Ibn Roshd Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ibn Roshd - Essay Example From 1169 to 1172, he was the judge of Seville and later on being the chief judge of Cordova from 1172 to 1182. He became the physician of the royal court on 1182. He was exiled on 1195 and died in Marrakesh, Morocco in 1198 (Hassan, 1). He was noted to be having a wide range of impact in philosophy not just in terms of Islamic works but also in terms of the works by Jewish philosophers. Saint Thomas Aquinas pertained to him as â€Å"The Commentator† as the saint believed Averroes had a major role in the rediscovery of Aristotle’s philosophical works (Maslaha.Org). He influenced a handful of writers and his name was mentioned in their literary masterpieces. Dante referred to him as the man â€Å"who made the great commentary† (Maslaha.Org). Ibn Rushd’s Tahafut Al-Tahafut (The Incoherence of the Incoherence) is considered to be his most influential literary work. In the said book, Aristotle’s philosophy against Al-Ghazali’s claims that Aristotleanism was inconsistent and was insulting Islam. Here he showed being fair towards religion and not siding thoughts or beliefs that were meant to destroy the relationship of religion and philosophy. He did not turn away from his religious beliefs but instead he is incorporating it into studies in the field of science for the advantage of both fields (Rushd & Van der Bergh, 156-161). His works are still being commended and recognized. It is not because he is an Islam who had a grasped of Jewish Philosophy but because he disregarded one’s religion to accommodate ideas and studies to be able to fully understand what was meant by certain literary works without having a negative connotation. Usually when a literary work is written, bias can be considered inevitable that can oppose or agree because of a writer’s race, ethnicity or

Globalization and social change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Globalization and social change - Essay Example In line with the movements of human resources, a lot of people from Asian countries migrate in the US to find a better work opportunity here in our country. Globalization causes a lot of social changes. In line with these changes, most of my Filipino friends have decided to migrate in US because of higher salary and their advantages over the monetary exchange rate. Most of them need to send a portion of their monthly income to their love ones who have been unemployed in the Philippines for many years. Upon analyzing the situation, thousands of skilled labor jobs have been transferred from developed countries to developing countries. Since there is a huge population in developing countries who are uneducated, millions of people who belong to the low-income families remain unemployed. Due to lack of education, thousands of Filipinos are forced to work in developed countries as nanny or caregiver to support the financial needs of their immediate family who are living in their hometown. The story of Argetsinger (2004) and Argetsinger (2003) highlighted the fact that low-income people who live in rural areas or less developed countries often have a large family size. Personally, I strongly believe that there is truth behind her story that the lack of financial resources to support the educational needs of the youth deprives these people from becoming competitive in the labor markets. Each year, millions of students graduate from different universities around the world. This tightens the competition among the existing labor force. For this reason, it is impossible for uneducated individuals to be able to find high paid jobs that will enable them to support the financial needs of their family members. Kenyan tribe is experiencing new hope when Ntaiya was able to become successful in her educational challenges. In line with this matter, Argetsinger (2003) gave

Research Study on Organizational Commitment Essay Example for Free

Research Study on Organizational Commitment Essay IntroductionOrganizational commitment is an organizational member’s psychological connection or feeling of belongingness to the organization CITATION Edu15 l 1033 (Educational Portal). This commitment to an organization creates a feeling of passionate affection within a stakeholder of an organization, creating a desire for that / those individual(s) to do anything necessary for the organization to succeed. Organizational commitment is an indispensably huge role that determines whether a stakeholder will remain at the organization willingly, if given a choice. This is a determinant as to whether this individual will produce at the top of his skill index to ensure that the organization moves much closer, or in the direction of its goals. According to the three- component model (TCM), the organizational commitment is made up of three unique components. These are affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment. Affective commitment encompasses the love for your career or job. This happens when one has a strong feeling of emotional attachment to their organization or company, and zealously works to promote the interests of that organization. These people have internalized the organization’s values, vision and goals, and have a sincere feeling of wanting to work for the organization for a longer period CITATION Min151 l 1033 (Mind Tools). This happens when the employee is happy at their workplace. There are factors that will normally contribute to this affection. Some of the reasons include freedom of thought and innovation, appreciably good salary, better employee terms among other things that could make employees feel that they are important and are valued by their employer. Whatever these reasons are, this affection is imperative to the organizational success. Hypothesis: Employees who are