues. Today, there are still very few African American drivers in NASCAL with â€Å"only five blacks to have started a handful of races since 1986† (Canas and Sondak 134). This has been attributed by different scholars of the world to the insufficient funding following the fact that the NASCAL team

[Art subject] Olympic Sculpture Park Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

[Art subject] Olympic Sculpture Park - Essay Example Two sheets of identical weathering steel make the curvy objects that are called Ws or Wiggles. In order to fully appreciate the transcendent beauty of the work, one needs to walk the spaces between the Ws. The space between the two enclosing objects will constantly morph to give a unique experience to the walker. I much enjoyed this novel idea of travel through space. Love & Loss is intended public utility. It is an aesthetically designed public sitting space. The seats and benches are crafted to the shapes of letters forming Love & Loss. Sitting there and simply gazing at the surrounding scenery is a relaxing experience that I quite enjoyed. This work of art was made by Roy McMakin and installed in OSP in 2004. Concrete, paint and enamel are the basic building material. The constant wear and tear of this construction has led to several refurbishing, which have taken the sheen off its original beauty. The Father and Son statue work installed in the midst of a water fountain is poetry and philosophy wrung into sculpture. This masterpiece by Louise Bourgeois is made of a conglomeration of metals steel, aluminum and bronze. The water fountain is conceptually the key, as it reveals and hides the statues of the father and the son to various degrees dynamically. Working to a pre-programmed schedule, the two fountains installed beneath the statues will rise and fall showing either the father or the son at a time. It attempts to symbolically show the innate difficulty in a father-son relationship, where strong bonds are seldom seen. Perhaps the Oedipal impulse in the boy-child never lets him connect strongly with the father. The outstretched arms of the two statues is a moment frozen for eternity and shall never consummate the underlying intent, namely to reach and hold the other figure. This work made me think a lot and I took pleasure in the intellectual stimulation it offered via the dynamic visual

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Is the War on Terrorism a War Essay Example for Free

Is the War on Terrorism a War Essay The Global War on Terrorism is a military campaign that began shortly after the terrorist attacks of September 11th 2001. First used by George W. Bush, the phrase ‘war on terror’ has become to be conceptualized as a term used to signify ‘global military, political, lawful, and conceptual struggle targeting both organizations designated as terrorists and regimes accused of supporting them. † The war on terror main focus has been with Islamist militants and Al-Qaeda. The war in Afghanistan and Iraq are both considered to be part of the war on terrorism. There is much speculation on whether the war on terror is actually a war. This essay will argue that both points of view are valid. There are reasons which validate the war on terrorism as being considered an actual war such as the fact that an actual decelaration of war was waged by both the US and Al-Qaeda, it can be considered a new way of war, and that ultimately like war, terrorism is a mean to a political end. On the other side of the spectrum, it may not be considered a war because it does not have a clear end or possible victory, it does not have a confined battle space as regular wars, and it is a ‘war’ against an immaterial concept such as the wars on poverty, drugs, and crime. There is an extensive amount of literature on the subject of terrorism and especially the war on terror. Mia Bloom in ‘Dying to Kill: The Allure of Suicide Terror’ examines the use strategies, successes, and failures of suicide bombing in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. She claims that in many instances the effort of Israel, Russia, and the United States have failed to deter terrorism and suicide bombings. Bloom also contemplates how terrorist groups learn from one another, and thus how they react and retaliate to counterterror tactics the financing of terrorism, and the role of suicide attacks against the backdrop of larger ethnic and political conflicts. Another current scholar writing on terrorism is Mark Juergensmeyer. Juergensmeyer studies religious terrorism more specifically. Bruce Hoffman gives a brilliant insight to terrorism and all its aspects. Hoffman describes its historical evolution and the mindset of the terrorist. He examines this invisible enemy and his tactics and motivation in a globalized world. Hoffman argues that the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers radically altered the USA’s and the Wests view on terrorism. When attempting to answer the above question it is important to clarify and define the terms. Terrorism has a vast number of definitions and varies greatly depending on who is trying to define it and from what perspective it is being defined and at which scope. For example one definition of terrorism is the FBI’s definition of it as ‘the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a Government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in further political or social objectives’. Another definition is from the Department of Defense which states