Loreal Company Background

Company Background Fresh out of a French chemical engineering school, young entrepreneur Eugene Schueller developed a hair dye with hues hairdressers throughout Paris couldn’t resist. The one-product venture he launched in 1909 has since grown into the world’s largest cosmetics company: L’Oreal. L’Oreal began its global expansion during the second half of the 20th Century, and now offers hair care, hair color, skin care, makeup, and fragrances in 130 countries. Its 23 brands include pharmacy staples L’Oreal, Garnier, and Maybelline, as well as upscale brands Yves Saint Laurent, Redken, and the Kiehl’s skin care line. L’Oreal recently expanded its produce suite by acquiring the dermatological beauty care brand Skinceuticals in 2005, and retail store The Body Shop the following year. Today, the company employs more than 65,000 people in eight departments: operations, finance, information systems and technology, marketing, business and sales, communication, human resources, as well as research and development. More than 2,900 specialists work in L’Oreal’s R&D department, which studies skin and hair and uses its findings to develop safer and more effective products to enhance beauty and protect skin. The R&D specialists working in the company’s 18 research centers have backgrounds in 30 fields, including chemistry, biology, medicine, physics, physical chemistry, and toxicology. L'Oreal develops more than 3,000 new formulas per year. L’Oreal’s commitment to diversity, integrity, responsibility and respect for people and the environment earned it a place on Ethisphere Magazine’s rankings of the world’s most ethical companies in 2007. Its products reflect a commitment to serving the needs of diverse populations, including men and African Americans. In 2001, the company launched Mizani, a hair care brand developed specifically for unique ethnic hair types. For corporate social responsibility, the company has enacted several community and environmental programs, from providing employment opportunities to disabled students in Taiwan to reducing water and energy usage at factories around the world to creating an HIV/AIDS support and education program for employees in South Africa.

Lord of The Flies Web Quest

Tibia Insulaechorab How the conch's used & its significance o The leader will be chosen every Sunday so that everyone will be able to experience how to be a leader o There will be a conch ceremony while changing the group leader. The leader will wear the conch with its chain all week long. o The conch will be used by the leader to gather everyone, to quieten the group and to let somebody speak. o The conch symbolizes leadership and authority. The person who has it is different from the others. The leader with his conch has to organize all the stuff related to the island and people. MAP OF THE ISLAND Ways to get food & water * A group of 3 or 4 people will be fishing three times a week. The fisher group will be changed every week after the conch ceremony so that just one group of people won't be fed up with fishing during the life on island. Also, fishing group will be responsible for getting other types of seafood. * Water will be kept in holes which are covered with leaves and rocks -so that the water won't be absorbed- Purification tablets may be used . * The food will be cooked on fire made by using a magnifying glass. * Other kinds of food will be fruits and vegetables.(if possible) The fisher group will be responsible for hunting for the rest of the days (3-4 days per a week) Tools needed to build shelters A poncho Rope Stakes Knife The rules and rights of everyone & The consequences for breaking the rules * Everyone has to keep in mind that the person who doesn't respect somebody is not respected. * Whatever the leader says must be done * Everybody must do some work. All the members of the island has to participate in the life om island * If someone breaks one of the rules, he/she will be expelled from the group. So she/he has to survive on her/his own. * Signal fire must be kept burning all the time. * The person who looks after the fire must observe what goes around the island.

Archimedes’ Autobiobraphy

This paper will document the autobiography of Archimedes of Syracuse, who has been considered a pioneer through inventing mathematical formulas. â€Å"Archimedes of Syracuse† Archimedes was born to Phidias, a mathematician and an astronomer in 287 BC in Syracuse, a city in Sicily (Zannos, 2005). There is no clear information about his early life and his family, but some people claim that his nobility was of Syracuse and that he was related to the King of Syracuse, Hiero II. During this period, Syracuse was considered a centre of commercial activities and as a young person growing in this busy city Archimedes developed an interest in solving complex mathematical problems facing the people of Sicily (Anderson, 2009). After acquiring much information from the local schools he attended in Syracuse, he travelled to Egypt for further learning in Alexandria University. Upon completion of his education, Archimedes travelled back to Syracuse where he lived a life of innovative thinking and solving problems through critical thinking as well as application of mathematical formulas (Geymonat, 2010). King Hiero II was impressed by Archimedes’ inventions which o ffered solutions to various challenges (Neal, 2011). One of Archimedes’s inventions that impressed King Hiero II was Archimedes’ screw that enabled the King to empty water from a hull of his ship. Archimedes was also asked by the king to find out how he could determine the amount of gold on his crown without destroying it. Archimedes addressed this by immersing it in water and determining the volume of the water it displaced, then determining the weight of the crown, thus its density (Dijksterhuis, 2009). This information enabled him to determine the purity of the crown. Apart from his innovations, Archimedes participated in the defense of Sicily from the Romans. Sicily was considered a centre of political and geological activities, as an Island located between Carthage and Rome, Sicily was faced by the challenge of ally issues. That is, the King did not know whether to form an ally with either Rome or Carthage: This is because, forming an ally with i.e. Rome, could have led to enmity between Sicily and Carthage (Gow, 2005). Archimedes was given the responsibility of constructing walls to protect the city from Carthaginian or Roman attacks. He also developed war machines that could be used during attacks. In geometry, Archimedes contributed significantly towards the development of the basic principles of pivot as well as pulley system. He also contributed significantly towards the understanding of the principle of buoyancy, defined as the power of liquid to exert an upward force on an object placed in it (Paipetis, 2010). Archimedes died when Rome at tacked Syracuse, he was attacked by an enraged soldier, who had demanded that he accompany him to King Marcellus’ tent (Jaeger, 2008). In conclusion, Archimedes had a significant contribution to in mathematics and physics. His ideas regarding the calculation of density of objects immersed in water as well as the idea of buoyancy are currently used in various learning systems and in practical circumstances. Archimedes can also be considered a patriot owing to the fact that he defended his nation fearlessly from the cruel Roman Soldiers, an act that led to his death at 75 years (Archimedes, Netz Eutocius, 2004). Bibliography Archimedes., Netz, R. and Eutocius, (2004). The works of Archimedes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Dijksterhuis, E. (2009). Archimedes. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. Netz, R. and Noel, W. (2007). The Archimedes Codex. Philadelphia, PA: Da Capo Press. Zannos, S. (2005). The life and times of Archimedes. Hockessin, Del.: Mitchell Lane.Geymonat, M. (2010). The Great Archimedes. Waco, Tex.: Baylor University Press. Anderson, M. (2009). Archimedes of Syracuse: The chest of ideas : A historical novel. Faifield, Iowa: 1st World Publishing. Gow, M. (2005). Archimedes: Mathematical Genius of the Ancient World. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow. Paipetis, S. (2010). Archimedes’ Contribution in Physics and Mathematics. Dordrecht: Springer. Neal, C. (2011). Archimedes. New York: McGrawHill. Jaeger, M. (2008). Archimedes and the Roman imagination. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. Archimedes’ Autobiobraphy This paper will document the autobiography of Archimedes of Syracuse, who has been considered a pioneer through inventing mathematical formulas. â€Å"Archimedes of Syracuse† Archimedes was born to Phidias, a mathematician and an astronomer in 287 BC in Syracuse, a city in Sicily (Zannos, 2005). There is no clear information about his early life and his family, but some people claim that his nobility was of Syracuse and that he was related to the King of Syracuse, Hiero II. During this period, Syracuse was considered a centre of commercial activities and as a young person growing in this busy city Archimedes developed an interest in solving complex mathematical problems facing the people of Sicily (Anderson, 2009). After acquiring much information from the local schools he attended in Syracuse, he travelled to Egypt for further learning in Alexandria University. Upon completion of his education, Archimedes travelled back to Syracuse where he lived a life of innovative thinking and solving problems through critical thinking as well as application of mathematical formulas (Geymonat, 2010). King Hiero II was impressed by Archimedes’ inventions which o ffered solutions to various challenges (Neal, 2011). One of Archimedes’s inventions that impressed King Hiero II was Archimedes’ screw that enabled the King to empty water from a hull of his ship. Archimedes was also asked by the king to find out how he could determine the amount of gold on his crown without destroying it. Archimedes addressed this by immersing it in water and determining the volume of the water it displaced, then determining the weight of the crown, thus its density (Dijksterhuis, 2009). This information enabled him to determine the purity of the crown. Apart from his innovations, Archimedes participated in the defense of Sicily from the Romans. Sicily was considered a centre of political and geological activities, as an Island located between Carthage and Rome, Sicily was faced by the challenge of ally issues. That is, the King did not know whether to form an ally with either Rome or Carthage: This is because, forming an ally with i.e. Rome, could have led to enmity between Sicily and Carthage (Gow, 2005). Archimedes was given the responsibility of constructing walls to protect the city from Carthaginian or Roman attacks. He also developed war machines that could be used during attacks. In geometry, Archimedes contributed significantly towards the development of the basic principles of pivot as well as pulley system. He also contributed significantly towards the understanding of the principle of buoyancy, defined as the power of liquid to exert an upward force on an object placed in it (Paipetis, 2010). Archimedes died when Rome at tacked Syracuse, he was attacked by an enraged soldier, who had demanded that he accompany him to King Marcellus’ tent (Jaeger, 2008). In conclusion, Archimedes had a significant contribution to in mathematics and physics. His ideas regarding the calculation of density of objects immersed in water as well as the idea of buoyancy are currently used in various learning systems and in practical circumstances. Archimedes can also be considered a patriot owing to the fact that he defended his nation fearlessly from the cruel Roman Soldiers, an act that led to his death at 75 years (Archimedes, Netz Eutocius, 2004). Bibliography Archimedes., Netz, R. and Eutocius, (2004). The works of Archimedes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Dijksterhuis, E. (2009). Archimedes. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. Netz, R. and Noel, W. (2007). The Archimedes Codex. Philadelphia, PA: Da Capo Press. Zannos, S. (2005). The life and times of Archimedes. Hockessin, Del.: Mitchell Lane.Geymonat, M. (2010). The Great Archimedes. Waco, Tex.: Baylor University Press. Anderson, M. (2009). Archimedes of Syracuse: The chest of ideas : A historical novel. Faifield, Iowa: 1st World Publishing. Gow, M. (2005). Archimedes: Mathematical Genius of the Ancient World. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow. Paipetis, S. (2010). Archimedes’ Contribution in Physics and Mathematics. Dordrecht: Springer. Neal, C. (2011). Archimedes. New York: McGrawHill. Jaeger, M. (2008). Archimedes and the Roman imagination. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.

