In Discipline and Punish, Michel Foucault analyzes the emergence of disciplinary practices

In Discipline & Punish, Michel Foucault analyzes the emergence of disciplinary practices, as they are understood in modern schools, militaries, and prisons. Foucault understands the manifestations of modern disciplines in terms of a power-knowledge relationship. In Discipline & Punish he makes a change in his method of thinking about power-knowledge relations in using a genealogical method. The basic premise of the genealogical approach is that shifts of power in society alter the way knowledge is formed in society. Foucault's specific focus in the genealogical framework will be on the interrelation of non-discursive practices (control of bodies) and discursive practices (bodies of knowledge). In focusing on bodies of knowledge and the controlling of bodies Foucault shows how the greatest difference in the Modern Age of disciplines and the Classical Age is that Modern society is engulfed in disciplinary practices. Foucault believes that there is a misunderstanding by scholars when studying the history of discipline and punishment in the West. The misunderstanding is thinking that there is a progress in the way we treat criminals, or deviants, in compared with the forms of punishment used in the Classical Age. In order to view this misunderstanding Foucault begins Discipline & Punish with a horrific example of public torture that was commonplace treatment of a criminal in the Classical Age, which immediately provokes the reader to feel that the Modern Age has accomplished definite ‘progress'. However, Foucault claims that ‘progress' from a humanist perspective in relation to Modern discipline and punishment would not be accurate but, ‘progress' in being able to perform punishment with the same intensity of the Classical Age and not get the negative reaction that people had towards the public torture is a more accurate picture. Foucault claims that Modern societies aim has been â€Å"not to punish less, but to punish better. † The best model of â€Å"punishing better† has taken place in the Modern Prison. In the Prison the Modern Age changed its aims in punishing the criminal and these aims have carried over into the many disciplines of society. Foucault defines some of those differences in Modern discipline practices that culminate in the prison, but are unlimited in their reach upon society. The first difference is the object of control is no longer focused on the mind, but is more concerned with the body. An example of this is the vast apparatus of the Modern Prison that maintains a cell for each inmate to be placed. The Modern Prison is obsessed with the location of the body, rather than the earlier disciplinary techniques in which the foremost concern was one's ideas. This modern obsession with controlling the body in the Modern Prison is also present in the military apparatus. For example, the barracks or bases are developed to locate the troops in a specific location and keep them from mixing with the outside population. The earlier days when one was called from his house to go out to battle is eradicated by making soldiers subject to a specific location. The second area of development in Modern disciplinary practices is the control of details of specific bodily movements. The control of details of specific bodily movements is most clearly exemplified in the example of the Panopticon that Foucault gives in Discipline & Punish. One of the main characteristics of the Panopticon was to be able to constantly supervise the movements of each prisoner. The goal was to supervise the prisoner, while not allowing the prisoner to see the supervisor. This resulted in the prisoner constantly being aware of each little movement he made because there was always the possibility of being watched. The spread of the form of control of detail into other disciplinary institutions is easily seen in the school when teachers become concerned with the way in which they're students write or their posture in the classroom. The schoolmaster is no longer as concerned with the fact that the student can read and write, as he is with the way in which the pupils perform their task. The third object of focus by modern disciplines that Foucault suggests is new in the Modern Age is the concern with the process of production rather than just the product itself. The goal in the third mechanism is to exercise control over the complete production of an act instead of just the result of the act. The Modern Prison exemplifies this when it keeps a record of the prisoner's movements or affect. The fact that the prisoner does not break the rules is secondary too the way he goes about not breaking the rules. The control of processes is easily seen in the Modern economy. The Modern wage laborer is prescribed a code of ethics, timetable, and a contract. All of the later are mechanisms that concern the production of the product rather than the product itself. It does not matter if one is able to produce a product if does not fit within the proscribed process. The result of the control of the body, the details of bodily movements, and the process of production is â€Å"the docile body. † In order to achieve the function of rendering â€Å"the docile body† the Modern Age has developed distinctive mechanisms. The first of the mechanism's that Foucault mentions that are put in place to achieve a â€Å"docile body† is the Hierarchal Observations. Foucault locates the model of this method in the Bentham's ‘Panopticon. ‘ The ‘Panopticon' has a tower to be located in the middle of transparent cells, which form around the tower itself. The supervisor is to be able to see any prisoner at any time without the prisoner being aware that they are being watched. Foucault claims this gives the body a specific space of ‘subjection' and makes the prisoner constantly aware of there position. The ‘Panopticon' represents a change from the Classical Age of placing prisoners in dark dungeons and makes use of the light of a constant gaze. The hospital is an example of how the mechanism of the Hierarchal Observation spreads from the prison model into other social spaces. Foucault talks about the care that went into the new architecture of the hospital that allowed for the patients to be easily viewed, it separated them from other patients, and had a separate ventilation system that was organized for each patient to avoid the spread of germs. The hospital was no longer the overseer of death, but a whole apparatus of ‘therapeutic' mechanisms. In both the Modern Prison and the hospital, the body and its movements became the target rather than the mind. The mechanism of Hierarchal Observation lays the grounding for Normalizing Judgment, which is another distinctive mechanism of the Modern Age. The mechanism of Normalizing Judgment is to be able to focus in on the errors of a given behavior in order to reform the behavior. The process of Normalizing Judgment allows for codes to be established that can be placed next to the Law and Tradition. The emergence of Normalizing Judgment could be seen in the Modern Prison when the prisoners are subjected to a rigid schedule of prayer, exercise, and education. The prisoner was to stay within the ‘norms' or be judged. The Classical Age was concerned with revenge of the victim, whereas the Modern Age is concerned specifically with the criminal as a deviant or abnormal person. Foucault recognizes the spread of Normalizing Judgment in the rise of the standardized education. Examples of standardized education would be medical schools or law schools. These schools established the general norms of health and law. Thus, if someone deviates from â€Å"the norm† they subject themselves to space where it is appropriate for one to visit the psychologist to get help and on to the many other possible reformist mechanism. The mechanism of Normalizing Judgment enables the framework for the third mechanism, the Examination, to be developed. The Examination is a type of combination of the latter two mechanisms into what Foucault calls â€Å"the normalizing gaze. † This can be seen in the prison as when the prisoner is aware of being visible and â€Å"the norms† simultaneously. It is as if one knows how they ‘should' act and that they will be constantly held accountable through observation. The school examination is a further elaboration of this technique used in the prison. The student is constantly checked to make sure they are in order with â€Å"the norm† by a written or oral examination. The function of the school examination provides the exact same function of the prison examination, but in a new social space. The mechanisms of the Hierarchal Observation, Normalizing Judgment, and Examination ensure that â€Å"the docile body† is achieved. The mechanisms of docility are present throughout the entire stratum of society. Although the Modern disciplinary practices developed in the isolated space of the prison they have spread throughout society into schools, hospitals, factories, courts, and various other spaces. These disciplinary practiced do not just locate the normal form of behavior, but also act as a positive force of knowledge. The mechanisms achieve â€Å"the docile body† that allow for the coding of the individual of any given knowledge. A clue to just how vast disciplinary practices are in the Modern Age is the disappearance of â€Å"the outlaw,† which is now taken up with â€Å"the deviant. † There is no way to get ‘out'side the law, but one remains in a deviant form that is located within the disciplinary space. There is no escaping the mechanisms of power throughout society, as mechanisms of power-knowledge will continue to flourish in many different transformations. However, by not mistaking these transformations as necessary for ‘progress' and getting the mechanism to operate in your favor, one can achieve real progress.

The gendercide against Jewish men

He gendercidal dimension of the holocaust against the Jews was evident during particular phases of the campaign of extermination. It nonetheless has its harbinger in the mass detentions of males during the earlier (1933-41) period of Nazi rule. As a campaign of full-blown mass execution, the gendercide against Jewish males marked an important, if temporary, â€Å"onset phase† of the holocaust in the occupied eastern territories (including, after August 1941 , the Balkans).Gendercidal strategies against women were evident at later stages, both in mass executions and gassings, women- nly death camps, and the forced marches that killed tens of thousands in the closing stages of the war. Again, it must be stressed that in both their male and female manifestations, the Jewish gendercides were subsidiary features and strategies of a campaign of â€Å"root-and-branch† extermination, in which gender was far from a dominant consideration overall.Daniel Goldhagen points out in Hi tler's Willing Executioners (pp. 149-50) how the†up-close,† intimate killing of manifestly defenceless, screaming civilians on the eastern front killings which spattered blood and brain matter around the killing fields and over the killers was at first ncrementally managed according to gender: The Einsatzgruppen [death-squad] officers could habituate their men into their new vocation as genocidal executioners through a stepwise escalation of the killing.First, by shooting primarily teenage and adult Jewish males, they would be able to acclimate themselves to mass executions without the shock of killing women, young children, and the infirm. According to Alfred Filbert, the commander of Einsatzkommando 9, the [execution] order from [Reinhard] Heydrich â€Å"quite clearly† â€Å"included also women and children. † Yet, â€Å"in the first instance, without a doubt, the executions were limited generally to Jewish males. By generally keeping units' initial mass acres to smallish numbers (by German standards) of a few hundred or even a thousand or so, instead of many thousands, the perpetrators would be less likely to become overwhelmed by the enormity of the gargantuan bloodbaths that were to follow. They also could believe that they were selectively killing the most dangerous Jews, which was a measure that they could conceive to be reasonable for this apocalyptic war. Once the men became used to slaughtering Jews on this sex-selective and smaller scale, the officers could ore easily expand the scope and size of the killing operations.Jewish men rounded up for mass execution at Zhytomyr, Ukraine, August 7, 1942. In the early weeks of these murder campaigns, the Einsatzkommandos, according to Goldhagen, â€Å"were the equivalent of genocidal scouting parties, developing the methods of The images of mountains of corpses left behind by the Nazi mass murderers shocked the world, and helped contribute to the founding of the state of Israel. As the Soviet and Allied forces rolled back across Nazi-occupied Europe,

