Case Study Concerning The Well-Being Of Mrs. Nancy Jamison

The following document is created to discuss a case study concerning the well-being of Mrs. Nancy Jamison, a 67 rear-old retired woman who is suffering from basilar infiltrates consistent with congestive heart failure. Within this document, the following will be reviewed: Steps in the continuum of care which could have been bypassed in order to expedite care of the patient; observations regarding the care provided for this patient; specialty services in the Philadelphia area that provides care for the following needs: coronary care, trauma care, burn care, complicated obstetrical care, and premature infant care.Upon conclusion, all the previous mentioned will be clearly elucidated. There were a few steps that could have been omitted when Mrs. Jamison arrived to the RediCare located at the local mall. The on-duty care provider there should have checked her insurance and administered her to the appropriate hospital immediately for prompt care. It was very time-consuming to transport he r to other hospitals. Immediately following the medical history and medication list that was provided by the computer system, and the physical assessment was performed, Mrs.Jamison should have been disposition to City Heart Institute cath lab. For prompt attention at arrival, Dr. Miller should contact the cardiologist on call at the City Heart Institute, so that appropriate measures will be applied upon arrival. Other observations regarding the care provided for Mrs. Jamison were the lack of prompt decision making skills, lack of considering the time, lack of administering proper medication for release of pain and various symptoms and lack of researching the insurance information so that Mrs. Jamison is disposition to the correct hospital appropriate for the symptoms she was having.In this case, Mrs. Jamison was provided with the care that she needed. However, the entire process was very time-consuming and much could have been omitted. The entire process took approximately two hours before she received the proper care. It does not take long to have a heart attack or for the problem to worsen. Jana, at RediCare, suggests that Mrs. Jamison is administered to the Marysville Community Hospital, but Mrs. Jamison should have been immediately transported to the City Heart Institute cath lab which would have saved some time.There are several locations in Philadelphia that provide services for various needs: 1. Coronary Care: Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. The hospital has a special unit for Coronary Care. Located at 3400 Bruce Street in Philadelphia. 2. Trauma Care: Hahnemann University Hospital. Hahnemann University Hospital is a 541-bed academic medical center at Broad & Vine Streets in Philadelphia, Pa. The hospital is a tertiary care institution that specializes in trauma services. 3. Burn Care: Temple University Hospital.The hospital has a Severe Burn Care Unit that specializes specifically on the burn. Located at 3401 North Broad Street 400 Carnell Hall in Philadelphia. 4. Complicated Obstetrical Care: Temple University Hospital. Temple Care University Hospital is a major provider to obstetrical services. Located at 3401 North Broad Street 400 Carnell Hall in Philadelphia. 5. Premature Infant Care: The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. The hospital has a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) that provides services for complex problems for premature babies who are in need of intensive medical attention.Located on 34th Street and Center Boulevard in Philadelphia. This review was created to discuss a case study concerning the well-being of Mrs. Nancy Jamison, a 67 rear-old retired woman who is suffering from basilar infiltrates consistent with congestive heart failure. Within this document, the following has been reviewed: Steps in the continuum of care which could have been bypassed in order to expedite care of the patient; observations regarding the care provided for this patient; specialty services in the Philadelphia area that provides care for the specific needs.

Core Mountain Man Brewing Company Bringing the Brand

Core Marketing Mountain Man Brewing Company Bringing the Brand to Light 1. Overview Mountain Man Brewing Company (MMBC, or the Client) is a family-run business in West Virginia that has experienced much growth since launching its flagship premium beer Mountain Man Lager (MMB) in 1925. Over the decades, brand loyalty, quality and brand awareness have been the cornerstones of the Client’s success – the importance of the MMBC brand among consumers has allowed the company to build its small but consistent market share in the East Central region (ECR), particularly in its home state, the only region it distributes in (7. % of the market with more than 50 million USD in revenue). 2. Challenges & Opportunities * Challenges MMBC currently faces a potentially identity-changing challenge: The traditional premium beer market has been declining at a compound annual rate of 4%, and MMB experienced a 2% decrease in revenue last year, the first drop in its entire history; accordingly, MMBC’s target aim is to recover from the 2% decrease in revenue that occurred in the prior year. * OpportunitiesThe light beer market – popular with younger drinkers – has also been growing at a CAGR of 4%. Although MMBC has been historically weak in the 35-years-and-under segment, there is opportunity to generate more sales by releasing a new Mountain Man Light Beer (MML) line to target this younger market. However, there is the risk of negatively impacting their current distribution of MMB through shelf-space cannibalization and higher costs; as well as the risk of alienating their core segment of older, blue-collar drinkers. . Analysis MMBC faces potentially losing more revenue at the current forecasted compound annual decrease rate of 2% – the projected decrease for MMB standalone in year-to-year net revenue from actual 520,000 barrels sold in 2005 (USD 50. 4 m) to 470,039 barrels (approximately USD 45. 6 m) by 2010 totals nearly 10% (see Exhibit 1). According to the key age demographics among beer drinkers, MMB’s customer segmentation is currently as follows: 64% for 45 years and up, and only 17% for 35 years and under.Yet the ECR breakdown for consumption by beer type is the opposite: 50. 4% for light and only 19. 7% for premium. Due to the overwhelming potential in the light beer market, we have prepared projections on growth in revenues and expenses for MMBC should they decide to move forward with brewing Mountain Man Light (see Exhibit 2A, 2B). * Making Mountain Man Lighter (and More Profitable) Considerations have been made regarding MMB remaining as a stand-alone product (again, see Exhibit 1).However, per the Client’s instructions, this report will focus on projected performance examining MMBC’s entry into the light beer market at their expected MMB reduction rate of 20%. According to our analysis, MML would still result in a significant increase in revenue within two years: With the new product mix , net income margin increases from an insignificant 0. 88% in MML’s first year to a robust 3. 7% by its second year (2007), even with considerations on the additional expenses that would go into launching a new product – manufacturing, advertising, general operating (see Exhibit 2A). Additionally, the projected MMB+MML sales volume after only two years would nearly match MMBC’s current volume level – 500,895 barrels to 520,000 – and would eventually overtake the 2005 figure in 2008; while standalone figures show a continuous decrease from the 2005 benchmark and eventually fall behind MML sales by 2011 (Exhibit 3). * Issues to Consider The forecast for MMB +MML sales are promising.However, JAFREM must note significant issues to consider with the presented data: 1) Due to limited sales volume for the first six years, impact on COGS has not been taken into consideration; should the current production capacity levels be exceeded, additional inputs rega rding CAPEX (for example, for new plants) will be necessary. 2) With the forecasted MML growth rate, the Client’s market share in the ERC amounts to 1. 5% after five years; MMB has not achieved this level after more than 50 years in the business and so considerations on the MMB reduction rate have also been provided (Exhibit 2B). 4. RecommendationsLight beer is an attractive proposition for MMBC, especially with the decrease in the premium beer segment. Accordingly, ignoring the dynamic growth in the light segment is simply too much of an opportunity to let pass. In order to reduce the risks that come with launching MML (alienating core customers, promoting a failed product), we recommends the following measures: * To avoid losing brand equity at the consumer level for MMB, pilot the MML launch outside West Virginia, as this is MMBC’s strongest and most loyal market; should the testing prove successful, then consideration can be made on moving into West Virginia. Shoul d the MML growth forecast not be realized after two years, return focus to MMB distribution at a national level; while advertising and sales at the grass roots level has been good for MMBC, there has been no attempt to reach a larger marketing through the traditional channel of television media. * Despite the expected decrease in the premium beer market, MMB still has potential to capture more market share by expanding its advertising activities and consumer base outside the ERC. Exhibit 1 – Lager Standalone Projections MMB Standalone (next five years)Â  | | 2005| 2006| 2007| 2008| 2009| 2010| Barrels| 520,000| 509,600| 499,408| 489,420| 479,631| 470,039| Price per Barrel| $97. 00| $97. 00| $97. 00| $97. 00| $97. 00| $97. 00| Net Revenue| 50,440,000| 49,431,200| 48,442,576| 47,473,724| 46,524,250| 45,593,765| COGS| 34,803,600| 34,107,528| 33,425,377| 32,756,870| 32,101,732| 31,459,698| Gross Margin| 15,636,400| 15,323,672| 15,017,199| 14,716,855| 14,422,517| 14,134,067| SG&A | 9,583,600| 9,583,600| 9,583,600| 9,583,600| 9,583,600| 9,583,600| Other Op. Exp. 1,412,320| 1,412,320| 1,412,320| 1,412,320| 1,412,320| 1,412,320| Operating Margin| 4,640,480| 4,327,752| 4,021,279| 3,720,935| 3,426,597| 3,138,147| Other Income| 151,320| 151,320| 151,320| 151,320| 151,320| 151,320| Net Income before Tax| 4,791,800| 4,479,072| 4,172,599| 3,872,255| 3,577,917| 3,289,467| Prov. Income Tax| 1,677,130| 1,567,675| 1,460,409| 1,355,289| 1,252,271| 1,151,314| Net Income After Tax| 3,114,670| 2,911,397| 2,712,189| 2,516,965| 2,325,646| 2,138,154| Net Present Value| 3,114,670| 2,599,461| 2,162,141| 1,791,526| 1,477,990| 1,213,246|Exhibit 2A – MMB + MML Projections | 2005| 2006| 2007| 2008| 2009| 2010| 2011| MML Barrels| 0| 48Â  735| 101Â  369| 158Â  136| 219Â  282| 285Â  066| 355Â  763| MMB Barrels| 520Â  000| 407Â  680| 399Â  526| 391Â  536| 383Â  705| 376Â  031| 368Â  510| Growth%| Â  | -12%| 10%| 10%| 10%| 10%| 10%| Price per Barrel| $97| $97| $97| $9 7| $97| $97| $97| Net Revenue| 50Â  440Â  000| 44Â  272Â  273| 48Â  586Â  872| 53Â  318Â  166| 58Â  489Â  738| 64Â  126Â  451| 70Â  254Â  508| COGS| 34Â  803Â  600| 30Â  776Â  437| 34Â  000Â  363| 37Â  531Â  192| 41Â  386Â  351| 45Â  584Â  213| 50Â  144Â  138| COGS/Revenue| 69. 00%| 69. 52%| 69. 98%| 70. 39%| 70. 6%| 71. 08%| 71. 37%| Gross Margin| 15Â  636Â  400| 13Â  495Â  837| 14Â  586Â  509| 15Â  786Â  974| 17Â  103Â  387| 18Â  542Â  239| 20Â  110Â  370| SG&A| 9Â  583Â  600| 11Â  233Â  600| 10Â  483Â  600| 10Â  483Â  600| 10Â  483Â  600| 10Â  483Â  600| 10Â  483Â  600| Other Op. Expenses2| 1Â  412Â  320| 1Â  412Â  320| 1Â  412Â  320| 1Â  412Â  320| 1Â  412Â  320| 1Â  412Â  320| 1Â  412Â  320| MML, Extra Ad Expenses| 0| 400Â  000| 400Â  000| 400Â  000| 400Â  000| 400Â  000| 400Â  000| Op. Expenses| 10Â  995Â  920| 13Â  045Â  920| 12Â  295Â  920| 12Â  295Â  920| 12Â  295Â  920| 12Â  295Â  920| 12Â  295Â  920| %| Â  | 18. 64%| -5. 75%| 0. 00%| 0. 00%| 0. 00%| 0. 00%| Op.Profit| 4Â  640Â  480| 449Â  917| 2Â  290Â  589| 3Â  491Â  054| 4Â  807Â  467| 6Â  246Â  319| 7Â  814Â  450| Op. Margin| Â  | -90. 30%| 409. 11%| 52. 41%| 37. 71%| 29. 93%| 25. 10%| Other Income| 151Â  320| 151Â  320| 151Â  320| 151Â  320| 151Â  320| 151Â  320| 151Â  320| Net Income before Tax| 4Â  791Â  800| 601Â  237| 2Â  441Â  909| 3Â  642Â  374| 4Â  958Â  787| 6Â  397Â  639| 7Â  965Â  770| Prov. Income Tax| 1Â  677Â  130| 210Â  433| 854Â  668| 1Â  274Â  831| 1Â  735Â  575| 2Â  239Â  173| 2Â  788Â  019| Net Income After Tax| 3Â  114Â  670| 390Â  804| 1Â  587Â  241| 2Â  367Â  543| 3Â  223Â  212| 4Â  158Â  465| 5Â  177Â  750| Net Income Margin| 6. 18%| 0. 88%| 3. 27%| 4. 44%| 5. 51%| 6. 48%| 7. 7%| NPV| 3Â  114Â  670| 348Â  932| 1Â  265Â  339| 1Â  685Â  170| 2Â  048Â  409| 2Â  359Â  625| 2Â  623Â  209| Exhibit 2B – Inputs & S tress Test Results Inputs| | Stress scenario| MMB, Avg. Market Share Growth| 0. 25%| | Year| MML, Avg. Market Share Growth| Reduction Rate| MMB, Var. Cost per Barrel| 66. 93| | 2006| 0. 04%| 30. 19%| MML, Var. Cost per Barrel| 4. 69| | 2010| 0. 28%| 17. 28%| Reduction Rate| 20%| | 2011| 0. 23%| 21. 80%| Discount Rate| 12%| | | | | MMB, Growth Rate| -2%| | | | | Price per Barrel | $97| | | | | MMB, Extra Ad Expenses| $0| | | | | MML Growth Rate| 2%| | | | | MML, SG&A in 2006| $900,000| | | | |MML, SG&A Extra Launch| $750,000| | | | | Exhibit 3 – MMB (stand alone) vs. MMB + MML ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Forecast prepared according to the 2% compound annual decrease rate provided by the Client [ 2 ]. SG&A and Other Operating Expenses are quantity independent in the consider range of production. [ 3 ]. The Stress Scenarios included in this Exhibit denote the maximum reduction rat e possible in order to achieve the target market growth desired by the Client should they move ahead with MML; in order to remain profitable, these are the reduction rate ceilings.