it to be as ‘the calculated use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to inculcate fear; intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological objectives. A final example of one of the many definitions of terrorism is that of the Department of homeland Security which states it as ‘any activity that involves an act that is dangerous to human life or potentially destructive of critic infrastructure or key resources; and†¦must also appear to be intended (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; (ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping. ’ These definitions vary quite greatly from one to another. Any definition of terrorism suits a particular agency and how they look at the act of violence, whereas very few look at the causes for it and what its essence is. Notice the selected vocabulary for each definition will suit the type of agency’s profile. The problem with defining terrorism is one that it is a subjective thing, and two that the parties trying to define it try to include everything and nothing in it. They try to put and various different events that happened and situations as well to help define it so as to make sure that terrorism encompasses a large number of things. For example the discotheque bombing of Bali. It seems that the definitions need to include anything that attacks the west. With regards to the war on terror, is it the war on terror or terrorism? Is there really a war on terrorism and if so according to whom? The USA? Al-Qaeda? And in which theatres and locations are we talking about? The war on terror might be a war on terror in Afghanistan but not in other places. Also the title of the question is quite ambiguous because is terrorism is an act of war, or is war is an act of terrorism? Each one can be unfolded onto the other easily. It is also important to consider who is included in the war on terror, is it all terrorists groups including terrorist groups like the IRA? Or is it just limited to Islamist militant terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda? It is not always clear who are the terrorists and who are the terrorized†¦ â€Å"All politics is a struggle for power, and the ultimate kind of power is violence. † Hoffman writes that terrorism is where politics and violence intersect in the hope of delivering power. And that all terrorism involves a quest for power. Power to do many things such as to dominate, coerce, control but ultimately to ‘effect fundamental political change. Clausewitz’s definition of war was ‘war is the continuation of Politick by other means’. In this context terrorism fits in accordance to his definition as terrorism too can be considered part of war. Terrorism can be considered a tactic or act of war, or war a tactic or act of terrorism. For example the French used torture during the Battle of Algiers, the US uses terror tactics itself such as Abu Ghraib. It is very difficult to separate war from terrorism neatly. Being a terrorist is a stepping-stone to becoming a politician. Thus because of the very ambiguous relationship and line between war and terrorism, terrorism can be considered as a new way, or military tactic of fighting war. Thus anything that tries to counter attack it can also be considered a war. Thus rending the war on terrorism a war. Terrorism is ‘a complex phenomena in which violence is used to obtain political power to readdress grievances ’ In order for one to consider the war on terrorism as an actual war, an actual statement of waging war has had to been made. This is the case with the war on terrorism. Al-Qaeda did declare war on the USA in 1998. The bush administration created the term of the ‘axis of evil’ and the USA did fight a conventional war in Iraq in 2003. The war on terrorism might not be a war in itself but it could be made up and composed by several on going wars such as Chechnya, the government of Sri Lanka versus the Tumult Tigers (which was actually the first country to successfully defeat terrorism), and Mali. There have been clear objectives set out and enemies to defeat. Although this enemy is invisible, and the way of fighting the battles are different (due to the asymmetrical aspect of the war on terror) it does not mean this is not a war. The rules have changed, the battle space as well, the way of thinking of the enemy and war has changed drastically. But it is still war. It is just a new face of war. However, the war on terrorism is hard to define as an actual ‘war’ for several reasons. One, because it seems the US and the West are just policing and engaging in nation building to promote liberal democracy. Hoffman mentions the second factor, which is vastly important in discrediting the war on terrorism as a war stating that ‘unlike traditional wars, the war on terror does not have a clear end’. This is because the victory seems unattainable. Terrorism won’t die along with the terrorist leaders. Not even when the most wanted terrorist has been killed. DCIA Leon E. Panetta stated that I dont think theres any question that when you get the number one terrorist in the world, that were a little safer today than we were when he was alive. But I also dont think we ought to kid ourselves that killing Usama Bin Ladin kills al-Qaida. Al-Qaida still remains a threat, theyre still going to try to attack our country, and I think we have to continue to be vigilant and continue the effort to ultimately defeat these guys. We damaged them, but we still have to defeat them. In order