Many newspapers and magazines feature stories about the private lives

Many newspapers and magazines feature stories about the private lives of famous people. We know what they eat,where they buy their clothes and who they love. We also often see pictures of them in private situations. Is it appropriate for a magazine or newspaper to give this kind of private information about people? Give reasons for your answers. Everybody is interested to read the newspaper daily and also they used to read weekly or monthly magazine. Most of the people without fail used to read newspaper .People intention to read news paper to know about current affair and future development but the news paper and magazine are giving celebrities and famous person’ personal life instead of giving relevant news. In my opinion people hate this kind of inappropriate news. The news paper and magazine are publishing others personal life because of business. in fact people is not interested to know about others life. some people is interested to read about sports,science,business and politics.Moreover news paper and magazine should find relevant news for our society then only people like to read the news paper otherwise the ratio of buying newspaper will declined over period of time. The news reporter s are always seeing the news about celebrities personal life or their personal picture, which is not help our society, it may impact their business in their future. in addition the celebrities and famous people should not allow their personal life and should not discuss with media because it is not useful for people.Instead of going personal life,Reporters will collect the information like† How there are achieved their life and what is the secret of success† so this kind of things will help for our society. To sum up, The news paper and magazine should give good article, find out new information, which will help them to enhance the people knowledge and also the business will grow up. As far as my concern, may be people look at the news paper for others privacy but not interested to read anyone.

Proteins Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Proteins - Essay Example Enzymes can be defined as catalysts that cause a chemical reaction to process at a quicker pace. For instance, oxygen is a catalyst for fire. Enzymes are the catalysts of biological and chemical processes that are related to a variety of natural processes occurring in human beings. This includes a wide range including the formation, decomposition and rearranging of molecules to provide the individual with the energy and essential substances needed to live and function. Without enzymes however, these processes would occur far too slowly for proper metabolism. Enzymes are composed of amino acids. This combination of amino acids is usually referred to as a protein. Many refer to enzymes as special proteins that are biologically active or contain energy. It is because of this energy releasing element that enzymes are able to perform its work. Nevertheless, enzymes cannot be classified alongside other proteins. Once the enzyme no longer possesses energy, it will fail in its function as a catalyst and is now equal to any other general protein in the body. Enzymes are classified under several key groups. These include Proteases that help breakdown proteins, Lipases that help decompose lipids and fats, Amylases that help break down carbohydrates and finally Cellulases that break down the vegetative matter called cellulose. Further enzymes can also be classified as digestive enzymes, food enzymes, metabolism enzymes, etc. Food enzymes are introduced to the body via the oral intake of foods. However, food in this crude form manifests only necessary enzymes to digest that particular food item, which is usually not sufficient for storing in the body for use at a later time. It should be added that the process of cooking and processing (as done in mass produced foods) depletes the food of all its enzyme content. In this context, enzyme therapy comes as a boon for all those aspiring to prolong their natural lives. By understanding the core

Analyzing a Job Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Analyzing a Job - Essay Example These descriptions are formulated by the human resource department of the company; they are arrived at after the workforce requirements are comprehensively scrutinized since the description would give the type of applicants that the firm would receive. A part from mere undertakings and the technical skills that are of relevance in undertaking these responsibilities, the details should include such personal features that would ease the process of one holding the position. In this manner, the firm ensures that the employees it eventually hires would be of the traits that would be easy to effectively manage (Thomas & Michael, 2001). A New York hospitality firm, Travel care company Limited, has for the past three years operated in the American market offering such services in hotel booking, flight ticketing, car rental and hiring . The company has decided to venture into the tour industry for the first time. The firm is, therefore, diversifying its services and is expanding to other cities in America as well. Their first destination following this diversification is the city of Los Angels. A number of new positions have, as a result, been created and the firm aims to hire several of these within the five weeks preceding the formal opening of the Los Angel’s offices. Following the planned diversification of the firm, two fundamental departments have been created and would thus require staffing. It is with that effect that this memo seeks validity. The firm will be seeking to employ twenty five drivers and tour guides of similar number. The individuals will be responding to the head of department on tourism from which orders and terms of daily engagements will be communicated on daily basis. They will be tasked with the mandate of taking the tourists on safaris. Their main task will be to ensure that the tourists receive

The Context of Blight Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Context of Blight - Essay Example In his interview with (Plath), the author revealed his intention to incorporate his experience of the comedy bars, his memories of the stand-up comedians and the daring quality of theater into a poem. But as he was on his way to writing the poem, the anecdotal stories started as formal design originating in something that was more of entertainment than a model of literacy. As the anecdotal characters started to acquire more hold over the poem’s plot, the author had little choice but to convert it into a short story. Blight was meant to be a story irrespective of the author’s plans for it. The characters in the story present a semi-autobiographical story. Had the author originally intended to write it as a story, it would probably have come out of his pen much different than it did otherwise. Therefore, this context is the most important controlling factor in the story of  Blight.  

Discussion board homework Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Discussion board homework - Coursework Example The outdoor, fitness and aviation segments contributed to 63% of the revenue. A loss in foreign currency has been realized of $ 44 million compared to a gain of $ 12 million last year, and the company is projecting earnings of about $ 2.88 billion in terms of revenue. The outdoor segment and auto segment have a decline in revenue of 10% and 11% respectively. For the auto sector, it has been because of a fall in the Personal Navigation Device (PND) industry, as a result of competition from the mobile industry and other competitors. The article remains significant in the essay as it not only provided crucial financial information but indicates the diverse segments where the company excels. With the above research, comprehensive business analysis can be put in place for Garmin, and this can aid in outlining the areas of strength and weaknesses. It is because the figures clearly depict the revenue generated from each segment. The data above can thus be used to come up with a strategy primarily to strengthen the areas where the company is likely to maximize its net income. For instance, it can concentrate in the fitness segment that has gained popularity, and that is likely to generate supernatural

Famine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Famine - Essay Example This paper will further anayze whether famine is a seasonal happening or if it has an annual cycle, its predictability, and the steps that can be taken to prevent it,if there are any. Famine can be described as the scarcity of food on a largescale. The functional description of famine needs to include the fact that it is a natural hazard that goes on to affect humans. Without it affecting humans, the otherwise natural disaster becomes a natural hazard. It is not a disaster when the human aspect is lacking. Over time in history, incidences of famine have been experienced repeatdly, and in some regions more than others. This begs for one to view it as a seasonal happening. The seasonal nature of famines is attributed to there being certain human activities that augment the influence of drought. The likelihood of famine to be experienced in a region dependson a myriad of factors. These include the geographical location, policies governing food distribution, and human activities in a place. When these factors are all analyzed, the likelihood of a famine can be determined. The effects of famine are felt by all spheres of nature, both living and non-living. Humans, plants, animals, and even property is affected by famine. Humans are by far the most affected by famine. On the event of a famine, humans are faced by starvation, malnutrition, and cases of death are reported. People waste due to lack of food, and become emaciated. Stunted, and retarded growth are also experienced by the victims of famine. Cases of diseases are increased, as individuals grow weaker and weaker due to poor nutrition. In certain instances people start fighting for the little food available, and war may result. Plants during famine, are usually the first to die. This however, is true when the famine is due to harsh weather conditions such as drought. When the cause of the famine is other than this, plants are affected to a lesser extent. Wasting,

Taxation project 01 Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Taxation project 01 - Case Study Example Therefore, assuming a marginal tax rate of 39.6%, amount available for reinvestment = annual cash flow – tax. Thus, 100,000 - (100,000*39.6%) = 100,000 – 39,600 = $ 60,400 (Schanz & Schanz, 2011). Q2: If Sandra operates the business as a regular C Corporation that makes no dividend distributions, calculate the annual after tax cash flow available for reinvestment in the business. A C corporation is a business organization formulated to restrain the owners’ liabilities. Therefore, C corporations, in the eyes of law, are different from their owners. Using corporate tax rates, the business income is taxed at 34%. Therefore, if the corporation makes no dividend payments, the annual after tax cash flow available for reinvestments in the business = 13750 + {(100,000 – 75,000)*34%)} = (100,000 – 22,250) = $ 77,750 (Schanz & Schanz, 2011). Q3: there is no tax consequence in this case. Therefore, Sandra is still obligated to pay (100,000 *39.6%) = $ 39,600 as tax expense. As a result, the annual after tax cash flow remaining in the business = (100,000 – 39,600) = $ 60,400. On the other hand, Sandra will have (100,000 – 20,000) = $ 80,000 from the withdrawal (Schanz & Schanz, 2011). Q4: Sandra’s corporation will be taxed twice if withdrawals are made to fund dividend payments to shareholders. The first tax will apply to taxable income and the second will be applied to dividend. However, the rate of tax and the taxable income will not be affected. The income tax = 13,750 + ((100,000 -75,000) * 34%) = 22,250. As a result, after tax cash flow remaining for investment in the business = {100,000 – 22,250} = $ 77,750. The dividends will be subject to tax rate similar to that of long-term capital gain (15%). Therefore, the after tax cash flow from the dividend = (20,000*20%) = $ 4,000 (Schanz & Schanz, 2011). Q5: If Sandra wishes to operate the business