Person-centred counselling Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Person-centred counselling - Essay Example   One of the most important principles of person-centred counselling is the presentation of the client as the expert (Arnason 2001, 299).   It aims to help the client to explore, express, and understand his own emotions.   It is believed that the client is able to understand what he feels as well as why he feels so.   Person-centred approach is based on the technologies of the self – the ones that permit the individual to effect by their own means or with the help of the other a certain number of operations in their own bodies, souls, thoughts and way of being.   This type of counselling helps individuals to transform themselves in order to become happy, pure, wise and perfect.     It should be added that person-centred approach to counselling places the great value on self-reliance and self-respect, individual initiative and responsibility (Arnason 2001, 299).   Similar to other types of counselling, person-centred approach requires that dialogues between the client and counsellor should be varied in pace and style within sessions.   There may be long periods of silences as well as lots of story telling from the client (Schapira 2000, 54).   In any case, the counsellors give the clients the opportunity to tell about their troubles and worried without any pressure.   Such relations help to establish the mutual trust and encourage the client to speak openly and voluntary.     Carl Rogers, as the founder of person-centred approach, felt no need to devise theories – trying to fit to the theory meant for him.... In any case, the counsellors give the clients the opportunity to tell about their troubles and worried without any pressure. Such relations help to establish the mutual trust and encourage the client to speak openly and voluntary. Carl Rogers, as the founder of person-centred approach, felt no need to devise theories - trying to fit to the theory meant for him that the experiences and perceptions of the client were ignored (Mytton 1999, 66). Person-centred therapy is the humanistic approach and instead of the focusing on the childhood origins of the client's problems, it is focused on the present experiences. Most of the underlining concepts of person-centred approach are the result of Rogers' childhood experiences: he was brought up to believe that human nature was corrupt and worthless. From this pessimistic view of the world, he has managed to develop the positive theory of personality. Similar to the plants who have the innate tendency to grow from the seed to their full potential, person-centred approach in relation to humans calls this approach the actualizing tendency. Actualizing tendency is the drive which continues throughout the life as humans move towards the fulfilment of all that is possible for them to achieve. Actualization for humans is more than mere physical growth and survival, it includes the reduction and satisfaction of psychological needs, the desire for live and safety, the drive to learn and be creative. Moreover, Rogers believed that actualizing tendency was the only motive needed to account for all human behaviour. The human world consists of memories, sensations, perceptions and meanings that are available to consciousness - internal frame

Consumer Behaviour towards CO2 emissions from aircrafts Essay

Consumer Behaviour towards CO2 emissions from aircrafts - Essay Example But, studies stressing on the need to bring about social transformation as a likely and effective tool to combat the ongoing global environmental crisis, are rare. There is a global consensus on the measures that need to be implemented in order to achieve a substantial reduction in carbon emissions. Some of these measures point to increasing the use of environmentally friendly products which have lower carbon foot prints. If such a reduction is to be achieved, it would call for a major change in our lifestyles. This paper on Consumer behavior towards CO2 emissions from aircrafts seeks to stress on this very aspect and investigate and analyze the level and extent of awareness of UK consumers in relation to eco friendly modes of transport. Transportation plays a fundamental role in accelerating a countrys economic development; however, the transportation sector must adhere to the ethical aspects of their businesses by adopting and implementing policies that avert global environmental threats. The aviation industry alone, accounts for a 3% of carbon emissions. Considering the spurt in public spending on transport, particularly aviation, this percentage could rise significantly posing a major threat to the global environment. A fundamental goal of the firms operating in this industry, thus, must be to strive to reduce carbon emissions and seek greener and sustainable options. Currently, there has been a major transformation in consumer attitudes in the UK towards sustainable products and services and are increasingly demanding greener and eco friendly products. The market for eco friendly products has not only emerged but has come to dominate the industry over time. Surveys and researches conducted in this behalf furthe r substantiate this fact. The spurt in globalization has increased the importance of mobility but at the same time,

Explore the main reasons for political behavior in organizations Essay

Explore the main reasons for political behavior in organizations - Essay Example Imbalance between personal ambition of employees and interest of the organization. A sense of competition among employees whereby one employee tends to create a better impression on the management and presents are dark image of the others Is politics necessarily a negative force Politics play a central role in all organizations, but questions are now increasingly being raised on its effects on an organization. It is a common practice to paint organizational politics in black but a growing body of evidence suggests that managing it can have extremely powerful positive effects (Butcher and Clarke 2006) There are several real time examples where politics has proved to be helpful for the organization A recent report asserts that 58% managers say 'they have experienced the constructive use of office politicc and 61% say they have personally engaged in political behaviour which resulted in a positive outcome for their organisation'. (Park R. The Power of Constructive Politics) References Butcher D and Clarke M Using Politics in Organisations ,Smart Management Coady, C "Politics and the Problem of Dirty Hands," in A Companion to Ethics, ed. P. Singer (Oxford: Blackwell, 1991), p. 373. For references to the extensive literature see Coady's article and M. Stocker, Plural and Conflicting Values (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990) pp. 9-10. Hoch C What planners do : power, politics, and persuasion Chicago, Ill. : Planners Press : American Planning Association, 1994. www.roffeypark.com/research Summary "32% of managers believe it simply isn't possible to use office politics constructively because human nature is so appallingly selfish that people will always guard their... The sources of power (people at higher position referred to as legitimate power, groups in position to help, people in position to punish and reward referred to as coercive and reward power respectively) A recent report asserts that 58% managers say 'they have experienced the constructive use of office politicc and 61% say they have personally engaged in political behaviour which resulted in a positive outcome for their organisation'. (Park R. The Power of Constructive Politics) Coady, C "Politics and the Problem of Dirty Hands," in A Companion to Ethics, ed. P. Singer (Oxford: Blackwell, 1991), p. 373. For references to the extensive literature see Coady's article and M. Stocker, Plural and Conflicting Values (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990) pp. 9-10. "32% of managers believe it simply isn't possible to use office politics constructively because human nature is so appallingly selfish that people will always guard their turf and abuse their role power" Roffey Park, 2006 Politics at the organizational level is similar but not the same as world or national politics. The former is best defined as the use of power and influence to gain personal ends. In some cases this is done with a complete disregard for the employer or the organization.

Starting a Car Wash in Nigeria Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Starting a Car Wash in Nigeria - Essay Example â€Å"Car ownership shot up in the oil-boom of Nigeria’s middle-income group from the mid-seventies. In the midst of a buoyant oil economy, the eighties saw the resurgence in the use of seconds. Today, there are more cars than parking space available. The growth of automobiles is so conspicuous that any business related to this industry is high on every businessman’s agenda.† (O’seun Ogunseitan, Wednesday is an odd day in Lagos, www.newint.org) .2.0  Locationâ€Å"Jigawa State, with its capital at Dutse, is seen as a potential business centre for car wash. The state offers a very conducive environment for potential investors. The local administration has, with the view to encourage investment put for ward a package of incentives to investors, including free supply of infrastructure, preferential approval of certificates of occupancy in industrial layouts, tax relief and other incentives (Jigawa State, 1998)† (Investment Opportunities, OnlineNigeri a, www.onlinenigeria.com). 3.0  Scope   Factors that determine the success of any business, marketing and selling, keeping costs under control, hiring quality employees, and location need to be considered. Dutse is an ideal destination for car wash business (see ‘Location’). Break-even would be at the end of three and half years or 42 months.(Jigawa State, 1998)... 4. Add benefits that will attract more customers, such as free service check, or bonus points on every car wash, home delivery and pickup, complimentary tickets, and so on. The following Profit and Loss Statement is based on the following: (Note: The figures projected are assumed and not to be recorded). Number of working days is 25 a month. 1. Wash only is calculated at the rate of $6.00 for 25 cars a day. 2. Wash and Vacuum is at the rate of $8.00 for 20 cars a day. 3. Merchandise Sales consists of greens, and refreshments. 4. Sponges calculated at $0.75 each at 20 a day. 5. Detergent at $1.50 a bottle numbering 10 a day. 6. Window cleaner at $1.00 at 10 a day. 7. Paper rolls at $0.50 for an 80-roll sheet at 20 a day. 8. Salaries calculated at $3.00 an hour for 6 workers a day. 9. Rent at $1000.00 a month. 10. Telephone and electricity is calculated at $100.00 a month. (Coutesy: Miller, wside.k12.il.us).5 Profit & Loss Statement: August 2003 through July 2006 Aug- Jul 04 Sep- Jul 05 TOTAL Income/Expense Income Wash Only 45,000.00 90,000.00 135,000.00 Wash & Vacuum 48,000.00 72,000.00 120,000.00 Merchandise Sales 20,000.00 20,000.00 40,000.00 Revenue Miscellaneous Income (Tax Relief) 5,000.00 5,000.00 2,000.00 Total Revenue 1,000.00 1,000.00 2,000.00 Total Income 118,000.00 187,000.00 305,000.00 Expense Sponges 4,500.00 10,000.00 14,500.00 Detergent (24-ounce bottle) 4,500.00 10,000.00 14,500.00 Window cleaner (32-ounce) 3,000.00 10,000.00 13,000.00 Paper-roll towels (80-sheet roll) 6,000.00 6,000.00 12,000.00 Poster