treated in a respectful manner in an ethics based organization are more likely to be happier than employees that belong to a profit oriented organization. Continuous commitment is an express fear of loss. This kind of commitment comes by when employees measures up the advantages and disadvantages of being at the organization compared to their exit CITATION Min151 l 1033 (Mind Tools). This comes as a result of a realization that staying at your current position in your company has better terms or benefits than leaving the company. For instance, if one wanted to move from one company or organization, they will not only consider monetary benefits, but a number of other parameters. These parameters include employee terms of welfare, available position of responsibility within the new organization, among other benefits one stands to lose or gain. Another reason could be completely unrelated to profession; one could be attached to their friends at the organization, that moving from the organization is a risk of breaking these bonds. The relentlessness of the continuance commitment increases with advancement of age and professional responsibi lity. Those who are so advanced in both of these factors will feel a certain kind of inertial force that hardly allows them to leave. Hypothesis: People who have successively progressed up the ladder within an organization, and / or age feel the severity of continuance commitment the most. Normative Commitment is the sense of obligation that one feels for an organization. Some people feel that it is the right thing to do, for them to belong to the organization they do belong to. This sense of belongingness occurs even when one is not happy with their position. They are often held back from pursuing even better opportunities CITATION Min151 l 1033 (Mind Tools). This feeling could arise from an array of reasons. A great example is a son working at their father’s firm, He will get a kind of virtual family pressure to weigh the burdens of the organization in order to make it successful. Even if there existed better opportunities, this son will turn them down for the sake of keeping their parents happy. Another scenario that could occur is when a wife works for an organization within a region. The job she does could only be offered by only her current company within the whole region or even country. Due to her domestic responsibilities, she cannot leave to pursue her career interests in another region of the country. This sense of obligation could drain the company of energy because normally, there is no zeal to work, but one will only perform at an average. Hypothesis: more married people will tend to work for a certain firm on a normative commitment basis than the single professionals. All the above forms of commitment are segments of organizational employee response due to certain organizational behaviors. The underlying fact is that employees have their personal needs, and will tend to place these interests first. When these interests are well provided for, the employees will automatically feel appreciated and will tend to happily offer service to the organization. As it has been stressed before, happy employees make more productive and successful companies CITATION And14 l 1033 (Oswald, Proto, Sgroi, 2014). On a practical scale, companies like Google have benefited from employee first approach. The company has invested a lot in employee support and satisfaction while allowing for imagination, creativity and innovation CITATION Kel14 l 1033 (Parkes-Harrison-Warwick, 2014). Some companies have got it right while others are yet to get it right. We carried a research into the various aspects that contribute to this phenomenon of organizational commitment. We use different techniques to measure or research into different Organizational behavior, including self-reporting scales, behavioral observation and organizational records analysis such as performance appraisal forms, time card data, absenteeism rates, productivity indices In this research, we use the self-reporting scales. Self-report study involves use of questionnaires, surveys or polls that let respondents respond to questions in a manner the respondents choose. This kind of survey is focused on extracting information from participants about their attitudes, feelings and beliefs on certain topics. It could be a form of interview, provision of answers to open and closed questions, rating scales, fixed choice questions among others. Reliability on these methods is dependent upon their consistence in providing similar results if used repeatedly in similar circumstances. Validity of the response is also a matter of concern. Especially for questionnaires, respondents may or may not give accurate or sincere answers to certain questions depending on the parameters provided. For example, Anonymous questionnaires or response forms are more likely to produce valid answers. In this survey, we carried a survey in which we asked various questions related to the hypotheses stated in within this document. We adopted the anonymous response questionnaire system to enhance validity of our research. We asked them to rate different departments, work conditions and parameters. The respondents were to respond to questions regarding the hypotheses. They were requested to rate the questions on four guided answers: Strongly agree, Agree, strongly disagree, and agree. Our respondents were 30 employees of different organizations. Results             We set ourselves to find out the validity of three hypotheses regarding the tenets of organizational commitment. These hypotheses stated as follow: Hypothesis 1: Employees who feel appreciated are happy and are more likely to be affectively committed to an organization Hypothesis 2: older employees and those who get promoted are