Positive effects of video games Essay Example for Free

Positive effects of video games Essay Now I am no expert in the mind, but in my research I have found that there is several ways that we can learn from playing video games. Video games have always been infamous for their anti-social aspect and the violence that is shown in them. They have been seen as negatively affecting the players in terms of lack of social skills, inefficiency, obesity and laziness. We lack the unbiased view thus miss on the positive effects of video games. The negativities brought in by video games are due to the unrestricted duration for which they are played. Video games are popular among the children and the youth of America. If there is no limit to the time for which a child is allowed to play a video game or no supervision on the way in which the game is being played, the not-so-positive effects of video games will start showing up. In the contrary case, video game players will start manifesting the positive effects of video games. Good video games incorporate good learning principles. Why? If no one could learn these games, no one would buy them. Players will not accept easy, dumbed down, or short games. Challenge and learning are a large part of what makes good video games motivating and entertaining. First of all a gamer can learn identity. No learning happens unless gamers make a commitment. Learning a new area, whether it be physics or medicine, requires the learner to take on a new identity: to make a commitment to see and value work and the world in the ways in which good physicists or doctors do. Good video games capture the player through identity. Players are either given a strongly formed and appealing character, such as Master Chief in the Halo series or they get to build a character from the ground up, as in Fallout 3. Either way, players become committed to the new virtual world in which they will live, learn, and act through their commitment to their new identity (Gee 4). When playing video games, gamers can learn how to interact. In fact, nothing happens until a player acts and makes decisions. Then the game reacts back, giving the player feedback and new problems. In a good game, words and actions are all placed in the context of an interactive relationship between the player and the world. (Gee 5). Players are producers, not just consumers. Even at the simplest level, players co-design games by the actions they take and the decisions they make. An open-ended game like Fallout 3 is, by the end, a different game for each player. In a massive-multi-player game like World of WarCraft thousands of people create different virtual careers through their own unique choices in a world they share with each other. Also many games come with versions of the software with which they are made and players can modify them. Such modifications range from building new skate parks in Tony Hawk or new scenarios in Age of Mythology to building whole new games. Players help â€Å"write† the worlds they live in. Players learn how to take risks and manage resources. Good video games lower the consequences of failure. If this happens then the players are encouraged to take risks, explore, and try new things. In fact, in a game, failure is a good thing. When facing a boss, the gamer uses initial failures as ways to find the boss’s pattern and look for a weakness. Also, especially with strategy games, player receive resources at given intervals and must save and spend them wisely to reach his ultimate goal. This involves abilities of resource management and testing. A player can learn to recognize the types of situations and react to them with determination. He can also learn to map the virtual world scenarios to those in the real world. Players can usually, in one way or another, customize a game to fit with their learning and playing styles. Games often have different difficulty levels and many good games allow players to solve problems in different ways. In a role-playing game, the distinctive attributes each player chooses for his or her character determines how the game will be played. Players can even try out new styles, thanks to the risk taking principle above. Research has shown that when learners are left free to roam in a complex problem space they tend to hit on creative solutions to complex problems. In good video games, the problems players face are ordered so that the earlier ones build a foundation so that later players can be presented with more, harder problems. It matters how the problems are organized, this is why games have levels. Good games offer players a set of challenging problems. Then, when the players have got it figured out the game throws a new type of problem at the players (sometimes this is called a â€Å"boss†), requiring them to rethink their now taken-for-granted mastery, learn something new, and integrate this new learning with their old mastery. In time, this new mastery is reinforcedA game can create an accomplished feeling by being pleasantly frustrating. Thanks to many of the above principles, good games stay within, but at the outer edge, of the player’s comfort level. That is, the game feels doable, but challenging. This is a highly motivating state for learners because it can feel rewarding beating the level or the boss that the player fails at a few times. Games encourage players to think about relationships, not isolated events, facts, and skills. In a game like Empire: Total War, for instance, players need to think of how each action taken might impact on their future actions and the actions of the other players playing against them as they each move their civilizations through the Ages. In a massive multi-player game like World of WarCraft, players must think of the consequences, good or bad, of their actions not only on all aspects of the game world, but on lots of other players as well. In our complex, global world, such system thinking is crucial for everyone. When players play a multi-player game like World of WarCraft, they often play in teams, in which each player has a different set of skills (say a Mage, a Warrior, or Druid). Players must each master their own specialty, since a Mage plays differently than a Warrior, but players learn to use each other’s strengths to minimize weaknesses. Furthermore, in such teams, people are allied by their commitment to a common goal, not primarily by their race, class, ethnicity, or gender. Players can play before they are experienced, supported by the design of the game, the help the game offers, and often, too, the support of other, more advanced players (in multi-player games, in chat rooms, or standing there in the living room). A very important positive effect of video games is the improvement of hand-eye coordination. A player has to watch on screen while simultaneously operating the joystick of the device in his hand to make moves. This requires the player to be alert and well coordinated. A study conducted by researchers at the University of Rochester found that people who play fast-paced action video games have improved visual and reaction skills when compared to those who dont play. According to the study, people who played such video games were able to better track objects appearing simultaneously, and processed fast-changing visual information more efficiently. To help ensure the validity of the study, researchers also looked at people who did not normally play video games, trained them to play, and then looked at the results. This group, too, showed improved visual capabilities. The games the non-players were trained on were Medal of Honor and Tetris. Those who played Medal of Honor scored better on the visual tests than those who did not. The findings indicate that video game training for people who require improved visual skills, such as soldiers or teenagers preparing to drive, would be successful. In a study conducted in 2004 by Butch Rosser, a surgeon of Laparoscopy, he studied the surgical skills of surgeons playing video games and surgeons who did not. It was astonishing to know from the results that surgeons playing video games were faster in action and made lesser mistakes during work than those who did not play video games. Children with problems with attention, lack of self-confidence, or who are picked on are often helped by the gaming experience. Video games have also been included in the therapy for children with such psychological problems. Children that see themselves as failures receive benefit from playing video games, because they can provide the player with a sense of participation success. In playing video games, a child gets a sense of participation, a sense of achievement, thus building his self-confidence. Children, after playing video games begin to feel excited about their lives, they start feeling positive and enthusiastic. This enables them to defeat their psychological disorders to a certain extent. And video games give children a chance to share their expertise and skills with their parents. This can give the child a boost of self-confidence when he gets to teach his parents something that he learned. Playing video games involves problem solving, planning, estimation and analysis of the moves or actions of both you and your opponent. This affects the player positively by developing in his problem-solving skills, analytical and estimation skills and quick decision-making. Video games give the means to channel one’s emotions in a positive way. Anger, hatred and such other negative feelings in a person’s mind get a chance to come forth by way of a game instead of real life. A player can shoot or beat up enemies with satisfying results that gets rid of anger that might have built up inside them.

