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Governments of the World Essay - 1271 Words

Many different forms of government have existed throughout civilization. Theocracy, dictatorships, democracy, and many others have all had periods of time where they reigned as the government of choice. Arguments could be made in favor of each form of government. The key to finding the most viable form of government is to consider this: which form of government provides the most stability for the state? The stability of the state is based upon the foundation of the government. Shaky foundations lead to short-lived or miserable nations. Governments based upon religion, birthrights, or one man generally do not have solid foundations. The greatest foundation a government can have is the support of its citizens. Governments which cater to†¦show more content†¦The two dominant forms of government are democracy and authoritarianism. The two socio-economic policies are capitalism and communism. Democracy is a form of government which dominates the western world. In democracy, every person is given equal input into matters of the state, although this does happen to varying degrees. There exist many different types of democracy. Absolute or direct democracy occurs when each citizen personally participates in all decision-making processes. This system is difficult to maintain due to the vast number of people and the necessity for all people to be informed, logical, and educated when making many decisions. This form of democracy has not existed in significant sized populations. Representative democracy is a type of government in which the people elect government officials to make decisions concerning the state. The two most prevalent types of representative democracy are democratic republics and parliamentary democracies. In a democratic republic, such as the United States or Canada, the people elect both their representatives in government and their head of state. In a parliamentary democracy, such as the United Kingdom or Australia, the people elect their repre sentatives and their representatives elect their head of state. Authoritarianism is a form of government in which the leader or leaders have exclusive power concerning matters of the state. Although these leadersShow MoreRelatedBrave New World Government1086 Words   |  5 PagesGovernment: this word is used to define the system that maintains the state and her people. This system is run by officials who, hopefully, have the nation s best interest at heart; but these best interests for a country often find themselves conflicting in their particular perspectives. In the novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, the government has chosen to preserve the interest of state and this dystopia is the result of mankind choosing the wrong faction in the conflict of interest. To clarifyRead MoreWorld War II : A Totalitarian Government Essay1646 Words   |  7 PagesWorld War II began in 1939, ignited by Germany invading Poland. A reoccurring theme throughout WWII and its controversy lies in the political system behind many countries. The totalitarian form of government began with the reign of Joseph Stalin, the dictator of The Soviet Union, and Adolf Hitler, the dictator of Germany. A totalitarian government is known as a society that is run by a dictator, but not all dictatorships are from a totalitarian government (4.). Those living in a totalitarian societyRead MoreThe Greatest Impacts Of The World On Theology And Government2115 Words   |  9 PagesTwo of the greatest impacts one can have on the world are those on theology and government; since its origin, one’s religion had dictated his/her decisions, actions, and basic routines of daily life and a nation’s government affects the many people living under it, controlling them. Historically, these two areas of impact have been rarely been any less significant. Thus, even in their own times, medieval German religious leader and founder of the Protestant Church, Martin Luther and ancient ChineseRead Mor eGovernment Censorship and Control in Brave New World1747 Words   |  7 Pagescitizens have forfeited all personal liberties for government protection and stability; Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, explores a civilization in which this hypothetical has become reality. The inevitable trade-off of citizens’ freedoms for government protection traditionally follows periods of war and terror. The voluntary degradation of the citizens’ rights begins with small, benign steps to full, totalitarian control. Major methods for government control and censorship are political, religiousRead MoreGovernment Control Of 1984 And Brave New World1653 Words   |  7 PagesGovernment Control in 1984 and Brave New World In light of current events, society is more concerned than ever about just how much power the government has over people. Individuals are concerned that those in charge might implement policies that could deteriorate certain groups’ quality of living. To some, this may be foolish, but as is shown in some novels, this could happen, and when it does, it is hard to combat. In both George Orwell’s 1984 and Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World authors depictRead MoreUse Of Social Media By Governments Across The World932 Words   |  4 PagesUse of social media by governments across the world Many governments worldwide have a presence on social media but with different approaches to use. For instance, the actual executive institutions may not have an active presence, but the heads of state have social media accounts, for example, the president of the United States created a Twitter account for the president @POTUS, separate from @Whitehouse and @Barackobama. In some instances, the world leaders are more conversational than the institutionsRead MoreHow Globalization is Changing World Governments Compared to Plato and Aristotles Government2544 Words   |  11 PagesThe way the government structure is organized has been changing ever since humans began to live in a polis. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle believed that humans were political animals, thus the reason for organizing ourselves into a political state. However the way governments are organized, and which political system works best has been the centrepiece for many violent conflicts in the past, and will co ntinue to challenge the world into the future. Yet a new form of organization is takingRead MoreA Transparent World: Government Involvement in Citizen Affairs554 Words   |  3 Pagescommunity we live in today, there is much controversy over the appropriate level of government involvement in citizen affairs. As of late, government agencies like the United States’ National Security Agency (NSA) and Great Britain’s Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), among others, have been monitoring the phone records and internet activity of people in every corner of the world (Eaton). These governments believe that in order to maintain a safe environment for citizens at home, they mustRead MoreThe West German Government And World War II754 Words   |  4 PagesThe perspective the West German government and society took when evaluating how to deal with the atrocities of World War II was one of understanding and acceptance. The West German people believed that learning from past mistakes and blunders of German government prevails over negligence and silence to the actions that took place. However, there was a major obstacle in the way of maintaining the peoples ability to start anew and accept the past. This obstacle was the ten thousand prisoners of warRead More An Outline Structure of Democratic World Government Essay4495 Words   |  18 PagesAn Outline Structure of Democratic World Government Introduction - problems and benefits of World Government The idea of world government has not received a good press for many years. It tends to make most of us think of Stalinist dictators and fascist domination of the globe. I wish to argue, though, that there is a viable form of democratic world government which could bring many benefits. A democratic world government that really worked would lead to a major increase in the freedom

Environmental conservation Essay Example For Students

Environmental conservation Essay An Environmental conservation Essayist, which is also known as a conservation scientist, is an excellent job for anyone who loves nature and wants to preserve all of earths natural wonders. As a conservationist you need to, Find your own ways to make less trash, and help others to learn how to reduce, reuse, and recycle. (EPA). The job is a hands-on job which means spending a major portion of the workday outdoors without regard to weather. (Easton 35) Though this doesnt seem like a scientific job to most people it is because it involves calculating the outcome of certain things on the environment. The purpose of this career is to protect the environment and the people and wildlife that live in it. The profession of environmental conservationist can be narrowed to certain fields. Some people specialize in land water or soil conservation. There are others who live for addressing environmental racism, or the tendency to condone poorer environmental conditions (hazardous waste dumps, illegal/abandoned dumps) in areas populated mainly by people of color. (Morkes 187) It is required that you at least have a bachelors degree to hold this job. Many people have Masters as well. Generally, your pay depends on which degree you hold. Those who held doctorates has an average pay of 52,162 dollars. Those who held their Berry 2 doctorate in research for this field had a higher salary which has a median of 61,451 dollars. In 2000, the median pay was $47,140 (Easton 90) This is a career which is neither gender nor location specific. People with this career tend to travel to where the problem areas are, which is why it isnt location specific. The problem areas depend on which field someone specializes in. Both men and women hold this job. There isnt a part of the job which requires either a male or a female to perform its task. This job involves a lot of treating, teaching, listening, counseling, problem solving/creativity, designing, inventing, drawing/writing, and developing ideas or programs. (Easton 35) It obviously requires a lot of hands on work as well as mental work, which is demonstrated in the problem solving/creativity, designing, inventing Easton 35) In addition to the required hands-on work, this is not a job for someone who cannot work on a team. You have to be able to work with other people because working as part of a team and working toward a shared goal is mandatory. Environmental Conservation is labeled as a field that is hazardous, because as an Environmental conservationist, you are working with infectious materials, or where accidents are common. (Easton 35) To perform this job, you need a lot of initiative because you need to determine what needs to be done and often it can be a life or death situation for people and/or animals. It is easy to get burned out in this career, due to enduring long-term stress and strain. (Easton 35) This is not a job people can have for a short time. This a career that people commit their whole lives to. Berry 3 People with degrees in this field can be employed by local, state or federal governments. It is also likely to be hired by an organization such as the EPA( the Environmental Protection Agency). Through 2010, Growth will be strongest in state and local government thanks to efforts to protect the environment. Growth will probably be less at the federal level, despite growing need in areas of soil and water conservation. (Easton 89-90) It is estimated that 2,200 new jobs (will be established) between 2000-2010. (Easton 36) The federal government currently employs most of those in his field. There are agencies set up and people are hired by these agencies which are branches of the federal government. Such agencies Bureau of Land Management, US Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service. .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 , .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 .postImageUrl , .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 , .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42:hover , .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42:visited , .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42:active { border:0!important; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42:active , .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42 .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u7061b4a0267883ad47ba41f6e3e8ef42:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Candide - Voltaire"s Writing Style Essay (Morkes 190) Even though the economy is failing and jobs are diminishing in most careers, this is a career that will still have jobs. This is a considerably young career. People have only held jobs in these fields since the 1970s. On April 22, 1970, more than 20 million people participated in demonstrations, attended teach-ins, and listened to speeches about the environment. It was, at this time, .

