Thursday, October 31, 2019

Self assessment in MEMO style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Self assessment in MEMO style - Essay Example I am also an honest person, and I believe to win the trust of the organizations managers and employees. I am also friendly in nature and would easily create a good rapport with other staffs (Stanton, 2009). Considering my weakness, I am always time conscious and would carry out a job hurriedly without considering the consequences. I also easily believe and trust the unknown person, hence can easily be convinced to do something without realization of the consequences. I am also a straightforward person and would not tolerate anything bad done by the employees or employers despite the rank. I am also somehow emotional and sensitive; I can easily be annoyed to an extent that I lose control of myself (Stanton, 2009). In the carrying out of the plan for improvement, my first step is to come up with a list of all my weakness and strengths. This would allow me to form comparison and see if any strength can cancel out any weakness and also to see if the strengths overpower the weaknesses. The second step is to analyze the environment of the workplace to see if it is favorable for my weaknesses and strengths. This will give me a hint on whether to take or reject the job. I will finally look if there is a room for change in the organization, of which if not a reject the job. In my conclusion, strengths and weakness in communication are things that exist in the daily life. An individual should never allow the strengths to overpower the weaknesses. I believe in change provided I am given a chance to work on my weaknesses. I believe in adjusting myself to the working environment despite the weaknesses I

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Discuss the ways in which Steinbeck explores the concept of the American Dream is central to the novel Essay Example for Free

Discuss the ways in which Steinbeck explores the concept of the American Dream is central to the novel Essay The American Dream was a dream that nearly everyone had throughout the twentieth century. It was hope for a better life and people believed strongly that it would come true. The main characters in Of Mice Men have a dream which was to get a plot of land and live on it and become self-sufficient. The American Dream was not an achievable goal for many people. Steinbeck shows this failure through the characters of Lennie George. The American dream was a great thing. We first heard about it when Lennie and George were sitting by the river at the beginning of the book. The dream was a hope that every rancher had an opportunity for a better life. Lennie and George, the two main characters, had such a dream, Some day were gonna get a little place and a couple of acres. The idea was to get a piece of land, grow crops and have an improved life there. They also new exactly what they were aiming for and what they wanted. They realised that their imagination should not be set too high for fear of disappointment. The two men also knew that they should not tell other people about the plot of land in case it was snatched from under their noses. This frequently happened then, as so many people were seeking the same desire., Well its ten acres said George. Got a little win mill. Got a little shack on it and a chicken run. Got a kitchen, orchard, cherries, peaches, cots, nuts, got a few berries. This shows that Lennie and George had ambition and again, knew what they wanted. It also shows that there were places where the dream had a chance of coming true, and that affordable land was for sale. Lennie and George intended to get the land by working extremely hard for a couple of months. They would earn standard migrant labour workers wages which was of course not very much, as the great depression was around at the time the book was set. The men hoped to save money and put it towards the plot of land, Look, if me an Lennie work a month an dont spen nothing well have a hundred bucks. Sooner or later people started to realise that the American Dream was turning into a nightmare. This is shown in the book by all the travelling and unemployment. Steinbeck shows that people were determined to get a job and willing to travel around to find one, he reinforces this through Lennie and George. At the start of the novel Steinbeck told us that they were walking, so we obviously know that they have had a nomadic life. During their rest they have a conversation about their travels The first thing you know is that they are pounding away at some other ranch. This backs up the fact that people travel around for jobs. We know how Lennie and George frequently lose their jobs, this is due to Lennie constantly getting the pair of them into trouble which jeopardises their current job. Because of this they have to travel from one ranch to another in search of another job. Also you can corroborate the fact that people travelled by George quoting, The hell with what I says. You remember about us going into Murray and Readys and they give us work cards and bus tickets. Murray and Ready are a typical work agency that sprung up in America during the Great Depression. In the 1930s the Great Depression spoilt the American Dream, it damaged everything that had a promising future, from buying food to making investments in the stock market. Through out the novel we do not see this very much. It is shown only as a high unemployment rate. George is very passionate about work as he wants to achieve his dream. As you read on through the book George comments on other people in his situation, They aint got nothing to look ahead to. Implying that George is fed up of losing his job to other people. He now knows you should not think about looking ahead to long term ambitions as anything can happen. The rate of unemployment was a serious issue at the time of the book, as the economy was decreasing rapidly. It is shown through various characters such as Carlson, Slim, Lennie, George and many more. We know that they all have been travelling from ranch to ranch in search of jobs during this time, they have started to feel like they do not have a home and dont belong anywhere. Guys like us, they got no family and dont belong no place. They come to a ranch an work up a stake then they go into town and blow their stake. This was quite normal for young and old men in their quest, not just for the dream, but for survival. Because of that, it made it hard for people to keep a job as other people who were as desperate, came along and accepted less pay to work at the same job, just so they could get some money. The idea of the American Dream was to be happy but just as well as the Great depression, racism also crippled the illusion. The dream was merely for the whites, as many of the blacks were unlawfully discarded from the opportunity or status to achieve it. Steinbeck shows this in the book through a character called Crooks, who was a crippled Negro stable buck and had suffered years of abuse in his life. Although Crooks could read and write, he was very lonely and because he was black, he could not join in with the usual endeavours of other men on the ranch. Suppose you had to sit out here and read books. Sure you could play horseshoes till it gets dark, but then you got to read books. This shows he only had books for company. It was still very racist in the 1930s so there was not much chance of Crooks achieving the dream by himself and certainly no one at that time would try to help. In the course of the book Crooks also tells us about his life in the past, how his father did actually achieve the dream, and how his family was the only coloured family in Soledad, which is where the book was set. There wasnt another coloured family for miles around. And now there aint no coloured man on this ranch. Crooks felt strongly about this, he was neglected by everyone and still felt as if he was being treated as an unequal by every other man. He wanted so much to be included in the games that everyone participated in. Suppose you couldnt go into the bunk house and play rummy cause you was black. Because Crooks was being denied these privileges he turned into a bitter man who was equally as malicious as the offenders. This portrays the dream in a bad way, which is unusual as the dream is usually portrayed as being happy and being the provider when it actually created tensions between different races and cultures and caused many tribulations between people. Although Crooks is abused by many people on the ranch there is one person in the book who does not discriminate him because he is black, that person is Lennie. Lennie does not understand or see the racism in the world and he sees everyone as being the same. Crooks feels he can talk to Lennie about many things, A guy can talk to you an be sure you wont go blabbin. Because of this it reassures Crooks and makes him feel better as he knows he can talk to some one instead of read books At first there was a chance of the dream coming true. One reason was because of Candy, willing to give his life savings so he would know that he had somewhere to go after he was incapable of working on the ranch, Tell you what suppose I went in with you guys thas three hundred and fifty bucks Id put in. This endorses the fact that he was willing to put every last coinage that he had, to assist him to have a happy finale to his life. Also Crooks, the negro stable buck, offers to help, If you guys would want a hand in work for nothing just his keep. He did this just so he could have a friendship with someone and feel liked. In addition no one else knew about this certain plot of land, which made it a secret of the group and easy to obtain. We know that the owners needed to get the money fast, The ol people that owns it is flat bust an the ol lady needs an operation. Because of all this Lennie, George and Candy stood a very good chance of achieving this reverie. The American dream ended due to a series of unfortunate events. Steinbeck shows this through Lennie and George not getting the land. They did not get it because of many things. The main reason for them failing was Lennie. He spoilt the dream for George, as he was constantly getting into trouble and destroying any chance that he had to achieve the dream. After a while other men on the ranch begin to question their past, for example, Slim, What happened in Weed. We know that they have been travelling around and losing jobs, but it was not just because of other men stealing their jobs only to get paid less, it was also Lennie destructively destroying their chances, because of this they, had to move on to another ranch. In the end they had no hope what so ever, of the dream coming true because of Lennie, once again, getting George into trouble, as he was responsible for Lennie, when he unintentionally killed Curlys wife. If given the chance most men on the farm would attempt the dream even if they thought it was impossible. A good example is Crooks, at one point in the story, he was putting down the fact of any one achieving their goal, Jesus I seen it too many time. Too many guys with land in their head. They never get none under their hand. When Crooks found out that there was a chance of it happening, he decided on trying to get in on it, If you guys would want a hand to work for nothing, just his keep, why Id come an lend a hand. You can see also that people always put down the achievement of the dream, but they all had a secret burning ambition to get it if the chance came around. Through out the book Steinbeck managed to portray the conditions of the Great Depression in the 1930s. He also gave us a glimpse of The American Dream that every one pursued and showed us that it was not an easy achievement. Steinbeck has managed to show the different levels of hardship and suffering that people faced during that period of time and also managed to show more hopeless situations of people from a minority. The concept of the American Dream is at the heart of the novel Of Mice Men and therefore allows Steinbeck to make comments on American Society and the time of the Great Depression.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Transformational, Transactional and Laissez faire Leadership