Dealing with Attendance Issues

Dealing with Attendance Issues People take days off and are sometimes late for work. That is a given. The most common problem is when people take days off when they are not sick, such as wanting to stretch the weekend into 3 days, but when they really are sick, they come into work because they have run out of sick days. This is not good for the employee or other employees as they can become sick. The real problem, however, happens when they call out sick after they have exceeded the sick days allowed for the year. You cant turn a blind eye to this behavior and it is unfair to those who make it a point to come to work everyday and are on time. It is usually just a couple of employees who are the culprits. It is especially hard to deal with attendance problems with a person who is otherwise a great employee. Nonetheless, you have to deal with it, and with equality to all. Here are eight points to keep in mind on how to control and possibly reduce attendance issues: Make sure your employees understand your view towards attendance. Make it a point to share your passion towards having a low absentee and tardiness department. Your supervisors also really need to fully understand the attendance expectations as they are on the front line and will see the infractions much more easily than you. If HR has not created one, have an attendance policy that clearly lays out the guidelines. Also lead by example by getting to work a bit early, leaving a bit late, and rarely, if ever, call out sick. Have your employees call you direct instead of their immediate supervisor. They might think twice knowing you, the manager, will answer the phone or hear the voice mail. Maintain accurate records. There are easy to use software programs to track attendance. You can even use something like your Outlook calendar to make a note of each infraction. Create easy to use codes to not take up too much space. For example, instead of John Doe called out sick or John Doe was 15 minutes late, use something like JD-S or JD-15m. Look for trends. If you see an employee call out on a Friday or Monday, chances are they are taken advantage of sick days for pleasure. If you see an employee call out at the end of the month when your department is at its busiest, you most likely have someone who is not a team player. If an employee is always around 5 to 10 minutes late, its not just a one off traffic jam but someone who just is not making the effort getting ready and to work on time. You might even see repetitive signs of sickness or tardiness with the employee looking like they have been partying all night. You want to address these trends as soon as possible. Individual problem have a one on one meeting. Multiple people hold a team meeting. When you have an individual or two who are repeat offenders, you want to deal with them separately. Dont punish all for a few problem employees. However, when you are seeing a trend with multiple members of the team with attendance issues, you need to hold a team meeting and show the statistics. Stress how it can damage the achievement of goals. Reducing absenteeism might even turn into a goal in itself. This will show all that you are serious about attendance, and how their attendance is important to the overall success of the team. Stress that you should not have to hire more people to achieve the goals due to poor attendance. This will put on certain peer pressure that can work to your benefit, especially if you offer a reward to the team if they achieve an attendance record you have set. Allow for personal business. It is better for your employees to be up front and tell you the truth. There might be a few occasions when someone needs to take some time off in the day to handle something that can only be dealt with during business hours. Just make sure they do not take advantage of this gesture. Create an award program for those who do not call out or are tardy for a certain period of time. It can be a paid day off or other ideas that were given in lesson 3. It shows that even though you are a stickler regarding attendance, you want to show your appreciation to those who make it a point to show up to work and being on time. Have them make up time missed to make up for time lost. Depending on state laws and company policy, this may be an option. If not, can they use some of their vacation time, or get no time if they have already used up all of their sick time? The no time means they would not get paid for the time missed. It would affect hourly/non-exempt employees much more. Steps to take when dealing with attendance problems: 1. Counsel and verbal warning: E-mail, or get their attention privately as to not embarrass the individual, to meet in your office. Start off by stating you are concerned over the absences or tardiness. Establish the reasons and determine what needs to be done to improve the attendance issues. If the problem does not appear to be a major health issue of any sort, you should advise the employee that an improvement in attendance is expected, or the next step in the procedure will be taken. There should be no more attendance problems for the following 6 months. Monitor the attendance monthly and proceed to step 2 if the problem continues. Document this meeting and consider it a verbal warning, not a written warning. You should notify HR if there are any medical issues that can possibly keep the employee out of work for any length of time. If the doctor confirms fitness for work, the employee needs to be warned about the consequences of continued absence. 2. First written warning: If the employees absences continue, set up a second meeting. State the purpose and be prepared to discuss the reasons for the absences. Talk about the implications and how it affects the team and department, not to mention the company, and warn that if the problem continues, employment may be suspended and/or terminated. This all depends on how HR has set up the attendance policy. Document this meeting and consider it a written warning. Monitor for improvement, if there are still problems, go to step 3. 3. Second written warning or suspension: If there is still no improvement, consult with HR on what should be done next. If you can, and would like, set up another meeting with the same criteria as described in steps 1 and 2. Listen to what the employee has to say, and let them know you will get back to them to determine the next step. You can either give another written warning stating the next infraction is automatic suspension and/or termination, or go straight to the suspension stage. Again, this is determined on the existing HR policy. 4. Suspension and/or termination: If no improvement in attendance occurs, you should proceed with a temporary suspension without pay. The intention to suspend should be confirmed in writing with details of start and end dates. HR will be involved and your presence may or may not be required. It is imperative that you have documented every meeting with exact detail. This might be needed if it ever goes to court. If it is determined that the employee should be terminated, the employee should be advised that as a result of excessive attendance issues, they will be dismissed. At this point, HR policies regarding pay and benefits will be discussed. Before you take drastic measures with all that has been discussed so far in this lesson, make sure the problem is not morale related or some other underlying issue. The fault might be yours due to departmental cracks, which you will need to find out what is wrong and fix as soon as possible. There might also be a problem with the time clock, parking situation, or scheduling that you should do your best to fix, or come up with an alternative solution.

