Market segmentation Essay

Market segmentation is simply a modern marketing strategy in which the market for your customers are divided in various several groups and segments based on some major key factors such as demographic, geographic, psychological and behavioural factors. By dividing the market, the sellers that that try to deliver good value to their customers will be able to have better understanding of their target audience and thereby make their marketing more effective. Market segmentation also helps to make the three areas of marketing which are, mass marketing, product differentiated marketing and target marketing. Market segmentation helps all these marketing types to customize their markets. Marketing segmentation cannot be complete without considering the following variables that assist it in segmenting its consumer market. Demographic segmentation The demographic segmentation divides customers into segments based on demographic values such as age, gender, family size, family life cycle, income, occupation, education, religion, race, generation, social class and nationality. It is often used for reason that the variables are easy to identify and measure. Age and life cycle segmentation The consumer’s needs and wants change with age. Therefore some companies uses age and life cycle segmentation, where age and the life cycle determine the marketing approach. Gender segmentation Gender segmentation is used to differentiate the needs and wants between men and women due to the fact that men and women have different attitudes towards a product. The gender segmentation are applied clothing, hairstyling, and cosmetics. Income segmentation Income segmentation divides the market into different income groups. It is used in automobiles, clothing, cosmetics, financial services and travel. Generation segmentation Each generation is influenced by times in which they grow, marketers market to a generation by using icons and images that is relatable according to the  generation Social class segmentation This type divides the customers according to their preference in cars, clothing, home furnishing, leisure. Although taste changes but many company design products for specific social classes. Geographic segmentation It divides customers into segments based on geographical areas such as nation, states, regions, countries. Psychographic segmentation This is derived from two principal types of customers: personality profiles and lifestyle profiles. Behavioural segmentation It is based on customer’s attitude toward, use of, or response to a product and they are divided further into various variables like occasion, benefits, user status, usage rate, buyer-readiness stage, loyalty status and attitude. 2) ADVANTAGES OF ADOPTING MARKET SEGMENTATION The use of market segmentation and why it will perform better than a business that does not adopt it are listed as follows: It will help a firm to be able to separate its customers and be able to reach profitable customers in supplying value and better customer’s relationship which in return will bring profitable value back to the firm. It will be able to help a firm to be knowledgeable on the type of product and market needed to produce for its customers. It will enhance the market structure of a firm in helping it locate new market and new profitable product for its firm. Smart enterprises use segmentation to continually monitor, quantify, and qualify the changing customers, in part to stay ahead of the competition. Segmentation data provides organizations with information to develop timely goods and services that profitably serve customers.

Catholic Church so successfully in the years 1517-1525 Essay

Why was Luther able to challenge the Catholic Church so successfully in the years 1517-1525? Various reasons contributed to Martin Luther’s success in challenging the Catholic Church from the years 1517-25. The five key reasons behind Luther’s success were his protection by Frederick the Wise, the fact his ideas were appealing and popular, his passion and determination, the failures of the Church itself and finally, the timing of his challenge. Some of these factors also affected each other and these links provide the strength which allowed Luther’s revolt to be so successful. This is because one of these factors alone would not have been sufficient in preventing Luther gaining the same fate as those who attempted a reformation before him. Conversely, some reasons can also be considered as having a larger and more widespread effect than others, meaning they were more significant in contributing to the final outcome. Frederick the Wise, Elector of Saxony and founder of the University of Wittenberg was the most powerful early defender of Luther. He played a large role in helping Luther keep his message spreading and on several occasions used his authority to benefit Luther’s revolt. For example, The Papal Bull of Excommunication was never carried out in Saxony and neither were the terms of the Edict of The Worms. Also, Frederick persuaded Charles V to carry out the Diet of Worms in German, instead of Rome, so that Luther could defend himself safely. Another way Frederick defended Luther was in 1521 when he had him ‘kidnapped’ on his way back from Worms and taken to the Wartburg for his safety. The significance of Frederick the Wise’s protection is that he ultimately prevented Luther from being killed or persecuted by those who disagreed with his motives. This in turn allowed his message to carry on spreading and to be developed. Therefore, Frederick the Wise had a fundamental effect on the Lutheran movement because although he never converted to the religion, he contributed to its development and influence over Saxony. The main reason Wise supported Luther was because Luther was a teacher at his University and Wise did not want it to gain a bad reputation. However, other reasons can also be considered such as the fact that Luther’s ideas proved popular and therefore Frederick was happy to support him. Essentially, Luther’s success relied upon his ideas being popular and the reason for this was due to the fact his ideas appealed to people of all classes. He addressed his message differently to both the princes, in Address to the Christian Nobility, and the peasants, by creating sermons and woodcuts. This allowed his message to spread among everyone. His ideas appealed to the different classes; peasants interpreted his message of ‘priesthood of all believers’ as supporting social equality and used it as a basis for the Peasants War in 1525 thus showing they supported Luther up until this point. The nobility also joined the reform movement as they believed it would strengthen their political position and remove papal influence in their territories. His popularity is shown by the fact his publications were of the most popular at the time. The fact his ideas were popular were vital to his success as his argument had to be seen as valid for him to gain support. Moreover, the fact he had support from a variety of everyday Germans was crucial for keeping his message spreading. A significant reason for his ideas proving popular is due to the church’s failures which at the time was becoming increasingly less tolerated and gave a clear example of the faults he was trying to highlight. The lack of tolerance towards the church was due to the fact that many Germans saw the Pope as a foreigner who did little to benefit Catholics, despite the high papal taxes they had to pay to him. These taxes were used to pay for the rebuilding of St Peter’s Basilica in Rome thus not being advantageous to the Germans who were paying the tax. However the intolerance was not only towards the papacy but also parish priests who were not fulfilling their pastoral duties. Many also committed clerical abuses such as pluralism and simony. As a result, people generally had the growing feeling they were being exploited for their money and faith. This feeling over anticlericalism was further developed from Luther’s ideas. It is also a reason for the fact Luther’s ideas were popular, because they could be related too and agreed with. Failures of the Church were not a directly significant reason for Luther’s success, it allowed him to gain more support but only because his ideas were popular. Anticlericalism had been around for a long time, and only enhanced the popularity of his message as it coincided with a time when intolerance towards church failures was increasing. Another reason for Luther’s ideas proving popular was due to his personality and passion for making a change. This passion is seen through his obsession with finding salvation. In addition, he was fearless in putting his point across regardless of consequences such as in 1519 in his debate with Johann Eck where he argued his ideas confidently and 1521 at the Diet of Worms, where he claimed that by recanting, he would be promoting tyranny and his conscience would not allow him to do so, therefore he would not be silenced. Luther’s determination also relates to why his ideas proved popular, he had the power to make people believe and support him. This determination meant he was the catalyst for the reformation in Europe. He not only believed there was corruption in the Catholic Church, but spoke out publicly about his ideas that salvation would be found through faith alone. It also links to Frederick’s choice to defend him because his passion earned him the role as a lecturer at Wittenberg University which meant Frederick was more willing to support him. Luther’s personality was important for his success, he was determined to change the system of the Church and this prevented him from giving up, and instead keeping his message extending across the Empire. The final factor that can be considered and linked to the others is the timing of Luther’s movement. It coincided with the return of the Renaissance era which invited new thinking about education and society that came from ancient Greek and Roman teachings. These secular, humanist ideas believed that the Church should not rule civic matter but only give guidance in spiritual matters, which Luther also emphasised in his teachings. In other words, he agreed with the Renaissance way of thinking, focusing on the present, and seeing that change was desperately needed in the Catholic Church. This was significant as it ran parallel to his beliefs and helped in the development of his own ideas, as well as making them more relatable to everyday Germans, therefore having a similar effect to that of intolerance towards anticlericalism. In addition, his ideas were spread quicker by the invention of the printing press. His Ninety Five Theses was printed, meaning his word was spread rapidly. Previous to the printing press, people with ideas had no effective way to spread them. Therefore, the printing press also links to the fact his ideas were seen as popular because they could be seen by many. On the contrary, the fact that less than 10% of the population could read or write was a limiting factor to the spread of his message. Therefore, the fact his revolt began at a time when society and technology was also changing means it was carried along with the flow of new, revolutionary ideas, which helped his message to be heard by more people. In conclusion, many of these factors link together to produce the same outcome – that Luther’s revolt was a successful one. However, the most important factor was that his ideas proved popular. This was because they, to an extent, were radical, new and well-liked. Martin Luther was one of the first to think outside of what the church taught him. He began to question the church’s authority and what was going on inside the Church – what he found was corruption, greed and malpractice. But this alone would not have made him so successful. His personality played a role by making him determined to speak up about it and therefore gain more support, making his ideas even more popular. Without these two factors working together, he never would have gained strong enough support to form a fully fledged reformation. However, more importantly than his personality was the protection he acquired from Frederick the Wise; this kept him from Harm’s way and allowed his message to carry on spreading. Additionally, to this was the significance of the timing of his actions. It turned what would have been a small rebellion into a national reorganization of the Church, due to the printing press and Renaissance era. Finally, but with less slightly less importance, was the Church’s own failures. On one hand it was important to his success because it emphasised the corruption he was describing, making it more relatable. On the other hand, anticlericalism had been around for a long time, it only emphasised his message but did not contribute to its successfulness. In summary, all five factors played an important role however the most important were that his ideas proved popular , due to his personality, and his protection by Frederick the Wise. The other elements played lesser roles but were still important in helping his message spread to a wider audience.