The Biography of Socrates Essays - Socratic Dialogues, Socrates

The most interesting and influential philosopher of all time was Socrates, whose dedication to careful reasoning transformed the entire history of philosophy. Since he sought genuine knowledge rather than mere victory over an opponent, he familiarized himself with the rhetoric and dialectics of the Sophists, the speculations of the Lonian philosophers, and the general culture of Periclean Athens. Socrates employed the same logical tricks developed by the Sophists to a new purpose, the pursuit of truth. Thus, his willingness to call everything into question and his determination to accept nothing less than an adequate account of the nature of things make him the first clear exponent of critical philosophy. Although he was well known during his own time for his conversational skills and public teaching, Socrates wrote nothing, so we are dependent upon his students, like Kenophon and Plato, for any detailed knowledge of his methods and results. Plato was also a philosopher who often injected his own theories into the dialogues he presented to the world as discussions between Socrates and other famous figures of the day. Nevertheless, it is usually assumed that at least the early dialogues of Plato provide a fairly accurate representation of Socrates himself. Socrates profoundly affected Western philosophy through his influence on Plato. Born in Athens in 469 BC to the son of Sophroniscus, a sculptor, and Phaenarete, a midwife, Socrates received the regular elementary education in literature, music, and other areas of the arts. Initially, Socrates followed the craft of his father; according to a former tradition, he executed a statue group of the three Graces, which stood at the entrance to the Acropolis until the 2nd century AD. In the Peloponnesian War with Sparta he served as an infantryman with conspicuous bravery at the battles of Potidaea in 432-430BC, Delium in 424BC, and Amphipolis in 422BC. Socrates believed in the superiority of argument over writing and therefore spent the greater part of his adult life in the marketplace and public places of Athens, engaging in dialogue and argument with anyone who would listen or who would submit to interrogation. Even though Socrates was unattractive and short in stature he was extremely hardy and self-controlled. He enjoyed life immensely and achieved social popularity because of his ready wit and a keen sense of humor that was completely devoid of satire or cynicism. Socrates attitude toward politics was obedient, but generally steered clear of politics, restrained by what he believed to be divine warning. He believed that he had received a call to pursue philosophy and could serve his country best by devoting himself to teaching, and by persuading the Athenians to engage in self-examination and in tending to their souls. He didn't write any books and established no regular school of philosophy. All that is known, with certainty about his personality and his way of thinking is derived from the works of two of his distinguished scholars: Plato and the historian Xenophon, a prosaic writer who probably failed to understand many of Socrates' doctrines. Plato portrayed Socrates as hiding behind an ironical profession of ignorance, known as Socratic irony, and possessing a mental acuity and resourcefulness that enabled him to penetrate arguments with great facility. Socrates' contribution to philosophy was essentially ethical in character. Belief in a purely objective understanding of such concepts as justice, love, and virtue, and the self-knowledge that he inculcated, were the basis of his teachings. He believed that all vice is the result of ignorance, and that no person is willingly bad; correspondingly, virtue is knowledge, and those who know the right will act rightly. His logic placed particular emphasis on rational argument and the quest for general definitions, as evidenced in the writings of his younger contemporary and pupil, Plato, and of Plato's pupil, Aristotle. Another thinker befriended and influenced by Socrates was Antisthenes, the founder of the Cynic school of philosophy. Socrates was also the teacher of Aristippus, who founded the Cyrenaic philosophy of experience and pleasure, from which developed the more lofty philosophy of Epicures. To such Stoics as the Greek philosopher Epictetus, the Roman philosopher Seneca the Elder, and the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, Socrates appeared as the very embodiment and guide of the higher

The Great Gatsby-Concerning Political Issues of 1920 essays

The Great Gatsby-Concerning Political Issues of 1920 essays The Great Gatsby was a great American novel that marks many controversial social and political issues of the early twentieth century in history. The issues at hand are directly targeted to the upper class tier of the American society. Of the many class issues that exist in the novel the ones that stand out the most are socially defined levels of class conflict, disillusionment of the youth because of World War One, and the youths disregard for Victorian morality. Love is a very powerful human emotion that can bring people of different social standings together. In todays society love can bring people of two entirely different social classes together with very little pressure and insult from third parties to keep these people apart. For example a person who is considered lower class by todays standard, could fall in love with a person who is considered to be in the upper class tier. In todays World, it would be reasonably tolerated and respected by each persons piers, a lot more than it would be at the turn of the century. I believe that Tom and Myrtle shared a mutual love. They may have each had ulterior motives for love, for example Myrtle may have loved Tom because she believed he would wisp her away to paradise with his money. However, despite this fact I believe they did share a mutual loving relationship for each other. Myrtle, as indicated above, was very clearly lower class by that times standard. Tom on the other hand, was financially set for life, and was obviously upper class. Tom could never openly love and marry Myrtle, because it would be considered obscene. So Tom had to marry someone of his own class stature, Daisy. Daisy was likewise in the same situation as Tom. Daisy had fallen in love with another man, Gatsby. But she had to marry Tom, because if she had run away with Gatsby, who at the time was very poor, she would have lost all of her class stature and ...

Most vs. Almost

Most vs. Almost Most vs. Almost Most vs. Almost By Maeve Maddox A reader wonders why some speakers write â€Å"most everybody† when what they mean is â€Å"almost everybody.† For example: Most everyone agrees that children benefit from living with two caring parents. â€Å"Most everyone† is commonly heard in colloquial speech but is avoided in formal speech and writing because most is a superlative. Most refers to the greatest part, number, amount, or extent of something: I have finished most of my chores. Most dogs have tails. That’s the most awesome song on the album. Almost is used to convey the idea of something nearly completed or close to being finished: Mr. Henry has almost finished building the bridge. We almost won the game. Almost everyone agrees that children benefit from living with two caring parents. The objection to â€Å"most everyone,† and â€Å"most anyone† is that most applies to quantities capable of being separated. One can say â€Å"Most dogs have tails,† but not â€Å"Most dog have tails† or â€Å"Most dog have a tail.† Apart from surgery or mutilation, dog is not divisible. Neither are words like everybody, everyone, all, and any. The use of most in the following examples is nonstandard because the word is being used to qualify something that is not divisible: Incorrect: Most everyone agrees that cheating is bad. Correct: Almost everyone agrees that cheating is bad. Incorrect: I think most everybody will agree that summer flies by too fast. Correct: I think almost everybody will agree that summer flies by too fast. Incorrect: I feel like most all of my friends are fake. Correct: I feel like almost all of my friends are fake. If you find yourself writing most when what you mean is nearly or approximately, change it to almost. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:How to Structure A Story: The Eight-Point ArcDoes "Mr" Take a Period?What’s the Best Way to Refer to a Romantic Partner?

Advantages of reduced hierarchy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Advantages of reduced hierarchy - Essay Example In the past, hierarchy helped to define the role of employees within the same organization. It also outlines the relationship between employees. Hierarchy makes organizations stand out with limited control spans. Several organizations are becoming flatter, reducing levels of hierarchy and widening the span of control. There are several reasons to explain this promising trend among the hierarchical organization. However, hierarchical organizations have their share of disadvantages. First, hierarchy makes organizations assume a bureaucratic nature. This can slow the response rates to the needs of customers within the operations of the organization. Additionally, hierarchy in organizations contributes to the weakening of communication links within organizations. Furthermore, since hierarchy assumes a horizontal nature of information flow, some beneficial decisions can remain with the top of the hierarchy, making the employees at the bottom of the hierarchy disadvantaged (Fernandez & Gon zalez, 2001, p. 108). Based on these reasons, many organizations are resorting to the reduction of hierarchical levels within the organization. This paper will explore some of the advantages reduced hierarchal would benefit an organization. The need to stay profitable in the fast changing business environment has made business organizations reexamine their management styles. Organizations whose hierarchal structures are tall are less likely to respond quickly to external changes compared with entities with flatter hierarchal structures. The need to hasten the structure of management of any business enterprise requires the implementation of the process of delayering. This allows a business organization to remove some structures in its hierarchy to maintain a flatter hierarchal structure. Although this process has some disadvantages to the business, it also has multiple benefits as well. Hierarchical organizations ensure that employees at the apex of the hierarchy enjoy greater presti ge and privileges as compared to persons at the base of the hierarchy. As much as this benefits people at the top of the hierarchy in terms of increased self-esteem, self worth and other material benefits, it also contributes to the disorientation of the employees at the bottom of the hierarchy. As a result, these people will feel disadvantaged due to increased feelings of low self-esteem, limited or lack of access to handouts and low self worth. Consequently, their output would drastically reduce. Consequently, the productivity of the organization would equally reduce as well. It is necessary that organizations reduce their hierarchal levels to reverse this trend (Wallgrun, 2010, p. 119). Hierarchy in organizations ensure that somebody at the top only deal with the person who is directly under him or her. This implies that a top manager would not likely communicate directly with individuals at the bottom of the hierarchy. A hierarchy has several levels meaning that people only work with persons that are immediately below or above them. In case where a certain decision is supposed to reach everyone in the organization, this process would be so unyielding and time consuming. This is because the hierarchy does not address people directly by the top management. However, reducing the multiple levels of hierarchy would help to quicken the flow of information within the organization besides ensuring that little distortion to the information happens. The reduction of hierarchal levels within business organizations would ensure that employees get the opportunity to communicate with each other. This enhances teamwork besides creating a good working atmosphere for the organization.