Case Report On British Airways Ba Management Essay

Case Report On British Airways Ba Management Essay The fast changing technological advancement and unpredictable economic situation are forcing businesses to respond quickly to adapt to change. Failure to manage change will cause organisation lose its competitiveness and disappear from the market. In order to meet the challenge, British Airways has to review their development approaches, especially those related to the organisational behaviour, structure, culture and other human resource issues. The organisations vision of being worlds global premium airline can only be sustained and supported through continual review and improvements in the aspects mentioned. It is important to note that the change in the organisation is very much related to the role of managers in developing strategy. Though there is a pressing need for the organisation to undergo change, peoples need should not be sacrificed. This report aids the improvement process in British Airways by providing discussion on the key frameworks in the HRM issues and recommendati ons for future. 2.0 Introduction This is a report for the management of British Airways Plc which present, analyze and evaluate the change management issues in the organisation. Factors such as organisational structure, behaviour, culture and technology, political and social aspects as well as economic strengths and weaknesses are made throughout the whole report. It is hoped that this report would provide an insight to the human resource activities for future improvement. 3.0 Organisations Strategic Plan 3.1 Organisations Background British Airways Plc (BA) has a long history beginning from the launching of words first schedule air service by its forerunner company, Aircraft Transport Travel Limited (AT T) on 1919. In 1924, Britains four airlines merged to form Imperial Airways Limited. Later in the 1930s, some smaller UK air transport companies started their operations and merged to form the original privately-owned British Airways Limited. Following a government review in 1939, these two companies were then nationalized and formed the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC). BOAC, together with a new airline, British European Airways (BEA) were the main British operators in the industry in the 1950s. However, these two separate airlines eventually merged to form British Airways in 1974. With the execution of Civil Aviation Act 1980, the government sold its shares in British Airways and Lord King was appointed as the chairman. Many changes were carried out since then to bring British Airways to its presen t status as one of the worlds leading global premium airline (British Airways 2010). The company is principally base in London, with hubs at Heathrow, Gatwick and London city airports. Its core activities are to carry out the operation of international and domestic scheduled air passengers and cargo services. In 2009/10, the company carried nearly 32 million passengers and 760,000 tonnes of cargo to different destinations. Together with its partners, BA flies to over 300 destinations throughout the world. It also has a strong fleet operation with 238 aircrafts in service at the end of March 2010 (British Airways 2010). 3.2 Organisations Vision and Mission The companys long term vision to be the worlds leading Global Premium Airline is constantly leading the company moving towards higher achievements in the future. BA has plotted different mission statements in pursuing toward this vision. These mission statements are: Be the airline of choice for long haul premium customers Deliver an outstanding service for customers at every point of touch Build presence in key global cities Build on leading position in London Meet customers needs and improve margins through new revenue streams (British Airways 2010) 3.3 Industry Overview The aviation industry has a big global economic impact. Few key facts provide the evidence of the worldwide influence of this industry. According to Capoccitti, Khare and Mildenberger (2010: 67), more than 2.2 billion vacation and business passengers flew on the worlds airlines. Over one-third of the values of worlds manufactured exports were carried through air freight. 32 million jobs opportunities were created for people in different countries. Moreover, the aviation industry contributes nearly 8% to world gross domestic product. In general, airline industry can be divided into four categories: International companies with annual revenue of $1 billion or more National companies with annual revenue between $100 million and $ 1 billion Regional companies with short-haul flights and less than $100 million revenue Cargo companies that generally transport goods only (Investopedia 2010) Though the degree varies with the category that an airline belongs to, air companies need to cope with various complicated issues. Some of the major issues include airport capacity, route design, technology, costs to buy or lease the aircrafts, weather, fuel price, and employees (Investopedia 2010). Despite these challenges, competition remains lofty as more and more airliners enter into the market by offering cheaper prices to customers. 3.4 SWOT Analysis Figure British Airways SWOT Analysis (Euromonitor International 2011) The figure above shows the current SWOT analysis of British Airways. Further explanations are made as follow. STRENGTHS Strong Fleet Operations British Airways has a strong fleet with more than 200 aircrafts. The fleet includes Boeing 737, Boeing 747- 777, Airbus A319 and Airbus 320. Recently, the company had also ordered additional 23 new Boeing 787 to replace the current Boeing 767. These new aircrafts will join in the long haul fleet from year 2012. With such a strong fleet, the airline covers all the continents around the world (Euromonitor International 2011). Online Services British Airways also seizes the opportunity of the widespread of internet to boost its business performance. With the implementation of online services, passengers obtain the convenience to book flights, hire cars, book hotels and access travel information in a quick and safe way. This has not only greatly reduced the companys operating costs, but also help it to attract more customers (Euromonitor International 2011). WEAKNESSES Labor Dispute The dispute over pay and condition of its cabin crew has caused an industrial action to take place in 20-22 March and 27-30 March 2010 (Euromonitor International 2011). The strikes held by Unite, which represents about 25,000 workers at British Airways, had incurred more than  £150 million loss to the company in year 2010. Poor Brand Image Apart from the above incident, the chaos that happened during the opening of Heathrow Terminal 5 airport also diminished the companys brand image. Cancellations, delays of flights and lost of baggages had led to huge disappointment on many loyal customers. This weaken the companys competitive advantage and loss many businesses to its rival. Poor Performance in All Geographic Regions Due to global financial crisis and high fuel prices, British Airways has a poor performance in all its geographic regions. The business revenues in its largest geographic market had decreased 12.9% in March 2010. The sales in its second largest market, America had also shown a decline of 4%. It is concerned that the continuity of such performance would lead to business collapse in no time (Euromonitor International 2011). THREATS Disrupt Operation With the unstable restructuring and changes policies, British Airways faces strong opposition from its workforce. The extension of labour dispute into future will continue to disrupt the companys normal operation. Huge amount of time and money will have to be spent on devising contingency plans to resolve the issues. Increased Competition Poor management strategies in handling labour dispute and the opening of Terminal 5 makes the company vulnerable to its rivals. Better offers made by competitors such as Virgins, Ryan Air and Easyjet will cause British Airways losses its premium passengers. Bankruptcy Poor performance in all geographic regions increases the risk of bankruptcy in BA. OPPORTUNITIES Reward Packages/Employee Relations Opportunities to offer better reward packages and to improve employee relations can be identified in the case of British Airways labour dispute. The restructuring and changes process will get into a better shape if two ways communication is to be built up. Monitor Operational Performance British Airways is currently monitoring its customer views on the Think Customer Survey (British Airways 2010). This offer great opportunity for the organisation to improve its business performance as it can find solution to improve its departure punctuality, which is one of the main concerns of the passengers. Merger Agreement with Iberia The entering into a merger agreement with Spanish airway Iberia offers opportunity for BA to step into Latin America market. This merger will also save the airline  £350 million a year (BBC 2010). 4.0 HRM Issues 4.1 Leadership and Management The terms leadership and management have been used interchangeably by many people. In fact, these two terms denotes two different meanings. From a general point of view, leadership can be defined as a relationship through which one person influences the behaviour or actions of other people. Management, on the other hand, is usually defines as getting things done through other people in order to achieve stated organisational objectives (Mullins 2010: 373). A major study of the nature of leadership has been developed by a political scientist, James MacGregor Burns in 1978. Burns states that organisation states can be categorized into two convergent (stable condition) and divergent (dynamic condition). He contends that the best approach for the convergent state is the transactional management style. The managers will aim at completing tasks, achieving companys goal, and striving for the companys performance through gradual changes (Burnes 2009: 498). On the other hand, transformational leaders are most appropriate in the divergent state. They will introduce radical change and use the influence of their personality to gain the trust and commitment of their followers (Burnes 2009: 499). The figure below shows Burns theory on leadership. Figure Burns Contextual Approach to Leadership (Burnes 2009: 499) Along with Burns theory, the diagram below also shows the distinctive activities between managers and leaders (Burnes 2009: 492). In fact, in real life situation, leaders need to possess both transactional and transformational characteristics, depending on the circumstances. Figure Distinct Activities between Managers and Leaders (Burnes 2009: 492) In relation to the theories above, BAs present Chief Executive Officer, Willie Walsh is considered to be a manager rather than a leader. This can be seen from the way he transformed his former company Aer Lingus, a nearly bankrupt airline into one of the most profitable one in Europe by cutting one-third of its workforce using the power of his position (The Independent Business 2011). This action had caused him to win an uncomplimentary nickname Slasher Walsh, thus revealing his sturdy personality trait. Partly because of this, he was attracted into the board of BA (The Wall Street Journal 2011). However, as the company is in a dynamic state, the transactional characteristic that Willie Walsh possessed is seemed to be unsuitable. In the dispute with the Unite Union, Willie Walsh is entirely focused on the present organisations need reduce costs but ignored the need to create a culture of shared value in the long run. His managerial approach will only enable him to carry out his du ty and fail to gain followers. The management should realize that the pressing need of British Airways is to have leader who is capable to win trust and support from its members in order to implement change. 4.2 Organisational Structure In order to ensure the organisation meets its goals and objectives, organisation usually has a formal structure to divide the work and responsibilities. This formal structure is presented in the organisation chart. Different roles and relationships are incorporated in this process to direct, control and carry out the tasks and activities (Armstrong 2009: 365). People in these groups are usually bound by certain formal rules, relationship and norms of behaviour. Formal work group can be differentiated by basis of membership, tasks to be performed, nature of technology or positions within the organisations and etc. (Mullins 2010: 311). Though the formal groups are planned and created by management, informal structure will also arise during the day-to-day interactions of the staffs. Unlike the formal structure which is based on a defined role, the informal groups are based more on friendships. The goal is to satisfy psychological and social needs rather than achieving the tasks (Mullins 2010:312). Both formal and informal groups are crucial as the formation can contribute to the enhancement of work performance. The higher the group cohesiveness, the more likely they can progress in the stages of group development and form teams. However, tasks at team level require higher level of coordination, control and trust. From the organisational chart in Figure 4 below, it can be seen that the division of work in the organisation is based on individuals different tasks and functions, such as sales and marketing, engineering, investments and etc. This institution is important as members tend to follow the established values and norms of behaviours. However, as group size increase, it will increase the difficulty for managers to handle. In general, group cohesiveness is hard to achieve when a group exceeds 10-12 members. Absenteeism, conflict over incentive payment and differences in opinions are some of the normal phenomena that can be seen in a group. Therefore, groups should be divided into sub-groups when the numbers go beyond 12 (Mullins 2010: 315). Managers should also be sensitive on the balance of work performance and social interactions in the informal groups. Sometimes, groups may be inclined toward social processes and spend too much time talking rather than working (Mullins 2010:314). Managers therefore need to be capable to observe and create a better climate in the groups. Figure British Airways Organisational Structure (The Official Board 2010) 4.3 Organisational Culture Organisational culture plays an important role to bring in change in organisation. According to Armstrong (2009:384), organisational culture is the unspoken ways that shape the ways in which people in organisations behave and things get done. Drennan (1992) also defines culture as typical of the organisation, the habits, the prevailing attitudes, and the grown-up pattern of accepted and expected behaviour (Brown 1998: 8). One of the factors that formed the organisational culture is the influence of visionary leaders. British Airways had undergone many waves of culture change since late 70s. Under the leadership of Collin Marshall, the companys chief executive during 1983, the company was transformed from a disastrous loss-making company into a profit-making world class organisation. He introduced Putting People First program and had successfully overturned the atmosphere in the organisation. He challenged the hierarchical and militaristic culture that existed at that time by asking the staffs not to wear uniform to work. He also constantly motivated the staffs to have positive attitudes in themselves, set personal goals and dealing with stress. Members of the organisation are very much encouraged by the families atmosphere promoted during that period (Irena and Adrian 2002). British Airways experienced few more restructuring processes in the hands of different leaders following Collin Marshall. It is believed the organisation is also undergoing a major culture change under the current leadership of Willie Walsh. The organisational culture is changed from people-oriented to power-oriented under the management of Willie Walsh. Members in the organisation became more competitive and responsive to personality as the values and beliefs are changed. Although it cannot be concluded by saying one culture is better than the other, the culture that Willie Walsh introduced into the organisation seems to be inappropriate and hinder its performance (Armstrong 2009: 398). 4.4 Resourcing and Legal Issues Another crucial aspect to achieve the goals of the organisation is people resourcing. Organisations need to make sure they can obtain and retain the right people that can fit into their organisational and perform in a productive way. Therefore, strategies such as human resource planning, recruitment and selection, selection interviewing, selection tests, introduction to the organization and release from the organization are genuinely required to build up the strength of human aspect in the organisation (Armstrong 2001). In devising its strategy on human resource planning, British Airways has to be to be able to forecast future people needs (demand forecasting), forecast future availability of people (supply forecasting) and make plans to match supply to demand (Armstrong 2001). These require the human resource department of British Airways to have thorough understanding of both the internal and external environments of the organisation. Examples of the internal environments include sales forecast and introduction of new technology whereby instances of external environment are such like labour market condition and labour turnover (Wilson 2011). Many organisations tend to promote people from within the organisation when there are vacancies in the upper level. This resourcing policy is known as qualification driven. British Airways is not an exception to this. British Airways advertises internal vacancies to its employees and provide cross training when necessary (British Airways 2011). With the implementation of restructuring programme named Compete 2012, British Airways also encourages its people to move between functions to develop their talents and skills. This once again confirms its usual practice of promoting people internally (British Airways 2010). Despite its focus on internal promotion, British Airways does not neglect the importance of injecting talents and fresh ideas into the vein of the organisation. Its external recruitment is carried out firstly through its recruitment website, which also forms the initial selection process. Applicants are then asked to attend the assessment day. They will then be accessed through different methods such as group exercises, interviews, psychometric tests, presentations, fact-finding exercise or role play (British Airways 2011). As a global organisation, BA is renowned in its workforce diversity. This requires the organisation to comply with different laws and legislations such as Sex Discrimination Act 1975, Race Relations Act 1976 and Data Protection Act (British Airways 2011). In spite of the diversified culture image that it has built up over the years, flaws can still be seen in the way British Airways manage its people. The company was sued for indirect sex discrimination by one of its female pilot in year 2005. Jessica Starmer, BAs female pilot requested to work 50% part time to take care of her newborn baby. However, the organisation can only offered her 75% work, which was unacceptable to Starmer and will cause her to give up her favourite job. It can be seen from this case that British Airways was not ready to accommodate working mothers and possibly exclude females from its pilot. Starmer eventually won this discrimination case and British Airways had to reconsider its way of managing work life ba lance for both men and women (BBC 2005). Employees well being should constantly be examined and improved in the organisation. 4.5 Skills, Training and Development Learning, training and development processes are ways to ensure individuals and organisations can enhance their performance and meet organisations objectives. One crucial framework of understanding how people learn is the work of Kolb. Kolb suggests learning as recurring process with four stages as shown in the diagram below. Figure Kolbs Learning Style (Clark 2008) The four stages (concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualisation and active experimentation) was then categorised by Honey and Mumford as activists, reflectors, theorists and pragmatists. It is contended that activists prefer to learn by actively participate in activities, reflectors learn through observation and reflections, theorists learn best through linking their experiences with concepts and theories, and pragmatists have a preference in transferring new information to real-life situations (Pilbeam and Corbridge 2010: 357). Understanding how people learn through different HRM frameworks are crucial for British Airways to design the learning for its employees. By examining the training and learning design of British Airways, it is quite satisfactory that British Airways has provide ample training resources such as learning centres, library facilities, reference materials, audiotapes and video based learning (Job Vacancies Advice n.d.). British Airways also develops different training schemes such as Behaviour for Success, Leadership Matters and A Leader Development Portfolio (British Airways 2010). Graduate opportunities and training schemes are also provided to the students and graduates through series of interviews and selections (British Airways 2010). These shows that the organisation is concern about different learning styles of individuals and have provided different designs to match their learning needs. However, In relation to the chaotic opening of Heathrows Terminal 5, British Airways employees claimed that their failure was due to inadequate training days and the lack of essential support (BBC 2008). This incident should provide a little window for the management to realise that there is still a lack the way British Airways evaluate its employees learning activity and process. Furthermore, in dealing with the recent strike issue, British Airways is planning on training its ground staffs who have no flying experience to become cabin crews in 21 days (The Guardian 2010). This is inevitably worrying as these employees might not have appropriate knowledge, skills, and attitude to fill in the positions in such a short period. This hasty decision will only pull the company away from identifying and analysing the learning needs of its employees (Pilbeam and Corbridge 2010: 352). 4.6 Appraisal Performance appraisal is a key attribute in driving an organisation towards competitive advantage. Though it may not be unwelcomed by the participants, it nevertheless provides crucial data for efficient decision-making, identifies training needs, and set levels of reward (Gold and Bratton 2003: 250). An effective appraisal system will also help the organisations to assess their staff against companies objectives, provide opportunities for the organisation to give good feedback to employees and motivate them (Business Link 2011). Appraisal can be carried out in different forms such as top-down schemes, self-appraisal, peer appraisal, upward appraisal and multi-rater appraisal or 360-degree feedback (Pilbeam and Corbridge 2010: 323). The employees progress is monitored both informally and formally in British Airways. Informally, the staffs will have to discuss with their manager about their performance and formally, they will need to go through an annual performance review (British Airways 2011). This top-down appraisal system is designed to encourage continuous improvement in employees performance and behaviour. However, it is questionable whether the appraisal is effective. Due to the linkage of appraisal with pay in British Airways, employees might be reluctant to openly discuss their problems at work with their line managers. Issues such as preferential treatment and lack of partiality may also invalidate the effort taken. Though immediate manager are inevitably in the best position to appraise employee performance, consideration should be given to evaluate performance through peer appraisal or multi-rater appraisal (Pilbeam and Corbridge 2010: 323). 4.7 Coaching and Mentoring According to Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIDP) (2010), coaching is a process to develop an individuals skills and knowledge in order to improve their work performance. Though it may involve the employees private life, the target is on achieving specific skills and goals. Mentoring, which is a method to transfer the knowledge, skills and experience in the challenging workplace, is often used interchangeably with coaching. Comparing to coaching, which is conducted in a shorter period, mentoring tends to describe a long term relationship where a more experienced staff supports the progression of his inexperienced colleague. In fact, coaching and mentoring is very much linked with overall learning and development strategies. According to the 2010 Learning and development survey conducted by CIDP (2010), more than half of the participants felt that coaching is the most effective way of learning and development. British Airways has always been a great success in coaching and mentoring its employees. As mentioned earlier, British Airways embed different training resources and programs to support and sustain the development of its people. Qualified pilots who apply to the Direct Entry Pilot Scheme offered by the organisation will need to attend training courses before they are allowed to join the fleets. They will be put under the supervision of experienced training team until the completion of Line Check (British Airways 2011). This efficient coaching and mentoring thus lead the pilots into the right behaviour and work effectively. 4.8 Performance and Motivation People need to be motivated to work. In order to improve the performance, it is important for managers to motivate and encourage their staffs. Throughout the years, various schools of thoughts on motivation have been established. Some of the well known theories are McGreggors theory X and theory Y, Adams equity theory, Maslows hierarchy of needs and Herzbergs two factor theory (Wilson 2011). This section will focus only the first two theories McGreggors theory X and theory Y and Adams equity theory. A notable study conducted from 1945-1965 revealed that what employees desire the most from a job is security, following by advancement, type of work and company. This is against the common belief that money is the primary motivating factor. However, this should not send the signal to the company to reward employee inadequately (Accel-Team 2010). However, in the recent dispute with its cabin crew, it became obvious that British Airways Chief Executive, Mr. Willie Walsh is incompetent to address this idea. In this dispute concerning the cabins pay condition, Willie Walsh proves that his managerial style falls under McGreggors theory X. Unlike theory Y which encourages participative communication, Willie Walsh cultivates a downward direction communication flow from manager to subordinates (Barnett 2011). This can be seen by his act in snatching the offer of Unite union off the negotiation table in March 2010 without saying a further word (The Guardian 2010). His autocratic managerial style causes British Airways suffers heavy resistance from its employees and eventually leads to the decrease in employees morale. On the other hand, equity theory of motivation reveals the assumptions that individuals hold about what is value and worthwhile (Wilson 2011). This theory holds that a persons sense of fairness is resulting from comparison between his input-to-output ratios to the others see Figure 6 below (Business Balls 2010). According to a former British Airways crew member, the company has not treated its members with a fair view. The organisation compares its cabin crews salaries with low cost carriers such as Virgins and Easyjet. This is viewed as unreasonable since British Airways had been branded as a global premium airline. It is also found out that the organisations proposal for new fleet salaries of  £11,000 basic plus  £2.40 an hour is much lower comparing to other premium airlines such as Singapore and Emirates. Comparing to Singapore Airline (which pay not only  £20,792 to its crew, but also gives them the benefits of one months salary annual supplement plus health and pension p ackages) British Airways offer is apparently diminishing the effort of its members (The Guardian 2010). Equity theory should reminds British Airways management that its people must be managed and treated accordingly as they would compare the way they are treated with their surrounding environment (Business Balls 2010). Figure Adams Equity Theory (Business Balls 2010) 5.0 Future Directions 5.1 Change Management Plan With the fast changing global business environment, organisations have to be capable to respond quickly enough by implementing change. The chance of whether an organisation can survive is very much depending on how effective it deals with the changes such as new government policies, economic fluctuation, new competitors and etc. Changes are initiated by leaders who are clear with the organisations vision and put that vision into reality through medium term mission and deployment plan (Wilson 2010). Kotter and Schlessinger (1979) set out six approaches to manage resistance of change. These include the following: Education and communication inform people about the change effort beforehand Participation and involvement involve people in the change effort Facilitation and support provide coaching and mentoring to deal with adjustment problems Negotiation and agreement deal with resistance by offering incentives Manipulation and co-option give a leader a symbolic role in decision making without really involved in the change effort Explicit and implicit coercion force employees into accepting change by making clear that resistance can lead to losing jobs, transferring or not promoting (Value Based Management 2011) There is no one approach which out-ruled the other approaches. The suitability of the change approach is based upon the situation that an organisation is facing. Therefore, leaders have to exercise their wisdom and discernment when choosing the approach to deal with resistance. Willie Walshs tactic of using explicit and implicit coercion to manage change apparently is destructive to the organisation as it had pushed the resistance even further. As the cabin crews and the Unite union are in the position of power, it is more likely that negotiation and agreement should be applied. 5.2 Organisational Development Organisational development is defined as a process that applies behavioural science knowledge and practices to help organisations achieve g