Social Acceptances And Critical Thinking In Adolescents Education Essay

Critical thought is the attitude of being willing to see in a thoughtful manner the jobs that come within the scope of 1s experiences ; cognition of the methods of logical probe and logical thinking ; and some accomplishment in utilizing those methods ( Glaser, 1941 ) . Another definition of critical thought is a alone and calculated thought in which the mind consistently and normally inflicts standards and rational criterions upon the thought, taking charge of the construction of thought, steering the construction of the believing harmonizing to criterions, and mensurating the effectivity of the believing harmonizing to the intent, standards, and the criterions of thought ( Richard Paul, 1995 ) . Peter Facione ( 1990 ) stated: † We appreciate critical thought to be calculated, self-regulatory determination, which consequences in reading, analysis, rating, and illation, every bit good as justification of the evidentiary, theoretical, methodological, criteriological, or background considerations upon which that determination is based † . Facione went on to depict good critical minds as â€Å" habitually speculative, intelligent, trusting of ground, open-minded, flexible, fair-minded in rating, honest in forepart of personal prejudices, careful in doing judgements, willing to reconsider, clear about jobs, orderly in complex affairs, hard-working is seeking relevant information, sensible in the choice of standards, focused in probe, and changeless in seeking consequences which are every bit precise as the topic and fortunes will let. † The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education in the UK provinces that a pupil should be able to do critical opinions and ratings as portion of their generic accomplishments ( The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, 2002 ) . Thinking is the most cardinal of adult male ‘s abilities. We are able to sort, analyze, generalize, deduce, induce, make determinations and work out jobs without holding been taught to believe officially. It might non needfully be true that being able to believe spontaneously would take to the ability to believe efficaciously and good. The basic issue that justifies the call for learning thought in schools is the grounds that after 11 old ages of schooling, many pupils are unable to use the content cognition acquired in school to real-world jobs. The concern sector is kicking about the quality of the alumnuss they received from the universities who sometimes could non even grok direction manuals, what more the manner a piece of equipment plants. In the instance of the United States, the diminution in the pupils ‘ thought competency was farther highlighted by the consequences of the National Assessments of Educational Progress. Teaching pupils to believe would intend to be tter the quality of their thought so that it would be consistent, productive, meaningful and effectual. The ability to believe critically and creatively becomes more important in the age of information and globalisation whereby persons have to screen through dozenss of information which is non needfully relevant. One of the challenges confronting Malaysia amidst its economic development is the accomplishment of a critical thought society. This would heighten and vouch the success of research and development plans in add-on to holding other socioeconomic effects. The Malayan Ministry of Education realized the above-named demands and had begun to slowly shoot the thoughts of critical and originative thought in the school system every bit early as in the late 1980s concurrent with the debut of the Integrated Curriculum for Secondary Schools ( KBSM ) as a mechanism to recognize the National Education Philosophy. The Ministry realized that the old course of study was non balanced and over-emphasized the rational facet more than the religious, emotional and physical facets. Although cognitive accomplishments were highlighted, they were merely those on the lower measure of Bloom ‘s categorization, which consist of the ‘lower order accomplishments ‘ . The KBSM was an betterment as it encourages treatment and enquiry. Some of the instruction schemes that it proposed were methods of find and enquiry, treatment, the Socratic method of oppugning and job work outing through the scientific method. The KBSM was to develop and heighten pup ils ‘ rational capacity with regard to rational, critical and originative thought. However, the greatest drift to stress the instruction of thought in the instruction system came after the Prime Minister unveiled his Vision2020 for the state in 1991. Malaysia ‘s Vision 2020 describes nine challenges confronting the state that aspires to develop holistically which includes development of the assorted dimensions such as economic sciences, societal, political relations, psychological science, religious, and cultural. Interestingly, one of the major challenges lies in furthering and developing a mature democratic society, practising a signifier of mature consensual, community-oriented Malayan democracy. To run into this challenge would necessitate Malaysians to believe positively, critically and creatively. The most important move made by the Ministry after the KBSM was the debut of the construct of the ‘smart school ‘ in 1997, whereby originative and critical thought would go one of its landmarks, the other being the focal point on the petition of informations and communicating engineerings in instruction and acquisition. The Ministry of Education and the Faculty of Education of public universities throughout the state mounted more research on the educating of critical and originative thought accomplishments, particularly in the 1990s. Unfortunately, this punctilious research were largely kept on the library shelves garnering more dust and was ne'er able to inform the practicians in the Ministry and schools. Therefore, practicians were unable to utilize research as a model for doing practical determinations. In the context of Malaysia, most of them either could non acquire entree to the relevant literature, do non possess the learning civilization for self-reformation, are excessively busy learning and fixing pupils for scrutiny or are self-satisfied with their patterns despite the worsening educational criterions. Eisner wrote on this phenomenon of educational research seldom informing educational pattern and suggested some alterations in attack that research workers need to set about if educational research desires to inform educational pattern. The Ministry of Education has conducted several undertakings and plans of believing accomplishments in schools through the Curriculum Development Centre ( CDC ) , and Teachers ‘ Education Division ( TED ) . They have besides conducted workshops and provided preparation to instructors. For case, the CDC conducted a pilot undertaking on believing accomplishments across the course of study in 1992/1993 in the territory of Gombak, Selangor. This undertaking involved 10 secondary schools and Form One teachers. The intent of this undertaking was to expose instructors to believing accomplishments, how to be after and fix instruction and acquisition stuffs, and formulate schemes for learning thought. At the terminal of this undertaking, instructors were found to hold that believing accomplishments were utile and should be taught in schools. They felt that due to the restraint of clip, the extract attack is most suited for learning thought. The Ministry introduced the Program for Instruction in Learning and Thinking Skills ( â€Å" PeningkatandanAsuhanDayaIntelek † ; PADI or PILTS ) in 1992. The chief focal point of the PILTS Program is the designation of a nucleus of relevant thought and larning accomplishments to be taught, integrating of these accomplishments in the content being learned, supplying appropriate instructions and rating of the accomplishments taught. The consciousness of a demand to learn believing earnestly in schools gained impulse when in 1993, Tan Sri Dr Wan ZahidMohamadNoordin the so Director-General of Education made it the duty of the learning profession to develop believing accomplishments in society through brooding enquiry. He asserts that â€Å" instructors must prosecute in brooding enquiry, transmit cognition, attitude, and accomplishments. They should develop believing accomplishments. The pupil should non merely be taught to reply inquiries, but besides to inquiry replies and to o ppugn inquiries † . † The Curriculum Development Centre even published a manual to explicate the construct, theoretical account and instruction schemes for learning critical thought accomplishments to instructors. ‘ A twelvemonth subsequently he announced that the chief mark of the Ministry of Education by the twelvemonth 2000 is to hold sixty per cent of the scrutiny inquiries to be of the â€Å" critical thought † nature. In fact the SijilPelajaran Malaysia ‘s History paper in 1994 had already used inquiries which require critical thought. Subsequently, in 1996 the Teacher Education Division ( TED ) of the Ministry of Education, introduced a class entitled â€Å" Critical and Creative Thinking Skills † in its Post-Degree Teaching Program ( KPLI ) . This class was an attempt to educate future instructors on how to learn believing accomplishments across the course of study. The TED besides introduced this topic for its in-service classs. The societal component in Kuhn ‘s ( 1991 ) definition refers to the treatment of thoughts with equals who are engaged in a collaborative procedure of cognition edifice. Research workers have argued that equal relationships are alone in their ability to supply the types of interactions that lead to the development of empathy, knowledge, and societal behavior ( Youniss, 1980 ) . Johnson and Johnson ( 1999 ) maintain that collaborative equal larning promotes greater conceptual development and consequences in greater enjoyment of the acquisition undertaking. Collaboration is thought to lend to higher order larning through cognitive restructuring or struggle declaration. Anderson, Howe, Soden, Halliday, and Low ( 2001 ) stated thatpeer communicating can hold a positive consequence on conceptual development as a map of conceptual struggle. However, in add-on they note that grounds besides exists ( Roazzi & A ; Bryant, 1998 ) for the positive effects of understanding. Many surveies have examined the effectivity of intercessions aimed at bettering critical thought accomplishments ( see Pithers and Soden, 2000 ) . These intercessions have included the construct of guided pattern ( Anderson et al. , 2001 ) and scaffolding ( Wood & A ; Wood, 1996 ) to guide pupils through the thought procedure by measuring their current degree of believing through duologue and so inquiring inquiries to travel them into the following degree. Other intercessions have involved the debut of equal interaction into critical thought undertakings in an effort to better pupils ‘ cognitive accomplishments in this country ( Anderson et al. , 2001 ; Schwartz, Neuman, Gil, & A ; Ilya, 2003 ) . Research by Anderson et Al. ( 2001 ) supported Kuhn ‘s ( 1991 ) suggestion that critical thought accomplishments, in peculiar evidence-based justification, can be improved with guided pattern. Their research involved vocational instruction pupils from Further Education colleges who were engaged in peer-based critiquing of each others ‘ undertaking proposals. It was found that face-to-face equal interaction was good in bettering critical thought accomplishments ; nevertheless, justification tended to be anecdotal in nature or based on personal experience, as opposed to justification utilizing research-based grounds. Ocker and Yaverbaum ( 1999 ) used a repeated-measures experimental design to compare pupil groups each of which teamed up on two instance surveies, one utilizing face-to-face association and the other utilizing asynchronous computing machine discoursing. Their findings indicated that tie ining in the on-line status was merely every bit successful as in the face-to-face status, in footings of acquisition, high quality of solution, solution content and pleasance with the solution. Newman, Webb, and Cochrane ( 1995 ) besides compared face-to-face groups with on-line groups, concentrating on the deepness of critical thought. They found grounds for critical thought in discourse from both face-to-face and computing machine conference seminars and their analysis showed similar deepnesss of critical thought in on-line treatment and face-to-face one. However, a greater proportion of new thoughts emerged in the face-to-face seminars, whereas more thoughts in the computing machine conferences were coded as of import, justified or linked together. Newman et Al. ( 1995 ) argued that the asynchronous environment discouraged pupils from brainstorming and lending new thoughts, but instead encouraged considered, good thought-out parts. Newman et Al. ( 1995 ) developed an extended content analysis technique, based on Garrison ‘s ( 1991 ) theoretical account of critical thought, to code the online and face-to-face parts of pupils on an Information Society faculty. However, they did non code every statement in the transcripts, pretermiting to number or code content that was deemed excessively subjective or interpretative for intending to be faithfully inferred. Therefore, their method of analysis involved sorting merely the obvious illustrations and disregarding content that could non be identified easy as belonging to a peculiar crit ical thought class. Statements were described as frequently demoing more than one index and there was no step of translator dependability as it was hard to clearly specify a unit of analysis. Therefore, the dependability of this method is questionable when trying to objectively measure the nature of educational discourse and the degree of critical thought in face-to-face treatment and online transcripts utilizing a quantitative content analysis technique. The critical thought accomplishments known by the board of experts were reading, analysis, appraisal, tax write-off, description, and self-regulation. If the degree of critical thought in adolescence pupils is measured, it is truly helpful to curriculum developer or who are in charge to educational policy to do the best determination for learning believing accomplishments. In the universe beyond the schoolroom, high school pupils are au naturel to powerful messages that confuse attempts to believe critically. The cardinal demand for critical thought in and beyond formal acquisition in mundane life, relationships, ethical picks, and in the saving and development of participatory democracies grows more and more evident ( Edwards, 2001 ; Halpern, 2003 ; Pithers, 2000 ) . The proliferation of information via the Internet will merely be managed efficaciously by persons with well-developed thought accomplishments. Critical thought used to be thought of as an rational exercising expected merely of an educated influential. This pattern of trusting on a little subdivision of the population to be the minds for society is superseded ( Hay, 2001 ) . Marshak ( 2003 ) writes: The public school system that we have today was constructed during the first two decennaries of the twentieth century. . .public schools were shaped to suit industrial theoretical accounts of efficient industry. One cardinal function for schools was screening kids harmonizing to their evident abilities and promoting many to fall out and travel to work every bit unskilled laborers. In add-on to the academic lower status of the schools that normally serve big alternate populations, economically hard-pressed and