for a war to be a war, shouldn’t it have a clear end? Or at least a possible one? The war on terrorism also is discredited as being an actual war because it does not take place on a clear battle space. The director of public prosecutions, Sir Ken Macdonald quoted London is not a battlefield. Those innocents who were murdered on July 7 2005 were not victims of war. And the men who killed them were not, as in their vanity they claimed on their ludicrous videos, soldiers. They were deluded, narcissistic inadequates. They were criminals. They were fantasists. We need to be very clear about this. On the streets of London, there is no such thing as a war on terror, just as there can be no such thing as a war on drugs He continues by stating that ‘the fight against terrorism on the streets of Britain is not a war. It is the prevention of crime, the enforcement of our laws and the winning of justice for those damaged by their infringement. The war on terror could simply be a war against a ‘thing’ such as the war on poverty, drugs, crime tc†¦ There is no real way to defeat, destroy and rid the planet of such immaterial concepts. The war on terrorism looked under these aspects becomes more difficult to truly accept as a war. It is difficult to answer the question if whether the war on terrorism is an actual war. It appears that there is a struggle between Al-Qaeda fighting secularism, consumerism, and immorality and the US and the We st is fighting against backwardness and against groups of people who reject western values and globalization. Is this what the real war being fought is about? Is this the actual war that is going on? There are both aspects crediting the war on terrorism as a war and others discrediting it. This question however is highly relevant and intertwines to other aspects of IR305 such as the changing nature of war (is the war on terror the new type of war? ), the different types of warfare (is the war on terror the new western way of warfare and terrorism the Arab way of warfare? ), and the topic of risk societies (are we breeding more terrorism by fighting the war on terror, thus creating more risk). All of these various aspects of IR305 are relevant to the topic of the war on terrorism.

Monday, October 14, 2019

How employee wellbeing can become a core value

How employee wellbeing can become a core value Leadership is the ability to effectively use strategic competencies and influence to accomplish organizational goals. It is a partnership between mangers followers and external constituencies and one of the main differences between leaders and managers is power and authority. Leaders yield power which cannot be transferred however managers yield authority due to their position and can be delegated. When organizational requires a fast changing as a result of rapid fluctuation a Transformational leader is called for. Transformational leadership is defined as a relationship between a leader and follower(s) based on a set of leader behaviors perceived by subordinates as exhibiting idealized influence, motivational inspiration, intellectual stimulation, and individual consideration. In todays modern complex organizations, which are going through constant change, it required the roles of management and leadership be intertwined. An organisation that has an environment which promotes a state of contentment allowing employees to flourish and achieve their full potential for the benefit of themselves and the organisation can be considered as employers who puts high emphasis on their employee wellbeing. The concept of wellbeing includes concepts of psychological and physical health. Today increasingly companies are focused more about their employees wellbeing as organisations are seeing its benefits. Organisations such as IBM, established Well-Being Management System (WBMS), the companys holistic approach to managing the health and safety of employees wherever they work. This enables physical and psychological fitness of its employees. When employee wellbeing becomes a shared organisational value deeply rooted in the organisational culture it is evident from the following companies that productivity of the organisations increases as a result of high moral and satisfaction as well as organisations are able to retain their talents. Values influence attitudes and behaviour therefore for transformational leaders to create employee wellbeing as a shared value they need to create trust between leader and employees. This is possible when the leader practice high emotional and social intelligence and honour the psychological contract between the management and employees. Contents Executive Summary 1 Today increasingly companies are focused more about their employees wellbeing as organisations are seeing its benefits. Organisations such as IBM, established Well-Being Management System (WBMS), the companys holistic approach to managing the health and safety of employees wherever they work. This enables physical and psychological fitness of its employees. 