Uustal 1993 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Uustal 1993 - Essay Example Decision models coupled with the right moral thinking offer a useful tool for guidance for the process of value clarification. In addition, the Uustal model prevents the nurses from solely relying on their emotions and intuition for the making of any critical decision. The model outlines formal steps for the nurses to follow when they encounter an ethical dilemma (Uustal 1993). For the purpose of this paper, the Uustal model details the dilemma that I once faced concerning my civil repression after pushing a colleague off the staircases. It focuses on whether the actions may have been rational and reasonable at that particular time. The welfare of others forms a critical part of my daily activities as a nurse. In this instance, my civil detention for the purpose mental health treatment and evaluation seemed like the sole right course. On the contrary, the system does not look for the danger posed by the nurses to the people around them. By healthcare laws, it is everyone’s right to work in any of the health institutions.  I was provoked by my fellow nurse, Johnston Lambert, who I even unsuccessfully tried to warn, but he incessantly kept whispering abuses and offensive word to me. Unfortunately, I lost my temper and turned violent on his cunning nature. He kept taunting the other nurses who before my arrival had grown very scared of his antics. Utilitarianism theory state that the outcome determines whether an action is right or wrong. In accordance with this, I was boldly trying to defend my dignity and sense of self-worth. Apparently, Johnston Lambert faces a series of federal cases filed by the nurses that he had bullied and harassed. Retrospectively, the concerns raised by the senior staff indicate that there would have been another better way that the whole issues would have been. The board issued me a verbal reprimand for my actions. Consequently, I received a transfer from the nursing home to my current workplace. It

New businesses Essay Example for Free

New businesses Essay Consistent findings have imperatively indicated that the correlation between firm entry and survival is negative. Out of every one hundred new businesses introduced in the UK, 50 percent of them become obsolete before their third anniversary. Such high attrition levels are not only evident UK in alone but also in most modern economies and can be said to be a generic rule of thumb. Just why is it that so many nascent firms end up accomplishing little or nothing before they finally become extinct? Is it that their owners do not put enough efforts into the business development or are there other internal and external causes of this prevalent occurrence of business failure? Many theories have been put forth to explain the possible causes of the high rates of new business failure. It is not surprising that major diagnoses of the root causes of low survival rate in new businesses identify management inefficiency as one of the causes of the high attrition levels. Policy makers have also been blamed for recommending entrepreneurship as the solution to rejuvenating the economy yet little is done to educate people on what to expect amid globalization pressures, competition and technological changes that are likely to impact on the business survival. Other theories put forward include the supportive environment thesis, nature of activity and industry theory. Firm survival can however be properly classified in three explanatory dimensions: The firms specific characteristics; Operational factors and the business cycle. This paper explores the characteristics of business failure under these three dimensions and at the same time introduces a discussion on how entrepreneurs can enhance their businesss chances of survival by providing possible solutions to the low levels of survival witnessed in infant businesses. II. Analysis a) Definitions Birth of the firm: The introduction of a business marks the birth of a firm. This may actually start when the idea of the business is borne. Consequent activities such as registering the company, acquiring premises and capital are secondary elements in the birth of a business. Survival of the firm: Survival of the firm refers to its ability to withstand internal and external pressures to meet the objectives for which it was established. Survival determines whether a firm makes it through its lifetime or whether it fails and consequently exits the market. Death of the firm: This denotes the final stage in a business at a point where nothing can be done to revive the business and the only solution is complete closure. Termination of the firm as a legal entity: This means that the business is no longer recognized by the law. It means that a business in the context of the law is no longer operational and it is therefore not liable to debts, taxes among other liabilities to stakeholders. b) New Firms Survival Literature New businesses in the UK have in the past shown high levels of business failures witnessed within the first three years of inception. According to Caliendo and Fossen (2009: 154) at least fifty out of every one hundred new businesses introduced did not make it to their third birthday. A study by the DTI Small Business Service from 1995 to 2004 reveals that these failures are actually vary with industries which could be attributed to the various conditions that exist in these sectors (DTI, 2007: 13). On average, 82% of new businesses established survived the first year in business. Improvement has been recorded and by 2004, an average of 58% of new businesses survived the first three years over all the sectors. Detailed survey results are shown in table 1 and 2. c) Why Half of Nascent Firms Fail: The Survival Explanatory Dimensions 1) Firm Specific Characteristics i)Managerial Organization Discernible management errors and high incidents of poor management highly contribute to the low survival rates of newly established firms. The death of many firms is mostly characterized by management which has turned out to be reactionary. Inefficient decision making and inadequate or non-existent planning will have contributed to the failure of the business in at least 30 percent of nascent firms (Phillips, 2004: 68-70). Veronique and Wever (2000: 138) note that managers inability to react to various forces affecting the business operations such as competition, technological advancements, economic trends and money issues could lead to the ultimate downfall of a business. Inadequacy in management expertise is essentially attributable for the business failure to explore alternative financing options leading to bankruptcy. ii)Inadequacy of Cash Reserves Inadequate financing comes in as a close second after poor management. New owners with little or no prior experience in business may fail to effectively predict cash flow. Miscalculation of amounts required to sustain the business before it picks up and underestimation of the costs associated with borrowing money are the major causes of financial strain (Lane and Schary, 1991: 101-103). Exhaustion of cash reserves is also likely to be influenced by poor pricing, over-investment in fixed assets and uncontrolled growth. Uncontrolled growth occurs when the owners want to take up every opportunity that comes so that at the end of it all they cannot satisfy all their customers. In this case, firms end up borrowing large amounts to meet the high demand and when the loans cannot be paid effectively, what results is collapse of the firm (Audretsch and Keilbach, 2004: 423). Other causes include over dependence on a few customers, fraud and uncontrolled drawings by the owner. iii)Poor debt management and Over-borrowing This is closely associated with cash inadequacy and it results where managers are ill-equipped in financial management. Small business owners are likely to obtain the wrong type of financing and worse still take more than the business can afford to pay (Jostarndt, 2007: 139). This may lead to borrowing loans to clear existing ones which is not a good debt management strategy. Inability to pay debts on time and lack of coordination between incoming cash and outgoing cash may lead to the business finally going bankrupt and consequently causing its death. iv)Ownership Status There are two ways of looking at this perspective: the legal ownership and the reasons for starting the business. A sole proprietorship business is more likely to fail due to financial and management problems than a partnership or a limited company. The reasons for starting the business can highly influence a firms survival. Moore and Gooderl (2008: 8-10) name two types of entrepreneurs: the opportunity entrepreneur and the necessity entrepreneur. The former establishes a business to exploit available business opportunity while the latter may start up a business for the purpose of sustaining himself probably if he cannot find a job. According to Moore and Gooderl (2008: 16-17) the opportunity entrepreneur is likely to succeed while the necessity entrepreneur may not exert enough efforts towards the business. The increased number of necessity entrepreneurs in the UK has highly increased the failure levels in new businesses. v)Personal Characteristics of the owner This mostly has to do with the attitude of the owner and the manner in which he or she applies these in the business context. Owners make a mistake of taking up all responsibilities without making use of delegation to junior employees as a result of fearing that they may not do it perfectly. Jensen (1976: 335) describes this as the challenge of letting go. Owners normally find themselves exhausted from overwork and yet do not find time to address important issues facing the business. Use of business funds by the owner can also cause detrimental effects on the business. Personal attitudes such as aggressiveness and lack of concern for the employees may cause high rate of employee turnover as well as keep away customers (Daily et al, 2002: 398-343). vi)Innovation and reaction to technological changes The world is advancing at a high rate and technology is one of the areas that a business needs to keep up with. Many new businesses fail due to being left behind in technological advancements such that they are overtaken by their competitors who take with them all the customers (Agarwal, 1996: 103-106). Innovation is one of the major tools for a successful business and this is one area that new businesses have not been able to address mainly due to lack of enough capital to come up with new products and services. viii)Poor knowledge of the market Most business owners enter the market with little knowledge about what to expect. Failing to conduct market feasibility studies limit the owners knowledge on the competitors in the market and their influence; the customers characteristics and behaviour and various market fluctuations they are likely to encounter (Covin et al, 2000: 199-206). 2) Operational factors i) Competition New businesses are often overwhelmed by the efforts required to counter competition from already existing firms. This is considering that these firms have already established their customer base and winning loyal customers could prove quite a challenging task for new businesses. Usually, dominant competitors may even device ways of putting new entrants out of business such as lowering prices and offering discounts (Covin et al, 2000: 200). Their aim is to push the new competitors until they cannot keep up with the situation such that they eventually quit. ii) Location The location of a business is a major determinant for its survival. New businesses in rural areas are likely to fail due to limited local markets and isolation. On the other hand high costs, presence of large firms and regulatory barriers pose challenges to businesses located in the urban areas (Sutaria and Donald, 2004: 250-253). 3)Changes in Business Cycle i)Macroeconomic growth and economic pressures New businesses are usually unable to handle economic shocks that may result from high interest rates, fluctuations in exchange rates and general inflation. According to David and Mahmood (1995: 89-93) not many businesses survive an economic surge or a recessionary period which may lead to skyrocketing of supply prices and high costs of borrowing. ii)Entering Cohorts exit rate Cohorts refer to groups with similar characteristics. The result of exit of similar businesses can either have a positive or negative effect on a new business. Exit may mean less competition which is an advantage. New firms however rely on one another for inspiration. A person operating a business where everyone is quitting due to one reason or another is bound to get disillusioned and have the attitude that his business may fail too (Phillips, 2004: 69-71). iii)Changes in legal environment When the laws of a country change, new businesses are likely to suffer since they are not yet stable enough to cushion themselves from such changes. Amendment of tax laws and business requirements may cause a new business to go bankrupt. d) Increasing Survival Chances Strategies to increase the chances of survival for a business entail addressing the leading causes of failure. The most fundamental requirement is the improvement of the management capabilities. When there is good management in a firm, other factors will follow suit because every operation of the business is determined by the management (Sutaria and Donald, 2004: 253-255). Improvement of communication within the business and proper sharing of duties are skills that the owners of the business need to acquire. This can be done through attending management and entrepreneurial seminars and conferences so as to learn secrets of firm survival from professionals. Proper planning is the ideal solution to financial problems. Veronique and Wever, 2000: 139-141) refers adequate anticipation of cash flow as the secret to overcoming financial problems for starters. This could be done through the help of an expert if the owner is not in a position to do so. Finding alternative sources of finance apart from the usual ones is key in preventing the collapse of a business due to lack of funds. There are many available sources of finance including bank loans, credit card advances, sale of assets among others (Moore and Gooderl, 2008: 298-299). Care should then be taken to make sure the finances are properly utilized. The firm should avoid relying on a few customers because huge losses can be felt if the customers suddenly withdraw. Instead, they should aim at a large customer base. Over-borrowing can be reduced through making proper cash forecasts and using the limited resources that the business has. In essence, the firm can adopt a steady growth over time instead of rushing to expand at once (Daily et al, 2002: 399-401). Finally, the management should be keen in managing the debts of the business keenly balancing the income and expenditure so as to cover all liabilities and debts in time. A business must clearly identify its customers and establish whether they can sustain the business effectively considering the level of competition. This can be done prior to the business establishment through a market feasibility studies while answering the following questions: How many competitors are in the area you plan to establish your business? Who will be the businesss customers and what are their buying habits? What is the level of loyalty of these potential customers to the current suppliers? Are they likely to buy your product? Is the product seasonal? Is it possible to make profit out of the business? Once these questions are answered, the likelihood of failure can be minimized as specific strategies to address the issues can be formulated (Audretsch and Thurik, 2007: 113-141). Business owners must realize that they cannot do everything by themselves. Employers can delegate and allow employees to make certain decisions. Consequently, owners will have ample time to concentrate on more important business issues such as finding new customers, getting more funds for the business as well as solving the current issues facing the business (Daily et al, 2002: 403-405). The need for long-term planning is inevitable. This involves planning for growth and transition in the future. It also involves planning for uncertainties such as loss of employees, customers and suppliers. In the wake of the high global trade advancement and changes in the market, businesses should always be alert to avoid being taken unaware by advancements in technology, innovation and changes in customer preferences and culture (Zoltan, 1988: 321). Legal changes and changes in tax systems should be catered for in the long-term business plan. The state of the economy is bound to change from time to time which is why firms must anticipate for any future economic shocks through investing in stocks, futures, options among others. Insurance is also an option for more larger firms. III. Conclusion No environment can be said to specifically favour new firms in all angles hence the need for those starting new firms to be overly cautious. Firms are most definitely exposed to numerous risks that may lead to their extinction as indicated in this discussion. Management is identified as the root cause of low survival rates among nascent firms and its improvement could work to solve the predicament presently being witnessed in new firm survival. Proper balancing of the firms cash reserves; being generally alert to any changes in the business environment; making informed decisions to deal with these changes coupled with excellent management practices is exactly what is needed to save young firms from their predicament and promote their longevity.