likely to stay within an organization out of continuance commitment Hypothesis 3: most married people are normatively committed to organizations. The validity of our hypotheses had some concurrence with our respondents. However, what the survey disqualified is the sense of promotion as a determining factor to employee continuance commitment. Instead, the people who got promoted in organizations were the productive cream of the organization. This means that they felt a conviction to work for the organization. Such people were comfortably placed within the category of affective commitment. Conclusion             The survey conducted was successfully concluded and in our finding, hypothesis 1 was completely valid as most people agreed with it. Hypothesis 2 produced mixed reactions. Most agreed that older people were committed to the organization due to continuance commitment. Hypothesis 3 was completely valid as most people agreed with this hypothesis. All respondents had their reasons, as evident on their additional comments, including fear of family strain and divorce for the third hypothesis. References BIBLIOGRAPHY l 1033 Educational Portal. (n.d.). Organizational Commitment: Definition, Theory Types. Retrieved January 28, 2015, from Educational Portal: http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/organizational-commitment-definition-theory-types.html Mind Tools. (n.d.). The Three Component Model of Commitment. Retrieved January 28, 2015, from Mind Tools: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/three-component-model-commitment.htm Oswald, A. J., Proto, E., Sgroi, a. D. (2014, february 10). Happiness and Productivity. Retrieved January 28, 2015, from http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/staff/eproto/workingpapers/happinessproductivity.pdf Parkes-Harrison-Warwick, K. (2014, March 21). Google is right: We work better when we’re happy. Retrieved jaanuary 28, 2015, from futurity.org: http://www.futurity.org/work-better-happy/ Source document

Mobile Phone Technology: Beneficial Or Harmful?

Mobile Phone Technology: Beneficial Or Harmful? No doubt, the last few decades have witnessed remarkable progress in technology. The telecommunications industry in particular has rapidly expanded. Over the years, the application of technology has increased economic activity in many countries. A vibrant telecommunications plays key role in business, trade and commerce. Mobile phones offer people convenience by saving time. Mobile phone has many features such as calls, short message service (SMS), multimedia message service (MMS), chat messengers which make it easy to disseminate information to an individual or group of people. In addition they can be used to report emergency situations. On the other hand, the use of mobile phones does not come without disadvantages. Driving while on the phone could be risky. Mobile phones are used to perpetrate crime and other tragic events in society. There are also claims that mobile phones may have some negative health implications. This essay will discuss positive and negative features of mobil e phone, during that it will highlight some of its progression from the past until the present. Mobile phones were first introduced into the UK in the mid-1980s. There was a small group who attracted by mobile phone whereas a significant number of subscribers. However, with the introduction of digital networks (The Global System of Mobile Communications, GSM) as well as the entry of additional service providers into the market in the 1990s, the number of subscribers  [1]  increased. The GSM technology as an operating system has over 340 networks in 137 countries, Stewart, W (2000). Since the late 1990s the use of SMS or text messaging has witnessed extraordinary growth. In Norway, for example, it is reported that approximately 280, 000 text messages are sent every hour in a country that has a population of only 4 million, Ling, R (2004). SMS is the preferred medium of communication among teens because it offers unique benefits: it is more cost effective than voice telephony; it does not require the immediate attention of the receiver. The major disadvantages are that it is relatively difficult to draft a message and the message length is limited to 160 characters. In addition to short messaging, multimedia message services (MMS) allows users to send and receive pictures, drawings, music and the likes. Now with the arrival of smart phones with internet facilities, the mobile phones industry has created a mobile information society (The Economist, 1999). It is apparent that the main advantage of mobile phones is their convenience. According to Ling, R (2004), mobile phones help to coordinate activities on the fly and provide flexibility in the planning of the days tasks. It enables people to check and respond to mails as well as pay bills online wherever they are. Apart from making payments, many customers can now monitor and manage their bank accounts through their mobile phones. Even in shopping, they play a vital role; customers can place orders by dialling the shopping malls or receive information about special offers through their mobile devices. Those who like watching movies can dial to find out what is on the local cinema and reserve their tickets. In emergency situations, the use of a mobile phone may reduce the time it takes to alert emergency services of a motor accident, a fire incidence or other dangerous occurrences including crimes (Stewart, 2000). Thus mobile phones help in the safety and security of lives and propert y. Furthermore, mobile phones facilitate work functions. In fact, mobile technology is said to be revolutionising the way people work as it saves time and gets work done even when workers are mobile. Many companies now operate a virtual work place as an