Transformational, Transactional and Laissez faire Leadership Healthcare organizations nowadays are facing many complex issues that affect theirs success like providing best health care within affordable cost and staff retention. Lack of job satisfaction among nurses and increase the rate of staff absenteeism and turnover, consider other critical issues that have great impact on the organization continuation. Those challenges need well prepared leader who adopt an effective leadership style to mange and over come them. Leadership style affects the development and employees commitment (Spinelli, 2006). Many scientists and researchers are interested nowadays in leadership and management field. Leadership define as the process of motivating people to work together collaboratively to accomplish great things or the capacity to influence others. Effective leader help to increase the followers commitment and interest in the organization goals Different leadership theories and styles were tested to study their effectiveness. Early studies and researches in leadership was based on belief that the leader should have or born with specific general personal trait and he the ones who mainly set the rules and the responsibilities and the follower accomplish them. But with the time, the value of the collaboration and teamwork increase especially in the health care setting different which lead to contemporary theories to evolve. Contemporary theories consider that effective leadership is a certain skills that can be taught, trained or adopted by the leader. In this paper we will compare between th ree contemporary leadership theories: The transformational, transactional and the laissez-faire leadership what they mean and which one is more effective (Vroom Jago, 2007). Transactional Leadership Style Burns (1979) developed the transformational and transactional leadership theories and later Bass (1985) applied them to study their effectiveness in the organizations (Spinelli, 2006).Transactional leadership is an exchange process that identifies needs of employees and provides rewards to meet those needs in return for expected performance. A transactional leadership style consider as replacement of the autocratic leadership because both of them generate a level of predictability and order. The transactional leadership is more practical in nature because of its emphasis on meeting specific targets or objectives and focused more on daily basis task. Subordinates of transactional leaders are not expected to be creatively because they are monitored and evaluated on the basis of predetermined criteria (Aarons, 2006). Burns (1978) believed that transactional leadership is based on bureaucratic authority. Transactional leaders focus on work standards, assignments and task-oriented goals. In addition, he believed that transactional leaders tend to focus on task completion and employee compliance. Those leaders influence employee performance by using the organizational rewards and punishments. The transactional leader described also, as an agent of change and goal setter; a leader that works well with employees resulting in improvements in productivity (Emery, College, Barker, Fredonia, 2007). Bass and Avolio (1987) transactional leadership can be divided to there model: passive, active and contingent. Passive transactional leadership or management-by exception (MBE) means that status will remain as its unless things go wrong, in this case leader practicing passive management-by-exception will take actions that often have a negative implication. active transactional leadership involves an interaction between leader and follower that stress more on a more positive exchange; for example, providing appropriate rewards when followers meet objectives. Through that the leader will emphasizes on acceptable accomplishments and increase the followers motivation. Finally contingent style is where the leader focused on clarifying the rules and requirements for the followers and then rewards them due to fulfilling the obligations (Murphy, 2005). Transformational Leadership Style The transformational leadership theory is a cooperative, process-focused networking where the leader motivates his followers to create, inspire and influences changes in them. Leader of this style act as role model for his followers, attend their needs and involve them in the decision making process. The main point in this theory is to encourage the followers to perform to their full capacity and meet the expectations. Transformational Leader need to have a base of transaction qualities to establish his style successfully. Transformational leadership is not a substitute for transactional leadership, but it develops and enhances it (Tomey, 2004). The transformational and transactional leadership consisting of seven dimensions.(Bass, 1985; Avolio, Bass Jung, 1999) developed an instrument that include all those seven dimensions and used to measure the components of transactional, transformational leadership and laissez-faire leadership styles. This instrument, called the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (Gumusluoglu, Ilsev, 2009). Transformational leadership is measured by four dimensions: idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation and individualized consideration. In Idealized influence the leader does the right thing, take risks and act as role model for his followers which make him trusted and respected from his followers. . Inspirationally motivating leaders has high expectations and they are trying to inspire and motive their followers by changing their thoughts to achieve their leaders visions and expectations. Intellectual stimulation involves providing a supportive environment in the work which will encourage the employees to be more creative, accepting challenging tasks and involve in decisions making process. Finally, an individually considerate leader treats each employee as a unique person with respect to their differences, spends time coaching employees and appreciate their achievements with continues feed backing. (Arnold, Turner, Barling, Kelloway, McKee, (2007). Laissez-Faire Leadership Style Laissez-Faire leadership can be described as a nondirective, passive and inactive style. Leaders of this style believe that internal drives and believes motivate the follower to act .The leader in this style sets few rules for processing the issues in the organization and then delegates them to the subordinates. The leader needs to know very well the level of knowledge, competence and integrity of his followers to be able to delegate the tasks. This style helps the follower to invest their talents and abilities to the maximum. Its more effective if used with very mature and autonomous employees, but mostly it not effective or productive style. The risks here arise when the leader mistaken in choosing the suitable employee to accomplished the delegated tasks. Lack of clear vision and direction for the organization lead the followers to adopt different goals and objective, increase the stress level among the followers and decrease the productivity and the quality. Laissez-Faire leader do not influence the organization culture due to minimal interactions between him and his followers. Finally Laissez-Faire leadership style mainly can be used in small business not for big organizations like health organizations (Daly, Speedy Jackson, 2004). The Effectiveness of Transformational, Transactional  and Laissez-Faire Leadership Many researches and studies done to test the effectiveness and the consequences of adopting different leadership styles on the employee and the organization itself. For example, a study done in 2008 include of 447 staff working in a care center for the elderly in large Danish local government. This study used a longitudinal survey design and questionnaires. Transformational researchers here were testing three hypotheses one of them is the direct relationship between leadership and wellbeing in the followers. The study shown that the there is a strong relation between using the leader the transformational leadership style in dealing with his employees and their well being and decreasing their level of the work stress (Gumusluoglu et al., 2009). Other study done by Berson and Linton in 2005 conclude that the leader who follows the transformational leadership style in dealing with his employees will help them to be more creative and enthusiastic, increase their commitment in the job In 2006, a research done that involve subordinate managers from five hospitals in northeastern Pennsylvania.101 surveys were been distributed in five hospitals in northeastern Pennsylvania .The survey instrument used was the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) that developed by Bernard Bass and Bruce Avolio (1997). The scientists want here to test the relation between the transformational, transactional and laissez-faire leadership styles of healthcare CEOs and their subordinate managers satisfaction with them, their willingness to exert extra effort, and perception of their leaders effectiveness. The study shown that the more CEOs followed the laissez-faire style in dealing with their subordinate managers, the lesser subordinate managers reported exerting extra effort and expressed satisfaction with the leader, and disbelieved in the efficiency of their leader (Spinelli, 2006). Employee job satisfaction is often consisting of the following elements: the job itself, supervisor relationship, management beliefs, future opportunity, work environment, pay/benefits/rewards, and co-worker relationships. According to Morriss research, employee job satisfaction is a critical factor in the satisfaction of the customers. In a study of customer satisfaction at a major Midwestern hospital, the correlation between the nurses job  satisfaction and the patients willingness to recommend the unit was .85, in the same study the nurses them self shown more satisfaction if their head managers developed transformational behaviors (Emery et al., 2007). Many studies encourage health care mangers to use both the transformational and the transactional leadership skills in their setting. Aarons (2006) did a study include 303 mental health providers working in 49 mental health programs for youths in California where involved in a study aim to examine the relation between leadership and mental health providers attitudes toward adopting evidence-based practice. The study shown that both transformational and transactional leadership were positively associated with providers having more positive attitudes toward adoption of evidence-based practice, but in transformational leadership the employees found no difference between their current practice and evidence-based practice which may affect the application of the new practices in the organization. The researchers recommend in this study that the mental health service organizations may benefit from improving transformational and transactional leadership skills in preparation for implementing evidence-based practices. McGuire and Kennerly (2006) mentioned that the leader needs to have a balance between transformational and transactional skills in his management, create effective plan that meet his employees needs. Conclusion Effective leadership styles and theories has been thoroughly studied and tested by scientists due its importance in the success of the organization. Leader in transactional style focused on tasks and reward the employee and recognize them if they meet the agreed objectives. Transformational leader act as role model for his followers inspires and motivate them and meet their needs. Laissez-faire leader provide no visions or directions for his followers, tend to delegate the tasks and avoid decision making. Many studies support the transformational style because its provide supportive environment where the employee work creatively, show commitment and meet the expected requirements. Some studies encourage leaders to make combination between the three styles in their management, because different situation need the style. Transformational and Laissez-faire styles are more useful in encouraging the employees to work independently and creativity. Transactional style is more effective when the leader want to set new practices and need to implement them within specific time.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Emotional intelligence: The rapprochement of reason and emotion Essay

The past few decades have seen increasing interest in emotion research. Although much remains to be learned, agreement is beginning to emerge regarding the way emotion should be viewed. Emotions provide a unique source of information for individuals about their environment, which informs and shapes their thoughts, actions, and subsequent feelings, and there is a growing view that emotion information can be used more or less intelligently. A notion central to emotional intelligence theory is that individuals differ in their ability to perceive, understand and use emotional information, and this ability significantly contributes to intellectual and emotional well-being and growth. Emotional intelligence as a concept has prospered, in part, because of the increasing personal importance of emotion management for individuals in modern society. Indeed, researchers have commonly claimed that emotional intelligence predicts important educational and occupational criteria beyond that predicted by general intellectual ability (e.g. Elias & Weissberg, 2000; Fisher & Ashkansy, 2000; Fox & Spector, 2000; Goleman, 1995; Mehrabian, 2000; Saarni, 1999, Scherer, 1997). Furthermore, the chief proponents of emotional intelligence appear to have made strides towards understanding its nature, components, determinants, effect, developmental track, and modes of modification (Matthews, Zeidner & Roberts, 2001) Since Goleman’s (1995) best-seller, Emotional Intelligence, popularized the concept, researchers have used an extensive number of attributes or abilities drawn from psychology to define emotional intelligence. Goleman’s book contains definitions and descriptions of what he identifies as the five key components of emotional intelligence: knowing emotions, managing emotions, motivating oneself, recognizing emotions in others, and handling relationships. Goleman attributes varying sets of personality attributes to each component, the final effect being that most of personality is covered by his definitions. Towards the end of his book, he claims â€Å"there is an old-fashioned word for the body of skills that emotional intelligence represents: character† (p. 285). As such, variations in the manner with which people think, feel, and act are ostensibly ascribed to differences in â€Å"disposition† and â€Å"style†. The notions of disposition and style however do not accommoda... ... of the Southeastern Psychological Association, Atlanta, GA. Thorndike, E.L. (1920) Intelligence and its use. Harper Magaazine, 140, 227-235. Thoits, P.A. (1985). Self-labelling process in mental illness: The role of emotional deviance. American Journal of Sociology, 91, 221-249. Vagg, P. R. & Spielberger, C. D. (1998). Occupational stress: Measuring job pressure and organizational support in the workplace. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 3, 294-305. Van Maanen, J. (1973) Observations on the making of a policeman. Human Organization, 32, 407-417. Walt Disney Productions. (1982) Your role in the Walt Disney World Show. Orlando, FL: Author. Watson, D. & Pennebaker, J. W. (1989). Health complaints, stress, and distress: Exploring the central role of negative affectivity. Psychological Review, 96, 234-254. Welbourne, T.M., Johnson, D.E., & Erez, A. (1998). The role-based performance scale: Validity analysis of a theory-based measure. Academy of Management Journal, 41, 540-556. Weisinger, H. (1998). Emotional intelligence at work: The untapped edge for success. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Woodsworth, R.S. (1940). Psychology (4th ed.) New York: Holt.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Humor in Advertising Essay