alternate households frequently lack the cognition or connexions with establishments that can ease entry into college or a occupational preparation plan, every bit good as possible support beginnings and career options ( Neill, 2003 ; Stanton-Salazar, 1997 ) . This deficiency of societal capital or entree to societal constructions in order to achieve a certain terminal well affects their future chances. It is truly pointed out how these pupils are farther disadvantaged when thei r school experience does non include the development of critical thought accomplishments like job resolution, determination devising, concluding through statement, and acknowledging ways in which they may avoid delicate irresistible impulse into a life style that is counterproductive to puting long-run purposes. High school pupils who do non divert a hereafter that includes station secondary instruction manner out the K-12 grapevine prior to graduation at a much higher rate than their privileged fellow pupils. A recent survey by the Urban Institute ( Orfield, Losen, Wald, & A ; Swanson, 2004 ) exposed that the national high school drop-out rate is far greater than the provinces ‘ self-reported rates. In California, the Numberss are peculiarly high, particularly among Afro-american and Hispanic pupils ; merely 57 % of African-Americans and merely 60 % of Latinos graduated in 2002, compared with 78 % of White pupils and 84 % of Asians. The branchings of such big Numberss of drop-outs for the person, their households, and society are profoundly dismaying as are the suggestions that pupils are being forced out by schools seeking higher duty trial tonss ( Harvard University, 2005 ) .Statement of ProblemIt is clear that adolescence is one of the most critical phases in homo ‘s life spa n. In this phase, they typically increase the sum of clip spent with their equals. Besides communicating with equals helps them to socialise in society, there are many knowledge accomplishments that may larn by equal interactions. Harmonizing to the cognitive theory striplings start to believe logically. They use theories and programs to work out their jobs, so it could be conveyed critical thought procedure Begin in adolescence. Although it is equivocal in which degree critical thought appear in this phase and does it be affected by societal elements. Furthermore limited research related to critical thought in adolescence was identified. since critical thought in adolescence is subject-specific ( Ennis, 1989 ; Facione, 1990 ; Tindal & A ; Nolet, 1995 ; Angeli, 1999 ; Halliday, 2000 ) , and they learn many accomplishments through communicating with equals and society so at that place seems to be a demand for a survey that would explicate the critical thought ability of stripling and its interaction with peer communicating and societal behavior.Theoretical ModelThis survey based on combination of both cognitive and societal cultural theory: Piaget ( 1958 ) stated striplings begin to believe logically, inventing programs to work out jobs and consistently testing solutions. So harmonizing Piaget theory critical thought should accrue in adolescence. Vygotesky ( 1978 ) accent on the societal component in kids ‘s construction of cognition has led to the coaction with equals helps scholars reach new cognition.Conceptual ModelThree chief variables will be utilized in this survey. However, there are any possibilities about the manner of relationship or interaction between them. It is obvious human ecology of participants will be influenced in societal elements ( societal credence and peer communicating ) straight, although it is equivocal which societal variables, societal credence or equal communicating, intercede other variable to critical thought. It is a more possible theoretical account of relationship between variables. Degree centigrades: UsersHomeDesktopUntitled.jpgJustification of StudyAs a portion of formal operational phase in Piaget theory, procedure of visual aspect of critical believing start in adolescence. Adolescents should get down to take some chief personal and societal determinations in their life. It are seen that 90 % of striplings associate themselves with a equal group. The nature of an stripling ‘s behavior is greatly influenced by his friends and comrades.Research QuestionsThis survey includes three research inquiries that investigate possible interactions between critical thought, societal credence and equal communicating. A Is there significance grounds of critical thought in striplings with high degree in equal communicating? Is there significance grounds of critical thought in striplings with high degree in societal credence? Make critical thought and societal credence and peer communicating interact with each other?Significance of StudyThis survey has the possible to impact the research participants themselves, and besides the population of adolescence pupils they represent. Bing able to explicate critical thought accomplishment in footings of the independent variables used in the survey could assist course of study developers, pedagogues, and decision makers to develop the critical thought rating and public presentation processs necessary to raise the overall critical thought accomplishments and temperaments of pupils. This survey is of import because many people and organisation could utilize of its determination. This determination will be utile for all educational centres, schools and particularly for The Malaysian Ministry of Education. There is plentiful grounds that a big proportion of high schools inadequately arrange immature people for the real-world demands of work, higher instruction, and mundane life. Primary among the shortages recognized are competences associated with specific higher degree cognitive procedures, or merely set, critical thought. High school alumnuss must be able to judge the credibleness of beginnings, evaluate statements, and separate among facts and sentiment.to evaluate [ the media ] to assist them place possible prejudice†¦ assist them go assurance media consumers. . . to construe, make informations to inform determinations or draw decisions. Students themselves recognize the importance of higher order believing accomplishments in footings of their ability to win as immature grownups. In an online study of over 10,000 high school pupils across the state, over 40 % responded that they did non experience their school experience provided practical and necessary life accomplishments, and over one-third rated their critical thought preparation as fair-to-poor ( National Governor ‘s Association, 2005 ) .General ObjectiveDescribe part of critical believing degree in high school pupils. Identify relationship or impact of societal factor on visual aspect of critical thought process.Find an appropriate theoretical account to depict and foretell the relationship between variablesDefinition of TerminologyConceptual:Adolescent: Adolescent is a transitional phase of physical and mentalA human developmentA by and large happening betweenA pubertyA and legalA maturity ( Viner R 2005 ) .A A Critical thought: critical thought is calculated, self-regulatory determination which consequences in reading, analysis, rating, and tax write-off account of the determination ( Facione, 1990 ) . Peer communicating: equal communicating is the association of equals into little groups that have changing abilities in which all pupils can take part to acquire a common purpose. Social credence: societal credence is the grade to which an stripling is socially accepted by equals. It includes the degree of equal attraction and the easiness with which an stripling can get down and continue acceptable equal relationships.Operational:Adolescent: Harmonizing toA Erikson phase ‘s of human development an stripling is a individual between the ages of 13 and 19 Critical thought: The pre-disposed attitude one of course possesses sing critical thought. The degree of critical thought in participants will be measured through the researcher-developed Engagement, Maturity, and Innovativeness ( EMI ) . Peer communicating: The degree of equal communicating will be measured by The kids ‘s outlooks of societal behavior questionnaire ( Rudolph, Hammen, & A ; Burge, 1995 ) and stock list of equal fond regard ( Armsden & A ; Greenberg, 1987 ) Social credence: This survey will happen the degree of societal credence through societal credence Asher and Dodge ‘s ( 1986 ) step.Specific ObjectiveIdentify the nexus between equal communicating and critical thought Identify the nexus between societal credence and critical thought Did peer communicating intercede the nexus between societal credence and critical thought?Research HypothesisThis survey hunt for placing interacts and impacts of societal elements on critical thought, so there are three hypotheses to expect relationship between variables. There is significance grounds of critical thought in striplings with high degree in equal communicating There is significance grounds of critical thought in striplings with high degree in societal credence Critical thought and societal credence and peer communicating interact with each other.MethodologyResearch Design:In this quantitative research will be used correlativity design to find the relationship between variables. Besides, descriptive method will be used to depict the distribution of variablesInclusion StandardsAges: all participants will be in adolescence age ( 13-19 ) Gender: They will be approximately every bit split by gender Race and Language: they will be selected approximately every bit among three races ( Malay, Indian, and Chinese )Sampling and participantsParticipants will be selected through bunch trying method. Population will be all striplings in KL high schools. Participants will be 300 striplings in KL high schoolsData CollectionAll informations will be collected through questionnaires with good dependability and cogency. Therefore, it could be conveyed self-report questionnaires will be used as a information aggregation technique in this survey.InstrumentFour questionnaires will be used in this survey: The researcher-developed Engagement, Maturity, and Innovativeness ( EMI ) critical thought temperament appraisal will be used to mensurate the critical thought temperament of striplings. Adolescents ‘ representations of equals. The Children ‘s Expectations of Social Behaviour Questionnaire ( Rudolph, Hammen, & A ; Burge, 1995 ) will be used to tap kids ‘s representations of urine R. Inventory of Peer Attachment ( Armsden & A ; Greenberg, 1987 ) to mensurate peer fond regard in striplings. Social credence Asher and Dodge ‘s ( 1986 ) societal credence step will be used in this surveyDependabilityAdolescents ‘ representations of equals. The Children ‘s Expectations of Social Behavior Questionnaire ( Rudolph, Hammen, & A ; Burge, 1995 ) will used to tap striplings ‘ representations of equals. intentionally, this 15-item questionnaire taps striplings ‘ outlooks of their equals ‘ responses to conjectural aversive state of affairss in which a stripling needs aid, keep up, and sensitiveness from his or her equals. This step was made to order to do it allow for state of affairss that involved striplings, and to include a 4-point response format ( instead than a 3-point response format ) runing from ( 1 ) most positive outlook to ( 4 ) most negative outlook ( Cassidy & A ; Woodhouse, 1997 ; Appendix B ) . All points will b eupturned scored. For each point, striplings read a sketch picturing a conjectural state of affairs and were so instructe d to acknowledge how the equals would reply to the state of affairs. Rudolph et Al. ( 1995 ) accounted good psychometric belongingss for theprimary step ( e.g. , good internal consistence, test-retest dependabilities and significant concept cogency in a sample of 7-to 12-year-old kids ) . They besides reported good convergent cogency for this step. For illustration, they found that kids who had more negative representations of equals were significantly more likely to exhibit maladaptive societal behaviour and lower societal competency. In that survey, the Cronbach ‘s alpha was 0.76. This step contained a set of written instructions inquiring striplings to â€Å" rate the extent to which you like to be in activities with the undermentioned pupils. † Below this set of instructions, was the same roll of 75 schoolmates that the stripling used in the societal behaviour instrument. Adolescents used a 5-point Liker-type graduated table runing from non at all ( 1 ) to a batch ( 5 ) to do their evaluations. A societal credence mark for each participant was computed based upon evaluations that the participant received from his or her schoolmates. This mark was calculated foremost by taking the mean of all the evaluations for that participant and so standardising this mean within the participant ‘s school. Furthermore, in a longitudinal survey of early striplings, Wentzel and Caldwell ( 1997 ) reported significant test-retest dependability and prognostic cogency, bespeaking that societal credence mediated by prosocial behaviour was related to striplings Ã¢â‚¬Ë œ GPA during 6th and 8th class. From the original 60 point critical thought pilot temperament trial, point and scale dependability analysis left a graduated table with 30 points and an overall Cronbach ‘s alpha of 0.86. The Innovativeness concept was represented by seven points and a standardised Cronbach ‘s alpha of 0.79, the Maturity concept was represented by six points and a standardised Cronbach ‘s alpha of 0.75, and the Engagement concept was represented by 13 points and a standardised Cronbach ‘s alpha of 0.89. These dependability estimations were deemed really high utilizing the standard standards ( R = 0.65 to 0.75 ) of Norris and Ennis ( 1989 ) . Extra statistics, such as each point ‘s mean, standard divergence, corrected item-total correlativity, and alpha if the point were deleted are reported in Table 3-3. Items were retained if they did non hold utmost agencies ; had what was considered to be adequate variableness in responses ; had corrected item-total correlativities ov er 0.2 ; and would do the dependability of the graduated table stronger. After the pilot trial tonss were analyzed and the strongest graduated table was identified, the research worker added points to the Maturity concept to include a broader representation of facets of the Maturity temperament. This left the new EMI instrument with 33 points. Peer fond regard graduated tables ( a = .90 ) consisted of 25 points and were rated on a five-point graduated table ( sample points: †my parents/friends understand me † ) . Each of the subscales ( trust, disaffection, and communicating ) was submitted to a Personal computer factor analysis and a parallel factor emerged for both parent and peer fond regard. The factor from the parent graduated tables was labelled †parental secure fond regard † ( k = 2.41 % ; 80.4 % of the discrepancy ) and consisted of trust ( .91 ) and communicating ( .88 ) , which loaded positively and disaffection, which loaded negatively ( _0.90 ) . The factor from the equal graduated tables was labelled †peer secure fond regard † ( k = 2.31 % ; 77.1 % of the discrepancy ) and consisted of trust ( .92 ) and communicating ( .91 ) , which loaded positively and disaffection, which loaded negatively ( _.80 ) .Data Analysis MethodMean, manner and discrepancy will be used to depict part of informations T-test will be used to place the nexus between variablesMultiple arrested development analyses will be used to place direct and indirect nexus between variables that mediated by other variables. Statistical Package for Social Science ( SPSS ) will be used to analysis all informations.