alternative to expensive physical structures and office facilities. This is very common with companies that have an ever-widening workforce. It can be argued that mobile phones work best for itinerant managers or business executives, consultants, and travelling salesmen as the core of their functions have to do with establishing key business relationships and partnerships. Thus mobile phones make relationship building easier. However, frontline workers often express their dissatisfaction with virtual communication, stressing that it hinders creative interaction and makes them feel isolated. Mobile phones are not only useful to corporate sector workers, but also to blue collar workers. Plumbers, house builders, security workers, taxi drivers and other casual workers also make use of mobile phones in carrying out their day to day work activities. In addition, mobile technology helps in social networking and keep people more closing than in the past for example, friends and families become more rely heavily on mobile devices to keep contact and arrange dates or appointments. Ling (2004) notes that mobile telephones have improved social interaction and access to peer group especially among teenagers in Scandinavia, Italy, Japan, Korea, and many other countries. But the use of mobile phones is often abused by teens. For example, recent reports indicate that some teens share nude photos and other offensive images among themselves. Others put themselves at risk by talking and driving with a hands-free ear piece. To students, mobile phones can act as instruments of sleep disturbances or annoyance, distraction, depression, and mood swings all of which can impair concentration and academic performance (CRC health group, 2010). Another disadvantage of the explosion of cell phones is that it supports group behaviour rather than individualism (The Economist, 1999). It is from this behaviour that many people have connived to use cell phones to perpetrate crime such as sending scam mails, hacking into official business websites and emails, making fraud attempts, and a host of other tragic events. For example, the negative use of mobile technology was prominent in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack in United States. Mobile phones also pose adverse health effects to its users. Ki Park (2006) opines that the radiation emitted from a mobile phone itself can be harmful, especially if the device is not properly handled physically. A lot of attention is currently being paid to research on the possible health effects from the use of mobile phones, base stations and transmitters in order to be able to advise the public and proffer recommendations for possible improvements. (Stewart, 2000) Despite these numerous disadvantages, mobile telecommunications continue to offer huge economic benefits to many countries; they contribute to employment and tax revenues in UK. They also facilitate trade and commerce. For example, many businesses now send e-adverts to customers through their cell phones. These adverts usually come in the form of text or recorded voice messages, introducing a product or service in anticipation of securing a bargain. Such adverts are mostly tailored to suit the customers demographic and geographic characteristics and can be monitored so that advertisers are able to know how many customers are responding. For over a decade now, mobile devices such as telemetry have been used to monitor the performance of machines. Mobile phone companies are now making efforts to improve the way people manage their money by turning phones into electronic wallets and mini ATMs so that mobile phones will become a device that one cannot do without. Some smart cards now al low users to load their phone with electronic cash, make purchases from vending machines and parking meters through wireless receivers. Many banks now allow their customers to manage their bank accounts and trade shares over the airwaves. It is a whole new world of convenience! The developments in mobile technology over the years have brought about ease of communication and convenience to many people in various segments of society: homes, schools, businesses, banks, shops, restaurants, work places, and the economy at large. The extraordinary range of services performed by wireless devices offers a great insight into the future of mobile phone technology. Although there are potential disadvantages posed by mobile devices including addiction, abuse, perpetration of social vices, and health hazards, the benefits of mobile technology far outweigh any costs that may arise from its use. Fred Bailey: An Innocent Abroad Analysis Fred Bailey: An Innocent Abroad Analysis The purpose of this report is to analyse the problems faced by Fred Bailey and his family to adjust to the cultural differences in Japan, our main aim of this report is to provide solutions to Fred in convincing his family, to create a good understanding with all the employees in Tokyo office to emerge as one of the fastest growing offices in the world. 1.2 SCOPE OF THE REPORT: This gives a brief explanation about the Japanese culture that American directors need to learn. For this analysis, we use Hofstedes dimension index to compare the different cultures as they also affect the work place environment. By the effective use of this analysis, Fred should come up with some new ideas to convince his family and finish his assignment in Japan that was assigned to him from his head office in Boston. In this case study, we have identified three major issues faced by Fred Bailey in Japan. Let us see the three issues using the Hofstedes Analysis. 