If you hear the word â€Å"coke,† what is the first product that comes into your mind? Or if you hear the name â€Å"McDonald’s,† what television commercial do you remember? When we hear these words or terms, we can easily associate them with products because of the advertisements that we see on television, hear over the radio, read in the magazines or billboards or in the Internet. Advertising is simply the public promotion of products and services. Its primary intention is to persuade the prospective consumer to buy the products or avail the services. Usually, advertising are paid promotions. One of the strategies of advertising is injecting the copy with humor. Though according to Brian Sternthal and Samuel Craig of the Journal of Marketing (1973), there are relatively little known about the persuasive effect of humor, advertisers still continue to use humor in their ads. This is not only to make people laugh but actually the combination of advertisement and entertainment. Many believe that it is easier to get the attention of the audience when there is humor and they can laugh at the advertisement. Humor also reinforces the retention of the audience to certain products or services. However, there are advertising agencies that are against the use of humor in advertising. Reasons include the absence of sense of humor to some audience, thus ruining the intention of the advertisement and could decrease the positive perception of the target market. Moreover, humor in advertising could be subjective and may be misinterpreted; also, it could insult someone. Though there are different interpretations in using humor in advertising, we could still say that it could be an effective instrument to persuade people. Whether the impact of the humor is positive or negative, you are assured that you have got the attention of your viewers and most likely because they are affected by it, they may try the product. References: Sternthal, B. & Craig, S. (Oct. 1973) Humor in Advertising. Journal of Marketing Vol. 39 No. 4, pp. 12-18 _______. (______). Using Humor in Advertising. Retrieved December 15, 2007 from http://www. myprofessionaladvertising. com/Humor%20in%20Advertising. htm Advertising Definition http://wordnet. princeton. edu/perl/webwn? s=advertising.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Free Essays on Emotional And Behavioral Disorders

Emotional and Behavioral Disorders Students with chronic or severe adjustment problems are diagnosed as having emotional or behavioral problems. These problems manifest themselves in a myriad of characteristics. Students with these problems are referred to as heterogeneous. This term refers to the fact that each problem differs from student to student. Each student possesses unique strengths, weaknesses, and needs. The five most common disorders are as follows; anxiety disorders, conduct disorders, and schizophrenia. Anxiety disorders are the most prevalent among students. These disorders are characterized by excessive fear, worry, or uneasiness and include obsessive compulsive disorders (ocd), eating disorders and post traumatic stress disorders. Mood disorders are characterized by extreme mood deviations. The student may also experience both at different times. Students with major depression may experience variations in emotion, motivation, physical well being, and thoughts. Also classified as a mood disorder is manic depressive illness or a bipolar disorder. This condition is characterized by extreme mood swings. At times they experience excited or â€Å"manic† phases. (nich) The third most common disorder is oppositional defiant disorder. This disorder is characterized by hostile and defiant behaviors. Some of the symptoms are loss of temper, irritability, vindictiveness, swearing, and misbehavior. These students may abuse drugs or alcohol. The goal in intervening is to prevent the escalation of oppositional defiant behaviors. (nich) The fourth is conduct disorder. Conduct disorder is defined as a persistent pattern of antisocial behavior that significantly interferes with school, family and social functioning. Some of the antisocial behaviors associated with conduct disorder include; fighting, stealing, sulking, using drugs or alcohol and lying just to name a few. (nich) The last disorder discussed is schi... Free Essays on Emotional And Behavioral Disorders Free Essays on Emotional And Behavioral Disorders Emotional and Behavioral Disorders Students with chronic or severe adjustment problems are diagnosed as having emotional or behavioral problems. These problems manifest themselves in a myriad of characteristics. Students with these problems are referred to as heterogeneous. This term refers to the fact that each problem differs from student to student. Each student possesses unique strengths, weaknesses, and needs. The five most common disorders are as follows; anxiety disorders, conduct disorders, and schizophrenia. Anxiety disorders are the most prevalent among students. These disorders are characterized by excessive fear, worry, or uneasiness and include obsessive compulsive disorders (ocd), eating disorders and post traumatic stress disorders. Mood disorders are characterized by extreme mood deviations. The student may also experience both at different times. Students with major depression may experience variations in emotion, motivation, physical well being, and thoughts. Also classified as a mood disorder is manic depressive illness or a bipolar disorder. This condition is characterized by extreme mood swings. At times they experience excited or â€Å"manic† phases. (nich) The third most common disorder is oppositional defiant disorder. This disorder is characterized by hostile and defiant behaviors. Some of the symptoms are loss of temper, irritability, vindictiveness, swearing, and misbehavior. These students may abuse drugs or alcohol. The goal in intervening is to prevent the escalation of oppositional defiant behaviors. (nich) The fourth is conduct disorder. Conduct disorder is defined as a persistent pattern of antisocial behavior that significantly interferes with school, family and social functioning. Some of the antisocial behaviors associated with conduct disorder include; fighting, stealing, sulking, using drugs or alcohol and lying just to name a few. (nich) The last disorder discussed is schi...

Monday, October 21, 2019

Inescapeabilty of the Horrors of the Civil War essays

Inescapeabilty of the Horrors of the Civil War essays The destruction left by the Civil War was a time in American history that was necessary for the natural progression of human kind. While its horrors and often sanguinary tactics left the hearts of both Confederate and Union soldiers hollow, it was inevitable it its birth. The depths behind its unavoidance falls to the nations failure of compromises, its unsteady legs of a young nation, but most importantly it was the passions of the American people that brought the Civil War to life. Leading up to the events of the Civil War, that nations attempts at compromising show the almost impossible outcome of an acceptance in both the North and the South. Regarding the Compromise of 1850, the need to placate both the North and the South led to the outcome of neither truly gaining what they wanted. Angers still burned and resentment still existed despite the compromise, illustrating the growth that would have to continue to find a different solution: the Civil War. The weakness of compromises is displayed in the Kansas-Nebraska act, which basically ignored the Missouri Compromise of 1820. The later compromise had forbidden slavery north of the 36 30 line in which Douglas sought to change to popular sovereignty in the Kansas-Nebraska act. People, the North in particular, were left with a feeling of caution and unable to be comforted by a compromise when such a significant one had been so conveniently ignored. Compromising was not helping the people, and left them with li ttle else to turn to. The nations youth was another key factor in the lead in of the Civil War. There was no history for the nation to rely on and to support them in these difficult and trying times. They could not be comforted by the fact that they had survived so long and thus the reasoning for staying together was less powerful. Also, because of the nations childhood, state obligations were raised above obligations to ones country ...

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Gettysburg essays

Gettysburg essays By late afternoon, on the 2nd July, 1863, after fierce hand to hand fighting, Major General John B. Hoods 3rd Divisions flanking attack on Big Round Top had been successful. Meade realising the lack of troops on the Round Tops had rushed the 1st Maine to try to thwart Jackson who having let Hood bypass Sickles force in the Peach Orchard caught way out in front of the main Union lines and seize the Top (s). Sickle was outflanked and held by Laws Brigade leaving only the 1st Maine to take the brunt of the killing power of the massed Confederate infantry. Colonel Chamberlain, commanding was killed in the first volley and whatever morale the Union troops retained was soon broken. It was over in less than ten minutes, the remnants of the Federal forces streamed back to the relative safety of their main line on Cemetery Ridge. Hood sent reports of the securing of the Tops to Jackson.ThomasStonewall Jackson had assumed command of the Army of Northern Virginia after Robert E.Lee was wounded by a stray shell late on the afternoon of the 1st. Though not serious, General Lee had shrapnel wounds to both legs and concussion and command had passed to his deputy, Jackson. Jackson sent for Lieutenant-General Longstreet and ordered him to get his artillery onto the Tops and commence bombardment of Meades forces. Cabells Battalion of Artillery is despatched to Big Round Top and commences an immediate cannonade. Alexander has despatched half his cannon to assist and by 7.00pm 67 cannon are belching their deadly breath down on Cemetery Ridge. In the pitch dark lit only by the shell bursts of the Confederate fire the Union troops mill about in panic. Orders are countermandered , duplicated and totally confused as officers try to keep their various charges in check. The casualty toll is becoming horrendous and more and more troops are trying to flee the field. Unfortunately, in the dark they have little sense of dir ...

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Women are Better Listeners Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Women are Better Listeners - Essay Example Though the use of a scanning technique known as magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), the study has shown that there is a major difference between the neural activity of men and women who were listening to someone who was reading aloud. This paper will discuss aspects that show that the results that women are better listeners than men are true. In the current society, more women have joined the corporate world. Despite numerous limitations, organizations that are led by women perform better than those that are led by men. This is because a good leader must listen to the rest of the subordinates. As a result, women leaders are able to listen to the grievances of the rest of the employees. Therefore, they are able to understand their concern and connect closely with them. Consequently, the employees feel motivated to work in the organization. This plays a significant role in enabling the company to achieve the set objectives. This is because, through effective leadership, they feel that they are an integral part of the organization. On the other hand, women are able to easily implement an open office policy. This enables the employees to communicate directly to the top office without the use of the intermediaries. This makes it easy for the leader to intervene on issues that are affecting the performance of the workforce. Th is is achieved through listening keenly and understanding the issue in depth thereby, making it easy for them to come up with effective solutions. This is unlike their men counterparts who are quick to make judgments even before listening to all parties that are in a dispute. Therefore, employees who are led by men tend to fear opening up because the man can react even before listening to both sides of the story.