Discovery and Meaningful Learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Discovery and Meaningful Learning - Essay Example The sessions of discovery learning incorporate three key ideas including problem solving, learner management, integrating and connecting (Harari & Legge, 2000, p. 20). Problem solving motivates learners to come up with solutions by generalizing knowledge and pull information together. Learner management allows participants, in small teams, or alone to learn at their own pace in their own ways. Integrating and connecting encourage new knowledge integration into the existing knowledge base of the learner, which helps in connecting to the real world. Meaningful Learning According to Harari and Legge (2000), meaningful learning means that learned knowledge, for instance, a fact becomes fully understood by a person and the person knows how the fact relates to the stored facts in the brain. It is expedient to contrast meaningful learning and rote learning, which is much less desirable, for us to understand the concept. Rote learning involves memorizing something with no full understanding, and one does not know how the relationship between the new information and the stored knowledge. For instance, let us say we learn five facts in a course during a term or a semester through rote learning. The five facts learned have a relationship in real life, but they are stored in memory as separate items. The brain stores the facts as distinct unrelated information that can be recalled individually when a student learns them through rote learning. When the student recalls one of the five facts, he, or she does not recall the other four facts at that moment. This means that when the student thinks of fact A, the thought does not lead him/her to think of fact B-E. We can illustrate this as follows. The facts learned seem to have no relationship between them at all, yet close examination reveals a relationship of the facts. Meaningful learning contrasts with rote learning in that what a student learns, even if they are different facts in a course, he/she can relate as the facts ha ve a relational manner in the storage memory. The brain stores the facts together since they have relationship (Harari & Legge, 2000, p. 37). When the student recalls one of the facts, he or she will also recall the other facts at the same time, or a short time afterwards. This means that recalling fact E, triggers the memory for the other facts, B and D, which in turn leads to the recalling of fact A and C. We refer to this phenomenon as spread of activation. This is what entails meaningful learning. A student who learns by meaningful learning can solve problems in an easier way than the one who learns by rote learning. Thus, we find the value of meaningful learning; a way of learning that relates facts helping one to solve problems related rather than treating problems differently, which have a relationship. The figure below shows how meaningful learning happens. Discovery learning makes sure that the brains of the learners become engaged during all learning times. Thus, this lear ning method, although it accelerates the process of education, it leads to higher retention levels than traditional approaches of learning. There are certain benefits of discovery learning including condensed training

Human resource Research paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Human resource - Research Paper Example But to most modern organizations, the urge and need to ensure effectiveness and efficiency in human resource management remains a very crucial challenge. Because of this, even though there is the practice of human resource management, this is not done in a very well regulated and coordinated manner that meets the growth and developmental aspiration of the organizations (Pattanayak, 2009). Through various forms of research conducted, the researcher has come to realize that in modern day administration and management of organizations, one element that plays a very key role is the use of information systems. Generally, technology has come to have such an important place in organizational management that the elimination of information systems in the management of organizations means that organizations will be stagnated in their growth and development agenda, just as the absence of an effective and efficient human resource management would lead to. In this research paper therefore, the tw o phenomena of human resource management and information systems are combined into a term that is rapidly gaining grounds in organizational management, which human resource information system. ... ed for them to wholly go about their traditional human resource management roles such as benefit, payroll, and labor productivity management and also undertake various tasks with information technology becomes very challenging, expensive and time consuming. Pattanayak, (2009) however notes that there cannot be an easy way out with the two options, which are human resource management and information technology. To compliment the two independent roles therefore, human resource information system is introduced as a bridging gap that â€Å"seeks to merge the activities associated with human resource management (HRM) and information technology (IT) into one common database through the use of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software† (Business Dictionary, 2013). In a much generalized sense therefore, one may view human resource information system as the role of information technology in human resource management. From a more technical viewpoint however, human resource information system goes beyond the mere use of computers and the internet to make the roles of human resource management easier. Human resource information system actually is an independent phenomenon on its own that seeks not just to use information technology in human resource management but make the combined use of information technology and human resource management easier and accessible. For all organizations who would undertake very proactive research and development to identify the human resource information system needs that they are faced with, the advantage is that they would have an effective and efficient human resource management in place. This is because Stewart (2009) has observed that the merger between human resource management and information technology that is done bring about a less

Management of food quality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Management of food quality - Essay Example The integrated approach to food safety as adopted by the European Union aims at ensuring that the high levels of food quality are assured and that they are coherently done through measures that are farm-to-table like. This entails adequate monitoring and ensuring efficient functionality of its internal market. To be able to implement this approach, the governing body of the EU has had to develop effective health measures and legislations. Consequently, effective food safety control systems have had to be assured and evaluated to ensure their compliance with the set standards (TRIENEKENS & ZUURBIER, 2008). The safety of the food system is also ensured by independently carrying out a risk assessment different from the risk management. Keeping the quality and safety of food throughout the food chain requires both operating procedures to ensure the wholesomeness of food and monitoring procedures to ensure operations are carried out as intended. The food safety system is usually based on the principle that protection needs to be assured during the course of the food chain if the health of customers is to be sheltered. Primarily, quality management systems are designed to ensure compliance with third party and retailer standards (VOS & WENDLER, 2006). Food safety management systems principally control the specific food safety hazards associated with the product and ensure compliance with food safety legislation. Finally, the quality and safety of food depends on the efforts of everybody involved in the complex chain of agriculture production, processing, transport, food production and consumption. As the EU and the World Health Organization (WHO) put it succinctly - food safety is a shared responsibility from farm to fork. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) was established in the year 2002. It is an independent body that works in close cooperation with various scientific agencies and institutions in EU