Stimulus Bill Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Stimulus Bill - Article Example it allowed the people to invest in the overall development of the society like in infrastructure, medical treatment issues, education and other basic needs of the people were addressed by this act. Further it took part in recycling of the energy too. The Act is based on a theory of economics which is called Keynesian Macroeconomic Theory. This theory suggests that when a recession strikes, the government should be modest and generous enough to put less money into the projects which are of private nature and likely to benefit the government and the state only, and start investing more on the things which will directly give relief and benefit to the general public. According to this theory, recession is not the time to secure your business or government, but to keep the public surviving and doing all which will keep them alive, happy and motivated to work or to get back to work. Although the Act seems to be a perfect package for the social welfare of the people, it was also criticized by some in terms of its very limited scope. They say that it covers less than one third of the spending. As it happens with every new thing presented, The view and recommendations of the economists about the act should also be discussed in order to get a better idea about the weaknesses and strengths. Some economista like Paul Krugman, Joseph Stiglitz, Larry Summers and Martin Feldstein have reservations about this act that it has a very small vision or it is an act with limited scope which does not benefit the sufficient number of people. They suggest that it should have been designed to encompass the larger wider population. Feldstein is generally in favour of such a package but questions the directness of this act on the investment on consumer spending. He says that this act should have been more direct on addressing the unemployment and the consumer spending. According to him some revision is needed in this act to make it more effective and beneficial. Krugman also says that it

The Quality of Aircraft traffic control at Dubai international airport Essay

The Quality of Aircraft traffic control at Dubai international airport sultan - Essay Example The research objectives include analyzing the qualifications of employees working in the air traffic control department, the number of employees working in the air traffic control department, the efforts by the airport to reduce and overcome air traffic in Dubai international airport, and the future air traffic control strategies cater for future expansion of the airport. Air traffic controllers are known to be individuals who are educated to keep up the safe, methodical and swift flow of air travel within the worldwide air travel control structure. Various nations have Air travel Control educational institutions, academies or universities, often managed by the serving source of air travel services within that nation, but from time to time in confidence. These institutions train apprentice controllers from the wherever they have been to the standards needed to embrace an Air Travel Control certificate, which will hold one or additional ratings. Air travel controllers are in the main people who have excellent organization skills, are swift with numeric computation, along with mathematics, have confident and firm resolution making proficiencies, have the capacity to uphold their cool and tranquility under pressure, in addition to possessing an outstanding short-term recollection. An air traffic control officer is an individual who offers service and is accountable for the secure air travel flow, from one airfield to the next. Growing congestion within the skies over the Arabian bay is one serious predicament among the predicaments threatening the development of the areas aviation business. As one would expect, one of the resolutions for augmenting the airports capability is their expansion. It is comprehensible that as the air travel demand develops, carriers are attempting to expand their business operations as much as probable. Therefore, one of the developments people have been witnessing

American History after 1865 Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

American History after 1865 - Coursework Example History indicates that Roosevelt used antitrust threats with the aim of keeping various businesses within bounds (Divine et al., 667). 2.  How did Roosevelt and Wilson differ on regulating big business? Wilson did not trust in the opinions given by Roosevelt about business growth (Divine et al., 675). On his side, Roosevelt managed to lay out various reform programs that favored the growth of big businesses. Some of these reform programs included railroad regulations, and greater control over various corporations. Other reform programs included laws regulating child labor and factory inspections (Divine et al., 668). Another significant issue concerning Roosevelt in the business sector is that he always said that there was a need to enhance various regulations and legislation in a way of prohibiting big business from conducting evil. For example, Roosevelt ordered the army to prepare to seize the mines that were not corresponding with various regulations (Divine et al., 667). Wilso n had various views that differed with those of Roosevelt. He viewed that most of the monopolistic big businesses were enacting various operations that subjected the economy of America. He viewed that most of the operations that big businesses were carrying only oppressed the poor. In favor big businesses, Wilson refused to support the bill that would enhance provision of minimum wages for women workers (Divine et al., 667). He also sidetracked the child labor bill that was proposed by Roosevelt stating that the bill was unconstitutional (Divine et al., 667). 3.  What were the major features of  Wilson’s progressive reform program? One of the major features is that Wilson led the Congress in enacting major pieces of legislation into law. One of these pieces of legislation was the Underwood Tariff Act in 1913 (Divine et al., 675). The significance of the Act was that it lowered the tariff rates to about 15%. Moreover, the act also assisted in removing duties from sugar, wo ol and several other consumer goods (Divine et al., 675). The other piece of legislation that Wilson managed to pass was the Federal Reserve Act. The act was of significant importance to the American government in the sense that it provided a sound and flexible currency. The act also assisted in establishing the first efficient banking system in the country (Divine et al., 675). The other piece of legislation was the Clayton Antitrust Act that he managed to pass in 1914 (Divine et al., 676). The Act was of significance importance because it prohibited unfair trade practices. 4.  How did the Progressive movement manifest itself at the level of city government? The progressives managed to help most of the poor citizens uplift themselves. However, they viewed that there were two groups of poor people. There were those who were worthy of an uplift and there were those who posed as a threat to economic health and growth in the country. The progressives managed to advocate for labor in order the poor can managed to uplift their living conditions. Moreover, the progressives managed to advocate for various women rights. They also advocated a vision for better economic and family life. According to the progressives, this would enable most of the women come out from the labor force and meet their family obligations. The progressives also advocated for