Collaborative Model of Criminal Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Collaborative Model of Criminal Justice - Essay Example Interest in the field hastened in the 20th century with the universal establishment of police force, crime management and control. According to Hirsch and Gottfredson (1990), the study of crime has evolved from being a corollary or application of social science into being a distinct field with the recognition of the impact of crime and victimization to society as well as in consideration of its operation as a social institution in ensuring peace, order and stability. However, the premise that crime as a social construct and individual criminality is not at question, has not been absolute or indistinguishable amongst criminological theories. As Estrada (2004) points out, perspectives have changed significantly over time, as indicated by changes in policies. The need to understand the similarities and contradictions is not so much to establish distinctions between sets of theories but rather to develop insights on the modes or perceptions regarding crime, society and individuals over t ime. Before the 20th century the prevailing theories on crime considered individualistic perspective on the development of crime. The motivation to commit criminal acts was considered to be due to the perceived rewards or gains of the acts. In such a setting, the offender actively and deliberately chooses to commit the crime to fulfill a personal desire, derive reward or to pursue an interest. One of the challenges of such a perspective is that there is limited consideration for the development of criminal behaviors or the factors that contribute to their prevalence or the means preempting crime beyond control measures. Shedler and Westen (2004) believe that there the current perspective on crime, particularly regarding its sociological development still need retooling to accommodate personalities that do not comply with models. One aspect that they refer to is that though there is recognition of conscious and unconscious mind of an individual as well as collective consciousness with the development of psychoanalytic perspectives, there is till a significant reliance on models or archetypes. This in turn may limit cultural or social sensitivity which is a critic cal component of crime as a social construct. Similarly, there are some studies indicating that though general personality theories utilizing psychoanalysis may be sufficient for assessment purposes, they may not provide the same level of insights for the development of interventions or therapy (Jackson, 2004). The sociological study of crime developed in the 1940's. Influenced by Freudian psychoanalysis and psychoanalysis, the proposition was that individuals are influenced by their social experience and thus, their desires and motivations can be linked to social developments and issues (Plotnik, 2005). In sociological approaches in the criminology, the perception is that crime is not just individually motivated, going beyond personal choice, motivations, desires or rewards (Brown, 2003). It also diminishes the significance of biological characteristics as precursors of crime. As strange as it may seem based on contemporary knowledge, a number of studies prior to the development of organized police in Europe were conducted to compile physical characteristics of offenders, one of the earliest efforts in profiling (Plotnik, 2005; Oberwittler & Hfer, 2005). Furthermore,

Information Communication Technologies Strategies Essay

Information Communication Technologies Strategies - Essay Example Management Information System is the solution to streamline a business through effective information management and decision making. The aim of this project is to design and implement a new improved management information system to serve Chelsea Hotel is owned by Crimson Hotels, which is a fast-growing hotel group, with properties in key locations in the UK, Portugal and UAE currently encompass a prototype management information system, however, its not as effective and efficient as it should be. There are many faults for instance; it doesn't provide all required information and documents, and inefficient data storage space. In addition Chelsea Hotel is finding difficulties in upgrading and solving solutions faced with the software due to its prototype nature Chelsea's current management information system doesn't contain a help wizard to assist in tasks and problem solving. In an environment of increasing regulation and litigation establishing transparent, reliable and complete information management practices and quality information is critical for business success and sustainability Computers are probably the most efficient and effective place to store and manage information. Managing information effectively is a powerful strategy for businesses to perform effectively and successfully. When information is managed in a strategic manner, they enhance the process of streamlining business and improve chances of successfulness. For instance, it enhances decision making, allows coordination, stores files and data in an effective manner which is time efficient whilst accessing required data, and it ensures all data is saved and backed up. The management of such system is referred to as 'Management Information System (MIS)'. Furthermore, Management Information Systems enhance organization performance in numerous ways that will be discussed throughout further chapters of this project. To achieve my project objective of designing a Management Information System for Chelsea Hotel, I had to research and obtain maximum knowledge regarding Management Information Systems. This was initially done, through researching the background and purpose of Management Information Systems and its advantages. Subsequent to my first research, I viewed Chelsea Hotel's current Management Information System and attended several meetings with managers throughout the company, to obtain knowledge regarding their problems and requirements. Finally I researched several methods and softwares to deploy, in order to find the most suitable software for my current project.After meeting with Chelsea Hotel Co. managerial personnel, and proposing several proposals regarding system deploying, we came to a conclusion of using popular market software called Clarity Professional, which will be discussed in further chapters of this project. 2 Information Communication Systems 2.1 Background of Management Information Systems Management Information Systems (MIS) were introduced in the 1640's, with the intent to process data and provide information. In the 1960's Management Information system started to become visible and gained popularity within the business world to