Comparing the Train in The South and One Hundred Years of Solitude :: comparison compare contrast essays

  Ã‚   In One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcà ­a Mà ¡rquez and "The South" by Jorge Luis Borges, many similar devices are used by the authors. Their presentations and their uses are sometimes similar and at times dissimilar. There is one device that is used by both authors that is one of the most prominent devices in both works--the train. The presentation and use of the train in both texts is different, but in both it is a method of transportation and an evil entity that is an active symbol of change.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Juan Dahlmann, the protagonist in Borges' "The South", cuts his forehead on the edge of a recently painted door and is poisoned. He is taken to a sanitarium where he makes a gradual recovery. After his release, Dahlmann takes a train to his ranch in the South for further recuperation. In One Hundred Years of Solitude, the train is brought in by Aureliano Triste, a son of Colonel Aureliano Buendà ­a, when his ice business outgrows the local market. With the coming of the train, Macondo becomes verily linked to the outside world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The train in "The South" is presented as a sleek, mystical, and evil entity. Before Dahlmann leaves for his ranch, he visits a cafà © where there is a black cat, sleeping. It is almost as if it is lying in waiting for something. The cat is described as "the magical animal"(1). Immediately following is a description of the train, which is described as being lying waiting. A connection between the mystical animal and the mechanical train has been established. The train has become a mystical beast. It begins to move when Dahlmann gets on, it stops to let him off, it takes him where it feels. The beast decides Dahlmann's fate. Cats are often seen as beasts of evil omen. The linking of cat and train brings an evil aspect to the train.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In One Hundred Years of Solitude, the train is presented as concrete and real, but terrifying and with a malevolent, living connection: the snake. There is no mystical imagery and sleekness surrounding it. Instead, it's plain and simple, just "the flower-bedecked train."(2) The first Macondian to see it describes it as "something frightful, like a kitchen dragging a village behind it."(3) The train has "a whistle with a fearful echo and a loud, panting toom-toom"(4) The train is very much like a snake, a symbol of evil.