It Outsourcing Essay -- Globalization Essays, Papers

It Outsourcing INTRODUCTION Companies are increasingly outsourcing the management of information technology (IT) for reasons that include concern for cost and quality, lagging IT performance, supplier pressure, access to special technical and application skills, and other financial factors. The outsourcing solution is acceptable to large and small firms alike because strategic alliances are now more common and the IT environment is changing rapidly. REASON TO OUTSOURCE Although the mix of factors raising the possibility of outsourcing varies widely from one company to another, there are a series of themes that explain most of the pressures to outsource. First of all, general managers’ concerns about cost and quality drive outsourcing. The same issues such as getting existing services for a reduced price at acceptable quality standard came up repeatedly. Second, failure to meet service standards can force management to find other ways of achieving reliability. It is not atypical to find a company in which cumulative IT management neglect eventually culminated in an out-of-control situation the current IT department could not recover from. Management can see outsourcing as a way to fix a broken department. Third, a firm under intense cost or competitive pressures, which does not see IT as its core competence, may find outsourcing a way to delegate time-consuming, messy problems so it can focus scarce management time and energy on other differentiators. Next, several financial issues can make outsourcing appealing. One is the opportunity to liquidate the firm’s intangible IT asset, thus strengthening the balance sheet and avoiding a stream of sporadic capital investments in the future. Also, outsourcing can turn a largely fixed-cost business into one with variable costs. This is particularly important for firms whose activities vary widely in volume from one year to another or which face significant downsizing. THE BENEFITS FROM OUTSOURCING Outsourcing has identified numerous potential benefits. Financial benefits from outsourcing included rapid funding of new systems development and economies of scale and scope. As consolidate infrastructure through IT outsourcing, a firm can experience cost reductions in hardware and software licensing, facilities, and support headcount. Outsourcing, also, can capitalize on an outside ve... ...s not had experience in partnering activities before, the relationship can develop profound tensions. The evolution of technologies often changes the strategic relevance of IT service to a firm. From the customer’s viewpoint, assigning a commodity service to an outsider is very attractive if the price is right. Delegating a firm’s service differentiator is another matter. The customer that made the original decision on efficiency will judge it differently if using effectiveness criteria later. CONCLUSION IT outsourcing has so many positive effects for a company even though it still contains various problem needed to be solved. In the Internet age, any company may want to focus its internal staff on moving it to the environment that will support them tomorrow and outsourcing could be one of the best solutions. Also, outsourcing is really more of an integration of two separate businesses to be successful. Both want to take the best parts of each culture and put them together. In addition, critical success factors including existence of a multi-years, corporate commitment to the IM strategy and outsourcing, and quality culture and attitude should be considered in outsourcing.