Marketing McDonald's in India Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Marketing McDonald's in India - Essay Example Ltd. Ever since its launch; there has been significant amount of internal and external threats that have been faced by the brand on a regular basis. The SWOT Analysis Strengths: The brand McDonalds presents the American culture in the customized Indian menus, which is a huge take home for Indian consumers. The big and established brand name of McDonald’s has become a part of the lifestyle of today’s India, and youngsters in the age group of 18 -25 finds it as an enriching and satisfying experience while satisfying their taste buds. Low priced meals for the lunch and dinner time have helped the brand to attract young consumers in the McDonalds outlets, who try to cover up their eating habits with their limited pocket money based finances (ICMR n.d., p.7-8).. The menu is highly customized in nature in order to cater to the taste and preferences of Indian consumers (ICMR n.d., p.6-7). Highly segmented division of food menus for catering to both vegetarian and non vegetaria n consumers (ICMR n.d., p.7). Provides value for money products for single items and bundled product offerings for multiple items, thereby giving the customers a very effective pricing advantage that fits into their consumption styles and patterns (ICMR n.d., p.7). Weakness With the rise in fuel costs, offering flat prices for home delivery just at the rate of Rs.10 may actually reduce the profit margin for the brand in the long run. Due to tremendous popularity of the brand, there has been a significant amount of opportunity cost involved with the failure to entertain customers. Failure to entertain customers due to non availability of space in the outlets may lead customers to switch to other brands like KFC, Dominos etc. Opportunities From the time period of 1995, when McDonalds fast entered into Indian market through joint venture collaboration, an average person used to eat out only 3-4 times a month. But there has been a significant change in the consumer behaviour as of recen t times. As of today, more and more individuals prefer to eat out on a more regular basis with average spending ranging from Rs 100 – 150 (ICMR n.d., p.15). The rise of nuclear families in India has also popularized the concept of eating out and also increasing the number of footfalls at the quick service outlets like McDonalds (ICMR n.d., p.14). Threats In order to keep up with competitors of global repute like KFC, Taco Bell, Domino’s and Pizza Hut who aiming to gain an increase in market share in India by opening new outlets all over India at a very aggressive pace, it is increasingly necessary for McDonalds to get into a hyper expansion mode and fund the expansion into small town areas and regional locations by venturing into Tier II and Tier III cities (ICMR n.d., p.14-15). For developing and sustaining with the expansion process, it is

Religion and Theology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Religion and Theology - Essay Example From this report it is clear that Christians are authorized to preserve the environment and make it a better place to live in. As a Christian, one should preserve the environment to ensure its survival. The destruction of the environment always results in the suffering of human beings. For instance, deforestation has caused desertification in many parts of the earth. On the other hand, desertification has led to drought and consequently famine in which many humans end up losing their lives. From this discussion, Christians should preserve the environment tirelessly as a way of saving humankind and the rest of God’s creation.This discussion declares that  the Christian belief in evil is that anything that is evil does not come from God.   Evil is anything that causes suffering to humans as well as their environment. For instance, wildfire is seen as being evil since it causes deaths to many animals while others are forced to migrate from their habitats. Similarly, war is se en as evil by Christians since it results in many people dying while others migrate to other places where they might not be welcome. To the majority of the Christians, one inherent characteristic of God is that He is good.  As such, goodness flows from God while evil comes from Satan.   Notably, the Bible states that God is good, and His love endures forever. This is one belief that Christians have maintained for centuries and has kept them to stick to the Christian faith.

Aircraft Maintenance Cost Management Research Paper

Aircraft Maintenance Cost Management - Research Paper Example Yet, unlike other issues in business, the issue of airline fleet maintenance has several different determinants that ensure it is an extraordinarily costly/expensive process. Within this way, airlines are perennially faced with the issue of how to maximize airline safety, promote existing standards while at the same time, gaining a price advantage over their competitors. Naturally, even as primary air carriers are locked in continual competition with other air carriers, they are looking for each and every opportunity to cut costs and become even slightly more competitive. However, most airlines are extraordinarily hesitant to consider trimming budget from airline maintenance funds; fearing that any incident will draw further analysis and criticism to this tactic and potentially make the air carrier somewhat culpable for whatever issue might have occurred. Accordingly, as with so many issues, there is a middle ground; something between an air carrier seeking to spend an extraordinary sum on air fleet maintenance as compared to an air carrier seeking to cut any and all expenses as a means of promoting its own bottom line. Likewise, the following analysis will focus specifically on some of the determinants of why air fleet maintenance is so exorbitantly expensive as well as put toward some approaches that could potentially reduce the overall time and resources that would be required to address air fleet maintenance needs; while at the same time promoting ethical standards of safety and meeting basic requirements for how air fleet maintenance should be conducted. One of the first determinants for why air fleet maintenance is such a costly endeavor has to do with the variety of different aircrafts that carriers are responsible for flying. Even a cursory review of major air carriers reveals that they fly many different models of aircraft; requiring a litany of different parts that require special procurement and long hours of training

Legal Methods Paper Term Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Legal Methods - Term Paper Example Mrs McColl, the petitioner, sought to establish that fluoridation would have several unfavourable side effects such as causation of cancer and that it would be ineffective in minimizing dental decay (Murray, Rugg-Gunn and Jenkins 1991, p.349). The petitioner also held that, in any event, Strathclyde Regional Council did not have the legal power to fluoridate its water supplies. [# 2] The Ground(s) on which the petitioner alleged that the Council’s decision was  ultra vires      Mrs McColl had petitioned that fluoridation of the water supplies would be ultra vires the respondents (Strathclyde Regional Council), a nuisance, and thus illegal. The petitioner also claimed that fluoridation was a breach of the Water (Scotland) Act 1980 and a violation of the Medicines Act 1968. McColl claimed that adding fluoride to the water supply system was out with Strathclyde Regional Council powers. The Council did not have explicit powers on the issue of wholesomeness of the water. Howe ver, the Regional Council argued that it was in essence rendering the water more wholesome by righting a deficiency in fluoride, which results to caries. [# 3] Lord Jauncey’s Response to the Petitioner’s Arguments on the  ultra vires   Any decision that can be considered to have not been taken in a lawfully permitted manner is considered to be ultra vires. The judge repelled specifically and in details all of Mrs McColl assertions that fluoride was medically unsafe, excluding that of ultra vires. The judge concluded that the decision making body (Strathclyde Regional Council) acted in excess of its powers. Strathclyde Regional Council duty to provide wholesome water did not entail power to add fluoride to water. The judge also quoted the water (Scotland) Act 1980 to establish that the law obligated the provision of â€Å"wholesome water† by the Regional Council (Henriques and Winter 2002, p.143). Beyond this requirement, though, â€Å"statutory provisions w ere nonexistent, which could be reasonably construed as advocating the improvement of the general health of the water consumers.† Hence, the council was acting beyond its powers hinged on whether the addition of fluoride was necessary to make the water wholesome (contrary to making the water unwholesome). In his verdict, the judge declared that fluoridation for the purpose of minimizing the occurrence of dental decay was ultra-vires the respondent (Murray, Rugg-Gunn, and Jenkins 1991, p.350). Lord Jauncey granted the interdict on this point alone. Lord Jauncey also stated that it was improbable that parliament would have sought to award a water authority the authority to enhance â€Å"the health of the water consumers,† especially since water fluoridation would â€Å"incorporate a violation of individual rights† (Yiamouyiannis 1983, p.162). [# 4] Techniques of Precedent Utilized in McColl  v.  Strathclyde Regional Council Lord Jauncey’s 400-page judgem ent featured the medical evidence for or against water fluoridation, except for a few pages dealing with legal issues evident in the case. Prior to 1985, there was no explicit statutory basis for water fluoridation in the UK, although some water fluoridation schemes were present at the time. In forming his verdict, the judge reviewed other similar cases, especially that of Lower Butt, New Zealand, even though their findings were not necessarily binding (Wright 2009, p.183). Jauncey judgement examining sources of authority on the subject of wholesome water was not in depth, as the

Quality of Work Life and Turnover Intention Coursework

Quality of Work Life and Turnover Intention - Coursework Example Though, we are in the middle of a recession period these days, but if we recollect the events unfolding couple of years back, it becomes abundantly clear that the policies of globalisation and liberalisation resulted in many more opportunities for the skilled workers around the world. This resulted in high levels of turnover ratios, particularly in the IT industry. The industry had to eventually think about innovative measures to reduce the turnover ratio and retain the employees. Quoting the figures from a study HR.com (2008) states that on account of economic pressures and an evolving workforce; the voluntary as well as total turnover intentions have seen consistent increase over the last four years. The study indicates that the voluntary turnover intention has seen a more prominent increase. Employee turnover results in multiple impacts for the organisation. When an employee all of a sudden decides to leave a company and join another one, offering better facilities, pay packages etc. then the parent stand to lose by way of; The generally held belief is that life at the working place leaves a big impact on the levels of motivation of the worker. Motivation in simplest terms can be defined as a means of providing motives. Motives can act towards doing a job more efficiently or for distorting the work environment. Quite often the lack of any positive motivation by the managers also results in an automatic provisioning of negative motivation. Mullins (2005) contends that organisations comprise 'people, objectives, structures' and 'management'. While objectives and structure depend upon the manner in which management wishes to work and do not require regular updating, the people require more attention on a regular basis. There are a number of determinants towards shaping the working environment within an organisation. The factors are both internal and external to the organisation. Internal factors will include the strengths of the organisation, in terms of its finances, human resources, management, strategies etc. These factors can be controlled well by the organisation. On the other hand the external factors like the legal and political scene prevailing within the state/ country of its operations, number and types of competitors, suppliers in the market, terms and conditions from financial institutions, alternative products available in the market, newer technological innovations etc. On these factors the organisation may not be able to exert much control. This study is therefore an attempt to take a look at all such factors which affects the quality of work life and how this quality of work life impacts the turnover intentions of the individual. 2. Preliminary Literature Review The search for better ways of retaining the employees to counter the increasing turnover intentions and dysfunctional consequences of job designs based on traditional principles began with the