Wage Labor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Wage Labor - Essay Example They are portrayed as unfortunate and suffer at the hands of industrialists. On the contrary, the capitalists live in an upper class area where sun shines every morning. They are considered the fortunate ones. Their machineries churn and release steam in work areas and where labor lives. Through Fredersen, the film shows how people accumulate capital via expropriation in the sense that Fredersen’s father does not care about the welfare of his workers. For instance, when Freder tells his Father about the death of one of their workers, he fires his assistant Josephat so that he does not pay them their wages. Freder then starts thinking about the status of his workers. At the end of the film, he gets trapped in his industry and risks his life to save his labors (Freder). Similarly, in Chaplin’s Modern Times, the filmmakers try to present the matters between labor and the industrialists. In Modern Times, Charlie, the protagonist, performs the role of a struggling labor. He works at a grinding wheels industry where his boss often increases the speed so he could consume twice output from his labors. The movie shows the struggles of labor that they are not even allowed to interact directly with each others. In these two films, Fritz Lang’s Metropolis and Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times, the filmmakers briefly show the differences and issues created between the labors and the capitalists. ... In Metropolis, filmmakers present the differences from capitalists’ perspectives and it is observed that makers try to favor the industrialists in the society. Despite of the fact that how badly Fredersens’ father behaves with his employees, his son the lead character of the film, acts kind with them. He was trapped in his factory and risked his life for the labors. He then starts being a good man and becomes the connecting factor between the two fractions of the capitalist society, the labors and the capitalists (Freder). Whereas in Charlie’s Modern Times, the makers strive to favor labors point of view by showing the story from their perspective. The film shows how a laborer struggles to adjust in the society after suffering hugely in the hands of different industrialists. Even after all the struggles and sufferings, Charlie still risks his life to save his boss from an accident (Chaplin). Analyzing the information it can conclude that the both films present th e issues between labors and capitalist in two different ways but the main highlight is to develop understanding the relationship between capitalist and labors. The similarity between these two films is the plot that demonstrates the interdependency of labors and capitalists. The plot of both films emphasize when labors are nothing without industrialists, these films portray that capitalists also cannot operate their industries without the labors. Both the movies talk about the dedication of labors and capitalist and try to remove the biases on capitalists of being unfair with their labors. The relationship between the government and business is evident in the films in the sense that the government seems to draft laws that controls the operation of the business in order to avoid public

Decision Making Process Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Decision Making Process - Essay Example On a practical note, decision making involves identifying all possible choices of solution, analyzing the pros and cons of choosing each decision and finalizing on the appropriate one. The choice of appropriateness is further befuddled by number of other aspects. The perfect choice depends on identifying the stakeholders involved in the decision, the impact of it to them, the moral values, the ethical goodness and finally, the desired result. So, decision making even in its ubiquitous explanation, involves so much complication. In addition, if there is an added pressure that human lives are at stake at every decision being made, then every simple decision needs a humongous amount of thinking and courage to be put in by the decision maker. Such is the profession of nursing where the nurses are made to make decisions, day in and day out. Over the years, the facilities and teaching processes that back the profession of nursing have improved so much that the current generations of nurses are equipped very well on how to execute any decision that is made but there is still an element of uncertainty involved in their profession – the real time decision making process. Several researches have been done and methods have been proposed that guide the nurses in these decision making processes. ... The patient was operated for inguinal hernia mesh repair and had a LMA (laryngeal mask airway) in-situ to allow him to breathe as he recovered from the operation. The problem that she encountered in this setting was when the senior nurse decided to leave her in-charge for few minutes as she had decided to take a break. The fear of facing any emergencies alone; the possibility of aftermath that she had to face in case of any mishaps and, her inexperience prompted her to make the decision of questioning the senior staff. The inquiry included a question about the repercussions of leaving an inexperienced nurse alone with a just operated patient and a suggestion of possible replacement till the senior nursing staff returns. Patterns of Knowing Barbara Carper, in 1978, established four fundamental patterns of knowing in the belief that it could help a great deal for the betterment of the nursing profession both in teaching as well as learning aspects. It becomes mandatory to give a brief description about the four patterns of knowing before divulging more about their relationships with the decision made (Carper, 1978). Empirics: The science of Nursing According to this knowing, nursing is a science where the knowledge mainly focuses on empirical data. According to Barbara, nursing in this aspect is researched and theorized in terms of factual data so that most of the empirical knowledge can be analyzed to form laws and regulations that could provide a structure to the study of nursing. There is a strong urge among the nursing practitioners and researches in identifying the structures and models of nursing. And the output of

Sales management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Sales management - Essay Example This is because the manager desires or wants to recruit the right people, as it is their responsibility to increase sales where they can through supporting their goods and services2. Therefore, selecting and recruiting the right person in an organization has a significant number of benefits. In order to ensure this, the sales people should be in a position to define the culture of the organization, develop detailed description of the task, establish an employment conduct contract, as well as creating screening process. Thus, through an interview, which is one of the approaches employed by managers in selecting and recruiting sales people, the manager gets prospect to have adequate background information on the preferred candidate. Interviews are vital because it leads to benefits such as, it is less expensive, it is easy to carry out, it leads to reduced turnover, and may inhibit stealing or ferocity in an organization. According to studies, even the most competent applicants require training. Nevertheless, an effective recruitment and selection procedure moderates the quantity of time the manager will have to capitalize in the new worker3. On the contrary, by selecting a person who is fits greatly for the position except that he or she lacks some of the practical abilities to perform the task, it is vital for the manager to invest in their training. This is because it will lead top great or significant outcomes in the end. It is always easy to train a person in accomplishing precise works; it is much difficult to train soft skills such as reliability and flexibility. Therefore, the process of recruitment and selecting is quite essential for any organization because it helps in reducing time and resources spend on training the new worker. Recruitment and selection leads to job gratification4. This is especially achieved by the selection of the right sales people for the job because of their capability to work independently. In most cases, workers who are not se lf-inspired or self-organized drain the team, the management, as well as the organization as a whole. In addition, in case the selected individual does not fit the vacant position, may decide to quit, forcing the manager to start again the whole procedure of recruitment and selection. This therefore implies that selecting the right candidate for the job results into greater experience of job gratification and extreme levels of inspiration within an organization. Recruitment and selection of the sales people leads to prevention of problems within an organization. As it is the rule, section process enables the manager to make decision concerning the specific skills he is pursuing in a worker5. This makes it possible for the employer to focus the interviewing and selection procedure to individuals with those abilities or skills. Accordingly, the process of recruitment and selection enables the manager to view some of the strengths his or he present employees are lacking6. This will mak e the manager chose the right candidate for the position of the sales people, thus avoiding problems that may occur because of the wrong decisions. Furthermore, problems could be avoided by giving the current workers an opportunity to recommend individuals suitable for the position. According to statistics, worker recommendations are the most prevalent and

Should All College Courses Be Specifically Related to a Future Essay

Should All College Courses Be Specifically Related to a Future Occupation - Essay Example Most college students, therefore, have their outstanding aspiration of settling for their future careers after graduation as their core objective. It becomes indisputable that the number of citizens served by college graduates, in their areas of specialization, is high. The nature of the professions handled by graduates is that of a highly critical endeavor, sometimes involving health and international relations issues. The fact that many colleges prioritize future occupation of learners rather than enhancing students with extensive comprehension of other skills becomes worrying. The effect of this mode of education can spread to bring extensive implications, some negative and irreversible. Teaching in colleges should not only include training in future occupation but also other complementary life skills. Unless such complementary skills appear among college courses, the value of education gets to a compromising situation. There is no doubt the importance of college education in ensu ring a solution to life problems and challenges as climate change and economic crisis, among others, is great. In fact, there is a high demand for innovation that makes the quality of life better than it is, or even cheap to afford. All these are possible with intensive training, of college students, in their future occupation. ... Besides the knowledge of research, college students should learn other skills as oratory speech delivery, among other courses. A case in point would be a college student pursuing international relations or political science courses. If, for instance, the student lacks the knowledge of oratory speech delivery, it becomes a challenge. Others may argue that such skills, mentioned, form part of the lesson plans of their related courses. It is true they do. However, it is questionable how many graduates can apply the skills, exceptionally and in an outstanding way.  Ã‚  

History of Haute Couture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

History of Haute Couture - Essay Example Many scholars of the world have associated haute couture with the classy and luxurious lifestyles. Going way back to the 17th and 18th century when fashion is believed to have been invented, French fashion trends were simply the best in the entire of Europe and the rich, wealthy and the powerful individuals of the world travelled across the borders just to have a taste of the classic outfits in the French fashion market. These encounters laid the foundation of the Haute Couture a fashion that would later revolutionize the entire world’s fashion industry (Tortora & Keith, 2010, p. 19). The Haute Couture that is known today by many individuals of the world originated in the 19th century and was founded by Sir Charles Fredrick Worth (Ginsburg, 1989, p. 55). This is the person the scholars of the world credit with title ‘the modern Couture founding father’. Having founded his own couture house in the early 1858, Sir Charles Fredrick Worth introduced to the world very important innovations to the fashion industry through organized fashion shows. Following the elegance display of dresses on live models, his fame spread across the world like a bush fire and his work pleased very powerful and wealthy individuals of the time the likes of the famous Princess Metternich. Several years down the line, Charles Fredrick Worth together with his sons founded an association for the Haute Couture Houses. This was simply a criterion that the fashion designers of the time had to meet in order to be declared as ‘couturiers’. Ever since, the name has not only been regulated by the specific criteria but has as well been regulated by the government of France and reserved for only a number of persons. There is an exclusive class of designers who are only allowed to use the label in their designs. In the recent past, eligible haute couture houses are only determined by a commission