2 Contents 3 1.0 INTRODUCTION 4 8.0 CONCLUSION 16 7.0 Appendix 17 1.0 INTRODUCTION This report presents discussions on how employee wellbeing can become a core value shared among the employees of an organization that can be deeply rooted in the organizational culture and the role of transformational leadership in facilitating this change. Transformational leaders are called for when traditional leadership fails to bring about a change aligning the organizational culture to the changes in the environment. As these form of leadership focus on employees in achieving their goal it suits well in an era of fast globalization. In the second part of the report concepts of leadership and their difference from management will be introduced .as well as an explanation of transformational leadership and what it is all about. Third part of the report explains the concept employee wellbeing and its benefits. Companies who are initiating employee wellbeing and the response will be highlighted. The main part of the report will discuss how transformational leadership help facilitate employee wellbeing in the organizational culture that would eventually improve performance. Concepts of how leaders create trusts among employees and towards themselves, how leaders practice emotional and social intelligence and the concepts of psychological contract will be discussed. Finally case evidence will be provided when employees wellbeing is taken care off their performance in terms of absenteeism etc will rise significantly. 1.2 Scope and limitation The scope of the report is limited to the examination of how employee wellbeing can become the cultural norm within the organization and how transformational leadership facilitates in embedding it to the organizational culture as a shared core value. Little robust research exists on the relationship between health and individual job performance. 2.0 leadership Leadership defined by Weiss (2001, p.194) states that it is the ability to effectively use strategic competencies and influence to accomplish organizational goals. It is a partnership between mangers followers and external constituencies and one of the main differences between leaders and managers is power and authority. Leaders yield power which cannot be transferred however managers yield authority due to their position and can be delegated. (Mullins 2002). Whetten et.al (1995, p. 17) states that traditional definition of management is outmoded and irrelevant today. Their argument is based on the similarity between leaders and managers in terms of how they function. And that a good manager functions as an effective leader .a similar view was held by Hodgetts (1990, p.3) and defines management as getting things done through people and leadership influence people towards particular goal. Weiss(2001) referencing Bass (1985,1990 )states that when organizational requires a fast changing as a result of rapid fluctuation a transformational leader is called for. Transformational leadership exhibits behaviors such as idealized influence, motivational inspiration, intellectual stimulation, and individual consideration. And can be defined as a relationship between a leader and a follower based on this behavior (Flood 2008) A number of studies have shown a strong positive relationship between this leadership style and desirable outcomes including organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and decreased employee turnover intentions (Flood 2008) As an example of the magnitude of leadership influence on the attitudes and behaviors of employees, a study of 25,000 workers across a variety of firms by Wilson Learning, a US based management training company; found that 69% of employees job satisfaction related to the leadership skills of their bosses (Davids 1995). A significant productivity lag was associated with a lack of or poor leadership. On the basis of this finding, Davids (1995) asserts that the days of the heroic leader who gets things done by people are numbered, to be replaced by the post-heroic leaders who get things done with people. Hence, mutual understanding, trust and strong communication skills have been growing in importance as factors in the leader follower relationship.(Flood, 2008) 3.0EMPLOYEE WELLBEING An organisation that has an environment which promotes a state of contentment allowing employees to flourish and achieve their full potential for the benefit of themselves and the organisation can be considered as employers who puts high emphasis on their employee wellbeing.(Tehrani et.al 2010) The concept of wellbeing includes concepts of psychological and physical health. According Arnold (2007) they can be distinguished between subjective and psychological wellbeing à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Subjective wellbeing focuses on the affective (hedonic balance; balance between pleasant and unpleasant affect) and cognitive (life satisfaction) components of well-being (Arnold et.al 2007). Psychological well-being draws on various conceptualizations of mental health (Arnold et.al 2007).Tehrani et .al (2010) described wellbeing as a subjective experience that may involve practical measures such as introducing healthy food or a gym at work, or perhaps less tangible initiatives such as working to match the values and beliefs held by employees with those of their organization. It could be argued that a change in the way employees are engaged in discussions about how their work is organized could have more of an impact on an individuals well-being than the introduction of a corporate gym. Today increasingly companies are focused about their employees wellbeing as organisations are seeing its benefits .Organisations such as IBM, established Well-Being Management System (WBMS) the companys holistic approach to managing the health and safety of employees wherever they work. This enables physical and psychological fitness of its employees. This integrated approach to employee well being ranges from the more traditional aspects of occupational health and safety ,such as industrial hygiene, safety, medical issues and ergonomics-to innovative and proactive wellness initiatives, including a broad array of health promotion options and disease prevention benefits for employees.