Hamlet Rough Draft

Throughout the play, Hamlet shows many examples of being an indecisive person and being unable to do anything he wants to, as if something stops him. An example would be in act five, when he decides to confess his love for Ophelia on her grave. He took too long to tell Ophelia or anyone for the matter about his love for her. Another example would be his mother remarrying, and Hamlet not being able to confess his true feelings about King Claudius being his new father. In the first four acts, Hamlet goes on about his life being miserable and in some kind of melancholy mood.He can’t find a way to deal with it, so he keeps all of his negative feelings to himself. This â€Å"depressed† funk he is in interferes with his will to act upon things that go on around him. However, he does manage the courage to finally step up and confront his feelings about King Claudius, which puts him in fear of Hamlet. Besides his mood affecting his will to act, how Hamlet over thinks his action s ruins his ability to do anything. For him, there is always something else that can go wrong, so he decides not to go with his original plan.While we all go around looking for an excuse whether or not to do something, Hamlet seems to have no problem just saying never mind to everything and chickening out. He thinks about a plan to make, then decides against it. â€Å"Why† is what I have to ask? Why didn’t Hamlet do everything he wanted to? Maybe his life would have changes completely and he would be in such a rough state. Maybe his life wouldn’t have changed at all. In Act Five Scene 1, Hamlet finally confesses his true love for Ophelia, who has already committed suicide. As if saying this is going to bring her back to life, he fights with her brother Laertes about who loves her more. Forty thousand brothers/ Could not, with all their quantity of love,/ make up my sum. † (V. i. ) The two literally jump into her grave and fight over her. Hamlet waits until Ophelia is dead to confess his love for her, while before, he had the chance to do so. (Claudius and Polonius set up a trap for Hamlet to see if he’s gone â€Å"mad† because of his love for Ophelia, or because he may actually be insane. )In this scene, Hamlet chooses to completely dis Ophelia and basically tell her he doesn’t love her at all. She was in on it the whole time, and was discouraged by his reaction.This may be the reason she actually killed herself. It is ironic to see how scared he seems of confronting anyone about how he feels. â€Å"Frailty, thy name is woman! † (I. ii. ) Hamlet is completely in awe and disbelief that his mother would marry her own brother. Especially since it’s her own flesh and blood she’s married to. Hamlet feels that it hasn’t been nearly long enough to remarry or get over their loss which they suffered. Yet, Hamlet still shows no sign of courage to confront the new king, even though he feels so st rongly that this is so wrong.Before he says that to his mother, he also said, â€Å"That it should come to this,† meaning that she could have married anyone or anything else, and it still wouldn’t have been as bad as her own brother. That it would have to come to this, thinking that you can’t trust anyone again besides your own family members. Hamlet also believes that because of this awkward marriage, there is just a series of streaks of bad luck to come to him and his family. Sharing this with his mother would be the best idea, but like many other times, hamlet doesn’t say a word and keeps to himself.He hates his uncle being king, and wants so bad for it to change. This scares him though, thinking that saying something will just bring even more bad luck to him. Later on in the story, he does go and find his mother to tell him his trouble about this and what will happen if he doesn’t share this with her. Hamlet goes to his mother and finally share s what’s on his mind. He tells her things like, â€Å"don’t believe your husband that I/m crazy, because I’m really not,† or, â€Å"I’m only telling you this so Claudius doesn’t persuade you to think differently of me. He warns his mother to not go and â€Å"spread the compost on the weeds/ To make them ranker † By saying this, he doesn’t want the compost to be like a catalyst, and spread corruption throughout her own mind because of Claudius telling her so. Although Hamlet shows himself as indecisive and insecure, towards the end of the story he does show some act of courage; enough to finally go and kill King Claudius. At first, he finds himself procrastinating at the matter, because he comes up behind King Claudius while he’s praying. He originally planned on killing him right then and there, but wait!Hamlet stops and lets his inner coward win over yet again. After a series of deep thoughts, he does decide to kill hi s uncle, and realizes that he must go through with his plan quickly, before Hamlet himself is killed. †Thus conscience does not make cowards of us all;/ And thus the native hue of resolution/ Is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought;/ And enterprises of great pith and moment,/ With this regard, their currents turn away,/ And lose the name of action. † Hamlet here combines some themes of this play: death and life, the connection between thought and ction. In act five scene five, he goes into Claudius’ room to kill him. Like the last time he went to kill him, he was on his knees praying. Why send him to Heaven when he should go to Hell? His father wasn’t given a chance to repent his sins before he was murdered, so why should King Claudius? Hamlet thinks about this for a minute, and decides to wait for a more reasonable time to go through with this murder. Maybe he will get lucky and catch the king drinking, angry, or being a lustful man. Then he feels it would be right to kill him.When we do bad deeds, we feel bad about them sooner or later, or do we immediately regret doing them? This is something Hamlet does a lot throughout the entire play. One moment he is ready to confess his love for someone, and the minute they turn to look at him, he changes his mind. His indecisiveness seems to play a big part on his actions. If he wasn’t so afraid of the possible outcome, do you think he would go through with everything he says he will? Over the series of acts, Hamlet shows another emotion. Whether he’s happy, sad, angry, or in love, one mood will never seem to stay put.When I first read this, I kept losing my train of thought because of the consistent change of emotion. Hamlet seems to be insecure with everything he thinks about, which leads him to a world of hurt in the future. Look at what happened with Ophelia: he waited too long to tell her he loved her, said all of the wrong things to her, and she killed hersel f over it all. When his mother married his uncle, he was confused and angry, but didn’t say anything because he was afraid of hurting his mother and bring bad luck to him. Hamlet also doesn’t tend to give any one thought of his a chance before completely shooting it down with disbelief.I mean, leaving things to fall on their own makes sense to do, but not with every single problem or situation that comes around. For example, when we’re cold, do we go and get a blanket, turn the heat on, or even snuggle up on the couch? Or do we just wait until were so cold that were just numb? Of course we aren’t going to let ourselves freeze, so we go and do something about it without thinking about all of the negative repercussions. (Like being even more uncomfortable once we get up, or worse case scenario, tripping over something and breaking a limb. Hamlet needs to be more lenient on himself while making decisions, because he seems to be killing himself by doing this. He loses every chance he gets by not bothering with them in the first place. Shakespeare’s plays all have a theme based on the same basic thing: life and personal experience. Like a normal human being, he’s probably been through heartbreak, a loss of a loved one, and the experience of having to make a serious decision. Maybe he was the kind of author that makes his characters do everything he didn’t, and that’s what makes it so relatable to us as his audience.