Risk Management Business Contingency Plan Essay Example for Free

Risk Management Business Contingency Plan Essay The qualitative risk analysis performed in a previous report identified eight notable risks associated with setting up a call-center presence in Quà ©bec, Canada. As those risks are successfully managed, the call center will commence operation and start handling telephonic insurance requests from mostly French-speaking customers. (Only one-quarter of employees at this center will handle English-speaking calls from Canadian customers.) Because there will be a sole call center in Canada handling 100 percent of the French-speaking calls and one-quarter of English-speaking calls, it will be imperative to establish a business contingency plan, or BCP. Because of the aforementioned propensity for natural disasters in Canada, this plan will address continuity of business in the event of a natural disaster, such as a tornado. The specific areas of business continuity to be treated are 1. Pre-incident adjustments, 2. Ethical use and protection of sensitive data, 3. Ethical use and protection of customer data, 4. Communication plan, and 5. Post-incident continuity. The goal of this plan is to reduce pandemonium associated with natural disasters’ effects on normative business operations. Pre-Incident Adjustments It is important to understand the principal components that contribute to the locomotion of a well-functioning call center. These components include: 1. A functioning telephone-delivery system, also known as a PSTN 2. A functioning networking system for data sharing 3. A functional group of computers for customer processing 4. A functioning electrical system There are other less-crucial components that contribute to a normative operational environment, such as fax capabilities and office equipment. The focus, however, will be on major components. It is obvious that a call center requires the ability to manage inbound and outbound calls. A tornado of any strength has a high likelihood of disrupting this call management ability. (Please review the risk register and attendant risk report for more information on the level of severity and likelihood.) Public Switch Telephone Network The call center is dependent on a public switch telephone network, or PSTN. This is an array of externally managed networks employed to deliver calls throughout the world; this network uses coaxial cables, fiber optics, land lines, and satellite communication to support communication. A natural disaster can physically affect this aspect of the communication network, which effectively prevents the delivery of calls to the call center’s own internal automatic call-delivery system, or ACD. This is an obvious impediment to the nature of a call center. Networking System In order for call-center employees to make and receive calls, the PSTN must deliver the calls to the call center’s networking system, which comprises the business telephone system, or PABX, and high-speed data delivery lines, such as ISDN. If a tornado affects the PSTN, the call center’s networking system for call delivery would be useless, and no calls would be delivered or could be made. If the tornado damaged the call-center structure, the networking system would also fail, not only preventing the handling of calls but the appropriate transmission of data. If there are onsite servers or mainframes, they may also be damaged. Functioning Computers Computers are required in every aspect of call-center operation. Front-line employees cannot process calls or customer requests without access to a computer. Information-technology workers cannot support the existing call-center network without a computer to interface with the network. A direct impact of a tornado would most likely destroy a significant number of workstations, causing elevated levels of inefficiency and the inability to meet customer needs. Functioning computers and network lines are also important for what is referred to as the Intra-Day Management Team. This team is responsible for 1) the proper routing of calls to call-center representatives based on their skill set—referred to skill-set gating—and 2) managing the call-center employees’ phone and off-the-phone schedules—referred to adherence and conformance. Damage to telephone lines, networking structures, and computers prevents the proper support of the call-center employees, which results in missed commitments with telephonic customers. Functioning Electrical System The electrical system is managed by the public-utilities company of the local area. If a tornado sufficiently damaged this entity to prevent the consistent delivery of electricity to the call center, there may be a disruption to the ability to make and receive calls as well as process data. The call center employs backup power generators in such an instance, but these generators provide eight hours of power. In natural disasters, it is not unlikely that utilities companies will be able to restore service within weeks. For each of the communications components listed above, State Farm should establish a call-routing process to handle inbound and outbound calls in exigent situations. Call routing simply means that a national Intra-Day Management Team, a team that manages the overall statistics generated from all State Farm’s call centers and that supersedes the authority of local intra-day management teams, would direct calls from the Canadian center to any number of call centers in the United States. In theory, this concept is simple: Calls are routed to a random call center for processing. In reality, the execution of this process is complicated. State Farm’s call centers house representatives with specific skill sets, with some call centers sharing overall skill-set attributes with others. For example, State Farm’s call center in Jacksonville, Florida, shares the same skill set as its Tempe, Arizona, location. However, four other call centers house representatives that, internal to each call center, are multi-skilled and, external to other call centers, do not share the same skill set. For example, the Phoenix call center houses customer-service representatives and claims representatives—two mutually exclusive skill sets within one call center. The Utah call center houses Spanish-speaking risk-management representatives and non-polyglot underwriting professionals. The call centers are dissimilar in the skill attributes and overall functioning. Depending on the call volume handled by the damaged Canadian call center and based on the distinctions in the antecedent paragraph, routing Canadian customers to American centers can 1. Be tedious to find the appropriate representatives in the call centers to handle the calls 2. Be a negative influence on the call center’s existing metrics it is required to meet. The latter difficulty is notable, since each call center is required to meet specific service-level agreements set forth by operations managers at the national level. These service-level agreements comprise call statistics, such as average speed of answer, average hold time for calls answered, abandon rate (number of calls that disconnect before being answered), etc. These agreements do not account for natural disasters, so with the introduction of, for example, 400 calls to a particular call center, that call center’s ability to meet its own service-level agreements will most  likely be constrained. Considering the nature of service-level agreements is to ensure that telephonic customers are responded to within a reasonable time frame, the customer experience will decline, which will result in lower customer-satisfaction results. This reality correlates with lower profit-maximization opportunities; customers who must wait what they deem to be an interminable amount of time to have a request processed will be more likely to choose a competitor, such as All State, for their insurance needs. Another notable concern is that the Canadian call center answers mostly French-speaking calls. There are currently no other centers nationwide that have French-speaking representatives. At present, customers routed to other customer-service call centers would speak with customer-service representatives who would use a language vendor State Farm employs, ATT Language Line. With the assistance of a language professional from the vendor’s company, the State Farm representative can successfully handle the call. However, statistics demonstrate that these calls are extensively longer and negatively influence the customer experience. It is recommended, therefore, that State Farm seek to employ bilingual representatives throughout its call centers. Human resources would be responsible for managing this proactive initiative. Ethical Use and Protection of Data State Farm houses a staggering amount of proprietary sensitive data. This data must be ethically used and protected. Some examples of this sensitive data is call-center statistics that can expose the employee identification numbers of the Canadian call-center employees; human-resources information systems, or HRIS, containing employee records; and financial records of all payments made to vendors. The call-center statistics are stored onsite on a server. The reason for the onsite storage is the ready access to read and write to this information. Call-center statistics change constantly. For example, the average speed of answer will vary daily, depending on the call volume. The HRIS is also stored onsite on the same server that houses the call-center statistics. The reason that this data is resident on the same server as the call-center statistics is that they are interdependent. The HRIS will contain information on the results of previous-years’ performance evaluation; however, this performance-review data cannot be properly curated without input from call-center statistics. As an example, State Farm can justifiably offer a 10-percent salary increase to an employee because that employee met the calls-handled-per-hour metric, which is culled from call-center statistics. Technically, this data can be discretely stored, but an attention to efficiency demands otherwise. Pulling data sets from one location is more efficient than doing so from discrete locations. The call center has many vendor relationships, all of which require payment to sustain the contractual relationships. For example, all office equipment, excluding computers, is leased through Ricoh International. The call center makes quarterly lease payments for the use of this equipment. This is a financial relationship that requires each element be tracked and stored for tax-reporting purposes. This data is housed in a separate server onsite. The reason for onsite storage is ready access to reading and writing to this data. Similar to call-center statistics, this data constantly changes, so onsite storage offers an efficient way of handling this data. In the event of a natural disaster, the call center must adopt a data-redundancy mindset. Specifically, State Farm must house this data at a separate location, preferably in a different country. Doing so ensures that if a natural disaster were to affect all of Canada, this data, which is stored in Salt Lake City, would still maintain its integrity and can be readily accessed by American call centers that would temporarily manage the calls. Also, when housed offsite, the data should be maintained in the same fashion as it is onsite. Call-center statistics and HRIS data should be housed together due to their interdependence, and financial data should be housed  separately. Ethical Use and Protection of Customer Data Just as company data is important, the maintenance and protection of the integrity of customer data is imperative. Examples of State Farm customer data include customer name, Social Security number, insurance-policy identification number, mailing address, vehicle identification number, and credit-card information. As has been demonstrated with well-publicized data breaches in the past, there is a causal relationship between identity theft and dilatory security processes. Thus, State Farm should not take a languid attitude toward customer security. The abstractions from the customer profile are grouped in two: 1. Demographics: name, address, Social Security number, and license-plate information 2. Financial data: credit-card name and number, banking information, invoices, receipts, and tax documents Each categorization is housed on separate onsite servers, but the categories are connected by a primary key, that is, a record in each group that connects in order to create a complete customer profile. The primary key is name—the name field in the demographic group abstraction and credit-card-name field in the financial-data group abstraction. (This primary key is necessary in order for each representative to access a complete customer profile upon processing a customer request during a call.) In preparation for a natural disaster, this data must be stored offsite on discrete servers but still connected by a primary key. These servers must also be in another country, though they both can be offsite in the same country. When a natural disaster causes the Canadian call center to shutter temporarily, American call centers will still have access to complete customer profiles to add insurance riders or to make payments, since they will not have been affected by the natural disaster. It should also be clearly noted that this data must be stored, whether onsite or off, using the highest encryption, which is presently 256 bit. This encryption level is especially imperative for offsite storage. It mitigates against unauthorized access or breach of this customer data, which would surely lead to expensive and unnecessary lawsuits. Communication Plan A communication plan is a strategy, normally a project-management function, that details the process of effective communication during exigent situations, such as when a call center is damaged due to a natural disaster and is unable to function normally. To avoid chaotic discourse or managers leading at cross purposes, the communication plan offers structure and, thus, efficiency. Ultimately, it is a planning document. (Please note that the goal is always to ensure the customer’s needs are met; this can only happen when the company proceeds in a structured, well-planned fashion.) An effective communication plan has the following attributes: * Objectives * Stakeholder identification * Communication strategy Objectives are set forth in a scope statement. A scope statement is a sentence or series of sentences that define the parameters of the communication plan, that is, what the plan will manage, and what is out of its purview. Setting these boundaries is necessary in order to promote efficiency and structure. The objective of the State Farm Canadian call-center communication plan is to keep all shareholders updated on the drive to normative call-center functioning for the Canadian location. Stakeholder identification is also important, since doing so identifies the key individuals who will benefit from the communication plan. This is also  referred to as a stakeholder analysis. The reason to know the beneficiaries of the plan is so the plan can be crafted to meet their needs. State Farm’s communication plan for a natural-disaster event identifies external customers, shareholders, management, and even line-level employees as stakeholders. Each of these entities will gain a benefit from the successful execution of the plan. Communication strategy sets forth the details of how communication is to occur. For example, when the network fails due to damage from a natural disaster, the communication plan will explicitly designate the entities responsible for communicating and receiving the communication of this event. The communication strategy can be reduced to several components. First, a routine communication strategy must be set. This strategy identifies quotidian communication behaviors, for example, meetings that are held, issues that are identified, and the communication of status updates. Second, financial communication should be set. This aspect is important to internal stakeholders, since recovery from a natural disaster places a burden on limited company finances and, as a result, on their ability to earn profit. Questions that this portion of the communication plan addresses are 1. Is the cost of transferring calls to different American call centers aligned with expectations? 2. What are the current costs for repairing the Canadian call center? 3. What is the downtime cost for every day that the Canadian call center cannot take a call? This is not an all-inclusive list of queries. Third, this communication plan should provide updates on risks and issues that are identified during recovery from the natural disaster. This portion of the communication plan is dependent on prior risk registers and reports that were generated. When additional risks are identified or if additional  issues are noted, this portion of the plan identifies the entity that should be notified and updated. Two risks associated are delays in re-building permits and follow-up natural disasters that thwart rebuilding progress. Post-Incident Continuity The goal of this BCP is to ensure that the call center returns to the level of function prior to the natural disaster. To ensure continuity of the business after the natural disaster, the following must take place: 1. Collaboration with external entities to resolve any communication-line issues 2. Restoration of any communication lines managed by the call center 3. Possible repurchasing of office equipment, inclusive of computers 4. Reinstatement of laid-off employees 5. Rehousing of company data onsite 6. Rehousing of customer data onsite 7. Rehousing of financial data onsite 8. Redirection of routed calls back to the Canadian call center Depending on the severity level of the natural disaster, adjustments will have to be made to the Canadian call center’s service-level agreements. The average-speed-of-answer requirement is 95 percent, that is, 95 percent of all incoming calls must be answered within 30 seconds. This level would have to be upwardly adjusted to allot time for call-center homeostasis. Also, depending on the call center’s downtime, there may be an extenuating time period in which there are no statistics to generate. Such a scenario would have an overall negative influence on the achievement of yearly service-level agreements. It may also be conceivable to start to reroute calls back to the Canadian call center in a gradated fashion. For example, if the call center returns to mostly normal functioning in August, it may be helpful to route only 20 percent of normally handled calls back. Doing so allows the target call center to adjust sufficiently to avoid short-circuiting processes designed  for restoration that are already underway. With each successive month, rerouting can increase by 20 percent. Within five months, the call center would handle all the calls it originally handled, and it would do so within the service-level agreement. State Farm previously developed a risk register and attendant risk report to account for such natural disasters. After normative functions have been restored, call-center management, along with any other entities involved in the execution of the restoration project, should hold a lessons-learned session. The purpose of this session is to determine which executions of the restoration project, based on the risks identified before the natural disaster, were successful and which were areas of opportunities. This is a continuous-improvement aim. Adjustments may have to be made to various aspect of the restoration project to better respond to future natural disasters affecting the Canadian call center.