Homer’s Iliad - The Shield of Achilles Essay -- Iliad essays

Homer’s Iliad - The Shield of Achilles Homer devotes the final passages of Book 18 of The Iliad to the description of the shield of Achilles. Only a quarter of the description concerns warfare, the essential grist of the epic. Instead, the bulk of the description presents a peaceful society and rural idylls, a curious choice for the most ferocious warrior of the Greeks, and an odd thing for both armies to fear. A narrative emerges from the scenes of the shield, and it is this that fits Achilles and repulses everyone else. We expect Achilles’ shield to unsettle his adversaries—that is, after all, one of the objectives of a shield. Indeed, Achilles returns to battle "shining in all his armour, a man like the murderous war god" (Iliad 20.46).1 Once he and Hektor are alone on the battlefield, the shield shines: like that star which comes on in the autumn and whose conspicuous brightness far outshines the stars that are numbered in the night’s darkening, the star they give the name of Orion’s Dog, which is brightest among the stars, and yet is wrought as a sign of evil and brings on the great fever for unfortunate mortals. (22.26-31) We need not wonder, then, when Priam and Hecuba supplicate Hektor to return to Troy in the face of this practically cosmic onslaught. But what is unusual is that Achilles’ own men avoid the shield: "None had the courage / to look straight at it. They were afraid of it" (19.14-15). Here even the narration relies on the pronoun "it" instead of explicitly identifying the shield as the source of... ...ictory. If Achilles had chosen to leave, not only would he have been a good son, but the Trojans might have won the war, meaning both he and Priam would have had something to which they could look forward, and three-fourths of the shield’s story would not have been left unfulfilled. In staying, he contributes not only to his own demise, but also to that of the Trojans. This knowledge causes "the anger to come harder upon him" (19.16), and yet "he was glad" (19.18). The great dilemma of Achilles is forever immortalized on his shield, so that some lesser man in the future would be able to read the narrative upon it and say: "This armor was Achilles’, a man who forfeited the rest of his life for grim combat. The gods do not force most men to choose like that." NOTES 1. Homer, The Iliad, trans. Richmond Lattimore (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1951).

Harshness of the time Essay

‘Of Mice and Men’ has been described as a novel about the harshness of the time. What justifications can you find for this? ‘Of Mice and Men’ is set in 1930’s America, an extremely prejudiced area of history. It is a time that criticises and excludes women, black people, disabled people and old people, deeming them useless within a utilitarian society. In the novel, Steinbeck represents the harsh prejudices, poverty and injustice with the life of itinerant workers, a microcosm of American society at this time. Firstly, the way in which Steinbeck describes the bunkhouse of the ranch immediately seems to suggest a harsh environment in which people are forced to live and work in: â€Å"†¦ the walls were whitewashed and the floor unpainted†¦ a solid door with a wooden latch†¦ † This description of the ranch suggests a purely utilitarian approach to life, showing a living area with no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. It shows no dignity towards the workers, and what’s more they don’t complain about its lack of appeal. This gives the impression that ranch workers live with no inspiration, seemingly being forced to live a life purely to survive it rather than enjoy it. The â€Å"door with a wooden latch† and general unloved atmosphere gives a prison-like sense to the bunkhouse, conveying a sense of loneliness and isolation. This lack of communication and friendship could be interpreted as an extremely harsh thing to deal with. In addition to this, the severe racism portrayed by Steinbeck through the character Crooks is just one example of the harsh prejudice that disadvantaged people face in this novel: â€Å"†¦ he [the boss] give the stable buck hell, too†¦ ya see the stable buck’s a nigger. † Crooks is constantly referred to as â€Å"a nigger†, and characters in the novel react to this as a completely normal comment to make, which we see when George reacts to this name with â€Å"Nigger, huh? â€Å". The fact that the ranch is racially segregated is quite surprising for numerous reasons. The novel is set in the West where racism was considered to be less intense, as well as the fact that Steinbeck conveys the ‘American dream’ as a theme in the novel, suggesting that anyone can make it in America and â€Å"live off the fatta the land†. However it is clear that black people are restricted from succeeding here and this irony merely emphasises the harshness of reality for black people during this period in time. In addition to this, the prejudices that women face present the times the novel is set in to be extremely harsh, often through Curley’s wife: â€Å"She put her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward† The novel does not even dignify Curley’s wife with a name, as she is merely referred to as the wife of Curley or simply just â€Å"a tart†, which suggests that they live in a somewhat patriarchal society where women are seen as purely sex objects. This would suggest that women are not allowed to aspire to better things, and live their lives as commodities of men. Another problem that they face is the fact that the only power they can achieve is through their sexuality, but if they choose to expose this, they are criticised for being promiscuous, emphasising the harshness they have to cope with. Furthermore, Whit’s story of â€Å"Bill Tenner† who got his letter put into a magazine is one of great interest to the ranch-workers, especially Whit, which tells us something about their dreams and aspirations: â€Å"Bill Tenner? Worked here about three months ago†¦ That’s the guy! Here, Steinbeck portrays a certain excitement within Whit, which we see from the exclamation â€Å"That’s the guy! † and this has arisen purely from the fact that one man who he barely knew (as ranch-workers moved from place to place often) had accomplished something that he had dreamed of. This shows a huge lack of ambition among the workers, from the fact that the only excitement for these workers has come from a mere acquaintance of Whit’s name being printed in a â€Å"pulp magazine†, which was a piece of inexpensive fiction. This is not only quite pathetic, but also extremely saddening to see grown men become energised by something so seemingly trivial. Although people living in this time period and circumstances would not necessarily see this as harsh, looking at it from today’s perspective, in contrast it most definitely seems like an austere environment. In conclusion, the harsh living conditions, inhibitions and prejudices that the majority of the disadvantaged ranch-workers must live with have a clear correlation to the state of American society during The Great Depression of the 1930’s. Steinbeck seems to have created a character for each type of harshness that was experienced, for example, Curley’s wife corresponds to sexism, and Candy corresponds to old and disabled people, all of which creates an accurate impression of the harshness of the times that ‘Of Mice and Men’ is set in.