Friday, October 18, 2019

Terrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 4

Terrorism - Essay Example This implies that terrorism has been used by left-wing and right-wing political parties, religious groups, nationalistic groups, ruling governments, revolutionaries, among others (Malisow and French 24). This paper shall seek to explain the moral and political aspects of terrorism as well as the issues that define and conceptualize the terrorism phenomenon. There are several documentaries and films that have been created to explicate the origin, as well as the issues that revolve around terrorism. Some of these documentaries include; The Weather Underground by Sam Green and Bill Siegel, The Power Nightmares by Adam Curtis, among others. These two documentaries extensively explore the concept of terrorism, how it came into being, its existence and how it is perceived by people of different cadres. First and foremost, it is worth noting that the two documentaries concur that terrorism came into existence as a form of revolution against issues that were the masses assumed were against h umanity and peaceful co-existence among people. In the documentary, The Weather Underground, Sam Green and Bill Siegel have explicated the manner in which a group of students revolted against some of the issues they felt the government was not addressing. The students, under an umbrella body known as Students for Democratic Society, protested against unequal rights of the African American people and the Vietnam War (Green and Siegel). After realizing that their peaceful demonstrations were being taken for granted, they resorted to terror. For instance, the smashed windows of government buildings and even set blew some with bombs. While blowing the government buildings, they passed word for people to vacate the buildings to ensure that no one was hurt (Green and Siegel). In this case, they respected the sanctity of life while agitating for their rights. This documentary plays an integral part in giving the history of American terrorists. On the hand, The Power Nightmares documentary explicates the rise and growth of Islamic terrorism and the perceived war on terror. Just like in The Weather Underground, Curtis’s documentary demonstrates that resentment and dissatisfaction with the state of things led to the rise of terrorism. However, according to Curtis, terrorism began with the Sayyid Qutb, an Egyptian civil servant and the founder of modern Islamist school of thought, resentment of the western society’s morals and virtues (Curtis). Having stayed in America and witnessed the rot in the western morals as perpetrated by individualism, he opposed Gamal Abdel Nasser’s westernization of Egypt. Therefore, he aims at saving the society by restructuring it along Islamic lines. Additionally, he is convinced that his wish can only be achieved by creating an elite vanguard to facilitate a revolution. Consequently, he creates the Muslim Brotherhood of which he becomes the leader. He motivates other Islamists such as Ayman al-Zawahiri, who later becom es the mentor of Osama bin Laden (Curtis). They have a strong notion that westernized leaders can be killed in order to remove their corruption in the society. Curtis also reveals the rise of disillusioned liberals such as Paul Wolfowitz and Irving Kristol in America. They were agitating for th

Case study Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Case study - Coursework Example The company is currently undergoing a managerial meeting to find solutions for goal of achieving greater growth. The top seven managers are present there. It seems the company needs help due to the fact they are steering off course and wasted two days discussing short term operating problems. The company needs to hire a consultant to help them. If a board of directors exists it should be involved in the process. A representative from each of the worker unions should be present as well to provide added insight that could be helpful in finding a solution. The project champion should be the external consultant. Sign off - The current project requires a detailed plan of how the company is going to achieve growth in the long term. The person who is ultimately responsible for the project is the founder of the company, John Bigboss. He is the person that is supposed to sign off on the project. Tips - Some helpful tips to consider is documenting the progress of the project at all times and setting a specific timeline for completion of the project. It is important align the goals of the company with the employee expectations. All stakeholders should receive a written communication of the company strategic shift. A mitigation plan should in place to minimize business

Research 2 Artists Lena Kurvska and Marcus Krackowizer in Relation to Paper

2 Artists Lena Kurvska and Marcus Krackowizer in Relation to the Notion of Chance - Research Paper Example This paper evaluates the representational artistic expressions through the still life painting of Lena Kurovska and abstract paintings of Marcus Krackowizer. 1. Lena Kurovska Lena Kurovska is a painting artist from Ukraine and was born in 1969. She attended Kiev State Art School between 1980 and 1987 where she studies classical drawing and composition. A decade later, she graduated from the National Academy of Art and Architecture. Lena’s paintings exhibit nationally and internationally. Lena Kurovska was influenced by the works of impressionist while in National Academy of Art and Architecture. She concentrates on still-lives and landscapes, which are painted wherever she travels. Since she is a traveler, she deals with external objects like other expressionists. These objects include scenes of relaxation, objects of daily lives and so on (Moffett 142). This quality is visible and evident from her still life painting called still life with bread of 2005 and the Christmas stil l life of 2006. Both are oil paintings, which feature ordinary objects in our daily life. Lena does her still-live paintings on location, and she uses oils, pastel, and acrylics. Her paintings are done in impressionists style with all her canvases being light, lyrical colorful, and warm. Like other expressionists, Lena’s paintings have very short strokes of paint, which are thinly applied in a way that the strokes are visible (Mayer 312.). Her paintings also have rough texture on the surface and have visible patches of paint in various locations. This impressionist style is evident in the painting still life with bread where a more general image effect is created in the subject without the true-to-life accuracy. Like any other expressionist, Lena’s goal of her works is to catch the eye of her art viewers through use of bright colors, and bring their viewers close to their subject through their composition. In these two paintings, Lena uses bright colors and mixes them to create shadows and dark patches by applying different shades of complimentary colors. Her impressionist style is evident in her use of colored shadows and her saturation is colors, which creates vividness that detailed paintings could not achieve (Rosenblum 220). Since she hopes to bring her viewers closer to her subject, in each of the above four paintings, she does not rely on the notion of symmetry and for example the first two display a high horizontal line that creates a plunging perspective and the subject of the painting is not centered. Before the emergence of impressionists, painters placed their composition in such a way that the main subject guided the viewer’s attention (Rewald 323). Impressionists go against this notion and relax the boundary between the subject and the background, and the impressionist’s painting resembles a snapshot and a portion of a big reality, which is as if captured by chance (Rosenblum 228.). For example, Lena’s painting, for example the still life with bread is just a portion of a prepared table. Viewing this painting gives the viewer a feeling that something is left out in the snap, and that the view is as if was captured by chance. 2. Marcus Krackowizer Marcus Krackowizer is a British artist who lives in the UK. This artist started painting full time less than a decade ago. The artist broke his neck although, he says, did not affect his ideas he develops in his works. I addition to his original paintings, he has published his full and

Thursday, October 17, 2019

How advances in technology have changed learning and development in Essay

How advances in technology have changed learning and development in organizations - Essay Example Previously workplace knowledge focused solely on technical knowledge, specific to the tasks in a job. But now skills such as communication, leadership, and individual responsibility are considered equally important to equip individuals with life long learning skills that encourage engagement with mind, body, and soul. The expectations inherent in new roles, confounded by uncertainty of the environment and the explosion of information technology, now challenge us to reconceptualise human cognition and develop education and training in a way that resonates with current knowledge and skills. One of the significant themes that is emerging from the redesigning of jobs is the contradictory yet legitimate nature of the roles and their associated values. During the transition from feudal to capitalist societies workers struggled to conceptualize self as different from labor. It was difficult for "man" to reconceptualise labor as separate from individuals and a commodity, which could be sold for a fee. We now see parallels in the emerging workplaces. There are various tensions in the contemporary world of work such as those between global and local knowledge and performance; learning and work; institution and workplace-based training; self and organizational development, competition and collaboration and these impacts the role of individuals and context in developing knowledge and skills to function in current workplaces. We have, in the past, viewed opposing positions in such tensions as only being right or wrong and hence, many are still searching for an absolute black and white solution. Giddens and Delors both have written extensively on the emerging tensions and the need to consider ways of dealing with such dualistic/contradic tory positions. For example, in considering globalization Giddens argues that we now have new trans-national systems that have heightened competition for scarce resources while at the same time

Listening guide Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Listening guide - Essay Example In other words, Mozart applies instrumental alterations. The second theme is followed by a short cadence, which brings the listener back to the repetition of the entire exposition. At the very beginning, the first theme changes its key; the modulation growth into the contrapuntal treatment of the theme by the whole orchestra. In the following phrases, the modulation takes place as well and is accompanied but the breaking up of the main theme into small portions, or fragmentation. Fragmentation ends up the transition passage performed forte by the full orchestra; the retransition leads to the recapitulation. In the recapitulation part, the first theme is performed in G minor piano, as in exposition but with the differences in the orchestration as the party of the bassoon becomes more prominent. The second theme (originally performed in major key) is now played in the tonic key of the piece, which is G minor. It results in the change of the mood of the movement. In addition to this, recapitulation is more stable compared to exposition due to the fact both themes are played in the minor key as well as the bridge theme. The piece under analysis ends up with a short coda comprised imitative passage performed by the strings, piano and then followed by repeated cadences played forte. Like in all the parts of the movement, cadence theme is followed by an abrupt stop. This time, however, the stop is followed by three chords which end the

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Research 2 Artists Lena Kurvska and Marcus Krackowizer in Relation to Paper