Teacher Leadership as a Catalyst for Change

Teacher Leadership as a Catalyst for Change Ankrum, R. J. (2016). Utilizing Teacher Leadership as a Catalyst for Change in Schools. Journal  of Educational Issues, 2(1), 151-165. doi:10.5296/jei.v2i1.9154 School leaders are continually attempting to discover alternative approaches to use and investigate teacher leadership potential in their schools. Teacher leaders will go well beyond their general obligations as an educator, and are the kind of teachers that fall under the theme of conceivably taking on added duties that will enhance the school community. This study takes the opportunity to look at approaches to use connections between teacher leaders and school leaders, keeping in mind that the end goal is to get the most output from the school staff. By injecting shared administration in the school group, duty and responsibility turns into a common belief that can be used as a catalyst for change throughout the school community. (Ankrum, 2016) The researcher of this study expected the following to come from their research: a) The results to conclude teacher leaders play an important role in changing the climate of a school; b) Teacher leader professional development is impactful to the teaching staff; c) Teacher leaders provide valuable guidance and support to the teaching staff; d) Teacher leaders increase the level of rigor provided by the teaching staff; and e) Teacher leader led professional development does in fact improve instruction in schools. (Ankrum, 2016) The research done for this study was completed as a Google Forms survey, which provides users with data collection, along with an analysis of the data collected. The survey was comprised of five questions fixated on teacher leadership, its role in culture change, enhancing professional development, and establishing professional learning groups that enhance educational practice. (Ankrum, 2016) When it came to the outcomes and findings of this particular study, the researcher concluded that teacher leaders are catalysts for change in schools. This research digs into exactly how significant teacher leaders are to the process of progress and change in school. The article explained that teacher leaders frequently go unacknowledged in light of the fact that they dont have titles, but titles do not make their impact any less important. Question number one examined the role that teacher leaders play in enacting change in the culture of schools. 90% of participants profoundly concurred that teacher leaders assume an instrumental part in changing the culture and way of life at a school. Question number two analyzed the effect of teacher driven professional development and its impact. 75.5% of participants profoundly concurred that teacher leader professional development is important to the educating staff. Question number three measured whether or not teacher leaders have direction and support to whatever is left to the educating staff. 93% of participants profoundly concurred that teacher leaders give direction and support to whatever remains of the educating staff. Question number four reviewed whether of not teacher leaders increase the level of thoroughness in classrooms.   70% of participants profoundly concurred that teacher leaders increase the thoroughness in classrooms. Question number five looked at whether or not educator driven peer observations were important. 90% of participants highly concurred that teacher leader driven peer observations were impactful to the educating staff. (Ankrum, 2016) Much like the teachers who were surveyed for the study in this article, I believe that teachers have the ability to play an instrumental role in changing the culture of a school. I also believe that teacher led professional development can greatly impact a school and can be very meaningful to the teaching staff, as I have been asked to lead a professional development session this school year, and have really enjoyed my teacher colleagues lead professional development session this school year as well. I agree with the survey participants that teacher leaders not only provide guidance and support to the rest of the teaching staff, but increase the rigor in classrooms as well. I also believe that teacher leader led peer observations can be tremendously beneficial to teaching staffs. In my current teaching situation, there are actually only three classrooms in our entire school, so weve essentially all taken on teacher leader positions, each focusing on our own strengths to share with th e other teachers in our school. This article left me curious as to how this study would turn out if it were to be done nationwide, instead of the few teachers selected by the researcher for this study.