Hume and Kant on Free

Hume and Kant on Free Will Essay Abstract This paper is an attempt to show how Kant’s ideas concerning practical and transcendental freedom of the will was a significant correction to the parallel theories of Hume. It starts out by clarifying Hume’s critique of free will, especially as it appears in An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding. It draws the conclusion that Hume’s philosophy is espousing skepticism, and that Kant’s effort is to overcome this skepticism and restore trust in reason. The philosophy of Kant is outlined in order to make the last point. It is generally agreed that Kant supplied the definitive stamp to philosophy that ushered in the modern age. Hume, though enormously influential in his time, and a favorite in the French salons of philosophy, fell into disrepute in the Victorian era, and only since has become a subject of restored interest. Yet Hume is the philosopher cited by Kant as having stirred him from his â€Å"dogmatic slumbers’. He had espoused a philosophy of empirical skepticism, so thorough and devastating in its scope that it became impossible for Kant to remain in his settled certainties of Newtonian science. It was the spur that carried him on to compose the Critique of Pure Reason (1781), where reason is restored, and man is once more vindicated as a rational being. Just because he refuted and answered Hume’s skepticism does not imply that the latter philosophy is nullified. We must keep this in mind, that Hume’s skepticism is completely valid as far as sense experience is concerned, and Kant does not refute any part of this philosophy. What he does is posit a further dimension to human understanding, specifically, the synthetic a priori faculty of the mind, the existence of which Hume did not suspect. Only after this addition is the primacy of reason restored. So we cannot say that Kant has destroyed Hume’s philosophy, rather he has added to it. Central to Hume’s skepticism is his critique of â€Å"cause and effect†, which is spelled out to its most profound depths in chapter VII of the An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding (1748). The preliminary task is to outline the copy principle. The premise to this is that all knowledge begins from sense experience. Among such we are able to distinguish between primary and secondary sensations. The primary sensations are extension, motion, inertia etc, which are indeed the concepts that physics tackles. Color, taste, smell etc are said to be secondary sensations, composed or derived from the primary ones. The copy principle says that the primary sensations, though not delivering complete information from the material object – which is more poignantly described as â€Å"the object in itself – nevertheless is a faithful copy of it. This is why primary sensations are distinct and forceful presences in our mind. Secondary sensations are in turn copies of the original copy, and due to this derivative nature they lose distinctness to us. We will examine the copy principle of Hume in a moment. For the time being we accept it as such and consider the consequences. For Hume’s purposes, it has allowed him to refer to objects and their motions with confidence, and not to be held back by the validity of these concepts. For without the principle we don’t know as yet that objects are objects, and motion is motion, and we would have had to deal with a chaos of sense experience, and nothing meaningful to refer to it against (1993, p. 12). So now, with the copy principle of Hume as foundation, we proceed to talk about objects in motion. Next, we observe interdependence between objects, carried out in space and time. We â€Å"know† that motion in one object is â€Å"cause† to motion in another. A billiard ball in motion strikes another, and after impact the second acquires a velocity too, and the faculty of our understanding tells us, without the least inkling of doubt, that the impact imparted by the first ball is the cause of the second ball gaining motion. This understanding is so refined that we can, with a little help from Newton’s mechanics, predict the exact trajectory of the second ball by analyzing the trajectory of the first. We know it, but how do we know it? This is the crucial question for Hume. For if we do not have the answer we are left with skepticism. After impact with the first ball the second could have taken any one of an infinite number of trajectories. But it takes only one, and indeed we expect it to take only that one. A physicist may come along and try to convince us that it could not have taken any other trajectory because the laws of motion stipulates that, with the initial conditions given, the path it takes is the only possible one. But this is not an answer to the observer of the billiard ball, because he doesn’t care what the laws of physics are. If nature had followed another mathematical law then another outcome would have been just as valid. The observer could then have framed his conundrum differently: Of the infinite possible mathematical laws why just that one? There is nothing in the inner logic of the situation that dictates that the first ball should produce exactly the prescribed trajectory in the second. Hume said this about the experimental set-up, that we may try an experiment ten times, and may arrive at the exact same result ten times. But this does not prove that the specific outcome is inevitable. Not even if we confirmed the outcome a million times, because we would still only have a statistical probability and not a proof. Hume’s conclusion is that there is no rational link between cause and effect. Yet we expect effect to follow cause, immediately and irrevocably. If this is so then, explains Hume, it is a feeling transmitted to us by custom. What exactly he means by custom is left vague. He could not have meant anything other than â€Å"observing over and over again†, even though this fails to take into account new experience. He himself supplies a famous counterexample in the Enquiry. Some one who has experienced all the shades of blue, except for a tiny strip of the spectrum, is expected to report a gap when looking at the full spectrum of blue. But the fact is that he does not observe a gap at all, and recognizes at once the full spectrum of blue, even though he is experiencing a particular shade on blue for the first time. The recognition was instantaneous, and the eye did require â€Å"accustoming† beforehand. This readily disposes the theory of â€Å"custom†. Hume, however, continues to insist that our convictions regarding cause and effect can have no other source than custom. That the inference to custom is a vague one is made clear when he comes to consider free will. The very act of consciousness, he says, testifies to the existence of free will. But coming to reflect on how it is possible that we are able to willingly set our limbs into motion, and to move and external object thereby, it appears nothing less than miraculous. The mystery in nothing less than how one immaterial body imparts momentum to another: For first: Is there any principle in all nature more mysterious than the union of soul with body; by which a supposed spiritual substance acquires such an influence over a material one, that the most refined thought is able to actuate the grossest matter? (Hume, 1993, p. 43) The upshot is that we cannot explain free will, just as surely as we cannot explain cause and effect. ‘Custom’ was hesitantly introduced to explain cause and effect, and the same comes to the rescue of free will. As constant observers of nature we come to expect an effect to always follow a cause, and the same analysis ought to be applied to the orbit of human will. In all times and in all places humans have shown a constancy in their day to day affairs, which points to a constancy in human nature. The speculation concerning the scope of free will is overdone by the philosophers, maintains Hume. The exercise of free will, when looked at through the vista of human history, does not display divergence as much as it displays constancy. Hume broaches on the distinction between freedom and necessity to make this point clear. Inanimate objects convey to us most clearly the quality of freedom. We may describe an inanimate object as indifferent to the rest of the material universe, and in that sense free. But this freedom also entails necessity. The object is subject to the necessary laws of causation, and indeed is bound entirely by them. This is the relationship that binds cause and effect to inanimate objects, and is a relationship that is composed of both freedom and necessity. Hume transposes the same analysis to the relationship between human beings and free will. The will is indeed free, but being so implies that it conforms to human nature. He proposes the following definition: By liberty, then, we can only mean a power of acting or not acting, according to the determinations of the will; this is, if we choose to remain at rest, we may; if we choose to move, we also may. (1993, p. 63) The notion of free will advanced here bears a crucial difference to the popular one, and begs to be spelt out. What Hume describes as free will is not a choice between course ‘A’ and ‘B’. Rather the choice is between ‘A’ and ‘not A’, the latter implying stagnation, not an alternative course. This is the entire extent of our free will. We choose either to move forward, or else to stand still. This is what Hume would describe as freedom to act. Free will, however, is in complete accordance with human nature, and therefore follows the laws of necessity, just as everything else in contingent reality. Free will urges us to act â€Å"freely†. With freedom to act we may respond to this urge, or we may desist. In the final analysis our understanding of free will hinges on custom, in the same way as does our understanding of cause and effect. The past is guide to the future in the probabilistic sense. Beyond probabilities we have no understanding of either, contends Hume. In order to enforce this skepticism he proceeds to dismantle the Cartesian theories that pretended to explain mind and matter interaction, especially the theory of occasionalism advanced by Father Nicholas Malebranche. In this theory God is made both motivator and executor of every act or incident that seems to be â€Å"cause†, while the circumstances which we call a cause are only occasions for God to act in such a manner. Hume complained that this not only made God a slave to his own creation, but it also eradicated free will, making everything â€Å"full of God† (1993, p. 47). By disposing summarily the Cartesian explanations of cause and effect Hume makes his skepticism complete. Kant overcomes this skepticism by revising the premise of Hume. The correction is made most forcefully in the opening to the Critique: Although all our knowledge begins with experience, it does not follow that it arises entirely from experience.   For it is quite possible that our empirical knowledge is a compound of that which we receive through impressions and that which our own faculty of knowing (incited by impressions) supplies from itself†¦ (1999, p. 1) To be fair to Hume, he does consider this possibility, and ponders whether there is a blueprint in the mind where all ‘causes’ and all ‘effects’ can be referred back. (1993, p. 44). But he dismisses this idea when he realizes that a static blueprint can never account for the dynamic reality. However, the faculty that Kant is suggesting is not static, rather dynamic and creative, and here lies the crucial difference. In the technical terms of Kant it is the synthetic a priori faculty of the mind. This is distinguished from the analytic a priori faculty, such as logic. The rules of logic are extant in the mind (a priori), but form a self-consistent system (analytical), and therefore do not depend on sense experience. On the first instance it seems impossible that the mind can have a faculty that is synthetic a priori, where synthetic implies that it is creative. It entails that order is created out of the chaos of sense experience, and order that was not there before. But Kant also provides proof that the mind is capable of synthesis. Mathematical propositions are synthetic a priori, he contended. The proposition â€Å"3 + 5 = 8† may sound like self-consistent logic, but it is not really so. â€Å"8† is a completely new concept, and is not contained in either â€Å"3†, â€Å"5† or â€Å"+†. If we know that â€Å"3 + 5 = 8†, it is due to a synthetic a priori faculty in the mind. As Kant relates in the Prolegomena, when he realized that mathematical propositions are indeed synthetic a priori, it led him to ponder on what other such concepts the mind uses to facilitate understanding, and it appeared to him, in due course, that â€Å"cause and effect† was a concept of understanding that derives from the same faculty. He does not at all concern himself with material reality as a â€Å"thing in itself†, that which the materialist philosophers were after in order to provide a foundation to Newtonian science. Like Hume he maintains throughout that an absolute material reality is beyond knowledge, and to speculate on its existence was futile. We only need to consider what we perceive and what we do. He also shows that Hume falters at exactly those points where he cannot dismiss material existence in itself. The copy principle is slavish to a material object in itself. The object does not deliver copies to our mind; rather the mind provides the concepts of space in which we are able to conjure up material objects from sensory data. Both â€Å"space† and â€Å"time† are pure concepts of the mind, contends Kant, and like â€Å"cause and effect† are the tools by which we come to understand contingent reality (Prolegomena, 2005, p. 26). As soon as it is made out that we are the responsible architects of our own reality, and are not passive bystanders to an absolute material reality beyond our control, we suddenly discover ourselves as moral beings. Therefore the subsequent direction of Kant’s philosophy, after the metaphysics of understanding has been established, is towards a metaphysics of morals. And so emerges the crucial distinction that Kant makes between practical and transcendental freedom. To say that we have practical freedom implies we are able to understand the world, and by doing so we direct the will accordingly. We will do so of course for practical purposes – survival, utility, convenience, happiness etc. this would seem to cover the entire orbit of freedom. But Kant went on to demonstrate, in his Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals (1785), that such freedom is not actually freedom at all, and indeed is a binding. Thus far Kant is in concord with Hume. Now, the metaphysics of understanding, as spelt out in the Critique, is not the entire picture. The synthetic a priori faculty of the mind fashions understanding out of sensory experience. But such understanding does not lead to truth. As pure concepts of understanding space and time are both necessarily infinite. But because they emanate from the finite mind they are also finite. So in their very make-up space and time lead to contradictions. The same end must necessarily meet anything that takes place within space and time. So that matter is both infinitely divisible and also made up of concrete building blocks. As another example, we have free will, but at the same time everything is caused, so we don’t have free will. Such examples are put forward by Kant as pairs of â€Å"antinomies†. According to our understanding both consequences are valid, and yet they mutually contradict each other. All practical reasoning necessarily leads to pairs of antinomies. This must be so, because we reason by means of subject and predicate, where the subject is the cause of the predicate. But this subject is in turn predicate to another subject, and so on in an infinite chain of causation. If there was an ultimate subject at the beginning of this chain, we could have claimed to have discovered the final cause, and thereby have at hand a pronouncement of truth. But in contingent reality there is no such final cause. So whenever we try to make pronouncements of truth we must face contradiction. We cannot say that practical reason is false for this reason. Life is ruled by contingencies, and practical reason is to explain the contingent, or to facilitate such understanding. Absolute truth lies beyond all contingencies, and this is ruled by â€Å"pure† reason, explains Kant. It is not within the grasp of the human mind, yet it is the underpinning of the mind, and is the source of all innate faculties. The same analysis applies to practical freedom, which is but the corollary to practical reason. With practical freedom we choose our course according to practical reason, i.e. we are motivated by self-serving motives – happiness, honor, respectability, and so on. But in doing so we bind ourselves to those endless chains of contingencies, so that we are not really free. We chase material acquisition in order to be happy, and yet it always eludes us. The definition of freedom is to escape all contingencies, and yet by the application of practical reason we are mired more and more into contingent reality. Therefore we are not free. This is indeed a contradiction, one which Hume does not pay heed to. The very act of consciousness tells us that we are free, that out will is free. If practical reason does not embody this freedom, then surely pure reason must do so. By the same token, we are in possession of a transcendental freedom, which is a path that overcomes all contingencies, and is dictated by pure reason. Kant describes this path as the moral one. We recognize and follow this path from a sense of duty. To clarify what it is, duty is done for its own sake. There is no material motive whatsoever attached to it. Not for any particular good, it is done for the universal good. It is a categorical imperative, meaning that the very make-up of our being, or pure reason, dictates that we follow it. As an aid to identifying one’s duty Kant devised the following wording for the categorical imperative: â€Å"I ought never to act except in such a way that I could also will that my maxim should become a universal law† (Moral Law, 2005, p. 74). Kant is described as overcoming Hume’s skepticism. But it is questionable whether the latter is a skeptic at all. According to a contemporary, Hume’s philosophical paradoxes are delivered with a confidence that belies skepticism: â€Å"Never has there been a Pyrrhonian more dogmatic† (qtd. in Mossner, 1936, p. 129). A more recent reassessment of Hume is carried out by the German Neo-Kantian philosopher Ernst Cassirer, who opines, â€Å"Hume’s doctrine is not to be understood as an end, but as a new beginning† (1951, p. 59). The nature of this new beginning is well articulated by Hume himself. â€Å"Indulge your passion for science,† nature tells us, according to Hume, â€Å"but let your science be human, and such as may have a direct reference to action and society† (Hume, 1993, p. 3). If we listen carefully, the moral note that Hume is sounding is hardly different from that of the categorical imperative of Kant. Not for the person’s sake, but for humanity’s sake. Not for the particular good but for the universal good. This is the essence of Hume’s projected â€Å"science of man†, as it is also the heart of Kant’s metaphysics of morals. References Cassirer, E. (1951). The Philosophy of the Enlightenment. Trans. Fritz C. A. Koelln and James P. Pettegrove. Boston: Beacon Press. Hume, D. (1993). An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding. E. Steinberg (Ed.) Boston: Hackett Publishing. Kant, I. (1999). Critique of Pure Reason. W. S. Pluhar (Trans.), E. Watkins (Ed.) Boston: Hackett Publishing. Kant, I. (2005). Kants Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Whitefish, MT: Kessinger Publishing. Kant, I. (2005). The Moral Law: Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals. Translated by H. J. Paton. New York: Routledge. Mossner, E. C. (1936). Bishop Butler and the Age of Reason: A Study in the History Of Thought. New York: Macmillan.