Dante's Inferno Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Dante's Inferno - Essay Example Along the way, Virgil also corrects many of Dante's errors and mistakes, showing himself to be a true mentor figure. Overall, Virgil is understanding and accepting of Dante's errors. Dante is halfway through his life, and walking through a dark forest, when he comes to the entrance of hell. He is an imperfect man, who has made mistakes in life. He is bereft of his beloved, Beatrice, and wishes only to see her again. Such is the background to his quest through hell, purgatory, and heaven to find Beatrice, led much of the way by Virgil. Because these spectral places differ so much from the real world which Dante is used to, it is not surprising that he makes mistakes along the way. Dante, after all, is much like we are: he is thrown into a world he does not understand. One of Dante's biggest errors of judgement is not understanding the seriousness of what he sees. He is sympathetic to some of the sinners. In this he is naive about the order of the Inferno and the way of the world. Virg il is there to sort him out and show him the true seriousness of the sins committed by people such as the magicians and other sinners in latter circles of hell. When encountering the demons, Dante does not seem to be aware of how much danger they are in; not until, Virgil puts him on his back and takes him to safety does he understand. It makes sense that Dante has trouble comprehending the significance of the Inferno. He has just been dropped into a fantastical world and he has trouble accepting or understanding its consequence and the way it is ordered. To him, it must appear like a dream. Virgil is there to show him that he is mistake to believe this is simply an allegory or dream. It is very real. What happens in real life has consequences in the afterlife, Virgil is showing Dante. On those occasions when Dante cannot believe his eyes, Virgil is there to tell him, â€Å"Yes, son, what you see is real.† Their journey together is one of discovery and one of education. If Vi rgil did not correct Dante every once and awhile, the two figures would never get out of the Inferno. One of the severest rebukes that Dante receives from Virgil is in Canto XX. Dante again falls prey to pity for the magicians and fortune-tellers who claimed they could see they future. He sees them with their heads reversed, their bodies horribly mutilated. This is their punishment for violating the natural order of things: now they can only see backwards, where they have come from rather than where they are going. Virgil sharply rebukes Dante for his pity, saying that it is a sign of great pride to pity those who have been condemned by heaven's decree (Dante, 180). Not for the first time, does Dante learn to watch his mouth around Virgil. This error of judgement on the part of Dante is further explicated by the critic John Timpane: Pity dies at the gates of Inferno. Nor is this a failure of the Divine, a limit to the reach of God. This is the keeping of a promise, the fulfilment of damnation. Instead of LASCIATE OGNE SPERANZA, VOI CH’INTRATE, the lintel above the entrance could well read SEE WHAT HAPPENS? What happens is Judgement, and Judgement is equal to Justice. If you landed in Inferno, that’s because you should land there (Timpane). There times, such as when Virgil is tricked by Malaconda, that he too makes errors of judgement (Dante, 99). Still, perhaps it underlines the fact that Virgil is not a god, he was once a man like Dante too. They have more in common than might at first be evidence. Indeed, in some

Benjamin Franklin in his Autobiography Essay Example for Free

Benjamin Franklin in his Autobiography Essay Similar to Benjamin Franklin in his Autobiography and Frederick Douglass in his Narrative, Pip in Great Expectations also demonstrates the archetypal boyhood to manhood narrative. Each story recounts a journey of growth and development, of maturation and self-discovery through experience. In addition, the protagonist of each novel has a purpose which directs his actions and decisions throughout the course of his journey. However, one significant difference exists between the two historical characters and the fictitious Pip-while Franklin and Douglass both strive for realistic and self-improving goals, Pip, like his imaginary character, entertains an idealistic dream. Pip desires to leave his former social class as a common boy and advance in life as a gentleman. This idealism quickly consumes Pip and becomes both the thematic center of the novel and the psychological mechanism that encourages much of Pips development. Ironically, many instances in the novel show that the symbols and figures of the wealthy class that Pip idolizes are in fact his greatest tormenters. From their unfavorable effects on Pip such as abuse, pain, and unhappiness, manifests the idea that social standing does not determine ones happiness and well being, and most importantly, ones self worth. Even before Pip becomes a member of the wealthy class, his mere exposure to it initiates a procession of pain brought about by physical, verbal, and emotional abuse. Miss Havisham, despite her eccentricity, represents the class, wealth, and advancement that direct Pips actions and emotions for a large portion of the novel. Upon hearing about Miss Havishams desire to see Pip, Mrs. Joe pounced upon [Pip], like an eagle on a lamb, and my face was squeezed into wooden bowls in sinks, and my head was put under taps of water-butts, and I was thumped and rasped, until I really was quite beside myself (52). Dickens clever use of violent rhetoric such as pounced, squeezed, and rasped and the metaphor, like an eagle on a lamb paints an unpleasant predator-to-victim scene in the readers mind. Mrs. Joes ecstatic reaction over the idea of Pips opportunity to befriend the wealthy class makes this scene the novels first hint of social advancement that will later consume Pips life. Consequently, Mrs. Joe becomes the first instrument of the upper class to inflict pain on Pip, carried out by the violent and painful bath. The physical abuse Pip endures here, so early in his childhood, also foreshadows the misery and pain he will later encounter among the upper classes. Moreover, closing the scene with my ablutions were completed (53) presents a resemblance between the simple bath and a ritual cleansing. The word ablution is most often associated with biblical allegories where priests were required to cleanse themselves before approaching the altar of God. Dickens word choice here seems to imply that Pips violent bath was necessary not only in cleansing him, but ridding him of the soil from his common life that might taint those in higher places. This bath scene serves as the novels first subtle but significant example that involvement with the upper class does not determine well being. The pain Pip endures from his first exposure to the upper class alerts the reader that an apparently positive development in his life (Miss Havishams invitation to her world) may have results to the contrary. Apart from physical abuse and torment, Pips first interactions with the wealthy class also cause him to suffer emotionally. The general magnificence and grandeur of Satis House exists not only as a symbol of the lives of the upper class, but as a symbol of Pips romantic perception of the upper class as well. In this aspect, it is also a source of misery for Pip and he realizes, daylight never entered [Satis House] and under its influence I continued at heart to hate my trade and to be ashamed of home (125). The ornate grandeur of Satis House has raised in Pip a new consciousness of his own low birth and common bearings. After his first visit, he even lies about his experience there, unwilling to sully his thoughts of it with the contrasting plainness of his every day world, for it must remain far above the level of common doings (72). Pips first visit to Satis House is a momentous event in his life. It raises in Pip an awareness of social contrast, robs him of his youthful innocence and sense of fulfillment and thus, further exemplifies the misery that is inherently linked with representations of the upper class. With the introduction of Miss Havisham and Satis House, the character Estella moves to the forefront of the novel as the ultimate symbol of Pips unattainable dream in Great Expectations, and the greatest cause of his sufferings. Ironically, Estellas condescension and spite matches Pips feelings about himself in the world of Satis House. He accepts her condescension, Why, he is a nothing but a common laboring-boy! (60), without defending himself because he idealizes Estella and sorrowfully believes her to be right. This is particularly evident during times when the difference between their social classes manifest itself in the smallest things, I had never thought of being ashamed of my hands before her contempt was so strong, that it became infectious, and I caught it (60). Moreover, Estella consistently refers to Pip as Mr. Pumblechooks boy (58), silly boy (266), or simply boy, using any word but his real name. This is a form of verbal abuse because it ultimately degrades Pip to a gender with no unique identity. Estella practices a deliberate cruelty on Pip that wins his deepest love and causes him to develop a passionate but unrequited devotion for her. This is one of the harshest examples of the pain and torment Pip must endure as he interacts with the upper class. Through these accounts, it becomes evident that social standing and wealth does not always determine well being. In fact, it may accomplish just the opposite-physical pain, emotional disturbance, and misery from the knowledge of ones common bearings. Even when Pip becomes a gentleman and is received by society, there is a sharp decline in his confidence and happiness that accompanies this rise in social status. Pips unofficial entrance into the world of a wealthy gentleman can be marked as the event where he put on a real gentleman suit. Interestingly, Pip describes, after this memorable event I felt rather like Mother Hubbards dog (152). While a notable occasion such as this would have naturally allowed for happiness and celebration, Pip instead compares his elevated social standing to a common animal of a childrens poem. The demeaning effect of the suit, versus its intended dignifying effect, not only foreshadows the unsatisfactory life Pip will lead as a gentleman, but poses further doubt on the hopes and ideals Pip holds of the wealthy class.