How Should Waste Be Disposed Of Environmental Sciences Essay

This research is to larn and open our head about the waste in our environment and how to cut down or dispose the waste right. This is of import because our Earth is acquiring covered with a waste. The article below show the cogent evidence. The UK produces more than 434 million metric tons of waste every twelvemonth. Every twelvemonth UK families throw off the equivalent of 3 ? million bus coachs ( about 30 million metric tons ) , a waiting line of which would stretch from London to Sydney ( Australia ) and back. On norm, each individual in the UK, throws off seven times their organic structure weight ( about 500kg ) in trash every twelvemonth. ? I would strongly believe the Earth would truly appreciate and thankful to hold homos who know how to cut down or dispose the waste with a right manner. Introduction The dumping of waste at suited sites around the state is the usual agencies of disposal worldwide. It may be the quickest and the cheapest manner to acquire rid of waste but it is non a solution to the job of waste disposal. Indeed, at times is has led to major catastrophes. Landfill is an operation where the waste is used to make full up digging or natural hollow in the land. A shit may be good served but non ever. In the UK, possibly 90 % of all waste including toxic and other unsafe waste is still disposed of by landfill. ? So we need to halt shit the waste and make a proper manner to dispose all the waste. This is to forestall the land H2O pollution. As a consequences, we need to recycle all the wastes. Recycling is a processing used stuffs into new merchandises in order to forestall waste of potentially utile stuffs, cut down the ingestion of fresh natural stuffs, cut down energy use, cut down air pollution, H2O pollution and lower nursery gas. The commence waste that we can recycle are fictile, steel, gum elastic, glass, wood, paper and so on. Different waste difference type and method of recycle. Plastic Plastic is one of the most material waste around the universe. Plastic is light weight and versatile, doing it an ideal stuff for many applications. When we recycle the plastic, we will cut down the volume of waste traveling into the landfill, reduces the sum of oil used for fictile production and reduces the sum of energy consumed. We need to recycle plastic because plastic can take up to 500 old ages to break up. One metric ton of plastics is tantamount to 20,000 two litre drinks bottles or 120,000 bearer bags.? Presents, the demand and used of plastic are acquiring addition. Most of them are seeking to alter the used of other stuff to plastic. For illustration, autos are progressively utilizing fictile constituents in an attempt to cut down vehicle weight and better fuel ingestion. Then, nutrient is being repackaged in plastic instead than glass or Sn in order to cut down weight and merchandise harm. Chameleon. Internet ( 2004 ) Waste Online, Available at hypertext transfer protocol: //www.wasteonline.org.uk Walter, J.K. and Wint, A. ( 1981 ) , Industrial Effluent Treatment, UK, Allied Science Publishers.. The considerable growing in plastic usage is due to the good belongingss of plastics. These include: Extreme versatility and ability to be tailored to run into really specific proficient demands. Lighter weight than viing stuffs, cut downing fuel ingestion during transit. Extreme lastingness. Resistance to chemicals, H2O and impact. Good safety and hygiene belongingss for nutrient packaging. Excellent thermal and electrical insularity belongingss. Relatively cheap to bring forth. However, the are a batch type of plastics such as Polyethylene Terephthalate, High Density Polyethylene, Polyvinyl Chloride, Low Density Polyethylene, Polypropylene, Polystyrene and many more. Different plastic have different strength, stamina, denseness, runing point, life clip and utilizations. Some can be make for nutrient container and some ca n't because incorporate chemical and toxic. Some can be make for utilizing in high force per unit area and high temperature. The following tabular array illustrates the most common types of plastics used, their applications and the symbol which is frequently used to place them on signifiers of plastic packaging. Polymer Types Examples of applications Symbol Polyethylene Terephthalate Fizzy drink, H2O bottles, salad trays, medical specialty containers High Density Polyethylene Milk bottles, bleach, cleaners and most shampoo bottles. Polyvinyl Chloride Pipes, adjustments, window and door frames ( stiff PVC ) , thermic insularity ( PVC froth ) and automotive parts. Low Density Polyethylene Carrier bags, bin line drives, boxing movies. Polypropylene Margarine bath, microwaveable repast trays, besides produced as fibers and fibrils for rugs, wall coverings Polystyrene Yoghurt pots, foam beefburger boxes and egg cartons, fictile cutter, protective packaging for electronic goods and playthings. Insulating stuff in the edifice and building industry. Unallocated Mentions Any other plastics that do non fall into any of the above classs – for illustration polycarbonate which is frequently used in glazing for the aircraft industry Table 1. Type of plastic, application and symbol ? Plastic recycling procedure There are three cardinal factors when believing about how to recycle – The 3 R ‘s: Figure 1. 4 Recycling is an first-class manner of salvaging energy and conserving the environment because 1 recycled fictile bottle can salvage adequate energy to power a 60-watt visible radiation bulb for 3 hours. 4 To make the recycle procedure, there are a few stairss such as shredding, dividing, runing and remanufacturing. These are the common measure to make the recycle procedure but different type of plastic required different measure of remanufacturing. Shreding Figure 2. 4 Shreding is a cutting procedure. We will set all the fictile waste into a shredding machine and the machine will tear up the waste until it ‘s become little pieces or grain. WRAP ( 2008 ) Plastic type, Available at hypertext transfer protocol: //www.wrap.org.uk/manufacturing/info_by_material/plastic/types_of_plastic.html 4 FUBRA LIMITED ( 2003-2008 ) Recycle at place, Available at hypertext transfer protocol: //www.recycling-guide.org.uk/rrr.html Separating Figure 3. 4 There are 3 phases of dividing. Blowing, drifting and centrifution. Once we finish tear uping all the waste, we will make a blowing procedure. This procedure is to take all the unwanted igniter stuffs such as paper labels and mulcts. Before the grains go into a floating procedure, it must travel into a scrubber machine. During this procedure, the grain will be washed with a particular detergent. This is to take the nutrient that might stay on the inside surface of bottles or containers, gum that is used at the label ‘s containers and any soil that might be present. After that, it will travel into drifting container. In this container, the grain will be drain with H2O. Then we will see that all the heavier grain like Polyethylene Terephthalate ( PET ) will be sink while the lighter grain like Polypropylene ( PP ) and High Density Polyethylene ( HDPE ) will be drifting at the top. So, we have separated the different type of plastic. The last measure of separating is a centrifution. This measure is similar with a blowing procedure. Melting Figure 4. 4 Once we done separated the fictile base on their group, we have to run it. Different group require different thaw point. For illustration, the thaw point for HDPE is 130-135 & A ; deg ; C while the thaw point for LDPE is around 110-115 & A ; deg ; C. After that, it will travel into a chilling procedure and will be cut to go a little flake. This flake is called ‘pallet ‘ . Pallet is a fictile natural stuff and this procedure is called ‘repelletizing ‘ . 4 FUBRA LIMITED ( 2003-2008 ) Recycle at place, Available at hypertext transfer protocol: //www.recycling-guide.org.uk/rrr.html Remanufacturing Figure 5. Injecting mould 4 Figure 6. Calendaring 4 This is a last measure before the wastes become a new merchandise. Once once more, there are many type of remanufacturing such as injection mold, blow mold, calendaring, extruder, thermoforming and many more. Most of the plastic merchandises are made by injection molding. Example of the merchandises are fork, spoon, home base, bowl, toys, disc casing and many more. Blow mold is merely for green goods bottles and the calendaring is for doing a fictile sheet. Extruder is a procedure to do a long tubing or hosiery. Future development Plastic being used widely for our day-to-day needs – plastic bag, nutrient container, bottle, packaging, etc. Therefore, a batch of plastic is required and there should be new coevals, development and uninterrupted research to counterbalance with today ‘s life style. Invention is really indispensable to procure a strong hereafter for the interest of environmental protection and the sustainability of merchandises based from plastic. Therefore, technology company will be given to plan more sophisticated machine which can recycle the plastic with assortment of advantages in footings of quality of merchandise, cost of production and clip consuming. Beside that, we besides have to believe about a new merchandise made by plastic in order to replace other merchandise which have been made by other stuff such as steel. For illustration, auto organic structure. Currently, about 95 % of the auto organic structure in the universe utilizing steel and merely 5 % is utilizing C fiber. This is because, the cost to bring forth the C fiber is so high. As a consequence, we need to make a research to better the plastic capableness. Once we archive the hereafter program, we will be able to increase the demand of plastic. Stating that point, authorities may be can do an offer to purchase a fictile waste from people. As a consequences, people are seeking to maintain their fictile waste and sell it. In the other manus, we are non merely can cut down the waste but we manage to bring forth some gross. Decision Recycling is the best solution for waste direction and to derive sustainability stuff. It is non easy to develop new engineerings and methods for recycle. Therefore, allow us made usage of it sagely and pull off this waste decently even though the utilizations of plastic is acquiring higher. 4 FUBRA LIMITED ( 2003-2008 ) Recycle at place, Available at hypertext transfer protocol: //www.recycling-guide.org.uk/rrr.html

Joesph Cambell Four Functions of a Mtyh

Seyed Maghloubi (Historical Mythology) Joseph Campbell explains the following four functions of a myth. Its metaphysical function is to awaken us to the mystery and wonder of creation, to open our minds and our senses to an awareness of the mystical â€Å"ground of being,† the source of all phenomena. Its cosmological function is to describe the â€Å"shape† of the cosmos, the universe, our total world, so that the cosmos and all contained within it become vivid and alive for us, infused with meaning and significance; every corner, every rock, hill, stone, and flower has its place and its meaning in the cosmological scheme which the myth provides. Its sociological function is to pass down â€Å"the law,† the moral and ethical codes for people of that culture to follow, and which help define that culture and its prevailing social structure. Its pedagogical function is to lead us through particular rites of passage that define the various significant stages of our lives-from dependency to maturity to old age, and finally, to our deaths, the final passage. The rites of passage bring us into harmony with the â€Å"ground of being† and allow us to make the journey from one stage to another with a sense of comfort and purpose. The mystical experience, the core spiritual journey that envisions God, has always been a tough experience to communicate. Some would say it's impossible to communicate. Others would say that this is the primary function of myth-to find a way to communicate whatever mystical insight has been gained on the journey: an understanding of the mysteries that underlie the universe; an appreciation of its wonders; the sense of awe or rapture experienced. Since these things can't be communicated by direct means, myth speaks in a language of metaphors, of symbols, and symbolic narratives that aren't bound by objective reality. Some believe that the mystical experience is what gives birth to metaphoric language, metaphoric thinking. In our post-Enlightenment western world, we have decidedly turned to science to tell us what the â€Å"shape of the world is. † Originally, however, myth performed this function, explaining the cultural history, religion, class structure, origin, even the origin of the geographical features in the surrounding landscape. A myth describes the shape of the world, and infuses each part of that world with meaning and significance. And though a mythic tale may seem literally false in our world today, it was once considered true, and it still expresses a metaphorical truth. Campbell explains that the sociological function of myth is to support and validate a particular social order. The myth will make it clear who is in charge, what ethical code is appropriate, what the institutional rituals will be. The problem is that these codes are fixed, like the natural order, for all time; they are not subject to change. Our myths, according to Campbell, are seriously outdated. Changing time require new myths, and since our times are changing so very rapidly, the myth-making function can't keep up. As a result, we are practically myth-less. Campbell felt we needed to expand into much more than we presently have. This is the aspect of myth that teaches us how to pass into and live all the differing stages of our lives. Our myths (as religion) give us rituals to live by, rites of passage to accomplish. We learn how to look at the world, at ourselves, from birth till death. Because he felt they were all true, Campbell believed myth could teach us important lessons about how to live.