Psychology Supervision Essay Example for Free

Psychology Supervision Essay Culture basically means the pattern formed by the thoughts, actions, customs traditions of humans living in an inter-related community, be it racial, ethnic, religious or social. It is based on the beliefs, values behavior of the people involved. No matter where you are situated, around the world, culture plays the vital role in an individual’s social vocational life. It is significant in every institution to practice cultural competency, which may help it to operate efficiently. â€Å"Cultural competence is a developmental process and may be viewed as a goal toward which agencies can strive. † (T. Cross et. al. as cited in University of Minnesota Duluth) Cross- culture environment in offices, educational institutes etc. are not uncommon these days especially in well developed countries like America where the demographic rate comprises more of ethnic racial minority groups. This fact ultimately poses a great challenge for all professional educational organizations. Since it is not very easy, to create a healthy happy environment among diverse groups. The reason for that are different beliefs traditions of each group may not mix well with the other, hence, sprouting problems among colleagues. CULTURAL DISPARITY:    Cultural competency maybe defined as a combination of multiple thoughts, behaviors personality traits belonging to a number of cross cultural members, however following the same patterns thus increasing the proficiency of an organization or group. The main issues that are faced often in cross cultural groups causing cultural disparity are the diverse ethnic religious beliefs of its members. In educational institutes this problem is significantly in attendance, causing psychological differences among the students even the teachers. The course outline may or may not reflect each individual’s values beliefs, hence disturbing the social harmony. It is vital to form a non judgmental respectful attitude in the organization in order to achieve harmony.   Ã‚   Racial, ethnic even gender bias is present in every society institution. Many a times the female students face difficulties in accomplishing their goals presenting their thoughts on various women related issues due to strong opposition from the male members of the group. It is a dilemma not just present in our society but around the globe that men are considered to be the highest decree of human race women are believed as their contrary. This contemplation creates a rift among the male female members of any group. The same goes with ethnic minorities who face criticism on their appearance different accent making them feel isolated disparaged from the society.    When dealing with multicultural clients, it often trigger discrepancies among the worker the client as a result of contrasting opinions due to miscellany in areas like religion, culture, race, gender, family backgrounds ethics. The reasons for these disagreements are usually the rejection of one’s expectations, therefore resulting in the failure of venture. Learning from one’s past mistakes is the best way to improve. Helping respecting each other will result in a constructive outcome. The educational institutes should take care in designing a study course, so that it suits to every individual’s mind no matter which culture he or she belongs to. Cultural knowledge s should be a part of studies so that students may learn about different values customs learn to respect them.    Being multilingual, having different skin color or following a diverse religion does not make an individual different from others. Being a human being, it is the responsibility of every person to respect support each other. This approach will surely create an amicable environment in work places, educational institutes etc. every organization should have some ethical code regarding minority groups, but not to make them feel segregated or disparate from their colleagues. Dealing with multi cultural clients involve tact proper accord of their priorities decisions. Culture plays an essential role in developing one’s mind thought pattern. Revolutionizing the behaviors policies of employees will help create cultural competence successfully.