The Unique Positioning Of Government Officials Politics Essay

The Unique Positioning Of Government Officials Politics Essay The unique position of government officials is that of both respect and trust. A nation will elect men and women from themselves that they respect or value their opinions. Once in office many decisions will be made that will have a profound effect on the citizens of the nation. That is why trust is so important. The people trust that the officials they have elected will hold steadfast to their morals, ideas, and ethical principles that they began with. I will examine the social and ethical obligations that the government has to its society and why societies need the government to fulfill their ethical duties. Also I will explain the optimal ethical, decision-making processes for making such determinations. The ability of the government to represent the interest of of entire population gives great power to the members of it. People rightly say that the role of government is to provide an orderly society, but it also provides an enforceable set of moral and ethical values which control the functioning of our society. Within the laws are embedded (hopefully) our cultures moral values. As members of our society we have an obligation to conform to these societal values in order to contribute to a peaceful and orderly society. It is important to understand what the governments role in a society is to understand the ethical and social obligations that it has to the people. Normally viewed as a group, or organization a government will exercise authority, controls, and administer public policy and directs control of its members (). Typically, the term government refers to the  civil government  of a  sovereign state  which can be local, national, or international. However, commercial, academic,  religious, or other formal organizations are also governed by internal bodies. Such bodies may be called  boards of directors, managers, or  governors  or they may be known as the administration (as in schools) or  councils of elders  (as in forest). The size of governments can vary by region or purpose. Growth of an organization advances the  complexity  of its government, therefore small towns or small-to-medium privately operated enterprises will have fewer officials than typically larger or ganizations such as multinational corporations which tend to have multiple interlocking, hierarchical  layers of administration and governance. As complexity increases and the nature of governance become more complicated, so does the need for formal policies and procedures. The expression The Public Trust when applied to governments is described as, responsibility the public places on government to care for their interests.() This implies that the members of a society expect its government to carry its self in an ethical and deliberate manner. A nineteenth century bureaucracy writer, Max Weber, discussed an ideal type bureaucracy puts forward that public servants and their institutions do not have ownership over their positions () Rather, the tax-payers of the society. Government officials are elected and appointed to pursue the objectives and goals that are most advantageous for the society. The elected officials and political appointees that are selected to work in a bureaucracy are public servants() If the public servants conduct in pursuit of the goals and objectives remains consistent with the laws and ethical guidelines set in place by the society, the public trust is being satisfied . However, if the authority that is placed into the hands of the public servants is being abused or the goals and objectives are not being met, public interest is being disappointed(). At times public resources are sometimes utilized to serve the personal interest of officials. Too often we have seen this abuse at virtually every level of government. Many in the field of public administration have questioned how we have arrived at a point where there is so much unethical, immoral, and illegal activity in government. In an era where high profile lapses by public-sector leaders in ethical and moral judgment are frequently exposed, citizens have come to expect increasingly higher standards of ethical conduct as a broad range of activities are now viewed as immoral (Bowman, 1990). Increasing awareness and changing societal values have been linked to the publics interest in ethics management (Maesschalck, 2004/5). Accordingly, citizens have become more assertive and demanding toward leaders in the public-sector showing less tolerance for leaders mistakes, shortcomings, and structural challenges. As such public leaders are generally expected to meticulously conform to standards higher than those aligned with personal morality (Lewis, 1991). Thus public leaders can often find this expectation to maintain collectively high and even idealistic levels of ethical responsibility to be quite overwhelming. In general, leaders in the public-sector are expected to maintain a level of morality and integrity which serves the interests of society while at the same time demonstrates personal responsibility, diplomacy, and truthfulness. As previously noted, the ethical role and responsibility of public officials and the ethical foundations of public administration have been viewed in a variety of ways by several scholars and practitioners. some of the primary ethical obligations and expectations which have been considered fundamental to the role of the public administrator are listed. These include: (a) demonstrating concern for the public good and representing the 14 interests of society, (b) abiding by appropriate state, federal, and constitutional laws while at the same time having respect for the procedures within the organization, (c) engaging in basic managerial and supervisory responsibilities such as oversight and planning, (d) being honest and truthful in the discharge of official in formation, (e) acting in reason, fairness, and impartiality in every situation, (f) demonstrating prudence and good judgment in decision-making, (g) providing confidence to citizenry, stakeholders, and subordinates in the abilities of the official to perform the required duties, and demonstrating intelligence and aptitude in the assigned or elected position, and (h) also providing subordinates with the adequate direction and motivational encouragement needed to perform their responsibilities. Thus given these views, many people might say that the ethical role of the public administrator can be summed up as follows: serve the public interest while being fair, honest, lawful, trustworthy, and doing the least amount harm(). Keeping the fore mentioned in mind, we can see the governments obligation to the society spans across many different areas. If it is the governments responsibility to do the least amount of harm, should create laws to stop its citizens from hurting themselves? If th e behavior can directly be linked to endangering another person then yes it is the responsibility of the government. It is understood that alcohol impairs ones judgment, so if that person were to get behind the wheel inebriated than they risk harming not only themselves but others. When people become addicted to narcotics they stop being productive members of society. Not only can they become dangerous, but they can fail to fulfill finical obligations. Thusly, it is illegal to sell, purchase, or possess controlled substances without a prescription. These actions have an immediate effect on others, but there are instances that the behavior would not affect others. For instance, in every state in America if you are caught driving without a seatbelt you can be pulled over. The government in this case has established rules to influence the society develop habits that will keep them safe. On the other hand, you can look at smoking, which is associated with lung cancer along with many oth er terminal diseases. In this case however, the government does not have laws in place that ban smoking. There are higher taxes and smoke-free areas that make it inconvenient but it is still legal. So where is the line drawn between the obligations of the government and the rights of the people? Unfortunately, the case of tobacco highlights a profound problem with special interest groups (). In the government, there are many good ways to fulfill social and ethical obligations through communication. Access, transparency, public resources, and free speech are all effective ways of achieving this. Communication encourages active participation in the political process, in other words it encourages. It is a governments ethical responsibility to ensure that every constituent has equal access to elected officials. When equal access is achieved whether it come through developing technological mediums or public forums, the whole of the populations goals can be heard. Adversely, if few people inside of a population, such as, lobbyist or affluent individuals receive more attention due to their status than goals of the society will not be met. One key principle for elected officials is never accept favors from friends or associates because it can lead to them asking for favors in return, which is inequitable to the remaining. The ability of citizens to see daily activity of the gove rnment is known as transparency. This certainly promotes a governments accountability, but also gives the members of a society a peace of mind in knowing the actions of their government. To guarantee transparency, states have laws that require meetings to be open to the public (the Brown Act in California) as well as, access to government records at no cost to the people. The obligation of the government to provide this sort of transparency is vital to effective leadership.   Engagement of the public enhances effectiveness of the government; also it improves the quality of decisions.   Lack of transparency in government leads to a system lacking necessary checks and balances, where officials can do what they please. Almost all of the time when public resources are utilized they should be used for public purposes. Generally speaking, public resources must be used for public purposes. Public resources are included in many things, such as, government employees time, taxpayers money , or even land that belongs to a community. Governments have a very strong social obligation to ensure that these resources are being utilized in an appropriate manner. In the state of South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford was charged with abusing tax-payers dollars to pursue extra-marital affairs in Argentina. Not only did this leave a black eye on the state of South Carolina there has been a severe breech of public trust between South Carolinians and the state government. and It is imperative that The  National Government Ethics Survey, conducted June 25-Aug. 15, 2007, included responses from 774 federal, state and local government employees, and had a margin of error of 3.5 percent. It was the first time ERC broke out government employee responses from its larger survey of public and private sector employees, which included 3,452 in 2007. Harned said the survey found that 52 percent of government employees reported witnessing some kind of misconduct by co-workers in 2006. In addition, 23 percent said they saw or experienced abusive behavior, 21 percent witnessed safety violations and 20 percent knew someone who had lied to their colleagues or was involved in a possible conflict of interest. Most reports of misconduct involved ethical breaches, rather than legal violations, according to ERC. Government employees as a whole reported 3 percent more incidents of falsifying or altering documents and 4 percent more incidents of lying to employees than their private sector counterparts did. Harned said reporting misconduct was up 12 percent from 2005, from 58 percent to 70 percent. Eighty-nine percent of employees made their reports to an individual, rather than anonymously to a hotline, and usually approached lower-level local managers and not top officials in organizations. When one considers an ethical decision model for the government the most important thing to remember is the decision represents the people. Thusly, it is even more imperative to demonstrate prudence, justice, honesty, and temperance in the process (Ruggerio, pg 108). To assist the government in making these difficult ethical decisions, the society should be involved. To involve the people it is important to remember the communication tools that where shown earlier. First, one must recognize the ethical issue that needs to be addressed. Accordingly, questions, such as, Is there a negative consequence for a specific group of people? must be answered. The government must also consider if it is a decision of the lesser of two evils vice two positive consequences or is it simply between one good and one bad alternative. Is there a question about the legality of something? After the issue has been determined the facts need to be gathered. Only the relevant facts of the issue need to be exa mined, but all facts must be considered. Is it possible to gather more information and is the understanding of the issue well enough to make a decision? Is there any special interest in the decision or if a specific group has more at stake than that must be taken into consideration? One must understand all possible actions at this point and ensure all options have been identified. Now, one must evaluate all possible alternative actions by reviewing several approaches. What action will cause the least harm and most good? What action best supports the rights of all with interest in the decision? What action provides the most equal consequences for all? What is best for the society? What action most accurately represents the people the government represents? Once all approaches have been considered the government must make a decision. Lastly, the government will act on its decision, and view the outcome. It is important to reflect on the decision to truly understand if it turned out co rrectly and if anything should have been done differently. Only through reflection of actions can a government improve it capabilities to make more effective ethical decisions in the future.