2 Artists Lena Kurvska and Marcus Krackowizer in Relation to the Notion of Chance - Research Paper Example This paper evaluates the representational artistic expressions through the still life painting of Lena Kurovska and abstract paintings of Marcus Krackowizer. 1. Lena Kurovska Lena Kurovska is a painting artist from Ukraine and was born in 1969. She attended Kiev State Art School between 1980 and 1987 where she studies classical drawing and composition. A decade later, she graduated from the National Academy of Art and Architecture. Lena’s paintings exhibit nationally and internationally. Lena Kurovska was influenced by the works of impressionist while in National Academy of Art and Architecture. She concentrates on still-lives and landscapes, which are painted wherever she travels. Since she is a traveler, she deals with external objects like other expressionists. These objects include scenes of relaxation, objects of daily lives and so on (Moffett 142). This quality is visible and evident from her still life painting called still life with bread of 2005 and the Christmas stil l life of 2006. Both are oil paintings, which feature ordinary objects in our daily life. Lena does her still-live paintings on location, and she uses oils, pastel, and acrylics. Her paintings are done in impressionists style with all her canvases being light, lyrical colorful, and warm. Like other expressionists, Lena’s paintings have very short strokes of paint, which are thinly applied in a way that the strokes are visible (Mayer 312.). Her paintings also have rough texture on the surface and have visible patches of paint in various locations. This impressionist style is evident in the painting still life with bread where a more general image effect is created in the subject without the true-to-life accuracy. Like any other expressionist, Lena’s goal of her works is to catch the eye of her art viewers through use of bright colors, and bring their viewers close to their subject through their composition. In these two paintings, Lena uses bright colors and mixes them to create shadows and dark patches by applying different shades of complimentary colors. Her impressionist style is evident in her use of colored shadows and her saturation is colors, which creates vividness that detailed paintings could not achieve (Rosenblum 220). Since she hopes to bring her viewers closer to her subject, in each of the above four paintings, she does not rely on the notion of symmetry and for example the first two display a high horizontal line that creates a plunging perspective and the subject of the painting is not centered. Before the emergence of impressionists, painters placed their composition in such a way that the main subject guided the viewer’s attention (Rewald 323). Impressionists go against this notion and relax the boundary between the subject and the background, and the impressionist’s painting resembles a snapshot and a portion of a big reality, which is as if captured by chance (Rosenblum 228.). For example, Lena’s painting, for example the still life with bread is just a portion of a prepared table. Viewing this painting gives the viewer a feeling that something is left out in the snap, and that the view is as if was captured by chance. 2. Marcus Krackowizer Marcus Krackowizer is a British artist who lives in the UK. This artist started painting full time less than a decade ago. The artist broke his neck although, he says, did not affect his ideas he develops in his works. I addition to his original paintings, he has published his full and

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Listening guide Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Listening guide - Essay Example In other words, Mozart applies instrumental alterations. The second theme is followed by a short cadence, which brings the listener back to the repetition of the entire exposition. At the very beginning, the first theme changes its key; the modulation growth into the contrapuntal treatment of the theme by the whole orchestra. In the following phrases, the modulation takes place as well and is accompanied but the breaking up of the main theme into small portions, or fragmentation. Fragmentation ends up the transition passage performed forte by the full orchestra; the retransition leads to the recapitulation. In the recapitulation part, the first theme is performed in G minor piano, as in exposition but with the differences in the orchestration as the party of the bassoon becomes more prominent. The second theme (originally performed in major key) is now played in the tonic key of the piece, which is G minor. It results in the change of the mood of the movement. In addition to this, recapitulation is more stable compared to exposition due to the fact both themes are played in the minor key as well as the bridge theme. The piece under analysis ends up with a short coda comprised imitative passage performed by the strings, piano and then followed by repeated cadences played forte. Like in all the parts of the movement, cadence theme is followed by an abrupt stop. This time, however, the stop is followed by three chords which end the

Water Hardness Essay Example for Free

Water Hardness Essay METHODS: 1. Prepare an approximate 0.004 M disodium EDTA solution. To prepare this solution, weigh about 0.7-0.8 g of Na2EDTA and dissolve in 500 mL deionized water in your plastic bottle. Make to to shake the bottle to dissolve the salt. 2. Obtain a 250-mL Erlenmeyer flask and transfer a 10 mL of CaCO3 using a buret into the flask. 3. Measure 30 mL of deionized water and add it into the titration flask. 4. Make sure to stir the solution 5. Inside a fume hood, add 3mL of ammonia/ammonium chloride buffer (pH10) into the flask and stir for another 30 seconds. 6. Add four drops of Eriorchrome Black T indicator solution. Stir for another 30 seconds 7. Begin titration. Record your initial volume and final volume. At the endpoint, the color will change to pink to violet to blue. 8. Repeat this titration two more times. Now that you recorded the volume, your second and third trial should be a lot easier. 9. Take your water sample that you obtain from the stockroom and record the unknown number. 10. Transfer 25 mL of the unknown water sample to a 250-mL Erlenmeyer flask. 11. Add about 20 mL of deionized water to the titration flask. Stir for 30 seconds 12. Inside a fume hood, add about 3 mL of ammonia/ammonium chloride buffer (pH10) and stir for another 30 seconds. 13. Add four drops of Eriorchrome Black T indicator solution to your flask and stir for 30 seconds. 14. Begin titrating. Record you initial volume and final volume. Repeat this twice more. Calculate the average hardness and your experimental precision from the three trials. RESULTS: EDTA Solution: 0.7533g of Na2EDTA mixed with 500ml DI water Table A: Standardization of EDTA Trial| Start Volume| End Volume| Amount of EDTA| 1| 3.90ml| 29.85ml| 25.95ml| 2| 5.35ml| 28.35ml| 23.00ml| 3| 0.45ml| 23.50ml| 23.05ml| Moles EDTA calculations 1st and 3rd trial (10.1 mL CaCO3) x (1L/1000ml) x 1.000g CaCO3/1L) x (1 mole CaCO3/100.1 g CaCO3) x (1 mole EDTA / 1 mole CaCO3) x (1000ml/L) = 0.101moles EDTA/L 2nd trial (9.90 ml CaCO3) x (1L/1000mL) x (1.00 g CaCO3/L) x (1 mole CaCO3/100.1g CaCO3) x (1 mole EDTA/1 mole CaCO3)x (1000 mL/1L) == 0.099 moles EDTA/L Mean molarity: (0.101 + 0.099 + 0.101)/3 = 0.100 moles EDTA / L Water hardness calculations Unknown water sample #24 Table 2. Water sample Trial| EDTA | Water sample #24| 1| 13.45ml| 25.1ml| 2| 13.35ml| 25.5ml| 3| 13.50ml| 25.0ml| CaCO3 molar mass: 100.1g/mole 1st trial (13.45 mL EDTA/25 mL of unknown water sample) x (1L/1000mL) x (0.101 moles EDTA/1L) x (1mole CaCO3/1 mole EDTA) x (100.1 g CaCO3/1 mole) x (1000 mg CaCO3/1g) x (1000mL/1L) == 5439.2 mg CaCO3/1L 2nd trial (13.35 mL EDTA/25 mL of unknown water sample) x (1L/1000mL) x (0.099 moles EDTA/1L) x (1mole CaCO3/1 mole EDTA) x (100.1 g CaCO3/1 mole) x (1000 mg CaCO3/1g) x (1000mL/1L) == 5291.9 mg CaCO3/1L 3rd trial (13.50 mL EDTA/25 mL of unknown water sample) x (1L/1000mL) x (0.101 moles EDTA/1L) x (1mole CaCO3/1 mole EDTA) x (100.1 g CaCO3/1 mole) x (1000 mg CaCO3/1g) x (1000mL/1L) == 5459.5 mg CaCO3/1L Calculate the total hardness in ppm CaCO3 1st trial 13.45ml EDTA x (0.004M/1000ml) x (100.1g CaCO3/1mole CaCO3) x (1000mg CaCO3/1g CaCO3) x (1000L/25.1ml) = 214.6 ppm CaCO3 2nd trial 13.35ml EDTA x (0.004M/1000ml) x (100.1g CaCO3/1mole CaCO3) x (1000mg CaCO3/1g CaCO3) x (1000L/25.5ml) = 209.6 ppm CaCO3 3rd trial 13.50ml EDTA x (0.004M/1000ml) x (100.1g CaCO3/1mole CaCO3) x (1000mg CaCO3/1g CaCO3) x (1000L/25ml) = 216.2 ppm CaCO3 Average ppm (216.2 + 209.6 + 214.6)/3 = 213.5ppm CONCLUSION: The concentration was concluded to be 213.5 ppm in the unknown which is right about in between Phoenix’ water hardness which is 164-291 ppm. REFERENCE: Department of Chemistry.(2012,February).Complexometric Determination of Water Hardness.Mesa Arizona City of Phoenix Official Website http://phoenix.gov/waterservices/quality/index.html