Advancing Nursing Practice Current Role and Personal Learning

Advancing Nursing Practice Current Role and Personal Learning The idea of Advanced Nursing Practice (ANP) is reported to have commenced in the USA in the early parts of the 20th century (Mantzoukas, 2006) and its development has been well recorded in the literature (Ketefian, Redman, Hanucharurnkul, Masterson Neves, 2001; Furlong Smith, 2005). But lack of clear definitions for the concept, its scope of practice and standards has resulted in a great diversity in practice (Woods, 1999; Pearson Peels, 2002; Daly and Carnwell, 2003). Furlong and Smith (2005) identifies that several attempts have been made to conceptualise advanced nursing practice. This has resulted in some consensus on the core concepts that underpin ANP such as clinical autonomy, professional and clinical leadership, research capabilities, application of theory and research to practice and graduate level education requirement (Ketefian et al., 2001; Furlong Smith, 2005; Mantzoukas, 2006). Knowledge level, skill level and population of response model developed by Calkin (1984) and from novice to expert model by Benner (1984) are some of the models that were developed but none of these analysed contextual influences on advanced nursing practice. Manley (1997) developed a conceptual framework that describes four integrated sub roles (expert practitioner, educator, researcher and consultant); necessary skills and processes as well as contextual prerequisites for the advanced nurse practitioner to achieve outcomes strove for. This framework was developed from a model by Hamric (1989) and shares similarities in the four sub roles, some skills and processes. However, the framework by Manley (1997) establishes a relationship between the ANP role, its context and its outcomes, giving it an advantage over the models of Calkin, Benner and Hamric. It is worth stating, at this point, that the term ANP is not for a single role but for different advanced nursing roles such as nurse practitioners, certified nurse midwives, nurse anaesthetists and clinical nurse specialists (Ketefian et al., 2001) I have worked for one year as a general nurse (Nursing Officer rank) after completing my four-year nursing training in Ghana. My responsibilities include ensuring adequate nutrition and elimination, administering medication and reporting on patients response, allocating task based on skill of staff, supervising staff and students in the ward, and participating in ward rounds (GHS, 2005). Henry (2007) states that Ghanaian nurses have automatic promotion after every five years of service until they reach the rank of Principal Nursing Officer. It seems that this is changing. My experience is that, recently, higher education certificate as well as evidence of continuous professional and personal development is a requirement for certain roles in the nursing profession. Moreover, research, leadership and application of theory to practice are some of the advanced nursing skills that are not well developed in my current role. I have, therefore, enrolled in the MSc. Advanced Nursing course to develop these skills to advance my nursing practice. It appears that the four advanced nursing roles described by Ketefian et al. (2001) are present in Ghana, although the term ANP is not used. East and Arudo (2009) identifies that due to shortage of health personnel, nurses in sub-Saharan Africa perform certain roles and tasks that would be classified, in other countries, as advanced practice. Ghanaian nurses in these roles have some degree of clinical autonomy, especially in the district hospitals, but not necessarily a graduate level education. Instead, a post-basic diploma is required for some of them (nurse anaesthetist and clinical nurse specialist roles). Until recently, post-basic diploma was the qualification for medical assistants (similar to nurse practitioner role). Thus, ANP roles in Ghana developed as a result of shortage of health personnel and the health needs of the population. However, the roles are different from those in the UK and USA in areas such as research, professional and clinical leadership, academic qualifi cation, and clinical autonomy. Therefore, with the ANP conceptual framework of Manley (1997) as the focus, I hope to achieve the following objectives in advancing my practice: Develop a teaching package to slow progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD) among patients with diabetes Advance myself as a nurse educator and the other sub roles identified by Manley (1997) Develop leadership and effective change management skills Contribute to the professional development of my colleagues. The Project: Introduction and Rationale for Selection In advancing my nursing practice, my focus for this project is to develop a teaching package to slow progression of chronic kidney disease among patients with diabetes. Other patients at risk of developing kidney failure, including those with hypertension would also benefit from this project. The package would, also, be used among patients with stages 1 4 chronic kidney disease. In the final year of my nursing training, I had to submit a care study to the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Ghana. The patient I worked with had been diagnosed with type II diabetes. The care study required that I participate in the active management of the patient and present a report on that, as well as a literature review on the condition. I reflect on the entire process now and I realise that complications of diabetes were just mentioned to the patient, with no adequate information on how they can be prevented. This project is, therefore, anticipated to create awareness of chronic kidney disease as a major complication among patients with diabetes in Ghana and how to delay its progression, if not avoid it. My primary focus would be to develop a strategy that would reach out to all patients, including those with low literacy skills. This would advance the nursing care and health education given to such patients, thereby, delaying the need for dialysis (Thomas et al., 2008). Literature Review WHO (2002:11) defines chronic conditions as health problems that require ongoing management over a period of years or decades and has labelled them as the biggest challenge faced by the health sector in the 21st century. While the economic cost of managing chronic diseases is high, Suhrcke, Fahey McKee (2008) identify some strong economic arguments that may be made in support of the need for societies to invest in their (chronic diseases) management. They identify some primary benefits such as improved health (in terms of patients quantity and quality of life in years), long-term cost savings from complications avoided and workplace productivity experienced by patients and their employers. Nevertheless, preventing their occurrence is central in the general management of chronic conditions (Nolte McKee, 2008) and this is a responsibility for all, including governments, private sectors, healthcare systems and individuals (Novotny, 2008). Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is becoming a global pandemic (Mahon, 2006; Chen, Scott, Mattern, Mohini Nissenson, 2006; Clements Ashurst, 2006). The disease causes gradual decline in kidney function (Silvestri, 2002). It has been categorised into 5 stages according to the glomerular filtration rates (Johnson Usherwood, 2005) and the progression through these stages is influenced by several processes, mostly lifestyle-related (Riegersperger Sunder-Plassmann, 2007). Management of stage 5 (end stage) is either by dialysis or kidney transplant (Johnson Usherwood, 2005, Chen et al., 2006). Patients with CKD stages 4 and 5 experience other complications such as anaemia and metabolic acidosis that must, also, be managed efficiently (Silvestri, 2002; Murphy, Jenkins, McCann Sedgewick, 2008). This, in addition to dialysis, accounts for the reported higher costs of managing CKD (Gonzalez-Perez, Vale, Stearns, Wordsworth, 2005; Kaitelidou, Ziroyanis, Maniadakis, Liaropoulos, 2005). Presently, more than 23,000 adults in the UK undergo dialysis treatment as a result of kidney failure and this number is expected to increase yearly (World Kidney Day, 2009). Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (Ghana) recorded 558 cases of CKD between January 2006 and July 2008 in the country (All Africa, 2009) and this may represent less than 30% of the total disease burden as the hospital serves a few regions in the country. Several studies have identified diabetes mellitus and hypertension as the major causes of CKD (Clements Ashurst, 2006; Rosenberg, Kalda, KasiuleviÄ ius Lember, 2008; Marchant, 2008; Stropp, 2008; Thomas, Bryar, Mankanjuola, 2008; Ulrich, 2009). Amoah, Owusu and Adjei (2002) report of little, but outdated, statistics on the prevalence of diabetes in Ghana. Another report is on the assumption that diabetes is uncommon in Ghana (ibid.). However, it appears that my clinical experience at KATH alone suggests otherwise to the latter. Amoah et al. (2002), again, report that data on diabetes in Ghana is unreliable and this is confirmed by incongruent data observed in the literature. For example, Abubakari and Bhopal (2008) report that prevalence of diabetes in Ghanaian adults (25years and above) was 6.3% in 1998 while the Ministry of Health, Ghana (2001 cited by Aikins, 2004) estimates diabetes in 4% of Ghanaians between 15 to 70 years. Notwithstanding, Aikins (2004) reports of incr ease in the prevalence rates of chronic illnesses in the country, and diabetes is no exception. Primary care management delays nephropathy and other complications of diabetes (Thomas et al., 2008). They add that there could be a lot of potential savings if the need for dialysis can be delayed, even if for a short period for a few patients. Since prevention reduces healthcare costs (Booth, Gordon, Carlson Hamilton, 2000), Ghana, not being a rich country (CIA, 2008) stands to benefit from such an approach. Chen et al. (2006), also, identify that delaying the progression of CKD improves clinical outcomes and moderates costs. Strategies to delay progression include good glycaemic control, blood pressure control, smoking cessation and other lifestyle modification (Nicholls, 2005; Clements Ashurst, 2006; Rosenberg et al., 2008). Patients knowledge on these factors may lead to a change in behaviour which, in turn, would yield positive outcomes in the management of their conditions. Health education is one of such strategies to achieve positive outcomes and prevent complications, especially if the method used is appropriate for the age group as well as their cultural background (Funnell et al., 2008). It is often used interchangeably with health promotion in the nursing literature and criticisms have been made on that (Whitehead). The argument has been that health promotion has shifted from preventing specific diseases or detecting risk groups towards health and well being of whole populations (Naidoo Will, 2000). Hitherto, health education remains central to health promotion (Whitehead, 2), and, because of the dominance of the medical model, health promotion is mostly equated to prevention of disease, through primary, secondary or tertiary prevention in clinical settings (Naidoo Wills, 2000). Secondary and tertiary prevention interventions prevent complications such as chronic nephropathy development in patients with diabetes and health education is one of such interventions (Rosenberg et al., 2008; Naidoo Wills, 2008). Diabetes is, predominantly, self-managed (Collins et al., 1994; Funnell Anderson, 2002), making education very necessary as it empowers the patients to take charge of their health behaviour and other factors that influence their health status (Piper, 2009). Whitehead (1) adds that health education focuses on lifestyle-related and behavioural change processes, making it an integral part of comprehensive diabetes care (type II education). The above implies that when patients with diabetes receive health education, it enhances their ability to collaborate with the effective management of the disease and, consequently, avoid its complications. However, very little knowledge on CKD as well as misunderstandings of illness and treatment has been reported (Jain, 2008; Holstrà ¶m Rosenqvist, 2005). Patients may not appreciate the role that lifestyle modification, in addition to pharmacological interventions, can play in effective management of diabetes. Since diabetes, usually, do not present any physical symptoms, patients tend to distance themselves from it and, as a result, ignore the education being provided because they do not feel ill (Holstrà ¶m Rosenqvist, 2005). Complexity of self-management of diabetes may also be a major contributor to the reported misunderstandings (Szromba, 2009). The primary concern then becomes who should educate these patients and what strategies should be used to achieve positive outcome s? Making time to educate patients and their families on everything that they need to know is seldom easy because of the busy schedules of nurses in the ward (Rankin Stallings, 2001). Yet, Hamric (1989) and Manley (1997) have documented the integration of health education into the roles of advanced nurse practitioners and Rankin Stallings (2001) have attested to this. Advanced nurse practitioners are able to draw on their knowledge and skills related to higher education as well as their expertise from practice to achieve positive outcomes in the clinical settings (Manley, 1997). Szromba (2009) suggests that alternative methods to the traditional lecture method of health education should be utilized to enhance self-care. Babcock and Miller (1994) suggest that discussion, demonstration, modelling, group activities and role playing are other teaching strategies that the health educator can employ. However, they add that consideration should be given to the strategy that best fits the obj ectives, content, the clients, the health educator and the reality of the learning situation. This underscores the importance of client needs assessment in health education. Literacy skills of the clients should, also, be taken into consideration during health education. This project is to be implemented in Ghana and WHO (2009) estimates an adult illiteracy rate of about 35% of the total population. The use of written materials may be a difficulty in such settings, especially as the literates may not understand the jargons used in health very well. Therefore, the health educator should ensure that materials are simplified so readers do not have difficulties in understanding the content. Rankin Stallings (2001) suggest that health educators should, therefore, focus information on the core of knowledge and skills that clients need to survive and cope with problems, teach the smallest amount possible, make points vivid, present information sequentially and allow patients to restate and demonstrate what has been learnt. They also suggest the strategic use of educational media such as flipcharts, photographs, drawings and videotapes to enhance understanding. Aims and Anticipated Outcome The primary focus of this project is to develop a teaching strategy to slow the progression of chronic kidney disease among patients with diabetes in Ghana. Consideration would be given to strategies that would reach out to and promote understanding among patients with low literacy skills. It is anticipated that when patients have enough information on their disease condition, they would collaborate with the healthcare team in the management of the condition. I hope to enhance my knowledge on the management of chronic kidney disease and my role as a nurse educator. This experience would, also, be transferred to my colleagues in Ghana and lead to general improvement in the management of chronic kidney disease in the hospital. This collaboration would, therefore, reduce complications of the disease and enhance patients quality of life. As has been identified by Thomas et al. (2008), when complications such as kidney failure and the need for dialysis is delayed for a short period among few patients, a lot of financial savings is made. Therefore, in addition to providing quality care for patients and enhancing their quality of life, this project would reduce the cost of managing complications of diabetes and chronic kidney disease in Ghana. The Professional and Organizational Context Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) is the second largest teaching hospital in Ghana, training many doctors, nurses and other paramedics in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. It is an autonomous service delivery agent under the Ministry of Health of Ghana (MOH, 2009a). In addition to training many of the health personnel in the Ashanti Region at KATH, many people within and outside the Ashanti Region seek healthcare there. As a result, provision of quality healthcare has always been the focus. An organisation that recognises the need for change, weighs costs and benefits, and plans for the change when the benefits outweigh the costs is ready for a change (Dalton Gottlieb, 2003). KATH is, therefore, ready for change because some of its employees are sent overseas or to other parts of the country, whenever there is the need for a new skill or knowledge to be gained, to bring about a positive change within the institution. This may be a factor that would facilitate my agenda to implement s ome changes within the institution upon my return to Ghana. However, Ghana, as a country is underdeveloped (CIA, 2008). Therefore, financial support, many a time, becomes a difficulty. Another challenge may be the fewer nursing staff. The Ministry of Health (2009b) estimates that there was a nurse-to-population ratio of 1:2024 in Ashanti Region and 1:1451 for the entire country in year 2007 while the WHO estimates that there are 9 nurses/midwives per 10,000 of the Ghanaian population (WHO, 2009xxxxx). Nevertheless, the desire to provide quality patient care and reduce healthcare costs, and dedication from the health personnel are factors that would supersede the anticipated obstacles to the implementation of this project.

Macbeth :: essays research papers

During the Elizabethan Age, Shakespeare was the greatest author and drama writer. He wrote such masterpiece tragedies such as Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Othello. Perhaps the greatest of them all is the story of Macbeth. In the play, the first Thane of Cawdor, Duncan, Banquo, Lady Macbeth, and Macbeth all are considered to have flaws which to a greater or lesser degree is the cause of their downfall.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the second scene of the play you learn that Scotland is in war with Norway. King Duncan has learned that the First Thane of Cawdor was helping out the Norwegians. His assistance cost him his life. For treason, King Duncan ordered the first Thane of Cawdor to be executed and have Macbeth take his title. Though the first Thane of Cawdor was never actually in the play itself, the reader has to take the word of the Thane of Ross he was a traitor. â€Å"Assisted by that most disloyal traitor The Thane of Cawdor, began a dismal conflict.† (I ii 52-53)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After Macbeth is given the title of the first Thane of Cawdor, King Duncan decides to visit the successful captain and be a guest at his house. Duncan doesn’t know that it is supposed to be Macbeth’s destiny to become king. Lady Macbeth and Macbeth decide to come up with this plan to kill Duncan in his sleep. Duncan was simply there congratulating Macbeth on his recent accomplishments. He had no idea of the trouble he was getting himself into during his stay at Macbeth’s. The only real flaw you can give to Duncan is that he should have had someone watching over him like a bodyguard, or that he should have been more suspicious about his hosts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The reason of Macbeth’s slaughter of King Duncan was the idea that he was the rightful King. The three witches had told him he would be the first Thane of Cawdor before he was given the rank. They also said that he would eventually reign as king. Besides Lady Macbeth who knew about the three witches, the only other person to know about them was Banquo. He automatically was considered a threat to Macbeth. â€Å"For Banquo’s issue have I filed my mind, for them the gracious Duncan I have murdered.† (III I 65-66) Macbeth is ordering the execution of Banquo. Banquo could have saved himself because he saw that the danger lies ahead for him.