Leadership In The Small Business

Leadership In The Small Business Leadership is one of the important factors for the survival and success of entrepreneurial ventures. During the second half of the 20th century, there were a lot of literatures about leadership emanating from the United States. However, these researches mainly focused on the leadership in large companies and organizations. How relevant is the picture for small and medium business? Does the experience or lessons of large companies and organizations on management adapt to the small and medium business? These questions have attracted more attentions due to the development of the small and medium business. The definition of the small business varies in different countries and even in different industries. But the small business holds an important position for the development of domestic economy and even the global economy. Therefore, it is essential for scholars on management to study the leadership in the small business. The purpose of this essay is to analyze the importance of leadership in the small business in order to provide some suggestions for the small business on leadership. There are six parts in this essay. The first part is a brief introduction consisting of the writing significance, the writing purpose and the structure of this essay. The second part of this essay will introduce the leadership and its functions. The essay will introduce the small business and its features in the third part. The main part of this essay is the fourth part, where the importance of leadership in the small business will be analyzed, including the leadership in small business and the significance of leadership in the small business. And the fifth part will provide some recommendations to leaders in small business for bringing a success to their own companies in the future. And a conclusion will be made in the end. 2. Leadership and Its Functions This essay will represent some relevant knowledge about leadership and its function in this part. 2.1 The definition of Leadership Leadership is one of the most important factors for the development of each company and organization. Lots of researchers on entrepreneurship use the terms management and leadership interchangeably. However, the leaders and managers are not necessarily the same (Johnson, 2013). And according to Johnson (2013), the main distinction between leaders and managers are that the leaders have some followers they can inspire to action, but the managers have some resources that they can allocate. Therefore, the leadership can be regarded as a process by which the leaders take some measures to influence the thoughts, attitudes and behaviors of others (Mills, 2005). 2.2 The Types of leadership style Different types of leadership styles exist in the work environments. And each leadership style has the advantages and disadvantages. And the culture and goals of an organization are the two important factors to determine which leadership style is appropriate for the company or organization best (Johnson, 2013). In the following, this essay will introduce the leadership styles in a vague and general way. The leadership styles include the laissez-faire leadership style, the autocratic leadership style, the participative leadership style, the transactional leadership style, the transformational leadership style, etc (Goleman, 2000). The laissez-faire leaders often allow their employees to work by themselves. And sometimes the managers do not have enough control over their work and their people (Taleghani, Salmani and Taatian, 2010). The laissez-faire leaders will give complete freedom to their employees to do the work. However, in the autocratic leadership style, the leaders have complete power over their employees and the employees have few opportunities to make suggestions (Travis, 2013). In the transactional leadership, the employees will follow their leaders when their leaders distribute tasks to them, and therefore, the transactional leadership focuses on the short-term tasks (Taleghani, Salmani and Taatian, 2010). Whats more, a transformational leader pays more attention to the employees higher needs, such as fulfillment or justice (Travis, 2013). 2.3 The functions Significance of leadership Since leadership plays an important role on the success of companies and organizations, the functions cannot be belittled. The leadership functions are related with the functions of leaders management. The leaders have to set the goals for companies, motivate and inspire their subordinates, make plans for companies for more profits, and this essay will analyze the functions of leadership from these perspectives. 2.3.1 To develop company culture One of the functions of leadership is to create and develop company culture. The employees may perform as a team or perform as individuals. If the companys tasks need cooperation between employees, the leaders should implement some measures and adopt relevant policies to make employees to cooperate with each other, under which circumstance, the cooperation will become one key aspect of company culture. 2.3.2 To ensure the effectiveness of group-effort By management, the leaders should delegate the authority to take measures to make employees to contribute the maximum energy and time to jobs and the achievement of objectives of the companies (HubPages, 2013). Meanwhile, by management, the leaders can ensure the availability of resources and make sure that the resources can be used to the largest extent. 2.3.3 To make plans for the companies The leaders and employees need to aware of the schedule and their own responsibilities to complete the achievement, and then the leaders make plans for the company to ensure that the company can gain more achievement. 3. Small Business and Its features This essay has introduced the definition and functions of leadership in the second part. Simultaneously, the previous studies on leadership mainly focus on the large enterprises. Therefore, it is very important for researchers to analyze the leadership in the small business. Before this, this essay will mainly introduce the small business and its features in a vague and general way. 3.1 The definition of small business In accordance with the United States Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, more than 99.5% of all U.S. firms are small business (Cooper, 2013). Although the definition varies from industry to industry and is different in different countries, the small business refers to that the firms are with less than 500 employees in general issued by the United States Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy (Cooper, 2013). In Australia, the small businesses always refer to the companies with less than 100 employees (Gray, Densten Sarros, 2003). 3.2 The history of small business It is reasonable to gain the conclusion that the small business holds an important position for the development of gross economy from the statistics issued by the United States Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy. And since the definition of small business varies from country to country, and therefore, the history of small business is also different in different countries. For example, the origin of small business can date back to the 17th century in the USA (U.S. Department of State, 2013). And in China, the origin of small business can date back to the 14th-15th century. In one word, the small business has a long history. 3.3 What are the features of small business? In order to analyze the importance of leadership in the business small business, the researchers should make acquaintance with the features of small business. Firstly, generally, the business owners always are the leaders of the companies or organizations (Vitez, 2013). The business owners have to make plans and set goals for the companies and organizations (Vitez, 2013). Secondly, due to its size and investment capitals, the small business always have limited resources and low-end technology, so it is difficult for the small business to compete with large enterprises and even the medium business. According to Vitez (2013), the operational management is one the most important parts for the small business management and due to the size, the small businesses are easier to operate. 3.4 The current issues on management faced by small business Small businesses always are confronted with lots of problems related to their size and limited investment technology. This essay will mainly analyze the current issues on management faced by small businesses. Firstly, because the small business owners must be the leaders of companies or organizations, the business owners have to pay more attention to the needs of their company on talents, the establishments of companies goals and other works, and due to the limitation of energy, the management of small businesses may be into chaos. Secondly, because of the limited capitals, it is difficult for small business to adopt the newest technology, so they may adopt lower-end management technology. The above-mentioned contents also can illustrate the necessity to update the leadership in the small businesses. 4. The Importance of Leadership in the Small Business This essay has introduced the functions of leadership and the features and the current management issues of small business. In this part, this essay will analyze the importance of leadership in the small business. And at first, this essay will represent the leadership in the small business, where the features of leadership in the small businesses compared with big and medium size enterprises. 4.1 Leadership in Small Business Due to its size of small business, the owners of the small business must be the leaders of the companies or organizations and the small business is easier to operate. There are some distinctive features of the leadership in small business. Firstly, the owners of the small business always provide the mission, values and goals for the small business (Vitez, 2013). And the owners should run the company and lead other employees to achieve the goals of company. Therefore, the leadership in small business demands the owners of small business to work through employees, not around them (Vitez, 2013). Secondly, the owners of small business also should attach importance on the human resource needs of their own companies or organizations. The recruitment of employees holds a key position for the development and expansion of every company and organization. Therefore, the leadership in the small business also requires the owners of the small business to lead the employees. Different from the human resource management, the owner of the small business should directly understand the current job market and the salary standard for different job positions (Dalglish, 2003). Meanwhile, the owner also should train new employees directly (Dalglish, 2003). Thirdly, the owners of the small business often are the leaders, and therefore, there are few other leaders in the small business. As a result, unlike the leaders in the large companies or organizations, the leaders in the small business should make decisions on the development and expansion on their own (Dalglish, 2003). Whats more, unlike th e large companies or organizations, the owners of the small business should pay attention to the cash flow, paying bills, collecting money from customers. Simultaneously, the owners of the small business should make decision in accordance with the accounting information. All in all, the owners of the small business are also the leaders in the small business. Unlike the leaders of the large companies and organizations, the leaders in the small business should make themselves acquaintance with business knowledge in various fields. 4.2 Significance of leadership in the Small Business It is reasonable to gain the conclusion that the leadership in the small business is very important and significant from the analysis in the prior parts. In this part, this essay will mainly analyze the significance of leadership in the small business from some perspectives. 4.2.1 To Help the Small Business to Win the Competition in the Market When researchers analyze the development and survival of the small business, they often attach importance on the entrepreneurial activity as a strategy to offset economic deterioration brought about by globalization. Under the circumstance of globalization, the small businesses are in an increasingly competitive market (Bolden and Terry, 2000). For example, in the study made by Centre for Leadership Studies, all the interviewed small businesses held the opinion that when they operate in the global market, they must gain competitive threats in every direction (2000). However, good leadership can help the small business to win the competition in the market because they the good leadership can make appropriate strategies to develop and attract more talents to work for them. On the contrary, if the leaders in the small businesses make inappropriate or wrong strategies to develop their business, they may fail the competition in the market and even go bankruptcy (Ingram, 2013). For example , the Apple Inc was a small business, and even just a workshop at the beginning and now has become a well-known high-tech company due to the management of Jobs Stevens. In one word, the leadership can enhance the small businesses to win the competition in the market. 4.2.2 To Manage Changes Because continuous organizational change is essential to guarantee the development and survival of the small businesses (Bolden and Terry, 2000), if there is no change happening to the small businesses, they may go backwards. Simultaneously, the organizational culture of change can be considered as one of the most important factors to the development and survival of the small businesses (Abbas and Asghar, 2010). As a result, the main task for the leaders is to develop an organizational culture of change within the organization. Whats more, if the leaders do not have the ability to develop the culture of change within the organizations and companies, the small businesses cannot adapt to the changeable environment. Due to the development of the globalization, there are more changes happening to the market for the small businesses, for example, the introduction of technologies, the competition from the international companies and the increase of comprehensive talents, etc. Therefore, th e leadership is very important for the small businesses to manage changes within the organizations and outside the organizations. 4.2.3 To Overcome the Current Restriction, Barriers and Weaknesses According to the study made by the Centre for Leadership Studies (2000), the increasing level of legislation and regulation are the main barriers to growth and competitiveness by the leaders in the small businesses, especially the leaders in the manufacturing industry (p.14). Due to the increase of the small businesses in the market, the governments issued some policies and regulations to specify the development of the small businesses, which can be regarded as one of the main current restrictions. Meanwhile, due to its size and scale, there are some their own defects for the small businesses. For example, the location of the small businesses may be more distant from the markets compared to the large companies or organizations, and the small businesses cannot attract more talents like the large enterprises because the small businesses may have better reputations. Therefore, the leaders in the small businesses should take some measures to overcome the current restrictions, barriers an d weaknesses. 4.2.4 To Deal with the Potential Threats and Challenges There is a wide agreement that the small businesses are confronted with some potential threats and challenges, such as that it is difficult for the small businesses to acquire more advanced technologies and more qualified staffs to work for them (Chen, 2006). Meanwhile, because the small businesses may not have better reputations and cannot provide higher salaries to the employees, the small businesses can not retain existing employees (Bolden and Terry, 2000). Meanwhile, the financial factor is also one of the main threats and challenges for the small businesses due to the shortage of cash flow and the threats of bad debtors (Gartenstein, 2013). Whats more, due to the limitation of capitals and staffs, the small businesses may have no money and energy to spend on innovation, which may cause them to fail the competition in the market. As a result, one of the main tasks for the leaders in the small businesses is to deal with the potential threats and challenges. Thus, the good entrepreneurial activities can help the small businesses to transfer the potential challenges as the strengths for the small businesses. 4.2.5 To Strengthen Company Advantages Although there are some limitations and challenges of the small businesses, the small businesses also have some advantages, such as that the small businesses are easier to operate (Vitez, 2013). Moreover, the owners of the small businesses attach importance on the relationships between customers and make every effort to understand the supply and demands in the market. The other perceived strengths of the small businesses include that the small businesses is flexible to response the change in the market and have the ability to make their own decisions. Whats more, the staffs in the small businesses can interact with the senior directors and managers directly (Bolden and Terry, 2000). Simultaneously, all the employees in the small businesses know one another, which makes it easier to cooperate with each other. All of the above-mentioned contents are the advantages of the small businesses, and therefore, the good entrepreneurial activities can strengthen the company advantages. 4.2.6 To make correct development strategies and the ways forward Nearly all the companies and organizations should make development strategies and plans aiming at company growth. And most of the companies always achieve the growth of companies through building the company and increasing the profitability (Williams, 2013). As a result, the companies should implement some measures to build the company and increase the profitability. Under this circumstance, the leaders in the small businesses should make correct development strategies and the ways forward. However, some small companies do not have any correct development strategies. For example, in the study made by the Centre for Leadership Studies (2000), among the 12 interviewed companies, the leaders in the company 9 stated that this company did not have a documented strategy although they would like to become the most profitable company in the UK. Therefore, if the company wants to grow, it should maintain correct development strategies. On the contrary, the company 2 took a conscious decision on the commercial side and then gained more markets in the competition from other small businesses (Bolden and Terry, 2000). This essay has introduced that there are some challenges faced by the small businesses in the part 4.2.4. Some small businesses make strategies to deal with the challenges, such as that a number of companies make every effort to keep up-to-date technology (Taleghani, Salmani and Taatian, 2010). For example, the famous high-tech company in the USA, Apple Inc, was a small company at the beginning and now its products have been used all of the world due to the correct development strategies made by Jobs Stevens. Therefore, the leadership can enhance the small business to own correct development strategies and ways forward. 4.2.7 To make appropriate HRM policies to attract more talents Almost all the companies considered that the staff as one of the most important resource although the small business generally employ less than a hundred people (BusinessBlogs, 2010). The number of employees in the small businesses is not insignificant but the appropriate human resources management policies and activities can help in streamlining the function of human resource of the small businesses (BusinessBlogs, 2010). Human resource can be the vital assets of each company. Therefore, human resource management can benefit every small business. Generally speaking, a company in the small business mainly consists of less than 1000 employees, and the operation of the small business should obey the rules and regulations established by the authorities. The appropriate human resource management policies may grant equal rights to employees (Buzzle, 2013). Simultaneously, the appropriate human resource management policies also can help in recruitment and motivation of best talents in the industry (Buzzle, 2013). Whats more, the appropriate human resource management policies can act as a guide for the small businesses to establish professional relationships with employees (Buzzle, 2013). On the contrary, the inappropriate human resource management policies may make employees disappointed. For example, a Chinese small company, Ganzhou JB Magneto-Electricity Limited Liability Company has attached importance on the establishment of human resource management policies, for example, the leaders of this company adopts the differentiation salary incentive mechanism to attract more talents (Yang, 2008). Therefore, the leadership is very important because the leaders can make appropriate HRM policies to attract more talents and employees. 5. Recommendations to leaders in the Small Business The prior part of this essay has introduced the significance of the leadership in the small businesses, and therefore it is essential for the leaders to improve the management strategies. Under this circumstance, in this part, this essay will provide some recommendations to leaders in the small businesses. 5.1 To Communicate with Employees The leaders in the small businesses should communicate with employees in order to implement leadership. The leaders should communicate exactly what they are doing and what they will do in the future (Wictor, 2012). The leaders can take email and written announcement to notice the employees. Meanwhile, the leaders in the small business can prepare and hold some meetings to make clear agenda items and clear next steps to employees. For example, the Zappos Company always provides open letters to staffs. Whats more, the leaders should explain to staff about companys tasks and business and the people should not be managed without notice. 5.2 To Believe in the Employees However, before communicating with employees, the leaders in the small businesses should believe in the employees because the employees in the small business should be noticed about the goals of companies. Whats more, if the leaders believe in the employees, the employees will have the opinions that they are serving for themselves. If the leaders believe in the employees, the employees will actively understand and fulfill the specific roles of their own (Smith, 2013). 5.3 To Promote Innovation During the current society, the technology is very important for the development and survival of the small businesses, and therefore, the leaders in the small businesses should promote innovation. Firstly, the leaders in the small businesses should hire people smarter than themselves (Smith, 2013). Secondly, the leaders should spend more time, energy and money promoting innovation. For example, the leaders can learn about the advanced technologies from large enterprises and even go aboard to introduce higher technologies into their own companies and organizations. 5.4 To Try to Predict the Obstacles Nowadays, due to the development of the small businesses and the appearance of more small businesses, some authorities have issued some regulations and laws to slow the development of the small businesses. Meanwhile, the small businesses have some limitations and deficiencies, and therefore, the small businesses are confronted with some challenges and threats. Under this circumstance, the leaders should try to predict the obstacles and then to deal with these threats and challenges. 5.5 To Make Plans The leaders should make plans through taking time for a regular evaluation and analyzing the general and exact situation inside and outside the small businesses. The leaders should be good in crises so that they should not sit around to let crises develop (Dowell, 2013). The leaders should involve identifying potential problems and solving them before the crises develop further and deep (McQuerrey, 2013). Meanwhile, the good leaders should analyze the plans and adapt the plans to new circumstances and opportunities (Dowell, 2013). 6. Conclusion The small businesses have different definitions in different countries and industries but in general, the small businesses have less than 500 employees in the USA. The small business has a long history and plays an important role in the development of domestic and international economy. However, the small business has some deficiencies and due to its size and investment capitals, the small business always have limited resources and low-end technology, so it is difficult for the small business to compete with large enterprises and even the medium business. And leadership is one of the most important factors in the survival and success of entrepreneurial ventures. Thus, if the small business wants to achieve development, the leaders should pay more attention to the establish leadership and take more and better entrepreneurial activities because the leadership can enhance the small companies and organizations to win the competition in the market, to overcome the deficiencies, to strengthen the advantages and even help small businesses to make correct strategies. In conclusion, the leaders in the small business should believe in the employees and communicate with them in order to establish leadership in the small businesses.