Organizational Diagnosis

Organizational Diagnosis Are companies at the competitive edge problem free? Do any organizations work flawlessly? Not in the real world. How do the winners overcome their problems? What distinguishes them from other companies? How do they survive while others flounder or fall? Like other organizations, winning companies often reach for easy-answers and quick fixes. But if these short-cut responses miss their mark, winners keep searching for solid solutions. They delve more deeply into the situation, ultimately uncovering the root cause. Top performers distinguish themselves by the way they tackle organizational problems by using organizational diagnosis to make positive changes for the future of their business (Long Term Success through Deep Organizational Diagnosis, 2007). Data collection: The purpose of a diagnosis is to identify problems facing the organization and to determine their causes so that management can plan solutions. The first step in diagnosing an organization is to determine what/where the problem is by using data collection. It is very important to acknowledge that there is a problem and it needs solving more on a long term basis in order to keep the future of the organization prospering. The collection of data should begin in areas in which management believes the problems exist. After the data is collected, leaders can more easily identify where the issues lie and begin to resolve them (Beer and Spector, 1993). Data collection can be done by doing a systematic analysis where McKinsey’s 7-S framework can be applied. The change agent at this point strategically analyzes and formulates diagnosis questions. The elements of the strategy are as follows with examples of typical questions that decision makers will need to answer in their quest for change (Business Diagnostic Questions – â€Å"Seven S† Model Framework, 2007). Strategy: the plan devised to maintain and build competitive advantage over the competition. †¢What are the main strategies in moving this organization to being more successful? †¢What are the key short-term goals to achieve these strategies? Structure: the way the organization is structured and who reports to whom. †¢Describe the roles of the main departments. What kinds of role/turf issues occur between departments? †¢What kinds of communications issues occur between departments? †¢What key things are done in the organization to help integrate various functions and departments that are interdependent? †¢How does the structure help/hinder this organization in accomplishing its strategy? What is being done about this now? Syst ems: the daily activities and procedures that staff members engage in to get the job done. †¢What are the 5 most important system problems that if solved or improved would significantly improve profitability or organizational effectiveness? Why? What are you doing about these issues now? Style: the style of leadership adopted. †¢How are important decisions made in this organization? †¢How does top management communicate with key staff? How does it communicate with the labor force? †¢What are the key expectations for how your key people and labor force should behave? †¢How would you describe the organization's style of management? How would others differ in their assessment of that style? Skills: the actual skills and competencies of the employees working for the company. †¢What key knowledge and skills are needed to succeed in this business/organization? Why? How is that expected to change over time? †¢How would you assess the organization's curren t strengths and weaknesses against the needed knowledge and skills? †¢What challenges does the organization face in strengthening or maintaining this match between knowledge and skills needed now and in the future? †¢What is the organization doing about these issues now? Staff: the employees and their general capabilities †¢Describe the strengths and weaknesses of the organization's key people. †¢Describe their most important roles in the organization. †¢Who of these are most important to the success of the business/organization? Why? †¢What are you most concerned about regarding the quality of the key staff? Why? †¢Describe the strengths and weaknesses of the organization's labor force. †¢What are you most concerned about regarding the quality of the organization's labor force? †¢What is being done about this now? Shared Values: called â€Å"superordinate goals† when the model was first developed, these are the core values of the company that are evidenced in the corporate culture and the general work ethic. †¢If the business/organization were operating almost perfectly, describe the key things that would be happening? If I were invisible and walked through the organization, what would I see that contributed to this success? †¢If I were invisible and could sit in on a number of conversations between the top 10 people and their staff, what themes would I hear? †¢If this organization were wildly successful, where would it be in 10 years? †¢If you were thinking of selling this successful business/organization, how would you want to be able to describe it to prospective buyers? †¢How would you describe the mission of this company to your prospective buyers Organization’s readiness for change: Once management admits that there are problems that need to be resolved, and then comes the question of whether the organization is ready to change. Organizational readiness is a state of preparedness which includes the psychological and behavioral aspects for change. This requires having the necessary knowledge, skills, resources, and support. An organization’s readiness for change will determine its ability to attend to environmental signals for change as well as its willingness to listen to internal voices saying that change is needed (Cawsey, Deszca p. 101). It is important for senior management to address the likelihood of change and communicate it effectively with the rest of the organization. Employees are more apt to support change if they are ready to make changes. This means they believe in the changes, have the time and energy to invest in the changes, and the organization is ready to support the changes. More important, the greater the complexity of the implementation task, the great the importance or organizational readiness for change. Creating awareness for change: Change leaders can create awareness of the need for change in several ways. The first method involves making the organization aware that it is in or near a crisis or creating a crisis that needs to be solved (Cawsey, Deszca p. 104). Most people will welcome the change more easily if they know that their future is in jeopardy if they don’t accept the change. A second approach to enhancing the need for change is by identifying a transformational vision. Transformational visions tap into our needs to go beyond ourselves, to make a contribution, to do something worthwhile and meaningful, and to serve a greater good (Cawsey, Deszca p. 105). This type of awareness mechanism has the potential to gain positive feedback and negative feedback. People who support it are those individuals who are interested in making things better than they are. The people who oppose it simply don’t find it realistic and believe the change agent is proposing the change for their own benefit. A third approach to the enhancement of the need for change is through transformational leadership. This type of change makes the most sense to people because it is the leaders of the organization who makes all the decisions. If something is not going well, the leaders are the first to blame. It is important to note that when using any of the three approaches, the change agent needs to be well prepared when entering any type of discussion dialogue about the change. The people in the organization need to trust the change agent and believe in the proposed change therefore, the change agent should have all the right skills to get their point across to the people involved. Vision for change: When the organization is ready to make a change, it is very important for the change agent to provide a clear and detailed vision of the change. Vision is about action. Vision can empower both leaders and followers to implement change (Vision and the Management of Change, 2008). Change leaders use change visions to create and advance the mental picture they have of the future and to provide directional guidance for others that they need to enlist in the enterprise (Cawsey, Deszca p. 110). Vision can provide both a corporate sense of being and a sense of enduring purpose. Without a sensible vision, change efforts can dissolve into a list of confusing projects that take the organization in the wrong direction. It is important that the vision be easy to communicate. Once an effective change vision is in place, the change agent can begin to expand discussions to a broader audience or organizational members, paying careful attention to their reactions, suggestions, and alternatives (Vision and the Management of Change, 2008). It is also vital for the change agent to be aware that some people in the organization will understand the vision and want to help transform the organization, but they can’t. The change agent must remove blocks to change, call for new behaviors consistent with the vision, and most importantly, visibly reward the new behaviors (Vision and the Management of Change, 2008). Approval for change: Once the vision for change is in place, the change agent needs to find the best way of winning the approval for the change project. When outlining all the elements of the change project, the change agent needs to pay careful attention to managing scope. Allowing the project’s scope to change mid-course usually means added costs, greater risks and longer duration. Many projects fail due to poor scope management (Scope and Change Control, 2005). A successful change agent understands that rigorous scope control is essential to deliver projects on time and on budget. The scope of the project should be clearly defined both in terms of its deliverables and in terms of how it will operate. This scope definition will form the baseline against which potential changes are assessed and against which the project’s performance is measured. In the definition, the change agent should also include factors that could lead to scope change. If possible risks exist; they should be identified in the definition because this will make the decision-makers more likely to allow changes if it became necessary and it will save costs in the long run (Scope and Change Control, 2005). Feedback: The final step for the change agent is to be open to continuous feedback. Change does not come easily to everyone in the organization. The change agent needs to be aware of all the criticism and concerns of the people involved in the change in order to keep people motivated and keep the business running in a positive matter. Employee involvement is a necessary and integral part of managing change. Managing change is not a one way street. Feedback from employees is a key element of the change management process. Analysis and corrective action based on this feedback provides a robust cycle for implementing change (Change Management, 2006). Feedback also allows the change agent to stand back from the entire program, evaluate successes and failures, and identify process changes for the next project. Conclusion: An organizational diagnosis can be a valuable and revealing process, if properly approached, and if an organization is willing to take full advantage of it. Ultimately, what you’re trying to accomplish with an organizational diagnosis is a performance check on each of all the moving pieces (Grossman, 2009). During this check, for instance, you will want to examine those pieces that serve to help create the culture of the business and help drive things forward. Therefore, the key thing with organizational diagnosis is to help utilize a change effort that will benefit the health of the company as a whole and help it maintain its competitive advantage. The overall goal of an organizational diagnosis is to apply what should be happening within the organization, so that the effect is improved business performance overall. References: Beer, M. & Spector, B. (1993, July/August). Organizational diagnosis: its role in organizational learning. Journal of Counseling and Development. 71(6) 642-650. Retrieved from the City University Student Website. Cawsey, T. , & Deszca, G. (2007). Toolkit for organizational change. Thousands Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Grossman, David. (2009). The Genesis of an Organizational Diagnosis: It’s All about Improving Performance. Retrieved on February 20, 2010 from: http://www. hrtools. com/insights/david_grossman/the_genesis_of_an_organizational_diagnosis_its_all_about_imp roving_performance. aspx Business Diagnostic Questions. (2007). Seven S Model Framwork. Retrieved on February 20, 2010 from: http://www. change-management. net/7smodel. htm Change management – The systems and tools for managing change. 2006). Retrieved on February 20,2010 from: http://www. change-management. com/tutorial-change-process-detailed. htm Long Term Success through Deep Organizational Diagnosis (2007). Retrieved on February 20, 2010 from: http://www. hrconsultant. com/aw/aw_ter_long_term_success. html#top Scope & Change Control (2005). Retrieved on February 18, 2010 from: http://www. epmbook. com/scope. h tm Vision and the Management of Change. (2008). Retrieved on February 18, 2010 from: http://www. au. af. mil/au/awc/awcgate/ndu/strat-ldr-dm/pt4ch19. html Organizational Diagnosis Organizational diagnosis is the process of analyzing a company, recognizing what problems the company may have, what strengths the company exhibits, the employees receptiveness to change and how to restructure and implement change to correct any problems. This is done to keep the company from losing money, possibly going under and also to keep the company competitive in a highly competitive marketplace. The process of an organizational diagnosis is generally performed in a few stages. First, the parent company employees a group of external consultants and researchers to visit the company.The researchers will usually begin their work with a reconnaissance stage. The consultants will spend some time at the organization getting to know the workers and gaining an initial impression of the company and how it operates. This is done by simply spending time talking with employees, observing day to day behavior and speaking with management. Following the initial research, the consultants will meet with the organizational clients to develop a written plan of expectations and goals that the organization is wishing to achieve.Generally, companies will hire the consulting firms because they have a problem or series of problems that they need to correct and are unsure of the best way to implement the change successfully. Consultants are a group of skilled workers that are highly educated in management, human psychology, sociology and organizational behavior. Sometimes it is best to hire a non- biased group of consultants that can observe the company from an external perspective in order to find the best course of action to resolve the problems at hand.Once the client and consultants have agreed upon a plan of action, the consultants will begin a more in-depth research stage. During this time, consultants will meet with important members of the organization to examine their feelings on change and their perspectives on the consulting project, as well as the proposed change. Co nsultants may also unobtrusively observe day-to-day tasks among workers and evaluate their communication skills, as well as their interactions.This will help the researchers develop an understanding of the companies interpersonal and power relations. The conducting of surveys and questionnaires is also a means of gathering information from workers on their stances and viewpoints of the corporation and their thoughts on purposing a change. Researchers will begin a thorough examination of important documents pertaining to the company. These documents can help researchers analyze the organizations strengths and weaknesses, as well as goals and company history.During the examination and researching process, consultants will quickly learn how important members of the organization are willing to accept and enforce a change. If members of the organization are unwilling to enforce and follow through with change, the consultants will need to restructure their goals and means of achieving the se. This prevents setting goals that are unattainable. If an organization is going to resist change, there is no need to spend the time to develop a plan to correct problems.This realization of the companies inability to accept and implement change will result in a separate set of issues that will need to be corrected. Generally, these types of resistance to change are going to be resolved by a change in personnel and the working staff. This process is designed to prevent setting a plan of attack that will fail, causing the organization to become frustrated when the change is not working, thus setting them further into a hole that they need to dig their way out of.Once the consultants have spent an adequate amount of time learning about the company and brainstorming ways to successfully implement change, they will develop specific methods of change implementation designed specifically for this particular organization’s culture. These can include specialized training programs, team building projects, job task re-designation, supervisory structure change, changing reward systems and goal achievement programs; just to name a few.Upon meeting with the company to present their final planned list of changes, as well as the implementation plans, the consultants will observe the company for a few weeks as they begin the process of correcting their issues. The consultants will be on hand to answer any questions that the company may have, as well as assist in solving any problems or roadblocks that the clients may run into. During this time, the researchers are basically a technical support hotline for the customer. They will be on site to help in any way possible.After a short trial period of change implementation, the customer and the consultants will form a meeting to analyze the effectiveness of the changes that are being carried out. This is a time that is used to fine-tune any processes or bring new ideas to the table to further improve on the companies ref ormation campaign. Following a predetermined length of time, as well as confidentiality in the companies ability to further carry out the scope of the change campaign, the consultants will vacate the premises. The consultants are available to call and discuss problems and/or ideas to continually improve upon the preconceived plan.In the months and years following the campaign, the company will further evaluate the effectiveness of the changes that were put in place. The company will either decide that the change process was a success, or they will decide that it needs further work. At this time, it may be in the companies best interest to hire a different consultation firm in order to correct the companies problems. It may be possible that the company will come to realize that there are other problems at play in the corporation that need to be analyzed and corrected.All of the sources that I have examined and researched, tend to follow the same ideals when it comes to organizational diagnosis and cultural evaluation. A few sources will change the names of the stages, but in effect, they are the exact same processes. Organizational diagnosis is a lot like troubleshooting a problem with any mechanical system. One must recognize the problem, find the source/s of the problem and develop a plan to correct or repair the problem. Unfortunately, when you are dealing with people, instead of mechanical objects, there are a lot more variables as well as unforeseeable pitfalls.In order to combat the instability of a dynamic corporation, executives, managers and even hourly employees must remain dynamic and receptive to a continually changing atmosphere. A company that tends to stay closed-minded and unreceptive to improvement is generally a short-lived company that will quickly be outdone by a continually changing marketplace. The global marketplace is a highly dynamic and competitive arena. In order for one to stay on top, you must be willing to continually one-up your c ompetitors. Organizational Diagnosis Organizational diagnosis is the process of analyzing a company, recognizing what problems the company may have, what strengths the company exhibits, the employees receptiveness to change and how to restructure and implement change to correct any problems. This is done to keep the company from losing money, possibly going under and also to keep the company competitive in a highly competitive marketplace. The process of an organizational diagnosis is generally performed in a few stages. First, the parent company employees a group of external consultants and researchers to visit the company.The researchers will usually begin their work with a reconnaissance stage. The consultants will spend some time at the organization getting to know the workers and gaining an initial impression of the company and how it operates. This is done by simply spending time talking with employees, observing day to day behavior and speaking with management. Following the initial research, the consultants will meet with the organizational clients to develop a written plan of expectations and goals that the organization is wishing to achieve.Generally, companies will hire the consulting firms because they have a problem or series of problems that they need to correct and are unsure of the best way to implement the change successfully. Consultants are a group of skilled workers that are highly educated in management, human psychology, sociology and organizational behavior. Sometimes it is best to hire a non- biased group of consultants that can observe the company from an external perspective in order to find the best course of action to resolve the problems at hand.Once the client and consultants have agreed upon a plan of action, the consultants will begin a more in-depth research stage. During this time, consultants will meet with important members of the organization to examine their feelings on change and their perspectives on the consulting project, as well as the proposed change. Co nsultants may also unobtrusively observe day-to-day tasks among workers and evaluate their communication skills, as well as their interactions.This will help the researchers develop an understanding of the companies interpersonal and power relations. The conducting of surveys and questionnaires is also a means of gathering information from workers on their stances and viewpoints of the corporation and their thoughts on purposing a change. Researchers will begin a thorough examination of important documents pertaining to the company. These documents can help researchers analyze the organizations strengths and weaknesses, as well as goals and company history.During the examination and researching process, consultants will quickly learn how important members of the organization are willing to accept and enforce a change. If members of the organization are unwilling to enforce and follow through with change, the consultants will need to restructure their goals and means of achieving the se. This prevents setting goals that are unattainable. If an organization is going to resist change, there is no need to spend the time to develop a plan to correct problems.This realization of the companies inability to accept and implement change will result in a separate set of issues that will need to be corrected. Generally, these types of resistance to change are going to be resolved by a change in personnel and the working staff. This process is designed to prevent setting a plan of attack that will fail, causing the organization to become frustrated when the change is not working, thus setting them further into a hole that they need to dig their way out of.Once the consultants have spent an adequate amount of time learning about the company and brainstorming ways to successfully implement change, they will develop specific methods of change implementation designed specifically for this particular organization’s culture. These can include specialized training programs, team building projects, job task re-designation, supervisory structure change, changing reward systems and goal achievement programs; just to name a few.Upon meeting with the company to present their final planned list of changes, as well as the implementation plans, the consultants will observe the company for a few weeks as they begin the process of correcting their issues. The consultants will be on hand to answer any questions that the company may have, as well as assist in solving any problems or roadblocks that the clients may run into. During this time, the researchers are basically a technical support hotline for the customer. They will be on site to help in any way possible.After a short trial period of change implementation, the customer and the consultants will form a meeting to analyze the effectiveness of the changes that are being carried out. This is a time that is used to fine-tune any processes or bring new ideas to the table to further improve on the companies ref ormation campaign. Following a predetermined length of time, as well as confidentiality in the companies ability to further carry out the scope of the change campaign, the consultants will vacate the premises. The consultants are available to call and discuss problems and/or ideas to continually improve upon the preconceived plan.In the months and years following the campaign, the company will further evaluate the effectiveness of the changes that were put in place. The company will either decide that the change process was a success, or they will decide that it needs further work. At this time, it may be in the companies best interest to hire a different consultation firm in order to correct the companies problems. It may be possible that the company will come to realize that there are other problems at play in the corporation that need to be analyzed and corrected.All of the sources that I have examined and researched, tend to follow the same ideals when it comes to organizational diagnosis and cultural evaluation. A few sources will change the names of the stages, but in effect, they are the exact same processes. Organizational diagnosis is a lot like troubleshooting a problem with any mechanical system. One must recognize the problem, find the source/s of the problem and develop a plan to correct or repair the problem. Unfortunately, when you are dealing with people, instead of mechanical objects, there are a lot more variables as well as unforeseeable pitfalls.In order to combat the instability of a dynamic corporation, executives, managers and even hourly employees must remain dynamic and receptive to a continually changing atmosphere. A company that tends to stay closed-minded and unreceptive to improvement is generally a short-lived company that will quickly be outdone by a continually changing marketplace. The global marketplace is a highly dynamic and competitive arena. In order for one to stay on top, you must be willing to continually one-up your c ompetitors.