Developing Corporate Culture within an organisation

Developing Corporate Culture within an organisation As defined in Assignment 1, culture is a set values, beliefs, common understanding, thinking and norms for behavior that are shared by all members of a society. Organizational climate, on the other hand, is the process of quantifying the culture of an organization. It is a set of properties of the work environment, perceived directly or indirectly by the employees, that is assumed to be a major force in influencing employee behavior. In laymens terms, it is the employees opinion of the workplace environment that could have a direct bearing on their performance. For instance, a high performance climate will encourage individuals to do what is needed to meet goals, satisfy customers, and exceed expectations. Likewise, a poor climate will result in loss of confidence in the organization, lower commitment and mediocre performance from employees. There are six factors to evaluation climate, and they are: Clarity Everyone knows what is expected of them. Standards Challenged with reasonable goals. Responsibility Employees given authority to accomplish tasks without checking for approval. Flexibility Employees are recognized and rewarded for good performance. Rewards Employees are recognized and rewarded for good performance. Commitment People are proud to belong to the organization. Using these six factors to assess the climate at the School Employee Retirements System of Ohio (SERS), we can evaluate SERS existing climate from their scores in the Denison Organization Culture Survey. Climate Factors Denison Organizational Culture Survey Score Clarity Vision: 81% Goals Objectives: 82% Strategic Direction Intent: 78% Standards Coordination Integration: 87% Agreement: 73% Core Values: 73% Responsibility Customer Focus: 79% Flexibility Creating Change: 77% Empowerment: n/a Rewards Launch a rewards and recognition programme such as their standardized merit system to recognize those that go above and beyond. Commitment Capability Development: n/a Organizational Learning: 82% Team Orientation: n/a SERS has definitely taken on board the feedback from their initial Denison Organizational Culture Survey scores in 2006 and progressed significantly using the Culture Change Monitor. In a mere three years, it has realized remarkable improvements across many areas of the Denison model and transformed into an organization with balanced top-down and bottom-up team work and involvement. Task 2 Recommend ways to improve corporate climate in an organization. SERSs effort and accomplishment in their transformation is indeed an incredible feat. It would be wise for them to keep at their efforts in establishing an open communicative environment and aim towards creating an inclusive and meritocratic culture. American marathon runner, Joan Benoit Samuelson, was once quoted saying, I look at victory as milestone on a very long highway. Likewise, the journey to victory for SERS is a long road ahead. Thus it is important for SERS to consistency review the data to ascertain the details to progress forward and achieve organizational success. SERS could perhaps make improvements in their efforts for diversity and inclusion, which would ultimately lend in creating a strong future for SERS. This can be attained through addressing the factors of difference and fully capitalizing on the potential contribution of all employees. Embedding diversity and inclusion will give SERS the competitive advantage and help cultivate a competitive culture. For example, SERS could launch a global diversity drive and arrange networking events for affinity groups whereby particularly sub-sets of employees can network and exchange experience. Here, members can come together to discuss key issues and learn from each other, very much similar to their existing leadership development programme. On the employee development front, the SERS University is a good development to embed a learning culture within the organization. With this platform, employees are given the resources of a university to help them advance their careers, realize personal enrichment and achieve success. Additionally, the employee culture of SERS could be weaved into employee development course to inculcate a culture that focuses high engagement. Last but not least, it is recommended that SERS launch their own sustainability campaign to formulate a culture that is part of life and spirit of the communities it serves. It could be accomplished by involving volunteers across the company to donate time, money and resources to help those in need. Furthermore, SERS could offer educational resources such as books, classrooms, teachers to children in need. Task 3 Proposed a framework of organizational values that meet the specific strategic and operational needs of an organization The Competing Values Framework (CVF) developed by Quinn, Rohrbaugh could be proposed to conduct organizational analysis of the existing organizational values. The CVF was initially developed from the research on major indicators of effective organizations. Based on statistical analysis of a comprehensive list of effective indicators, Quinn and Rohrbaugh (1983) discovered two major dimension underlying conceptions of effectiveness. The first dimension is related to organizational focus, from an internal emphasis on the well-being and development of people in the organization to an external focus on the well-being and development of the organization itself. The second dimension differentiates organizational preference for structure and represents the contrast between stability and control and flexibility and change. Plotting this to illustrate, we get a spatial model that forms four quadrants, each with its own set of distinct indicators. Graphically, the CVF can be illustrated as the following: Each quadrant represents one of the four dimensions as depicted in the Denision Organizational Culture survey. These are the four major modes of organization and management theory. In the first quadrant on the upper left corner, we have the Human Relations Model which stresses on flexibility and internal focus. Here, cohesion, morale and human resources development are regarded as a criteria for effectiveness. On the upper right corner, we have the Open System Model. In this quadrant, emphasis is placed on flexibility and external focus, and the primary concerns are the readiness, growth, resource acquisition and external support. Moving on to the lower section of the diagram, the left quadrant is the Internal Process Model, while the right quadrant is the Rational Goal Model. The former emphasizes on control and internal focus and stresses the role of information management, communication, stability and control. The latter emphasizes on control and external focus, and looks upon pla nning, goal setting, productivity and efficiency as effective tools. Using the similar methodology, an alternative model of the CVF demonstrates the applicability towards leadership. Here, eight categories of leadership behaviors emerge, and can be illustrated as the following: Within each quadrant in this alternative model, each represents two roles that aligned with the four modes of organization and management theory. Human Relation Model Mentor is helpful and approachable, and is responsible for the personal development. Facilitator promotes teamwork, cohesiveness and manages interpersonal conflict. Open System Model Innovator possesses the creative and out-of-the box thinking skills, whereas broker possesses the political astute, persuasive, influential and powerful. Internal Process Model Monitor role checks on the performance and handles the paperwork, while coordinator facilitates the structure, schedules and the coordination efforts. Producer Role Model Producer role is responsible for the tasks and work, and motivate employees to attain stated goals, while director role engages in planning and goal setting, sets objectives and establishes clear expectations. This Competing Value Framework (CVF) can be a useful framework of organizational value that meets the specific strategic and operational needs of an organization. Management should take into account all of these eight roles and achieve a balance in competing demands and expectations. As such, this tool could help diagnose their existing and desired culture, and identify organizational gaps. Furthermore, it could be used as a tool for teaching and provide help in better understanding the similarities and differences of managerial leadership roles. Task 4 Identify internal and external stakeholders of an organization. Stakeholders in an organization are simply individuals or group that has an interest in the outcome of your objective. Internal stakeholders are defined as the people who are already committed in their responsibilities as board members, staff, volunteers, and/or donors. External stakeholders, on the other hand, are the people who are impacted by your work as clients/constituents, community, partners, and others. Internal Stakeholders can be represented by the following groups: Board members: Responsible for appointment of management in an organization, take accountability of management for their use of resources and the results of the stewardship of management. This stakeholder may engage in economic decisions which include whether to buy or sell an investment or whether to reappoint or replace the management. Staff members: Employees and their representative groups are interested in the well-being such as the stability and profitability of their employers. They are interested in information which enables them to assess the ability of the enterprise to provide remuneration, retirement benefits and employment opportunities. Donors: The investors of the organizations that provides the risk capital. They are concerned with the risk taken, and return on equity from their investments. They need information to make informed decision of either buying, holding or selling. Shareholders are also interested in financial metrics to discern the ability of the organization to meet dividend payments. External Stakeholders can be represented by the following groups: Clients: Clients or customers are the source of revenue for the business. Community Partners: These are the association boards, regulatory bodies that are concern with the business codes of conduct that the organization follows. Others: Could range from their Corporate Social Responsibility partners, group alliances, the charities that are in partnership with, and the environment. Using NHS as a case study, we can identify the following list of internal and external stakeholders: Internal Stakeholders External Stakeholders Director of Public Health Head of Health Intelligence and Information Procurement Director of Nursing Public Health Strategists Public Health Management Analyst Director of Programmes and Services Research Scientist Communications Environmental Health Intelligence Analyst Public Health Manager Trustees Board committee members Local Authority/council Providers Acute trusts Patients Service users Customers Suppliers Funders Quality assessors LINk group Special interest groups Health visitors/school nurses Wider public health workforce Media Task 5 Evaluate the effectiveness of an organizations existing communication strategies. Communication is one of the basic functions in an organization and its importance can hardly be overemphasized. It is the process of transmitting information, ideas, thoughts, opinions and plans between various parts of an organization. In other words, it is an active two way process that involves listening, speaking, writing and reading. Effective communication in the workplace is essential to provide clear direction and expectations to employees. This will help promote higher productivity, improved performance and increased customer loyalty and profit. Communication strategy in an organization is defined as a management technique for determining the most effective method of communicating in an organization. It outlines the process for communicating and sharing information on project benefits and facts to target audiences and stakeholders. In order to evaluate the effectives of SERSs existing communication strategies, it important to analyze this with respect to its internal and external stakeholders. Communication among internal stakeholders Since 2006, SERS have come a long way in establishing increased communication and promote a culture of openness. One avenue of communication among employees is the daily newsletter publication that provides the latest updates on community information and events, new hires and other relevant organizational information. In addition to that, monthly publications are handed out to employees detailing highlights from monthly board meetings to keep employee abreast on major organizational decisions. This provided employees a structured platform to keep track of major changes and also foster inclusion by encouraging participation in meetings. The set up of cross-function teams was another initiative on the communication front. This enabled staff to work in teams to address key issues, set specific goals and milestone to ensure accountability for their team. Here, cross-functional teams were responsible in the evaluation of the existing performance management process and the creation of competency models for every job function. These models communicated the performance metrics by first defining SMART goals, thus giving employees a sense of empowerment and accountability for reaching their goals. Communication among external stakeholders On the communication initiatives among external stakeholders front, not much have been mentioned in this case study. Extending this with additional research, SERS is currently exploring new ways to communication with their strategic partners. This involve identify and delivering solutions that will bring the greatest impacts to their external stakeholders. Currently, SERS is looking at providing multiple service channels for their existing members to include face-to-face, electronic, web, multi-lingual, etcetera. They have also engaged in lobbying and public education to minimize the potential for detrimental legislation. Task 6 Develop new communication strategies of an organization that address differences in belief, values, customs and language. The ability to communicate is essential to organizational success. We have come into an age of knowledge, and the ability to communicate effectively is the key to harness that knowledge. A good communications strategy would allow for better control and help structure issues in perspective to ultimately address the difference in belief, values, customs and language. Today, SERS has clearly identified its new model in its mission statement affirming its dedication to communication and collaboration to help them identify, and deliver solutions for, the issues of greatest impact to their members and retirees. In the initial stages of the development of a new communications strategy, it would be ideal to make this a collective process and involve participation of all members. This will help facilitate the brainstorm session and pool the necessary skills and competencies to develop an appropriate communications strategy for SERS. This strategy can be structured in several stages: Phase 1 Preliminary outline prepared by the close collaborators. Phase 2 Outline submitted to various partners for comments and revisions. Comments are also received from individuals, groups, etc. Phase 3 Management meets to finalize the strategy, and input/feedback from a communications expert is prompted. Phase 4 Once established, the strategy must be communicated to partners, groups and all members in the organization. The ideal way through the development process is to hold regular team meeting to keep everyone up to date on the needs and to keep the dossier active. This ongoing process allows the strategy to be continually verified during meetings, and evolve to adapt its existing requirements. At SERS, there are a few suggestions to be included in this new communications strategy. SERS can introduce new technologies to facilitate communication among staff. This could be implemented by installation of instant messenger applications, video conferencing tools and email to allow internal stakeholders to communicate more efficiently. SERS could bring its daily newsletters and monthly publications through its intranet and allow members access this information remotely or in the free time. Embed diversity and inclusion by launching a global diversity drive and arranging networking events for affinity groups whereby particularly sub-sets of employees can network and exchange experience. Here, members can come together to discuss key issues and learn from each other, very much similar to their existing leadership development programme. Adopt an open door policy to create an open atmosphere and allow junior members to freely discuss ideas or views on various issues. Creation of special occasion like an SERS day to allow employees from different departments to get to know each other on a personal level and engage in team building activities. Establish a feedback system to ensure a two-way process in the evaluation of colleagues and managers. Anonymity can be enforced by allowing employees to post feedback through an opaque ballot box. Conduct periodic surveys with their internal and external stakeholders to monitor existing performance and seek out avenues for improvement. Taking into account these suggestions for SERS coupled with the 4 stage action communications strategy, SERS will be able to achieve better manager employee relations, bring about improvement in motivation and morale, and ultimately increased productivity and ensure organizational success.