Fate, Traits, And Choices in Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet :: William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare, is a story of two young lovers. These two hearts, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet belong to feuding families. The family feud causes them to keep their love a secret and therefore only Romeo, Juliet, Benvolio, the Nurse and Friar Lawrence know of their love. Romeo and Juliet are able to look past the feud and let themselves fall in mad love with the other. They let themselves do almost anything for the other and at times it seems like too much to do, even for the one they love. Although fate and character traits play a key role in the play, ultimately Rome and Juliet’s personal choices lead to their downfall.Fate originates all of the conflicts in Romeo and Juliet, from when they met until they die. Romeo is in love with Rosaline at the very beginning of the story and has just found out that she has taken the vow of chastity. Meanwhile Lord Capulet has given County Paris Juliet’s hand in marriage if he can wait until she is sixteen. The Capulets have a party so that Juliet and the Count can meet and he can then woo her. When Romeo and Juliet first meet they are at the Capulet party, which Romeo sneaks into. They fall in love at first sight without realizing that they are enemies. Fate brings them together and it is fate that they are enemies. Thought the play, these lovers go through many obstacles that range from arranging a wedding and finding a time to meet to Juliet trying to get out of marrying Paris. The entire time fate is tossing them around. Romeo realizes this after he kills Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin, in a brawl. At first, Romeo does not want to fight because Romeo and Juliet are already married at this time and he knows that they are cousins. Tybalt asks for a brawl from Romeo but Mercutio fights instead. Mercutio gets killed by Tybalt and that is what makes Romeo mad and fight Tybalt. At the end of the fight when Romeo kills Tybalt and then realizes what he has done he yells out, â€Å"O, I am Fortune’s fool!† (Shakespeare.3.1.143). And he and Juliet both are little toys for fate. But, they never give up on their love.Romeo and Juliet’s traits cause them to go along with their fate and contributes to their downfall.

Ecobus Marketing Coursework - Nokia - The Wireless Giant Essays

Ecobus Marketing Coursework - Nokia - The Wireless Giant Ecobus Marketing Coursework "Nokia - The Wireless Giant" Introduction & Purpose For this coursework, I have decided to study the wireless giant, Nokia. Nokia is, unarguably, the leader in the world of mobile communications. The brand boasts a significant number of users from around the world, ranging from Europe to the Americas, and from Africa to the Asia Pacific. Nokia's success has been aided by its experience, innovation and its user-friendliness and thus, has become the leading supplier of mobile phones and other related products around the globe. The aim of this project is to identify how Nokia has approached its market and what has enabled the company to become a world leader in the world of wireless communications. This will include a study of the customer behaviour towards the brand and how Nokia has managed to secure a large share of the market, leaving its competitors far behind. Methodology In order to fill my purpose, I will collect both primary as well as secondary data from the appropriate sources. To collect the primary data, I will hand out questionnaires to a sample group of people varying in age and nationality. This is necessary to get a wider perspective of the possible customers of Nokia. Two samples of the questionnaire will be presented in the appendix. I will also carry out an interview with one of the staff of a Nokia Retail Outlet to further inquire about their aims and objectives in Hong Kong. The appropriate information from the questionnaires will be converted into graphs and then summarised. However, my study of Nokia will be based in Hong Kong and may contain a Hong Kong Perspective of the brand In addition to these data, I will create a S.W.O.T (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis of the company and also analyse Nokia's marketing mix. This will give a good overview of the company's marketing strategy. To add to the analysis, I will include a Boston Matrix of the brand, which will help determine the position of the company in the market. Following this, I will gather all the information to form a conclusion, which will include my own recommendations. A Brief Introduction to Nokia Nokia started in the communications service in 1865 establishing itself in the newspaper business, the original medi... ... a successful wireless giant aided by its strong marketing strategy. Its innovative products, appropriate placement, top notch promotion and suitable pricing has allowed it to hold the better share of the mobile communications market. In a world that is fast becoming reliant on technology, Nokia, with the help of its state of the arc technology, will create a new revolution in the industry. Locally, the telecommunication market is a thriving one and offers endless opportunities to the company. However, continuous market research and development needs to be done to keep Nokia where it is today. To eliminate any possible threats, Nokia can continue to develop new products and acquire a patent which will eliminate any chances of 'me-too' products from other companies. Acquisitions are also an option as a merge will make Nokia stronger as well as help remove competition. Organic growth can also help them guide towards more turnovers over a period of time. Nokia is, clearly, the hot choice of the mobile customers at present. By the looks of it, it is only a matter of time before its competitors are hunted down to extinction, at least in the field of mobile phones.

Being A Mortician Essay -- essays research papers

Being a Mortician The word mortician brings what images to mind? The career of a mortician is surprisingly different than it is portraied in movies and books. Being a mortician is a very rewarding job both personal as well as psychological to those with the temperament, training and discipline required to do the job properly. In this paper I'll be reporting the requirements to become a mortician, also called funeral director or undertaker, the duties the job requires of you, and the outlook of this career in the future of the United States. To become a funeral director in the United States today isn't an easy task. You need to be twenty-one, a high school graduate with some undergraduate college work, as well as at least one year of professional training in mortuary science, and completion of an apprenticeship. "Upon completing a state board licensing exam, new funeral directors are qualified to join the staff of a funeral home. In many states successful completion of a national examination given by the National Conference of Examining boards will qualify you for licensure"(IRN 10). In different states the undergraduate college credit varies considerably, one-third of the states require one year; another third wants two years; and the other third requires three years of credit(IRN 9). A concentration of courses is also required in some of the states. You may need to take 15 credits in natural science, 13 in social sciences, 13 in business, 14 in chemistry(IRN 10). In addition to your college work, you will need at least 50 credit hours of professional work in mortuary science. "There are about 40 schools of mortuary science officially recognized by the U.S. Department of Education today"(Shipley 220). The curriculum generally consists of courses in: "Embalming, Restorative Art, Chemistry, Microbiology, Pathology, Anatomy, Small Business Management, Funeral Home management, Merchandising, Accounting, Funeral Home Law, Computers, History and sociology of Funeral Service, Psychology of Grief, Grief Counseling, oral and Written Communication, Funeral Service Law, Business Law, and Ethics"(IRN 11). Along with educational requirements you need to look at the personal requirements it takes to be a funeral director. You have to be on call 24-hours a day 7 days a week, deat... ... no background in the profession(CGP 3). The field is highly secure and recession proof. Chances are that if you are temperamentally matched to the requirements of the work and like your job, you will have few worries about security. Most funeral directors stay with their employers for many years and there is relatively little turnover in the field(IRN 12). The earnings as a funeral director greatly depends on the area of the country in which you are employed, the size of the funeral home at which you work and the number of cases handled. Also, your salary will depend upon whether your community in unionized or not(generally union contracts call for higher salaries and more generous benefits)(IRN 20). Average salaries, including bonuses, for owner-managers are about $60,000 annually. Midlevel managers averaged $40,000. Embalmers earn average salaries of $30,000 and apprentices average $20,000(IRN 21). In conclusion, the career as a mortician is very emotionally and physically challenging, but is a very secure future. Chances are if you set out to be a mortician and make it through the schooling you will find a secure job someplace and be set for life.