A New Kind of Didactic Novel

A New Kind of Didactic Novel A New Kind of Didactic Novel A New Kind of Didactic Novel By Maeve Maddox Didactic fiction is nothing new. Aesops tales are didactic, as are Langlands The Vision of Piers Plowman, Bunyans The Pilgrims Progress, Hesses Siddhartha, and Orwells Animal Farm. The authors of all these works desired to teach readers a lesson about the moral significance of human behavior. The word didactic is from a Greek verb meaning both to teach and to learn. There was a time that authors could admit to wanting to create a didactic novel and critics were willing to praise such novels for their moral effectiveness. The success of Harriet Beecher Stowes didactic novel Uncle Toms Cabin (1852) illustrates the effectiveness of using fiction to promote an authors social ideals. Beginning in the 1700s, American abolitionists churned out thousands of tracts in their fight to abolish slavery in the United States. None of them produced the effect of the extended abolitionist tract that Mrs. Stowe framed as fiction. tract noun: a pamphlet, leaflet, or folder issued (as by a political or religious group) for propaganda. In the nineteenth century, Uncle Toms Cabin was the best-selling novel in the world. According to what may be an apocryphal anecdote, when Mrs. Stowe met Abraham Lincoln in 1862, he remarked, so you are the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war. Modern readers expect a textbook or how-to book to be didactic, but modern critics usually perceive didacticism in a work of creative fiction as a flaw: George Orwell was better at essays than at novels. His most famous novels,  1984  and  Animal Farm,  are clunkily didactic, especially  Animal Farm.   George refers to Dickens on the first page of her earnest but perhaps overly didactic novel, What Happened Before He Shot Her. OConnor has been criticized for being overly  didactic. Odetss inability to escape this 1930s pigeonhole is reflected in the intensely ideological, even didactic, nature of his plays.   Unlike many other Soviet filmmakers, whose works are boldly and aggressively didactic, Alexander Dovzhenkos cinematic output is personal and fervently private.   Now, however, a fictional genre called the startup novel has emerged, written by experienced and wanna-be entrepreneurs. These novels encapsulate blueprints for successful entrepreneurship in plots that employ action and intrigue. Apparently, entrepreneurs are reading them to learn the techniques of starting a business. Entrepreneur Orr Ben-Zvy says that after reading almost every [nonfiction] book on Amazons 50 best sellers for business and the next 50 for entrepreneurship, he discovered something counterintuitive: fiction [is] much more useful than nonfiction. His search for a fictionalized account of how to achieve financial success with a startup company led him to Eliot Pepers novel Uncommon Stock (2014), a book credited with being the first of its kind. According to a blurb on Amazon, the Uncommon trilogy has attracted a cult following in Silicon Valley and is the #1 top-rated financial thriller on Amazon. The genre that romanticizes and describes the process of starting a business has blossomed since 2014. An Amazon search for financial thrillers brings up pages and pages of titles. I havent read one yet, but I intend to. Im curious to see what kind of moral message this new didactic genre has for its readers. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Fiction Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:45 Synonyms for â€Å"Food†Ten Yiddish Expressions You Should KnowCareful with Words Used as Noun and Verb