1.3 CASE BACKGROUND: Kline Associates, where Fred Bailey was employed in Boston was a large multinational providing professional consulting services for regulated financial institutions with offices in nineteen countries. The company was established in 1997 with its head office in Boston. One fine day, Fred was called for a meeting with one of the partners of the firm. As the meeting commenced, Fred came to know that the meeting was not regarding the project that he finished successfully, but about a good opportunity to work in the companys relatively new office in business district of Tokyo. Fred was really excited to work in Tokyo with many incentives offered to him like a sugar coated pill. The incentives offered to him were really worth three times the gross salary he gets in Boston. He was offered a promotion which had a tag of last step in position before becoming a partner for the firm, free education expenses for his children, car accompanied with a driver, expenses relating to the shipment of their things to Tokyo and an expensive house in the main commercial spaces of Tokyo. These mega offers really overshadowed the problem that he did not think of facing it in the present. In this case study, we will analyse the problems faced by Fred using Hofstedes Dimension of Index and provide a good solution for his success in completing the project. 1.4 REPORT OUTLINE: The major three problems faced by Fred in Japan are examined by using Hofstedes cultural dimensions. These issues identified have a direct impact on the progress and success of the firms office in Tokyo. After the analysis, recommendations are given to make the firm one of the fastest performing among the other established firms. 2 BODY OF TEXT: 2.1 IDENTIFICATION OF PROBLEMS The strong cultural difference between the two countries of Japan and America created many problems to arise in the life of Fred Bailey. Fred Bailey was not only upset with the procedures in the office but also had some family problems with his wife regarding the life in Japan. Let us see the issues faced by Fred in Japan. The communication between the American and the Japanese employees were poor. Fred found that the Japanese employees in the firm were not organised and didnt give any particular reply for the problems in the firm. Family problems faced by Fred in Japan. Mrs Fred Bailey found the lifestyle of Japan very expensive and awkward to pass through. This created many problems during their stay in Japan. In fact Mrs. Bailey had made up her mind to get back home with her children in Boston. Fred Baileys poor management strategies which resulted in delay of the projects for the top clients from Japan. 2.1.1 COMMUNICATION PROBLEMS FACED BY FRED BAILEY: At the first instance of the general meeting held by Fred, he didnt notice that the American and Japanese staff didnt sit together. The response got from the American staff had lots of different opinions about certain things in the firm which may fit or may not fit in Freds ideas regards to some problems. But he did get unclear answers from the Japanese staffs rather got vague answers from them. This made Fred complete the meeting and conclude that the meeting did not achieve his objectives in finding out problems in his ideas. 2.1.1.1 ANALYSIS: The firm consisted of seven Americans and thirty three Japanese staff. Fred Bailey had organised for a general meeting with his subordinates. The meeting was to discuss his plans for the future directions of the company office for achieving their goals. At the very instance, Fred was not serious about the American and Japanese staff sitting separately. The reason for the issue is because of the strong cultural differences between Japanese staff and the American staff in the firm. The high individualistic ranking of 91 states that the people with individualistic attitude and relatively doesnt bond with others. The people in American show a self reliant attitude and aimed at fulfilling their goals in the firm. As the Americans have an high individualistic attitude, Fred did not take the matter of American and Japanese staff sitting separately into consideration. This was also a major issue which influences the team work and coordination among the staffs. As he didnt take this issue ser iously, he was not able to get clear answers from the Japanese staff as he didnt know their mind or know either their language. Fred also failed to get innovative ideas from the employees because the Americans and Japanese staff didnt work as a team. This also might be a good reason for the delay in any projects they come across as Americans and Japanese staffs give two different ways of handling the situation. After the individual meeting with every staffs, Americans were positive and gave different opinions to make his ideas successful. On the other side, Japanese staff gave vague answers. This denotes that the Japanese were not completely aware of what Fred had put front. This shows that Japanese staff are not self reliant and did only depend on the orders from their leaders for any work in the firm (J. Stewart Black, 2010, p.2). This is resulted for their firm to do badly in their returns during his regime as a director. This effect was felt in the firms performance when the client had not responded to the companys next project with them even after several months. 