Monday, October 14, 2019

Rising interest on entrepreneurship

Rising interest on entrepreneurship 1.0 INTRODUCTION The rising interest on entrepreneurship has become a regular topics discussed among academician and politician and there are many evidence can be seen worldwide (Levenburg and Schwarz, 2008). In the U.S alone, for the past 10 years, on averaged 600,000 new businesses was incorporated each year (Kuratko, 2005). There is also a significant increase in endowment received by business schools in the U.S. for entrepreneurship activities. Since 1995 US$10 million had been contributed compared to an average US$500,000 to US$1 million in early 1990s (Katz, 2003). Studies on forty countries entrepreneurship activities by Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) have seen the sharp increased from 2 per cent to 29 per had confirm this fact (Levenburg and Schwarz, 2008). There are many reasons for it and why it is becoming more important nowadays. Due to the advantages and attractiveness of entrepreneurship in the economy, Lambing and Kuehl (2007) noted a remarkable increase in new business in the U.S. for the past 10 15 years. The practice of downsizing by big firms also believed to contribute into the increasing number of people considering entrepreneurship as a career not only because of unemployment but also decreasing interest of people pursuing career in a big corporation. They feel that the organizations have no longer provided the job security and career opportunities that they once did. The use of technology in the working places had taking away many jobs in the organization and reduced the need for labor and manager in big firms. Due to these factors, many people deciding to become independent in pursuing their economic needs (Lambing and Kuehl, 2007). Entrepreneurial firms had a crucial contribution into the economy as they become a part of renewal process of declining economies with its innovation which lead to technological change and growth in productivity. Not only that, they also become the main employment provider which enable all walk of life to access the economic accomplishment (Kuratko, 2005). In Malaysia, the seriousness of the government in promoting entrepreneurship among Malaysian can be seen with various programs and incentives offered to the current and future entrepreneur. In 2007, Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Dato Seri Abdullah bin Hj. Ahmad Badawi had presented in the National budget a special agenda that cater to develop competitive Bumiputera entrepreneur. Several public and private agencies had also be formed such as the formation of Perbadanan Usahawan Nasional Berhad (PUNB) in 1991 which has successfully developed Bumiputera entrepreneurs in strategic industries and trade sectors such as in oil and gas, electrical and electronics and ICT (2007 Budget Speech by Prime Minister). In order to support this effort financially, financial institutions such as Bank Simpanan Malaysia and Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia will providing micro credit facilities to Bumiputera entrepreneur and become one of the proof to the government effort to promote entrepreneurial quest among its citizens. There is no doubt on the important of entrepreneurship for the nations economy as Ibrahim and Soufani (2002) found in their research. The small business sector in Canada plays a significant role in the economy. However, without proper training and guidance there is a likelihood that the entrepreneur will face the business failure as found out by Ibrahim and Soufani (2002). They had identified the major cause of the high failure rate in a new business venture is the entrepreneur lack of managerial skills and competencies and agreed that entrepreneurship training is a key strategy to reduce the high failure rate in the small business sector. This is supported by Sullivan (2000) who stated that entrepreneurial learning is of critical importance to the survival and growth of SMEs in most marketplaces. Henry et al (2005) suggested that in order for entrepreneurial development programs to be effective, learning must be based in real work situations so that a person can implement what they have learnt better. The use of Kolbs learning cycle that is involved in experiencing, reflecting, conceptualizing, and experimentation concept during the process of learning will help them to apply what they have learnt in the real organizational or business setting into their own venture. This is when the entrepreneurship education can play its role and becoming the instrument in creating more and more entrepreneur in the society. However it is crucial to understand who is entrepreneur and what are their traits so that the learning process can be programmed in such a way that benefit to the target audience and able to reach its objectives. 2.0 THE GENERAL CONCEPT OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP To better understand the topic, this part will explain the theoretical concept of entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship traits, and motivation factors of entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is a dynamic subject to discuss and there are many angles it can be viewed, critics, and studied and there is no one fixed definition for it (Zimmerer et al, 2008; Brooks, 2009; Barringer and Ireland, 2008). The definitions are different from one writer to another where most of it are derived from their readings or research they had conducted. Brooks (2009) viewed entrepreneurship from the classical economic model and defined entrepreneurship as a factor of production, or an input to production such as labor, physical capital, human capital, and land and entrepreneur is an individual who put the element of skills and risk that they add into the inputs. Joseph Schumpeter (an Austrian economist) describes entrepreneurship as an economic force that had droved capitalism in the western world which mainly characterize by the will to succeed, competitiveness and success in the economic activity (Brooks, 2009). Brooks (2009) adds that entrepreneurship success comes from the creativity and innovativeness of an individual or organization which gives enormous impact to the economy by creating of new jobs and employment opportunity. According to Wenneker and Thurik (1999) entrepreneur can be divided â€Å"into three intellectual traditions according to the German, neo-classical, and Austrian†which summarized the function of entrepreneur as a leader to market stability through entrepreneurial activities, profitability opportunist, and â€Å"creator of instability through its creative destruction†. Based on this study Hebert and Link (1989) defined the entrepreneur as â€Å"someone who specializes in taking responsibility for and making judgmental decisions that affect the location, form, and the use of goods, resources, or institutions†(Wenneker and Thurik, 1999). Entrepreneurship is made of entrepreneur that is an individual who creates new business in the face of risk and uncertainty for achieving profit and growth opportunities (Zimmerer et al, 2008). These individuals than assembles necessary resources to capitalize those opportunities in order to materialize its goals. There are different views on which entrepreneurship traits that really turn someone to become successful entrepreneur. Table 1 summarized some of the entrepreneurship traits in the view of different writers and researchers. Author Entrepreneurship Traits Zimmerer et al (2008) from David McClelland 1. Desire for responsibility 2. Preference for moderate risk (risk eliminators) 3. Confidence in their ability to succeed 4. Desire for immediate feedback 5. High level of energy 6. Future orientation (serial entrepreneurs) 7. Skill in organization 8. Value of achievement over money Zimmerer et al (2008) 1. High degree of commitment 2. Willingness to accept risk, work hard and take action 3. Flexibility Barringer and Ireland (2008) 1. Passion for the Business 2. Product/Customer Focus 3. Tenacity Despite Failure 4. Execution Intelligence David A. Kirby (2004) 1. Risk-taking capability 2. Need for achievement 3. Locus control 4. Desire for autonomy 5. Deviancy 6. Creativity and opportunism 7. Intuition Timmons et al from David A. Kirby (2004) 1. Total commitment, determination, and perseverance 2. Drive to achieve and grow 3. Orientation to goals and opportunities 4. Taking initiative and personal responsibility 5. Veridical awareness and a sense of humour 6. Seeking and using feedback 7. Internal locus control 8. Tolerance of ambiguity, stress and uncertainty 9. Calculated risk-taking and risk sharing 10. Low need for status and power 11. Integrity and reliability 12. Decisiveness, urgency and patience 13. Learning from failure 14. Team builder and hero maker Mario Rutten (2001) on Chinese entrepreneur 1. Strong emphasis on personal advancement 2. Hard work and self-sacrifice for the family honour, community, and ancestors. Alina M. Zapalska and Will Edwards (2001) on traditional authority and entrepreneurial culture for direction in life 1. Confucian culture to the family 2. A strong tendency to promote the collective or the group 3. A deep respect for age, hierarchy, and authority 4. Importance of reputation achieved through hard work and successful enterprise Colette Henry, Frances Hill, and Claire Leitch (2005) 1. Entrepreneur is someone who involved in the process of creating something different in the business. Donald F. Kuratko (2005) on entrepreneurship characteristics 1. Opportunities seekers 2. Beyond security risk taker 3. Tenacity to   push idea through reality Table 1: The summarize entrepreneurship traits What motivate individual to become an entrepreneur? What motivate a person to become an entrepreneur? There are many authors or researchers that had conducted on such matter had varies in views from the aspect of psychology, sociology and economic anthropology. From the view of psychology, this research try to look into the mental model of an entrepreneur whether their motivation or behavior is based on thought that they see from surrounding which relate one part to another that finally have the consequences to their actions. For example, research by Autere and Autio (2000) had found that from their qualitative study on the small software firms in Finland, mimicking behavior of success businesses plays a role in creating new entrepreneur and their behavior orientation can be acquired through imitation. The mental model of the management in the big firms also influenced the behavior of new and small firms, and therefore can be learned through experience and external influences. The growth-oriented of the external model perceived by the new entrepreneur also influence their behavior toward advancement of their business. By exposing the growth-oriented mental models into the management of the new business, this will induce greater growth orientation among their managers. They also found that if the exposure to growth-oriented mental models is introduce earlier in the business life, this will instill a growth-oriented culture in the firm and lead to faster growth in the future. There are also many questions on whether there are different motivating factors on individual from different culture. Many researchers try to explain this human economic behavior and this is what the economic anthropology comes into the picture. Economic anthropology is a description and analysis of economic life, using an anthropological perspective which approaches and locates aspects of peoples individual and collective lives (personal and society) and how its linking with one another (Carrier, 2005).   Durrenberger (2005) describe the economic anthropology as a system in which people produce, distribute, and consume goods in order to meet their material needs and this systems look into how   it was organized, operate, created, and connected to other systems. Dalton (1968) mentioned that the economic anthropology is concerned with the organization of economy and its connection between economic and social organization and the results of economic process which relates to productivity. Because of this reasons, the entrepreneur exist due to the needs of the society that need to be filled and this existence benefit the society with systematically organized economy where the exchange of needs can be met. What drive an entrepreneur can be said that human wants are no longer limited and LeClair Jr. (1962) mentioned that contemporary economist have long since adopted a broader view of human wants. A person has to deal with the fact that their aspirations always exceed their capabilities and they have to economize their capabilities with the significance of meeting their desires to the fullest extent possible (LeClair Jr., 1962). This can be filled with the association of economic process which described by LeClair Jr. (1962) as an event of producing goods or services for utilization or consumption of the produce goods or services for the satisfaction of human wants. One of the major paradigms in economic anthropology is culturalism. One of the focus in this study would be trying to determine whether culture play an important role in encouraging the entrepreneurship behavior among member of its society. It is crucial to understand what culture is all about before we know what role it plays in the entrepreneurship. Schein (2004) defined culture as a pattern of shared basic assumptions that group learned as it solved its problems through external adaptation with the internal integrations. When this has worked well enough to be considered valid, therefore it is taught to new members as it is a correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to the problems. Schein (2004) classified the level of culture from the surface to the deepest level based on the degree of visibility of the cultural phenomenon to the observer. Artifacts such as architecture, language, technology, products, etc. are at the surface of cultural level which is the visible organizational structures and processes that can be sees, hears, and feels (Schein 2004). A person interpretation on others will be predictably being the projections of his feelings and reactions from his experienced. Related to this, a person motivation to become an entrepreneur can be from his experienced by looking what the benefits and rewards that entrepreneurship can offer from his surrounding. If he saw it as a positive experienced, there is a positive tendency that he will also motivated to do the same and vice versa. The motivation to become an entrepreneur can also cause by the personality of different individual. Different culture does have different perception on how a person develops their personality. People from Asia are known as less focused on differentiating the individual from the group and put less emphasis on self-actualization compare to the westerners which have a strong concepts of the individualistic where being different from the group is not being seen as indifferent (Schein, 2004). Asian sees group opinion or values is more important than taking own actions and benefits to the group is more important than their own and always put their own interest last. For example, Asian Chinese entrepreneurs hold a strong belief in collective organization management and see challenges as a group endeavors rather than individual objectives (Zapalska and Edwards, 2001). This is why some successful entrepreneur is found to come from a group or families. Berger (1991) explains that family entrepreneurship is directly responsible for Hong Kongs extraordinary economic success. Paternalistic management style in the traditional Chinese family where the father in the family had the autocratic power is responsible for adding family wealth had become the reason of the family economic advancement. This creates competition among families and this style was brought into the business which finally creates vicious competition among firms. However because of this competition, researchers found that family based firm does not last long. Their estimation is between two and a half to three generations (Berger, 1991). The role of family as the most critical element in developing individual entrepreneurial character was also supported by Gupta (1991) from her interviews on Indian entrepreneurs. The rise of economic success of Chinese businessmen in recent years also being said to be contributed by the solidarity, closeness and strong ties between family and clan that they had portrayed. Unlike their counterpart on the West which emphasized more on individualistic spirit, collectivism is being the core values that they hold in doing business. Rutten (2001) believed that combining with personal loyalty to family and group welfare, social and family environment with strong traditional values and practices, has contributed to the development of entrepreneurship in Asia. However, a country advancement and progress do not take place in a single society as a whole but through the network of diversified collective of its social life. To flourish, small-scale entrepreneurs have to develop their technical and social skills. They have to build the external networks between suppliers, sellers, customers, entrepreneur and others and made them become part of the institutional structures that they had built (Berger, 1991). In order to success, network had become an element which play an important role in doing business (Gidsell, 1991). This institutional structure is not only in the form of family relations but also in the ethnic group they belong. It is believed that entrepreneur from the same ethnic had the advantages and benefited from belonging to the group because of they shared same ethics and cultural norms. Landa (1991) found that the shared ethics and cultural norms had functioned as social capital where they can reduce cost of business by receiving low interest or even interest free loan from fellow ethnic entrepreneur. Gidsell (1991) found that entrepreneur from the same ethnic groups not only providing initial capital and stock but also the running the day-to-day operation of business.   Social capital is not the only capital that this ethnic entrepreneur received. Godsell (1991) mentioned that network built in the ethnic groups did provide the entrepreneur with spiritual capital. This network becomes the way of their survival and as a result prospering the community. Tangible recognition in the form of honorary doctorates and other public awards (Godsell, 1991) and the structural factors such as religion, culture and socio-political conditions of community support (Gupta, 1991) would also help the entrepreneur to move forward. The cultural aspect had become the interest of many researchers that study entrepreneurship and had emerged as study of ethnic entrepreneurship (Light, 2004; Greene and Chaganti, 2004; Iyer, 2004). This study had ranged from the entrepreneurial behavior into the financial aspect of the business. Light (2004) seen ethnic entrepreneurship as an economic activity that had result from the actions of minority ethnic group to reduce their disadvantage and exclusion from the labor market. Self-employment or entrepreneurship had played a major role in this community and as a result, ethnic entrepreneur are always seen as an employment provider to fellow co-ethnic when the employment opportunities is limited for them.   3.0ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION Because of the challenges and uncertain future face by the people today, there will be a greater need for them to have entrepreneurial skills and abilities so they can deal it with. Factors such as reduction of trade barriers due to the globalization of economy, technology advancement, privatisation of public service has created complexity and uncertainty in the society which cause changes in organisational management and even individual perception towards employment (Henry et al, 2005). The changing landscapes of economic environment give important role for entrepreneurship education to play. The important of entrepreneurship education can be seen as it becomes the political agenda and the priority for both industrially developed and developing countries. It is agree that the entrepreneurship education can increase the quality and quantity of graduate entrepreneurs which enter into the country economy. Education they received in the higher education institutions had absolutely influence their attitude towards entrepreneurship and equips them with necessary knowledge and skills for entrepreneurial activities (Matlay, 2006). With the increasing demand for study of entrepreneurship, there have been seen the explosion of sudden increase in the number of entrepreneurship courses offered in the higher education institution where 2,200 courses had been offered at over 1,600 schools in the United States alone (Katz, 2003), and it also believed the same growth of interest had occurred in other countries as well such as in Europe and Asia. There are also a number of major academic institutions in the U.S which had developed programs in entrepreneurship research. With the research conducted combined with symposium and conference, it has become the means of acquiring for latest developments in entrepreneurship (Kuratko, 2005). Even though the gaining popularity and interest of entrepreneurship education in higher education institutions, this field is said to be at its early life phase which debates are still continuing on conceptual and methodological issues. Henry et al (2005) said that previous research from various disciplines had been conducted without developing its theoretical framework had cause many different analyses and outcomes from the research conducted on the subject. Until now, the different views prolonged because each of researchers or experts involved do not use each others work and the huge knowledge generated on entrepreneurship research had cause the discipline to be fragmented and never been cumulated (Henry et al, 2005). There are continuous debate (Henry et al, 2005) on entrepreneurship definition and interchangeable term use to describe entrepreneurship such as entrepreneur, enterprise and small business may not give advantage for the studies of entrepreneurship and as a result it is difficult to assess the current situation of entrepreneurship education. Matlay (2006) suggested the need for better review for such programmes because of the existence of content difference and its quality among business schools that had offered such courses and had continuously creating debates among academician related to its appropriateness and effectiveness. In addition of the difficulties of conceptualizing and contextualizing the field of entrepreneurship education, will lead to a puzzle and mislead policy maker which cause the credibility of academician involves affected and questions the need for further funding in this field. However, the effort to centralize the studies on entrepreneurship for its excellence can be seen with the establishment of consortium of research center across the U.S. (Kuratko, 2005). According Kurako (2005) among the sources of understanding on entrepreneurial activities are coming from academic research and publications, observation on entrepreneurs, speeches and presentations from conferences or seminars. Kuratko from literature reviewed had seen suggestion from various researchers regarding the entrepreneurship education pedagogy which among it is the important to deal with the ambiguous nature of business entry, developing skill-building courses such as negotiation, leadership, new product development, creative thinking, and exposure to technological innovation. Awareness programs such as entrepreneurship as employment choice, financial and legal aspects of business management, into out of the class approach such as field trips, consultation with practicing entrepreneurs and even competitions can also be seen as a good approach in educating future entrepreneurs. There are also suggestions on the important of considering who the target audience is in designing such programs. There will be different learning needs of entrepreneur at different stages of business development they currently have. It is necessary to have different pedagogic approach for different target audience so the educators and trainer or training provider can improve their approach in entrepreneurial learning. And it is important to match and characterized between what are perceived by entrepreneurial characteristics and how to educate it (Henry et al, 2005). As illustrated by the following table, the framework of entrepreneurship education can be divided into three level. Approach on Entrepreneurship Education Jamieson (1984) Garavan and OCinneide (1994) Cox (1996) McMullan and Boberg (1991) Level 1 Graduate or undergraduate students awareness creation specific objectives on various aspects of setting up and running a business theoretically perspective foster skills, attitude, and values to increase number of people who knowledgeable about small business and will consider it as a career in the future objectives : promoting self-efficacy with regard to new venture creation provides mastery experience to entrepreneurship experience or opportunities exposure to real-life entrepreneur Case method was effective in developing analytical skills and ability to synthesise information. Project method perceived to develop and enhance knowledge and understanding of subject area. Level 2 preparation of aspiring entrepreneur career of self-employment specific objective :   setting up a business and running the business practical skills for small business set-up and management preparation of business plan provide practical help to those who want to make transition from traditional employment to self-employment focus : raising finance, marketing problem, and legal issues. Level 3 management training for establish entrepreneurs focused on growth and future business development product development and marketing training will provides skills, knowledge and attitudes continuing small business education. Focused to enhance and update their skills. Table 2 : The framework of entrepreneurship education Role of academic entrepreneurship must orientated towards innovative and need to change rapidly in order to become the leader in creating entrepreneur effort (Kirby, 2004). He feels it is important for the business school to look into the process of developing entrepreneurial skills, attributes, and behaviours of its student in addition to their understanding on the business management by specifically designed the modules and courses and by changing the learning environment that can help to develop their awareness and strengthen their entrepreneurial characteristics and skills. He proposed that the traditional way of learning had to be shifted to more students oriented which gives â€Å"students ownership of their learning, more involvement in real word situation, encourages students to formulate decisions on incomplete data, immediate and dubious, and providing role models to them.† Education is not the only factors that had motivate graduates to become entrepreneur   as Matlay (2006) found that other reasons for such as the current socio-economy and educational conditions together with personal, family and peer influences often affect their desires, motivation, and prospect. 4.0RESEARCH QUESTIONS The question now is whether entrepreneurship education can be developed based on the entrepreneurship traits? And is it possible to teach entrepreneurship to others? Zimmerer (2008) argues that entrepreneurship can not be taught to others but the necessary skills of small business management are teachable and as Kirby (2004) noted that â€Å"entrepreneurship is about possessing or acquiring a particular set of attributes, skills and behaviors† and this can be possessed by learning. The following will be the sub-questions for this research; What is the motivation for an individual to become an entrepreneur based on cultural perspective? Are there any differences in motivation factors between ethnic in Malaysia? What are the required traits by the entrepreneur in the industry? Can entrepreneurship traits be transferred? Is the entrepreneurship program in the higher technical institutions address the requirements by the entrepreneur involve in the industries? If the required traits are addressed by the higher technical institutions, what is the right way to transfer it to the students? 5.0EMPIRICAL STUDIES The choice of research method depends on the nature of the research problems. It is proposed that the research will be using both qualitative and quantitative methods.   Based on the literature review and the theoretical c