(IBM , 2010 ) Marks Spencer is known as an employer who values employees. Historically, well-being was delivered through a traditional benefits package, including flexible working and family-friendly policies. In addition, a good physical working environment was provided, including good catering facilities. Other ancillary benefits for some or all employees included hairdressing, chiropody, dentistry and holistic services. As the business moved through a change management program it was realized that more focus was needed on the health and well-being areas that were directly affected by the workplace. (Tehrani et.al 2010) Scota Chropractc Ltd is another company that focused on employee wellbeing . Established in 1986 and currently employs 17 employees working across two sites the growing public awareness of alternative and complementary therapies has been a major driver of business growth. The company works with the NHS and has recently branched out into sports therapy, rehabilitation and ergonomic-based heath and safety interventions. The organization has increasingly concentrated on employee well-being for its own staff during the past five years. (Tehrani et.al 2010) 3.1 Employee wellbeing and culture. Organisational Culture is defined as a set of shared values beliefs which interact with an organisations people ,structureand system to produce behavioural norms. in a strong organisational culture the organisation core values are both intensly held and widely shared. core values are the primary or dominant values that are accepted thoughout the organisation.the more members who accept the core values andthe greater their commitment to those values is , the stronger the culture gets.A strong organisation culture will have a great influence on the bevaiour of its members((Robbins 1998) when employee wellbeing becomes a shared organisational value deeply rooted in the organisational culture it is evident from the following companies that productivity of the organisations increases as a result of high moral and satisfaction as well as organisations are able to retain their talents. According to Tehrani et.al(2010) Marks Spencers three-month wellbeing trial programme demonstrated an 8% reduction in its employee sickness absence for musculoskeletal health issues. Store management teams reported improved morale of the departmental team and the general store, all of which are difficult to estimate in financial terms, further improvement in customer service and improved efficiencies. Nike company employees share a core value of enhancing peoples lives through sports and fitness.nike has created a strong sports oriented culture and promoted it through company practices such as paying employees extra for biking to work instead of driving .( Robbins 1998) Companies adopting such measures aimed at promoting health and well-being among their employees influence several aspects of their employees physical and psychological well-being in ways which result in improved productivity, commitment and attendance. This includes providing good quality jobs which allow employees more control, autonomy and involvement in the way their work is done (Coats et.al 2008) Recently an OEM manufacturer, FOXCONN of china supplies to companies like DELL, APPLE and Hewlett-Packard came under scrutiny for its below standard employee relations and maltreatment.Some estimates put the companys labour turnover in to 50000 a month and reports claim a drop in recruitment standards to just about anyone with an ID. (Engadget 2010) 4.0 Transformational leadership and culture Organisational Culture is defined as a set of shared values beliefs which interact with an organisations people ,structureand ststem to produce behavioural norms. Values influence attitudes and behaviour (Robbins 1998)therefore For transformational leaders to create employee wellbeing as a shared value they need to create trust between leader and employees. This is possible when the leader practice high emotional and social intelligence and honour the psychological contract between the management and employees. Leaders facilitate in creation of value for employee wellbeing and facilitate in embedding it in to the organisational culture. They achieve this by creating trust among employees towards the leader as well as between each other and develop emotional and social intelligence of employees and honouring the psychological contract. 4.1Trust trust is a characteristics of high performance teams where the relationship between members is based on integrity ,competence, consistency, loyalty and openness (Robbins 1998 ) According to Rosen (1996 ) trust is one of the major principles in leading people.it binds people together creating a strong resilient organisation. It cannot be achieved over night according to Kouzes et.al ( 1987) but takes years to learn however an instance to loose it. Idealised influence dimension of transformational leadership helps create such relationship of trust and confidence through its attribution charisma. They are thought to display certain attributes (eg.percieved power, focus on higher order ideals and values. When this happens the followers develop an emotional tie to their leader which ultimate results in the trust specified above.