2.1.1.2 RECOMMENDATIONS: Fred should come up with some social activities in the firm to encourage team work between American and Japanese staff. Fred should organise individual meeting with the Japanese staff to understand their problems and motivate them to participate in the companies decision making activities. Fred should have discussed the structure and problems involved in the firm with the Ex-director of the Japans office who had moved to well established office in England. Fred should conduct meeting in regular intervals of time to analyse and improve the results of the firm. Feedback from the employees should be taken in to account for the progress of the firm. 2.1.2 PROBLEMS IN FREDS FAMILY: After a month of their stay in Japan, Jennifer complained to Fred about several issues. She told that it was very tough to get day-to-day items like quality beef, maple syrup and peanut butter. She also complained that she had no knowledge about the language they speak, so she was not able to read the road signs or to order a specific food in a restaurant. She told that she had no one to talk to rather than a American club in downtown and the also other products cost two to three times than in U.S. (J. Stewart Black, 2010, p.2). These problems combined with that of their childrens quality education made Jennifer take some aggressive decision to leave Japan. 2.1.2.1 ANALYSIS: Jennifer was not enthusiastic as Fred at the beginning, when he told about the great opportunity for him in Japan. Jennifer thought that it would be difficult to cater their childrens education abroad. She also stated that their oldest son Christine would be getting promoted to middle school the year after. Other than that she had also thought of going to a part time work in the field of fashion designing in which she has her degree in. (J. Stewart Black, 2010, p.1). But Fred explained about the huge opportunity like the firm would bare to provide a car, rent free house, cater the costs of their childrens education expenses and overseas compensation that would equal three times his annual salary had convinced her to fly with him to Japan. According to Hofstedes dimension, America has a high dimension of masculinity (62) compared to the world average. From this we can state that America experiences high states of differentiation of roles in gender. The male in America are more dominant and possess a more power than women. So the situation turns in favour of the decisions taken by male which are away from women. But the present situation has gone worse and Jennifer was adamant on returning home. Jennifer was really frustrated with Japanese people in not understanding anybody or not able to find the things she wanted in store, not able to drive or read road signs. The main reason for this may be because the Freds family had no time to explore the Japanese culture and people. Although their children were doing well with their education, she questioned Fred as this assignment was also like the thing he has taken up in the past. So she had compelled Fred to leave Japan and return to their home country. Because of these stre ss from his family, Fred is in a dilemma about the proceedings in his work. 2.1.2.2 RECOMMENDATIONS Freds family should have learned about the Japanese culture before their proceedings to Japan. They should have known about their geographic conditions that prevail in Japan. As the same problems arises with the expatriates managers , Fred should have left his family in his home country and taken short breaks often to fly back to America to spend time with them. This might left him to focus properly on his job commitments in Japan. Fred should have allocated time to spend with his family in regular intervals. He should have gone for short vacations with his family to wipe out the stress in his job environment. Jennifer, in her spare time should have taken initiative to learn the Japanese culture and language. 2.1.3 FREDS POOR MANAGEMENT STRATEGY Fred Baileys was preparing for a meeting with one of their important clients for a big project. There are two issues to be discussed in this section. The meeting was headed by Fred, Ralph Webster and Kenichi Kurokawa from Kline associates. The client had four members for the meeting between the firms. As the meeting progressed, Fred explained to the client about the expenses and costs for the project. As there were no responses from the Japanese clients, he proceeded to the summary of the project to end the meeting. After several months of the meeting, there was no response about signing of the deal with the Japanese client. So he was frustrated and ordered Ralph to alter some proposals in the project and resubmit it to the client. But after recommendations from Ralph, this duty was assigned to a research associate Tashiro Watanabe. He was assigned to complete the duty within a weeks time. And when the time arrived, Ralph came to know that Tashiro would not be able to finish it within time. This got Fred frustrated about the communication with the Japanese employees. (J. Stewart Black, 2010, p.4). 2.1.3.1 ANALYSIS: Fred found himself very much frustrated with these problems in the firm. This was because of the strong cultural differences between the two countries. Americans expect clear communication and mostly depended on the speaker to delivery the message. But, on the other hand Japanese depend on hidden communication skills and placed responsibility on both the speaker and the listener. Fred believed that, if an opinion or idea has to be transferred to another person, speaker held the complete responsibility in making the listener understand. This was totally different in case of Tashiro, he assumed that Fred would know the things that Tashiro had been going through even if he could have explained it clearly. The problem was caused because of the different communication styles and assumptions between the two cultures. After a week later when asked to Tashiro about his failure to do the duty on time, Tashiro complained that he had told them about it. But, Fred or Ralph was not able to get his answer which was told not told openly. This problem could have been easily identified if it could have been a Japanese manager taking up this issue. Due to these problems, Fred was frustrated with the Japanese customers and employees. 