Education Is Very Important Essay

It helps us gain knowledge, information and interpret things correctly. Education teaches us how to lead our lives by mingling in the society and turning out to be good citizens. It makes us capable of interpreting rightly the things perceived. Education teaches us right behavior and makes us civilized people. It forms as a support system to excel in life, to continuously learn and build confidence, to reason everything till every question meets its answer. The conversion of information to knowledge is possible because of education and we also gain intelligence. Higher education influences the economic development of a nation as per the economists. A person is always judged by good manners he/she has. Education is important as it teaches us to differentiate between good and bad manners and choose the right behavior that cultivates good manners. Good manners are important for kids to develop at a very young age. Kids must learn to be polite, learn telephone etiquette, socialize with other kids and develop values. All this can be taught at home as well as school. Teaching your children good manners creates a foundation for them that will follow them through life. Education is important because it equips us with all that is needed to make our dreams come true. When we opt for higher education or masters, we need to choose the specialization field of our interest and talents. Most leading courses allow you to study all areas for the first year and to choose a specialization in your second year when you have more exposure and knowledge about these fields. The technical and analytical skills can be well explored in the area of one’s interest.

Chinese Mythology Essay

Mythology is a collection of myths or the study of ancient traditional stories of gods or heroes, giving an explanation to an unexplained event. For Plato, the fist known user of the term, muthologia meant know more than the telling of stories (Kirk 8). Mythology is an important aspect to the world, today. Through the study of myths help us develop an idea of what the cultures were like. It includes hints that exhibit how they lived their lives. Myth is its serious purpose and its importance to the culture (Lansford 1). Every culture has its own myth that explains about the nature of that particular culture. The Chinese culture has been around for many centuries, its myths have accumulated into varies stories of gods and their culture. China is the world’s oldest continuous civilization (Cotterel 9). Evidence show the earliest Chinese civilization to be found around 1650 B. C. The beginnings of Chinese mythology, started around the Wei and Jin Dynasties. Influenced by alchemist ideas, Taoist and Buddhist superstitions, various writers created storied about their enigmatic surroundings. The beginning of the Chinese civilization is based on mythology. One of the creation myths is about the beginning of the world. In it, the world began as an egg and cracking open, the top of the shell grew to be the sky, the lower shell became the Earth, and in the middle stepped a man named P’an-gu. Mythology of the ancient Chinese is apparent through art, music and literature. Since, there is no explanation of how the Chinese civilization began; mythology has been a way of explanation to the Chinese culture and other cultures around the world, today. Chinese mythology, as with many other cultures, has many gods and goddesses that are in charge of various things. In the Ancient Chinese culture, there are gods and goddesses for every important aspect of the people’s life, even things as unlikely as the stove god and the door god. Other deities that were important to the Chinese people were the gods of the elements such as Chu Jung, the fire god, Lei Kun, the thunder god, the wind god, and the lightning goddess. Most of the element gods devoted themselves to punishing criminals and keeping evil spirits away. There were also important gods in charge of fields such as Kuan Ti, the god of war, Kuan Yin, the goddess of compassion, T’Shai-shen, the god of wealth and Tsao hsang, god of the hearth. Although there gods were very important to the Chinese people, one of the most important gods was Nu wa, the mother goddess. She was a compassionate goddess who created mankind and bestowed love and creation to them. She helped her people when they were in need, like when she created rice from her own milk and blood in order to feed her people. She was very humble and a modest goddess, not wanting credit for her benevolence. The gods and goddesses of Chinese mythology were basically deities that symbolized the good and just qualities that people should imitate in their everyday life. The basis of Chinese life was a belief in harmony and balance (Williams 20). The Chinese believed in harmony with nature, and sometimes honored the spirits with gifts, feasts, and rituals. The Chinese believed the souls of the dead returned (Williams 20), a concept of Buddhism. The family held Chinese society together (Williams 20). In China, many generations of families lived together, even in the same house, and the children were taught to respect and obey their elders (Williams 20). As in all cultures, men were ? superior’ to women in China. Parents believed they would become gods after they died, if they had a son (Williams 21). This belief was taken fiercely to the point that the parents would kill a newborn female. A custom that the upper-class women followed was of foot binding, which was believed to make the foot appear tiny, since the culture considered small feet feminine and delicate. The most important festival in China was the Chinese New Year, it is held in the spring of each year. During this festival, offerings were given to the sprits. In China, the color white is considered the mourning color and the children showed respect for dead parents by fasting and wearing thick clothes (Williams 21). Most beliefs and customs of the Chinese culture appear from the religions of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. The Chinese culture has a long history of beliefs and customs, which are used by the generations before and now. It is highly unlikely that the generations to come would not be following the same beliefs and customs of the ancient Chinese. The origin of religion goes back to prehistoric times when the earliest people of China sought answers to the same basic questions that have baffled primitive men over the world: what is the unseen force that brings darkness and light, winter and summer, drought and rain, life and death; what must men do to appease this force? (Schafer 57) Ancient China has three main religions Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. Confucius was concerned mostly with laws made by people, and whether people were naturally good or naturally evil. In contrast, the followers of Lao-tzu believed people were guided by universal laws, not human ones. This was the basis of Taoism (Williams 18). Taoists tried to live a life of simplicity and meditation close to nature. Taoism was mystical and influenced by ancient Chinese folk religion. Its followers used magic as well as prayer and diet to seek eternal youth (Williams 19). Taoists were peaceful people who generally lived peaceful lives. Buddhists follow the teachings of Buddha (born 563 B. C. ), a north Indian prince who devoted his life to a search for personal peace, or enlightenment. The name Buddha means â€Å"enlightened one†. He believed that by giving up worldly desires, such as for fine food and clothes, a blissful state called nirvana could be achieved. In nirvana there was freedom from sorrows of the world. Indian belief as that time held that people were reborn many times. Persons who had lived badly in former lives might be born in an animal or insect form. Buddha said that by reaching nirvana, this endless cycle of rebirth could be broken (Cotterell 27). Buddhists follow an â€Å"eight-fold path,† this is like a code by which they live. Confucianism came in earlier than Taoism and Chinese Buddhism. The so-called Confucian classics were, in fact, complied long after the death of Confucius by disciples of his disciples, and were edited and interpreted in Han times by government scribes; but they purport to reflect the views of the great sage of antiquity on history, religious rites, morals, and standards of behavior. The state officers of Han times accepted these interpretations and associated them with the standardized pagan nature worship of state cult as a part of the acceptable way of life for a Han gentleman. We in the west sometimes call this way of life, which includes both reverence for the ? ancient’ books and the ? ancient’ gods, ? Confucianism’ (Schafer 60-61). Confucianism flourished in China as so did the other religions. The Chinese were inquisitive people, always inventing and always wondering how things worked. It is only logical for them to generate religions that explain how life is and how it will be in the afterlife. In Chinese mythology, myths and legends deal with aspects of human nature, human relations and social life (Owens). Chinese myths use human traits, like emotion, to convey lessons. The myth on the creation of man clearly depicts the basics of a Chinese myth. After P’an-gu, creator of the world, died and his body transformed into different elements of the Earth, Nu wa, the dragon goddess, came down from heavens and admired P’an-gu’s creation. In order to honor P’an-gu’s sacrifice to the Earth, Nu wa decided to create humans. She started to make them out of yellow clay, but since it took much of her strength, she dipped a rope into the mud and when she took it out, the drips became people. Her clay and mud people were not alive, so her heart took pity and she breathed her divine breath into them. She also whispered thoughts of love and creation into their ears and told them to reproduce. The people made of yellow clay became the rich and the people Nu wa made of mud became the poor. This myth explains many aspects of human life. It explains how the social classes came to be and also human emotions. Nu wa shows human emotions like honor, when she was determined to let P’an-gu’s death not be in vain; in compassion, she breathed her divine breath into each and every human. This myth represents human relations because Nu wa put ideas of love and procreation into the human race’s mind. These Chinese myths explain how the good and bad came to be and how a person should live a happy a fulfilling life. Mythology is not a subject that should be ignored. It is an important subject that should be learned and understood by all cultures so that as a world, we can come to understand each other better. The first step in hatred is fear. Fear of the unknown can generate more hate than anyone could possibly fathom. If everyone became educated about other culture, there would be little to know unknown, and there would probably be less hate in the world. Mythology, the study of myths, gives people an insight to others dreams, hopes, and their fears. We all have hopes, dreams, and fears. By learning about other cultures’ hopes, dreams, and fears we can feel more connected to each other and reach out. Mythology is a key element in keeping peace without shedding blood. Work Cited Cotterel, Arthur. Ancient China. Kirk, Geoffrey Stephen. Myth: its meaning and functions in ancient and other culture California; University of California Press. 1970 Lansford, Tyler. â€Å"Mythology† Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 2002. Microsoft Corporation, 2002 Owens, D. W. â€Å"Ancient Chinese Mythology: Gods and goddess folklore† Google. com. November 5, 2003 Schafer, Edward H. Ancient China. New York; Time Inc. 1967 Williams, Brians. Ancient China. Middlesex, England; Reed Educational and Professional Publishing, Ltd. 1996.