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Pornographys Effects on Relationships Essay -- Porn Porno Dating Marr

Pornography's Effects on Relationships When it comes to relationships there are many things that need to be present in order for it to work out. You must have support from both sides and honesty is also a big factor. When pornography enters a relationship it can be destroyed and could possible ruin that relationship forever. This essay will be able to inform you of all the ways that pornography can and does ruin relationships. Support for this argument will be drawn from the following sources: Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy, Love, Sex, and Health, and The Question of Pornography. First of all trust is one of the biggest factors when it comes to being in a relationship. It there is no trust it could all easily fall apart. This is why so many women loose their husbands trust when they first discover that they have been cheating on them with pornography magazines, books, and more often internet sites. Pamela Paul states that â€Å"most men do not admit to engaging in pornography but try to hide it from their spouse in order to keep it a secret. When their spouses end up finding out about it, all trust has been lost in the relationship and this is when it usually ends† (100). Most women become devastated when they find out that their husbands have a â€Å"second life†. They really feel that they have been cheated on and have lost that special connection between their significant other and them. When women find out about this it usually leads to short term separation which in the end leads to divorce and their relationship simply becomes another statistics of how many relationships pornography has ruined. Most relationships rely on trust and when that trust bond is broken it is very hard to get it back. Along with trust comes honesty and if some women believe that their husbands may be using pornography they may confront them and ask. Pamela Paul says â€Å"a typical males response is ‘of course not’. Then they go on to say ‘I can’t believe that you don’t trust me’ when men say this is makes their wives really think about what they just asked and so they end up believing them† (99). It is sad to think that some women can be easily controlled like the above situation but also most women like to hope for the best so they just decide that their husband is telling the truth. The men on the other hand continue to go on, as life is normal and still engage in porno... ...tually enhances relationships have several strong claims, it is still evident that pornography is, overall, damaging to relationships. There is more evidence to support the argument than the counterargument. Most of the argument sources are recent journals that have all updated statistics and information while the counterargument sources are mostly books and at least a few years old. In conclusion, it has been shown that pornography does indeed ruin relationships and is shown by the argument, which is much stronger, then the counterargument. There may be some good benefits to using pornography but more often than not it always seems to ruin more relationships. Pornography may be every where and available to almost everyone and it may never go away and relationships will continue to be ruined. In the future people should learn to accept life the way it should be without all of the superficial parts of it. In the end it will be able to help them, to have a much healthier relationships that last much longer. The government should make a law to ban all types of pornography in order to try and save more relationships. As a result of this the divorce when then be lowered.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