2.1.3.2 RECOMMENDATION: Fred should have assigned a Japanese manager for completing this proposal in time rather depending on a American manager. Fred should have some knowledge about the cultures and behaviours of the Japanese customers and employees. Fred should have tracked the progress of the report in regular intervals and have suggested some valuable points to Tashiro. Fred should have formed a separate team of Japanese employees to propose the project to the clients as they might have known their culture and behaviour more clearly than the Americans. 3. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE LAST PARAGRAPH: Japan is considered as a major power which has the second largest economy in terms of GDP and purchasing power parity. Japan is the only Asian country to be a part of the G8 countries. It is a developed country which focuses mainly on consumer electronics. The country also enjoys high standard of living among the other developed countries. The above paragraph clearly signifies the power of the Japanese people. Fred after looking out from the window, he saw the highway full of traffic and the vehicles didnt move even after the traffic lights were changed. This can be also the same problem faced by his firm. The firm was not able to perform well because the head positions of the firm were headed by the American expatriates who didnt know about the Japanese culture and understandings. Now, when we see the underground passage of the road, which is the most advanced in the world, it moved hundreds of people to their homes without any problems. This signifies that firm could have been productive and could have attained the spot of fastest growing firm in the world if the top management were the Japanese employees in the firm. This is because the Japanese people could have handled the situation in a different way and could have solved the problems that were faced by the company. It gives a clue to Fred that, the top management should be comprised of Japanese mangers assisted by an American. This could have solved many problems easily without coming to this situation. 4. CONCLUSIONS: Freds assignment was to stay in Japans office for three years and complete all the assignment put forth to him. His mission was to establish the Japans office as the fastest growing company in the firm. The problems in the firm and in his family arise because of the cultural differences between the two countries. The top management in U.S. should come up with some plans to solve the issues or by helping Fred in solving them. Kline Associates should have made the American managers and the analysts to learn the local culture of Japan to perform well in the firm. As we know from the past that Japan is a super power and only the people in that country have made that happen. This states that Japanese people are effective and hard-working if directed by the correct person who understands them and helps them. 5. IMPLEMENTATION AND IMPLICATIONS: Kline Associates management should train the expatriates about the host countrys culture, they should come up with training sessions which will help Fred and other American to avoid initial cultural shocks. Vision of the company should have been discussed with all the employees in the firm, so that the performance of the firm could have improved. At regular intervals, the performance should be measured and this testing team should be headed by a Japanese employee. This could improve the gap between the two cultures. Americans would come to know about the Japanese culture by conducting these team works.

Prostitution Should be Legalized :: essays research papers

During the 1700s, New York and Boston women began soliciting their bodies to soldiers stationed in the large cities. These women were mostly European immigrants who were looking for money to support themselves. Prostitution rose in these cities due to rapid urbanization, and an expansion of the male population. So, you may be thinking, â€Å"prostitution is illegal and evil, right?† Well, you are correct, but in my opinion, only by the standards of which you have been living in, which is that prostitution is illegal, and therefore, â€Å"risky business.† In my hometown of Elko, Nevada, population thirty-five thousand, prostitution is legal. People who hear of this tend to think there are scantily clad women on every street corner. I, however, have never seen a prostitute, or haven't noticed her if I did, because they are only allowed, by law, to â€Å"do their business† in a brothel that is in a small section of the town. These brothels are brightly painted, and there are almost no windows in the building. Unlike prostitution that is run in the cities, brothels in my town are run by a management of three or more people, not one pimp. As the customer gets buzzed in to the building, the management checks his identification to make sure he is at a legal age. The customer can then choose between any of the ladies lined up. The prostitute and customer go into a room, and negotiate a price, which is overheard by the management. The amount is anywhere from one hundred to three hundred dollars, the house receiving half. The prostitute receives the other half of the profit. In illegal prostitution, the female usually receives anywhere from six to fifteen percent of the profit off a customer. If she were to make one hundred dollars, she would only get around six to fifteen dollars off it. The pimp would get the rest. Here are another three reasons that prostitution should be legal in the United States. A law was passed in 1986, requiring legal prostitutes to engage in a sexually transmitted disease test every two weeks at the Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital. If a prostitute is found with a sexually transmitted disease, she is quarantined, until the disease is cured. If the disease cannot be cured, then she is no longer allowed to work, and is put into a home.