(Arnold 2007) Transformational leaders gain follower trust by maintaining their integrity and dedication, by being fair in their treatment of followers, and by demonstrating their faith in followers by empowering them. It has been suggested that one way that charismatic and transformational leaders can demonstrate their dedication and build follower trust is through self sacrificial behaviours.Leaders can self sacrifice by taking on a proportionately larger workload, by foregoing the trappings of power (e.g. Gandhis peasant lifestyle), or by postponing rewards, such as Chryslers Leelacocca and Apples Steve Jobs deciding to work for 1$ a yr ..(Bass et.al 2006) Transformational leaders build trust by practicing open communication between employees and leaders. mistrust comes from what people dont know as from what they do know (Robbins 1998 ).They are excellent team players ,and they lead by example, support the teams through words and actions and demonstrating loyalty as well as treating them with respect and considering their perception in terms of objectivity and fairness in decision making. They show consistency in basic values that guide their decision making and they maintain confidences and become someone who teams can rely on. 3.2Emotional intelligence Goleman (1995) describes emotional Intelligence as self-awareness, managing our emotions effectively, motivation, empathy, reading other peoples feelings accurately, social skills like team work, persuasion, leadership and managing relationships. Transformational leaders have high emotional intelligence. They properly manage emotions that drive trust, loyalty, and commitment. The leader enables People to recognize their own emotions as well as others ,differentiates those emotions to make choices for thinking and action.(Cooper et.al 1997).It is an intelligence that may be learned, developed and improved (Perkins 1994). Emotional intelligence is the ability of a person to use his awareness and sensitivity to detect, identify or understand the feelings underlying interpersonal communication and avoiding to respond on impulse and thoughtlessly, Instead to act from receptivity , authenticity ad candor.(Ryback 1998). Emotional intelligence is about influence without manipulation or abuse of authority. It is about perceiving, learning, relating, innovating, prioritizing and acting in ways that take into account and legitimize emotions, rather than relying on logic or intellect or technical analysis alone (Ryback, 1998). Transformational Leaders are highly self aware facilitating them to read ones emotions and recognize their impact while using gut feelings to guide decisions. Their social awareness enables them to sense, understand and react to others emotions while comprehending social networks. As a result of these qualities and the ability of transformational leaders to manage self inspire employees influence them and develop these qualities among them by managing conflict. This successfully results in resolved issues of workplace bullying and increase in employee satisfaction leading to higher performance. Goleman, (2010 )have shown that high levels of emotional intelligence can create climates in which information sharing, trust, healthy risk taking and learning flourish. as well as how workplace competencies based on emotional intelligence can exert greater impact on performance than do intellect or technical skills. 4.3Psychological contract When an employer distributes a performance bonus every year since it inception, employees within that particular company will expect to receive it in the coming years as well, because of the fact that every year the company distributes it. The point here is that Humans beings are very adaptable to situations .the more leaders practice employee wellbeing initiatives within the organisation the likely it will become an expectation in the psychological contract between employers and employees. Psychological contract defined by Robbins (1998) states that it is an unwritten agreement that sets out what management expects from the employee and vice versa. It sets out mutual expectations. Everyone performs different roles both at work place and society. And each role demands attitudes and behaviours consistent to that particular role. Therefore both the organisation and the employee have certain expectations of that role which could mean acceptable working conditions, clear communication and a fair days work etc for employees and for organisations demonstration of a good attitude following instructions and showing loyalty to the organisation.(Robbins 1998) However when these expectations are not met trust between the employees and employers is lost, resulting in negative effects on employee performance and satisfaction. Globalisation and work force diversity further complicates the situation. Although Members of different groups share common within their group common values, attitudes and perceptions much diversity exists within each of these categories. (Bateman et.al 2009).similarly in multi racial societies such as the United States for example values shared among Asian Americans differ from values shared among Asians living in Asia. Since values influence the attitudes and behaviours of employees attaining a common shared value among the multi ethnic groups and multinational groups within an organisation is a challenge to the transformational leaders. As each of these groups will have different expectations from employers. 