DSL Technology :: Technology Computers Internet Essays

DSL Technology Introduction The accelerated growth of content rich applications and online gaming, which demand high bandwidth, has changed the nature of information networks. High-speed communication is now an ordinary requirement throughout business, government, academic, and home office environments. Internet access, telecommuting, and remote LAN access are three of the clearly defined services that network access providers are offering now. These rapidly growing applications are placing a new level of demand on the telephone infrastructure. In particular, the local loop portion of the network (i.e., the local connection from the subscriber to the local central office) has become a challenge for telephone companies. Historically, this local loop facility has been provisioned with copper cabling which cannot easily support high bandwidth transmission. This environment is now being stressed by the demand for increasingly higher bandwidth capacities. Although this infrastructure could be replaced b y a massive rollout of fiber technologies, the cost to do so would be insupportable in today's business models and, more importantly, the time to accomplish such a transition is unacceptable because the market demand exists today! Telephone companies are already faced with growing competition and unprecedented customer demands A new category of companies, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), has emerged in this market as providers of data services. Traditionally ISPs have used the telephone company infrastructure. However, thanks to deregulation, they now have direct access to the physical cable plant. ISPs will be formidable competitors in this quest for the customers. Network service providers around the world fill this moment with great potential for remarkable success. A new technology called high-speed Digital Subscriber Line (xDSL) has emerged onto this scene. xDSL, which encompasses several different technologies, essentially allows the extension of megabit bandwidth capacities from the service provider central office to the customer premises on a customer by customer basis over the existing copper cabling, without the need for massive infrastructure replacement and at very reasonable costs. These new xDSL solutions satisfy the business need to provision the network in a fast, cost effective manner, while preserving the infrastructure and allowing a planned migration into newer technologies. xDSL has the ability to meet the customer demand for high bandwidth right now, at costs that make sense. xDSL is a group of emerging Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) modem technologies for supporting high-rate traffic transmission over POTS lines. X stands for asymmetric in ADSL, rate adaptive in RADSL, high-speed in HDSL, and very high speed in VDSL.

Speech Recognition Fundamentals Current and Future :: Essays Papers

Speech Recognition Fundamentals Current and Future Human centric computing branches out into many areas. One of the most important one is speech recognition since this is the primary way for human beings to communicate. Therefore, it is only natural to use speech as the primary method to input information into a computational device or object needing manual input. The goal of human centric computing is to make technology as user friendly as possible and to integrate it completely into human life by adapting to humans’ specifications. Currently, computers force humans to adapt to computers, which is the opposite intend of human centric computing. Speech recognition has the basic intention to help humans easily communicate with computers and reap the maximum benefit from them. Though, speech recognition faces several problems in its implementation it is partially available in today’s life. The complexity of speech in not as obvious to humans because of their innate sense of grammar, which is not inheren t to computers. Still, speech recognition is being used in daily life. Though, in the future speech recognition could be included in the simplest of items. When this is achieved complete human centric view is achieved regarding speech recognition. The fundamental of speech recognition is to take sound and to translate this information into text and commands. This process is very complex since sound has to be matched up with stored sound bites and further analysis has to be done on sound bites, which have no clear match with preexisting sound pieces. To determine an undetermined piece of sound requires computing power to use grammatical rules and written rules using established models how often this word is used and how it relates to the other defined sound bites. The problem with speech recognition programs for text editors is the complexity of human speech. Therefore, â€Å"all text is constantly check to make sure that no grammatical or spelling errors end up in the final product†(HMW 17). This comes normal to humans who have an innate sense of sentence structure and word groupings. The recognition program has to recognize the input and form the sentence. This sentence will be base on a huge set of parameters, grammar, which defines human speech.