Standard English Definitions and Controversies

Standard English Definitions and Controversies In the entry for Standard English in  The Oxford Companion to the English Language (1992), Tom McArthur observes that this widely used term...resists easy definition but is used as if most educated people nonetheless know precisely what it refers to. For some of those people, Standard English (SE) is a synonym for good or correct English usage. Others use the term to refer to a specific geographical dialect of English or a dialect favored by the most powerful and prestigious social group. Some linguists argue that there really is no single standard of English. It may be revealing to examine some of the presumptions that lie behind these various interpretations. The following commentsfrom linguists, lexicographers, grammarians, and journalistsare offered in the spirit of fostering discussion rather than resolving all the many complex issues that surround the term Standard English. Controversies and Observations About Standard English A Highly Elastic and Variable Term [W]hat counts as Standard English will depend on both the locality and the particular varieties that Standard English is being contrasted with. A form that is considered standard in one region may be nonstandard in another, and a form that is standard by contrast with one variety (for example the language of inner-city African Americans) may be considered nonstandard by contrast with the usage of middle-class professionals. No matter how it is interpreted, however, Standard English in this sense shouldnt be regarded as being necessarily correct or unexceptionable, since it will include many kinds of language that could be faulted on various grounds, like the language of corporate memos and television advertisements or the conversations of middle-class high-school students. Thus while the term can serve a useful descriptive purpose providing the context makes its meaning clear, it shouldnt be construed as conferring any absolute positive evaluation. (The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th edition, 2000) What Standard English Is Not (i) It is not an arbitrary, a priori description of English, or of a form of English, devised by reference to standards of moral value, or literary merit, or supposed linguistic purity, or any other metaphysical yardstickin short, Standard English cannot be defined or described in terms such as the best English, or literary English, or Oxford English, or BBC English.(ii) It is not defined by reference to the usage of any particular group of English-users, and especially not by reference to a social classStandard English is not upper class English and it is encountered across the whole social spectrum, though not necessarily in equivalent use by all members of all classes.(iii) It is not statistically the most frequently occurring form of English, so that standard here does not mean most often heard.(iv) It is not imposed upon those who use it. True, its use by an individual may be largely the result of a long process of education; but Standard English is neither the product of lingui stic planning or philosophy (for example as exists for French in the deliberations of the Academie Francaise, or policies devised in similar terms for Hebrew, Irish, Welsh, Bahasa Malaysia, etc); nor is it a closely-defined norm whose use and maintenance is monitored by some quasi-official body, with penalties imposed for non-use or mis-use. Standard English evolved: it was not produced by conscious design. (Peter Strevens, What Is Standard English? RELC Journal, Singapore, 1981) Written English and Spoken English There are many grammar books, dictionaries and guides to English usage which describe and give advice on the standard English that appears in writing...[T]hese books are widely used for guidance on what constitutes standard English. However, there is often also a tendency to apply these judgments, which are about written English, to spoken English. But the norms of spoken and written language are not the same; people dont talk like books even in the most formal of situations or contexts. If you cant refer to a written norm to describe spoken language, then, as we have seen, you base your judgments on the speech of the best people, the educated or higher social classes. But basing your judgments on the usage of the educated is not without its difficulties. Speakers, even educated ones, use a variety of different forms... (Linda Thomas, Ishtla Singh, Jean Stilwell Peccei, and Jason Jones, Language, Society and Power: An Introduction. Routledge, 2004) Although Standard English is the kind of English in which all native speakers learn to read and write, most people do not actually speak it. (Peter Trudgill and Jean Hannah,  International English: A Guide to the Varieties of Standard English, 5th ed. Routledge, 2013) Standard English Is a Dialect If Standard English is not therefore a language, an accent, a style or a register, then of course we are obliged to say what it actually is. The answer is, as at least most British sociolinguists are agreed, that Standard English is a dialect...Standard English is simply one variety of English among many. It is a sub-variety of English... Historically, we can say that Standard English was selected (though of course, unlike many other languages, not by any overt or conscious decision) as the variety to become the standard variety precisely because it was the variety associated with the social group with the highest degree of power, wealth and prestige. Subsequent developments have reinforced its social character: the fact that it has been employed as the dialect of an education to which pupils, especially in earlier centuries, have had differential access depending on their social class background. (Peter Trudgill, Standard English: What It Isn’t, in Standard English: The Widening Debate, edited by Tony Bex and Richard J. Watts. Routledge, 1999) The Official Dialect In countries where the majority speak English as their first language one dialect is used nationally for official purposes. It is called Standard English. Standard English is the national dialect that generally appears in print. It is taught in schools, and students are expected to use it in their essays. It is the norm for dictionaries and grammars. We expect to find it in official typed communications, such as letters from government officials, solicitors, and accountants. We expect to hear it in national news broadcasts and documentary programmes on radio or television. Within each national variety the standard dialect is relatively homogeneous in grammar, vocabulary, spelling, and punctuation (Sidney Greenbaum, An Introduction to English Grammar. Longman, 1991) The Grammar of Standard English The grammar of Standard English is much more stable and uniform than its pronunciation or word stock: there is remarkably little dispute about what is grammatical (in compliance with the rules of grammar) and what isnt. Of course, the small number of controversial points that there aretrouble spots like who versus whomget all the public discussion in language columns and letters to the editor, so it may seem as if there is much turmoil; but the passions evinced over such problematic points should not obscure the fact that for the vast majority of questions about whats allowed in Standard English, the answers are clear. (Rodney Huddleston and Geoffrey K. Pullum, A Students Introduction to English Grammar. Cambridge University Press, 2006) The Guardians of Standard English The so-called native speakers of standard Englishes are those people who have somehow espoused a particular set of conventions that loosely have to do with the way English has been codified and prescribed in dictionaries, grammar books and guides to good speaking and writing. This group of people includes a large number of those who, having espoused the conventions, nevertheless do not consider themselves to be excellent users of those conventions. For many of these so-called native speakers the English language is a unique entity that exists outside or beyond its users. Rather than considering themselves owners of English, users often think of themselves as guardians of something precious: they wince when they hear or read uses of English that they consider to be sub-standard, and they worry, in their letters to newspapers, that the language is becoming degraded... Those who do feel they have rights and privileges, who have a sense of ownership of the English language and who can make pronouncements about what is or is not acceptable, as well as those to whom these attributes are accorded by others, do not necessarily belong to a speech community whose members learned English in infancy. Native speakers of non-standard varieties of English, in other words, the majority of native speakers of English, have never had any real authority over Standard English and have never owned it. The actual proprietors may, after all, simply be those who have learned thoroughly how to use a standard English to enjoy the sense of empowerment that comes with it. So those who make authoritative pronouncements about a standard English are simply those who, irrespective of accidents of birth, have elevated themselves, or been elevated, to positions of authority in academe or publishing or in other public areas. Whether or not their pronouncements will continue to be accepted is another matter. (Paul Roberts, Set Us Free From Standard English. The Guardian, January 24, 2002) Toward a Definition of SE From the dozens of definitions [of Standard English] available in the literature on English, we may extract five essential characteristics. On this basis, we may define the Standard English of an English-speaking country as a minority variety (identified chiefly by its vocabulary, grammar, and orthography) which carries most prestige and is most widely understood. (David Crystal, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language. Cambridge University Press, 2003) SE is a variety of Englisha distinctive combination of linguistic features with a particular role to play...The linguistic features of SE are chiefly matters of grammar, vocabulary, and orthography (spelling and punctuation). It is important to note that SE is not a matter of pronunciation. . . .SE is the variety of English which carries most prestige within a country... In the words of one US linguist, SE is the English used by the powerful.The prestige attached to SE is recognized by adult members of the community, and this motivates them to recommend SE as a desirable educational target...Although SE is widely understood, it is not widely produced. Only a minority of people within a country...actually use it when they talk...Similarly, when they writeitself a minority activitythe consistent use of SE is required only in certain tasks (such as a letter to a newspaper, but not necessarily to a close friend). More than anywhere else, SE is to be found in print. The Ongoing Debate It is in fact a great pity that the standard English debate is marred by the sort of conceptual confusions and political posturings (no matter how poorly expressed) ...For  I think there are genuine questions to be asked about what we might mean by standards in relation to speech and writing. There is a great deal to be done in this respect and proper arguments to be made, but one thing is clear for sure. The answer does not lie in some simple-minded recourse to the practice of the best authors or the admired literature of the past, valuable though that writing is. Nor does the answer reside in rules for speech laid down by either the educated of any official body held to be able to guarantee spoken correctness. The answers to the real questions will be found to be much more complex, difficult and challenging than those currently on offer. For these reasons they might be more successful. (Tony Crowley, Curiouser and Curiouser: Falling Standards in the Standard English Debate, in Standard English: The Widening Debate, edited by Tony Bex and Richard J. Watts. Routledge, 1999)