The Inefficiency of Airline Security Essay -- TSA, terrorism, 9/11, ra

Everyone who has gotten out of bed in the morning has been exposed to risks. Whether it be risks from the factors around them, from themselves, or from people around them, they have faced some kind of risk. Comparatively, risks presented by situations around them and by themselves are considerably controllable. The risks delivered by people around them, however, are the ones that tend to be the most formidable. When people have a determination to be destructive, they often select targets which will stir up the most attention. Attributable to the criteria terrorists search for, airlines are a common target for terrorist activities. One of the most memorable terrorist attacks revealed sizable gaps in the safety of airlines. Although airline security has been significantly improved since the events of 9/11, the safety measures have gone overboard in the wrong areas, focusing on airport safety rather than airline safety, and need to be ameliorated to add efficiency back to aviation secu rity as a whole. Airport pat downs are at the point where they are intrusive and uncomfortable to many airline passengers and need to be done away with. Transportation Security Officer (TSO), William Touzani notes, â€Å"A lot of passengers are offended when going through airports because they feel violated and degraded† (Touzani) The uproar of the public regarding such feelings of â€Å"violation† has not gone unnoticed. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents throw their arms up and counter the cries, revealing that the bottom line is that those â€Å"degrading† search methods are what is required from them. In the words of an anonymous former Newark Airport TSA screener, â€Å"Every time you read about a TSA horror story, it’s usually about a screener do... ...ty, and the Problem of Rationality." Public Administration Review 1540-6210 62 (2002): 33-43. 17 Dec. 2002. Web. 1 Sept. 2013. Hawley, Kip, and Nathan Means. Permanent Emergency: Inside the TSA and the Fight for the Future of American Security. New York: Palgrave Macmillian, 2011. Print. Post Staff Report. "Former Newark Airport TSA Screener Says the Job Does Little to Keep Fliers safe." New York Post. NYP Holdings, Inc., 10 Mar. 2013. Web. 08 Sept. 2013. Seidenstat, Paul, and Francis X. Splane. Protecting Airline Passengers in the Age of Terrorism. N.p.: Greenwood Group, n.d. Google Books. Google. Web. 27 Aug. 2013. Smith, Patrick. "A Pilot’s View of Airport Security." Theworld.org. PRI's The World, 17 Nov. 2010. Web. 2 Sept. 2013. Touzani, William. Screeners and Virgins: I'm Muslim, My Husband Is TSA. N.p.: n.p., 2011. Scribd. 3 Nov. 2011. Web. 13 Nov. 2013.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Business Forecasting Assignment Operations Essay

Business forecasting is the process of studying historical performance for the purpose of using the knowledge gained to project future business conditions so that decisions can be made today that will aid in the achievement of established goals. Forecasting plays a crucial role in today’s uncertain global marketplace. Forecasting is traditionally either qualitative or quantitative, with each offering specific advantages and disadvantages. Qualitative and Quantitative Forecasting TechniquesForecasting can be classified into qualitative and quantitative. Qualitative techniques are subjective or judgmental and are based on estimates and opinions. The Delphi technique, a common form of qualitative forecasting, allows experts to create an effective forecast under conditions of extreme uncertainty. Time’s series forecasting, a quantitative technique, uses a statistical analysis of past sales in order to effectively predict future outcomes, but can be limited under conditions of uncertainty (Chase, 2003, p.364). Business forecasting can be used in a wide variety of contexts, and by a wide variety of businesses. For example, effective forecasting can determine sales based on attendance at a trade show, or the customer demand for products and services (Business and Economic Forecasting, p.1). One of the most important assumptions of business forecasters is that the past acts as an important guide for the future. It is important to note that forecasters must consider a number of new information, including rapidly changing economic conditions and globalization, when creating business forecasts based on past sales. Globalization and economic slowdown has made businesses subject to a great deal of uncertainty. In this time of rapid change, economies worldwide change rapidly, new markets open up and old ones change, and demand for products is often uncertain. As such, businesses must be flexible and adaptable in the types of methods that they use to forecast future sales (Chase, 2003, p.472). In an ever-changing global marketplace, organizations are constantly coming up against unusual and novel situations. It is in these situations that modern methods of business forecasting can be especially useful. Modern  forecasting methods are usually grouped into two main categories: qualitative methods, and quantitative methods. Qualitative analysis includes the intuitive and knowledge-based approach as discussed earlier. The decision maker reviews all of the information available, and then makes an estimated forecast. Quantitative techniques are used mostly when qualitative information is not available. In contrast, qualitative techniques are based on an analysis of data (Namvar, 2000, p.8). Delphi Forecasting MethodQualitative forecasting techniques are: executive committee, the Delphi method, and surveys of the sales force, surveys of customers, historical analogy, and market research. The objective of most Delphi applications is the reliable and creative exploration of ideas or the production of suitable information for decision-making. The Delphi Method is based on a structured process for collecting and distilling knowledge from a group of experts by means of a series of questionnaires interspersed with controlled opinion feedback (Chase, 2003, P471). The Delphi method is a variation of the executive committee approach. But the interaction is indirect, iterative and structured. The basic premise of Delphi method is to identify a group of experts and each of them are given a set of questions or issues, and asked to respond. After a given amount of time, the responses are sent to a coordinator or monitoring group that does not participate in the earlier stages of the Delphi processes. This group then feeds back the responses to other members of the group, while never giving away the identity of the response. The experts are then asked to respond again, after reviewing the responses of other respondents. This process may continue until a consensus is reached among the group. The group may be united to form a final consensus (Namvar, 2000, p.8). Time Series Forecasting MethodTime series techniques are the most popular quantitative method. These techniques use statistical methods for projecting from historical data. Quantitative techniques are preferred when appropriate data are available. The main assumption is that the historical pattern will continue into the future. The two main types of time series forecasting are average smoothing and exponential smoothing. The moving average is simply a  series of arithmetic averages. Predicting sales for next year is simple. The actual sales for a certain number of years is added, and then divided by the number of years used to get the moving average. A weighted moving average is obtained by assigning a specific weight to previous years. The sum of all weights must equal one. Recent years are given a higher weight (Namvar, 2000, p.13). Exponential smoothing is simply a subtype of the weighted moving average. A new forecast is a weighted sum of actual variables (usually sales) in the current year and the weighted forecast of the variable for that period. It has the advantage of being relatively easy to compute. In contrast the moving average method is quick, cheap, and easy to use, but does not easily take into account variations based on seasonal effects and cycles (Namvar, 2000, p.14). Both the Delphi technique and Time series forecasting are valuable forecasting tools in the right circumstance. The Delphi technique is useful for short-term forecasts. This ability is contingent upon the familiarity of experts with specific issues (Namvar, 2000, p.8). One of the major problems with the Delphi technique, as with all other qualitative techniques, is identifying good employees to form expert opinions and judgments, and then getting these experts to agree on a forecast (Namvar, 2000, p.9). Given the limitations of qualitative techniques, quantitative forecasting is usually preferred where there is enough past data (Namvar, 2000, p.12). In conditions of uncertainty, the Delphi technique offers a great deal flexibility. Using the Delphi technique, experts in a field can often come to a creative and insightful consensus. In contrast, time series forecasting may be less useful under conditions of extreme uncertainty because of its qualitative nature. When new conditions arise, it may be difficult to predict future sales based on past sales when conditions were more certain. Therefore, the Delphi technique is often a more valuable tool for business forecasting during conditions of uncertainty. Firstlogic Inc., The Company manufactures information quality and postal automation software that helps companies ensure the data they are storing and adding to their corporate databases is clean, accurate and reliable. More than 6,000 customers around the world use Firstlogic products. (www.firstlogic.com). The recent global economic slowdown and increased uncertainty in many facets of business, have caused organizations to rethink their priorities and strategies. Like any other companies, My company was forced to look well ahead in order to plan their investments, launch new products and services, devise new ways to develop and leverage human capital and so on. All key decisions related to these activities are derived from a sales forecast, which is the most critical and difficult area of the management. Forecasting can allow businesses to predict sales, and thus determine a wide variety of business expenses. Firstlogic heavily relies on quantitative methods for business forecasting based on several factors like degree of accuracy, investment decisions, time horizon to forecast, capital investment decision, product changes, style, quality, price changes, labor problems, available data and information and position of products in its life cycle to forecast the future sales. Firstlogic use information on past sales and times to help determine demand for products and services, effectively forecasting the specific products/services that would release to market at a given point in time. Despite the effectiveness of quantitative forecasting tools, the company has had less success with these methods in short term forecasts. Given the high degree of uncertainty in today’s marketplace, qualitative forecasting techniques like the Delphi technique may help Firstlogic to better-forecast future sales. Conclusion In conclusion, business forecasting methods must be used in order to fit current conditions of uncertainty. Delphi technique and time series forecasting both are valuable forecasting tools when used in the right circumstance. The Delphi technique is useful for short-term forecasts; therefore, it is often a more valuable tool for business forecasting during conditions of uncertainty. References Business and Economic Forecasting. Retrieved November 4, 2005, fromhttp://www.sbeusers.csuhayward.edu/~acassuto/econ3551/summary/chapter6.ht