4.4 Social intelligence However the transformational leaders ability to connect with individuals at a personal level enables them to build a relationship of trust and influence their behaviour and attitude to share a common value which is emotional and psychological wellbeing of employees. Many leaders are appointed because of their drive, ambition and business expertise but often they are unable to work with or get along their director colleagues, colleagues and direct reports, or with others on whom their own success depends. Building on his work on emotional intelligence, Daniel Goleman coined the phase Social Intelligence, in which he enlarges his focus to encompass our capacity to connect with one another.We are wired to connect Neuroscience has discovered that our brains very design makes it sociable, inexorably drawn into an intimate brain-to-brain linkup whenever we engage with another person. (Goleman 2010) Therefore in order to identify the attitudes , values and perceptions of people the leader needs to have social intelligence skills to connect to the individuals or initiate emotions in order to gain trust which ultimately leads to acceptance of ideologies and behaviours the leader intends to communicate which in turn becomes the norm of the organisation. 5.0 Employee wellbeing, Culture and performance Harter etal (2002 ) believes that worker quality of life and performance originates with the behavioural, cognitive , and health benefits of positive feelings and positive perceptions.according to him proponents of the well being perspective argue that the presence of positive emotional states and positive appraisals of the worker and his or her relationships within the people seek out interesting , meaningful, and challenging tasks.when demands match or slightly exceed resources, individuals experience positive emotional states (e.g. pleasure ,joy, energy) and they perceive themselves as growing , engaged, and productive .From the wellbeing perspective, a healthy workforce means the presence of positive feelings in the worker that should result in happier and more productive workers. a survey carried out by Aon Consulting on UK workers found out that more than 35 million sick days a year are taken for personal reasons rather than for a genuine illness and one in three UK workers (33 per cent ) say that the last time they took a day off from work as sick leave were addressing personal issues including looking after a family member, letting repairmen into their home, grieving a dead relative or pet, or feeling down after breaking up with a partner and they did not have anything wrong with them . 52 per cent of British say they would not feel forced to take a day as sick leave if they could just be honest and have access to flexible working hours or social days, said Peter Abelskamp, director of health and benefits EMEA, at Aon Consulting. Of course, employers should also not ignore the fact that 16 per cent of people say that more interesting work would keep them in the office (PM Online, 2010) In 2003 the Royal Mail sickness absence levels were 7 per cent (an average of 16 days per employee per year) As a result their Customer service standards were affected and incurred a daily cost of  £1m.the company had been experiencing issues of long-term absence for many years which was commonly due to musculoskeletal health. Therefore Royal Mail introduced a range of integrated measures to counter the problem such as as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Health screening à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Health clinics at 90 sites à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Fast access to occupational health services à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Access to physiotherapy à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Employee assistance programme (EAP) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Incentive scheme à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Rehabilitation centres focusing on improving back, neck and shoulder injuries à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Phased and partial return to work (RTW) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Case management four years later, it was reported that sickness absence levels had fallen to 4 per cent (10 days per employee) and saved Royal Mail almost  £230m. Up to 3,600 more staff were available to work each day as a result of these measures (Scribed,2010) 8.0 CONCLUSION In this fast changing global environment organisations are increasing needing leaders who concentrates on building relationships with their employees in order to increase productivity and meet the global demands. Emphasis on employee wellbeing has become a trend in todays companies which is seeing its benefits. However in order to produce a full impact leaders need to create wellbeing as a shared core value deep rooted in the culture of the organisation. This can be achieved only when the leader creates trust among employees as well as between him. This is only possible if the leader has high emotional and social intelligence and promotes it within employees and finally honouring the psychological contract between them. Therefore transformational leadership can bring about a change in organisational culture by creating values which will in turn influence the attitude and behaviour of the employees in this case employee wellbeing as a core value in the organisational culture.