Strategic Management Study Guide

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT TEST 2 (Chapters 3, 4, and 6): STUDY GUIDE †¢Know definitions and be able to recognize examples of concepts †¢Test will be multiple choice, 45-50 items †¢Bring scantron sheet and #2 pencil Additional free student study resources available including an interactive quiz from the publisher at: http://highered. mcgraw-hill. com/sites/0078029317/student_view0/chapter1/chapter_quiz. html Chapter 3: Assessing the Internal Environment †¢What is value chain analysis? How is it useful for understanding competitive advantages?Strategic analysis of an organization that uses value-creating activities. It is useful for understanding the building blocks of competitive advantages. †¢In the value chain, what are the 5 primary activities? Which 4 activities are support activities? Primary- inbound logistics, operations, outbound logistics, marketing and sales, and service. Support- general admininistration, human resource management, technology development , and procurement. †¢Relating to primary activities, what specific activities are associated with inbound logistics? Operations? Outbound logistics?Marketing and sales? Service? Inbound logistics- receiving, storing, and distributing inputs of a product. Operations- all activities associated with transforming inputs into the final product form. Outbound logistics- collecting, storing, and distributing the product or service to buyers. Marketing and sales- activities associated with purchases of products and services by end users and the inducements used to get them to make purchases. Service- actions associated with providing service to enhance or maintain the value of the product. †¢What is a Just-in-time inventory system? were designed to achieve efficient inbound logistics. Parts and deliveries arrive only hours before they are needed. †¢Relating to support activities, what specific activities are associated with procurement? Technology development? HR management? General administration? Procurement- purchasing inputs used in the firm’s value chain, including raw materials, supplies, and other consumable items as well as assets such as machinery, laboratory equipment, office equipment, and buildings. Technology development- development of new knowledge that is applied to the firm’s operations.HR management- activities involved in the recruiting, hiring, training, development, and compensation of all types of personnel. General administration- general management, planning, finance, accounting, legal and government affairs, quality management, and information systems: activities that support the entire value chain and not individual activities. †¢How has Walgreen’s used information systems to be a sources of competitive advantage? Introduction of a computer based prescription management system- automates telephone refills, store to store prescription transfers, and drug reordering.Also provides information on drug inte ractions and frees up pharmacists from administrative tasks to devote more time to patient counseling. †¢What are the two levels of interrelationships among value-chain activities? 1. Interrelationships among activities within the firm 2. Interrelationships among activities within the firm and other stakeholders. †¢What is resource-based view of the firm? Perceptions that firms’ competitive advantages are due to their endowment of strategic resources that are valuable, rare, costly to imitate, and costly to substitute. What are the 3 types of firm resources? Tangible, Intangible, and Organizational Capabilities. †¢What are the 4 kinds of tangible resources? Financial, physical, technological, and organizational. †¢What are the 3 kinds of intangible resources, Human, Innovation and Creativity, and Reputation. †¢What examples of organizational capabilities? Ex. Outstanding customer service. Excellent product development capabilities, innovativeness of p roducts and services. Ability to hire, motivate, and retain human capital. What are the four criteria that a firm’s resources must possess to maintain a sustainable advantage? 1. Resource must be valuable in the sense that it exploits opportunities and/or neutralizes threats in the firm’s environment. 2. It must be rare among the firm’s current and potential competitors. 3. It must be difficult to imitate. 4. Must have no strategically equivalent substitutes. †¢How can the following four resource characteristics help sustain a competitive advantage based on inimitability: physical uniqueness, path dependency, causal ambiguity, and social complexity? 1.Inherently difficult to copy. 2. Resources are scarce because they were acquired through a unique series of events. 3. Costly to imitate because competitor cannot determine what the resource is and/or how it can be re-created. 4. Costly to imitate because the social engineering required is beyond the capabilit y of competitors, including interpersonal relations among managers, organizational culture, and reputation with suppliers and customers. †¢Substitutability can take which two forms? 1. Substitute a similar resource that enables it to develop and implement the same strategy. . Very different firm resources can become strategic substitutes. †¢ See exhibit 3. 7 – what are the implications for competitiveness based on differing characteristics of a resource or capability? The less valuable, less rare, easier to imitate, more substitutes, the less competitive advantage. †¢What are the four factors that help explain the extent to which employees will be able to obtain a proportionally high level of a firm’s profits? 1. Employee bargaining power. 2. Employee replacement costs. 3. Employee exit costs. 4. Manager Bargaining Power. What are the two approaches to use when evaluating a firm’s performance? Financial ration analysis and taking a broad stakehold er view. †¢What is financial ratio analysis? How can historical comparisons, industry norm comparisons, and competitor comparisons each serve as useful reference points? 1. Technique for measuring the performance of a firm according to its balance sheet, income statement, and market valuation. 2. Provides a means of evaluating trends. 3. Assesses relative performance. 4. Gain valuable insights into a firm’s financial and competitive position. What is the balanced scorecard? Why is it useful? a method of evaluating a firm’s performance using performance measures from the customers, internal innovation, and learning, and financial perspectives. Provides managers with a fast, but comprehensive review of the business (operations measures that drive the future financial performance). †¢What are the four key perspectives of the balanced scorecard? 1. Customer perspective- measures of firm performance that indicate how well firms are satisfying customer’s exp ectations. 2.Internal business perspective- measures of firm performance that indicate how well firms internal processes, decisions, and actions are contributing to customer satisfaction. 3. Innovation and learning perspective- measures of a firm performance that indicate how well firms are changing their product and service offerings to adapt to changes in the internal and external environments. 4. Financial perspective- measure of firm’s financial performance that indicate how well strategy, implementation and execution are contributing bottom-line improvement. †¢What are the limitations of the balanced scorecard?Lack of a clear strategy, limited or ineffective executive sponsorship, too much emphasis on financial measures rather than nonfinancial measures, poor data on actual performance, inappropriate links of scorecard measures to compensation, inconsistent or inappropriate terminology. Chapter 4: Recognizing a Firm’s Intellectual Assets: Moving Beyond a Firm ’s Tangible Resources †¢What is the knowledge economy? An economy where wealth is created through the effective management of knowledge workers instead of by the efficient control of physical and financial assets. How has the emphasis shifted between intangible and tangible resources as a result of changes in the competitive environment? Shifted from tangible resources such as land, equipment, and money. Efforts were more directed toward the efficient allocation of labor and capital. Now intellectual and information processes create most of the value for firms in large service industries. †¢What is the market value of a firm? What is the book value of a firm? What does the difference between the two values represent? In what types of firms does this difference tend to be the greatest?Market value- the value of a share of its common stock times the number of shares outstanding. Book value- is primarily a measure of the value of its tangible resources: total assets- t otal liabilities. The difference between the two represents the firm’s intellectual capital ( a measure of the firm’s intangible assets). In firms where knowledge and the management of knowledge workers are relatively important contributors to developing products and services and physical resources are less critical, the ratio of market to book value tends to be much higher. †¢What is intellectual capital and how can it be increased?Intellectual capital= market value of firm-book value of the firm. To increase: attract and leverage human capital effectively through mechanisms that create products and services of value over time. †¢What is human capital? Social capital? Explicit knowledge? Tacit knowledge? Human capital- the individual capabilities, knowledge, skills, and experience of a company’s employees and managers. Social capital- the network of friendships between talented people both inside and outside the organization. Explicit knowledge- knowl edge that is codified, documented, easily reproduced, and widely distributed.Tacit knowledge- knowledge that is in the minds of employees and is based on their experiences and backgrounds. †¢How is new knowledge created? Through the continual interaction of explicit and tacit knowledge. †¢How has employee loyalty to the company changed relative to loyalty to the profession? Knowledge workers place professional development and personal enrichment above company loyalty. †¢What is a first critical step in the process of of building intellectual capital? What are the other processes organizations use to build human capital?Hiring talented individuals, developing them to fulfill their full potential to maximize their joint contributions. Retain the best and brightest. †¢Why do many companies use employee referrals for new hires? Incentive bonuses paid to the referrers are cheaper than what they would have to pay headhunters to find candidates, plus the current employe es would find good candidates because they are putting their reputation on the line for them. †¢What strategies are used to develop human capital? Encouraging widespread involvement, Transferring knowledge, monitoring progress and development, and evaluating human capital. How as the importance of evaluating human capital changed in recent years? Collaboration and interdependence are vital to organizational success. Individuals must work collectively. Traditional past systems evaluate performance from a single perspective. †¢What is 360 degree feedback? Superiors, direct reports, colleagues, and even external and internal customers rate a person’s performance. †¢What are the 6 benefits of diversity in a firm’s workforce? 1. Cost argument- firms with more effective management in diversity will have a cost advantage over those that are not. 2.Resource acquisition argument- firms with excellent reputations as prospective employers for minorities will have a n advantage in the competition for top talent. 3. Marketing argument- for multinational firms this will be useful. 4. Creativity argument- less emphasis on conformity to norms of the past and diversity of perspectives will improve the level of creativity. 5. Problem solving argument- people with different perspectives have a better shot at solving complex problems than those who all think alike. 6. Organizational flexibility argument- greater flexibility leads means better reactions to environmental changes. What is network analysis? Closure relationships? Bridging relationships? Analysis of the pattern of social interactions among individuals. †¢How can effective social networks be advantageous to an individual’s career? Private information now available. Access to diverse skill sets. Power. †¢What is groupthink? – tendency in an organization for individuals not to question shared beliefts. †¢What are intellectual property rights? What actions can be ta ken to manage intellectual property? Intangible property owned by a firm in the forms of patents, copyrights, trademarks, or trade secrets. What are dynamic capabilities? The ability to sense and seize new opportunities, generates new knowledge, and reconfigure existing assets and capabilities. Chapter 6: Corporate-Level Strategy: Creating Value Through Diversification †¢What is corporate-level strategy? What two related issues does it address? a strategy that focuses on gaining long-term revenue, profits, and market value through managing operations in multiple businesses. Acquisitions and mergers. †¢How is related diversification different than unrelated diversification? What are the potential benefits of each?Related diversification- a firm entering a different business in which it can benefit from leveraging core competencies, sharing activities, or building market power. Unrelated diversification- a firm entering a different business that has little horizontal interac tion with other businesses of a firm. †¢Be familiar with the classifications of Exhibit 6. 2 3M was using exorbitant rebates to retailers, which pushed them into a â€Å"monopolistic position† and courts ordered 3M to pay 68. 5 million dollars to another tape company. †¢In related diversification, what is meant by economies of scope?Cost savings from leveraging core competencies, sharing activities, or building market power. †¢What is a core competency? What are the three criteria for assessing if a core competency creates value? Firm’s strategic resources that reflect the collective learning in the organization. 1. Must enhance competitive advantage by creating superior customer value. 2. Different businesses in the corporation must be similar in at least one important way related to the core competence. 3. Must be difficult for competitors to imitate or find substitutes for. †¢What are sharing activities?What are the two payoffs associated with sh aring activities. -Having activities of two or more businesses value chains done by one of the businesses. -1. Cost savings -2. Revenue enhancement †¢In related diversification, what is market power? Firm’s ability to profit through restricting or controlling supply to a market or coordinating with other firms to reduce investment. †¢What is pooled negotiating power? the improvement in bargaining position relative to customers and suppliers. †¢What is vertical integration, in its associated risks and benefits? an xpansion or extension of the firm by integrating preceding or successive production processes (occurs when a firm becomes its own supplier or distributer). Pros- secure supply of raw materials or distribution channels. Protection and control over assests and services required to produce and deliver. Access to new business opportunities and new forms of technology. Eliminating the need to deal with a wide variety of suppliers and distributors. Cons- cos ts and expenses associated with increased overhead and capital expenditures. Loss of flexibility resulting from large investments.Problems associated with unbalanced capacities along the value chain. Additional administrative costs associated with managing a more complex set of activities. †¢What 5 issues should be considered in making vertical integration decisions? 1. Is the company satisfied with the quality of the value that its present suppliers and distributors are providing? 2. Are there activities in the industry value chain presently being outsourced or performed independently by others that are a viable source of future profits? 3. Is there a high level of stability in the demand for the organization’s products? . Does the company have the necessary competencies to execute the vertical integration strategies? 5. Will the vertical integration initiative have potential negative impacts on the firm’s stakeholders? †¢What is the transaction cost perspec tive? A perspective that the choice of a transaction’s governance structure such as vertical integration or market transaction, is influenced by transaction costs, including, search, negotiating, contracting, monitoring, and enforcement costs, associated with each choice. †¢What is unrelated diversification? What is a parenting advantage?A firm entering a different business that has little horizontal interaction with other businesses of a firm. Parenting advantage- the positive contributions of the corporate office to a new business as a result of expertise and support provided and not as a result of substantial changes in assets, capital structure, or management. †¢What is restructuring? What are the three types of restructuring? The intervention of the corporate office in a new business that substantially changes assets, capital structure and management. 1. Asset restructuring 2. Capital restructuring 3. Management restructuring What is portfolio management?Method of assessing the competitive position of a portfolio of businesses within a corporation, suggesting strategic alternatives for each business, and identifying priorities for the allocation of resources across the businesses. †¢What is the Boston Consulting Group’s (BCG) growth/share matrix? What are the 4 quadrants in the matrix? What are the suggested strategies associated with each of the quadrants? What are the limitations of the BCG matrix? Each of the firm’s strategic business units is plotted on a two-dimensional grid in which the axes are relevant market share and industry growth rate. 1.Stars-competing in high growth industries with high market shares, long term growth potential and should continue to receive substantial investment funding. 2. Question marks- competing in high growth industries with but have weak market share, resources should be invested to enhance their competitive positions. 3. Cash cows- have high market shares in low growth industries . Have limited long run potential, but represent a source of current cash flows to fund investments into starts and question marks. 4. Dogs- have weak market shares in low growth industries, weak positions and limited potential.Most recommend they become divested. Limitations of BCG matrix- 1. the only compare based on two dimensions. 2. View them as a stand-alone entity, ignoring common business practices and value creating activities that may hold promise for synergies across business units. 3. The process becomes largely mechanical, substituting an overly simplified graphical model for the important contributions of the CEO or other managers experience. †¢What are the three primary means by which a firm can diversify? 1. Through acquisitions or mergers 2.Pool the resources of other companies with their resource base, commonly known as a joint-venture or strategic alliance. 3. Diversify into new products, markets, and technologies through internal development. †¢What are the benefits and potential of mergers and acquisitions? 1. A means of obtaining valuable resources that can help an organization expand its product offerings and services 2. Can provide the opportunity for firms to attain the three bases of synergy—leveraging core competencies, sharing activities, and building market power. 3. Can lead to consolidation within an industry and can force other players to merge.Cons- competing firms can often imitate any advantages realized from the M&A. there can be cultural issues that may doom the intended benefits from the endeavors. †¢What is a divestment? The exit of a business from a firm’s portfolio. †¢What is a strategic alliance? Joint venture? How do they differ? What are their potential advantages and downsides? Strategic alliance- a cooperative relationship between two or more firms. Joint venture- new entities formed within a strategic alliance in which two or more firms, the parents, contribute equity to form the new legal entity.A strategic alliance is a cooperative relationship. A joint venture is a special case of alliances where both firms contribute equity to form a new legal entity. Pros- Reducing manufacturing or other costs in the value chain. Developing and diffusing new technologies. Cons- many fail to meet expectations. Without proper partner, a firm should never consider it. Little attention is often given to nurturing the close working relationships and interpersonal connections that bring together the partnering organizations. †¢What is internal development?What are its potential downsides? -Entering a new business through investment in new facilities, often called corporate entrepreneurship and new venture development. -It may be time consuming, firms may forfeit the benefits of speed that growth through mergers and acquisitions can provide. †¢How can managerial motives erode value creation? They may often act in their own self-interests (CEOS). â€Å"growth for gro wth’s sake†, excessive egotism, and the creation of a wide variety of antitakeover tactics. †¢What is meant by growth for growth’s sake? Egotism? Manager’s actions to grow the size of their firms not to increase long-term profitability, but to sever managerial self-interest. -Manager’s actions to shape their firm’s strategies to serve their selfish interests rather than to maximize long-term shareholder value. †¢What are the antitakeover tactics of greenmail, the golden parachute, and poison pill? Greenmail- a payment by a firm to a hostile party for the firm’s stock at a premium, made when the firm’s management feels that the hostile party is about to make a tender offer. (sort of like a bribe)