Hydrologic Cycle Essay example -- essays research papers

HYDROLOGIC CYCLE The hydrologic cycle is a constant movement of water above, on, and below the earth's surface. It is a cycle that replenishes ground water supplies. It begins as water vaporizes into the atmosphere from vegetation, soil, lakes, rivers, snowfields and oceans-a process called evapotranspiration. As the water vapor rises it condenses to form clouds that return water to the land through precipitation: rain, snow, or hail. Precipitation falls on the earth and either percolates into the soil or flows across the ground. Usually it does both. When precipitation percolates into the soil it is called infiltration when it flows across the ground it is called surface run off. The amount of precipitation that infiltrates, versus the amount that flows across the surface, varies depending on factors such as the amount of water already in the soil, soil composition, vegetation cover and degree of slope. Surface runoff eventually reaches a stream or other surface water body where it is again evaporated into the atmosphere. Infiltration, however, moves under the force of gravity through the soil. If soils are dry, water is absorbed by the soil until it is thoroughly wetted. Then excess infiltration begins to move slowly downward to the water table. Once it reaches the water table, it is called ground water. Ground water continues to move downward and laterally through the subsurface. Eventually it discharges through hillside springs or seeps into streams, lakes, and the ocean...

Investment Patterns in India

Changing Trend of Investment Pattern in India and Emergence of Mutual Fund Industry ABSTRACT: This project is about how the Investor's Behavior is changing and they are now leaving behind the sacred investment options like the fixed deposits, company deposits, gold etc. Investors are now looking towards equity linked investment options. Like most developed and developing countries the mutual fund cult has been catching on in India. There are various reasons for this. Mutual Fund makes it easy and less costly for investors to satisfy their need for capital growth, income preservation. And in addition to this a mutual fund brings the benefit of diversification and money management to the individual investor, providing an opportunity for financial success that was once available only to a select few. In this project I have given a brief about economy, inflation, and equity and debt market. Then it is explained how to cope with the inflation and how mutual fund is one of the best investment options today. A brief about mutual fund industry and the some information about HDFC Mutual Fund and its various products are given INTRODUCTION: Many individuals find investments to be fascinating because they can participate in the decision making process and see the results of their choices. Not all investments will be profitable, as investor wills not always make the correct investment decisions over the period of years; however, you should earn a positive return on a diversified portfolio. In addition, there is a thrill from the major success, along with the agony associated with the stock that dramatically rose after you sold or did not buy. Both the big fish you catch and the fish that get away can make wonderful stories. Investing is not a game but a serious subject that can have a major impact on investor's future well being. Virtually everyone makes investments. Even if the individual does not select specific assets such as stock, investments are still made through participation in pension plan, and employee saving programme or through purchase of life insurance or a home. Each of this investment has common characteristics such as potential return and the risk you must bear. The future is uncertain, and you must determine how much risk you are willing to bear since higher return is associated with accepting more risk. In 1986, Microsoft Corporation first offered its stock to the public. Nine years later, the stock's value had increased over 5,000 percent- a $ 10,000 investment was worth over $ 5,00,000 in the same year, worlds of wonder also offered its stocks to the public. Nine years later the company was defunct- a $ 10,000 was worth nothing. These are two examples of emerging firms that could do exceedingly well or fail. Would investing in large, well establish firms generate more consistent returns? The answer depends, of course, on which firms were invested in. Over the years some investments have generated extraordinary gains, while others have produced only mediocre returns, and still others have resulted in substantial losses. The individual should start by specifying investment goals. Once these goals are established, the individual should be aware of the mechanics of investing and the environment in which investment decisions are made. These include the process by which securities are issued and subsequently bought and sold, the regulations and tax laws that have been enacted by various levels of government, and the sources of information concerning investment that are available to the individual. An understanding if this financial background leads to three important general financial concepts that apply to investing. Toady the field of investment is even more dynamic than it was only a decade ago. World event rapidly-events that alter the values of specific assets the individual has so many assets to choose from, and the amount of information available to the investors is staggering and continually growing. Furthermore, inflation has served to increased awareness of the importance of financial planning and wise investing. In this project I will first talk about economy, inflation, equity markets and debt markets to understand investments behavior. INFLATION: Inflation is a situation where there is ‘ too much money chasing too few goods'. In such times buyers bid up prices of scarce products/services The scarcity could be caused by supply issues or a faster than expected rise in demand. Irrespective of what causes inflation, the impact is the same. The value of the currency you are holding declines. Let's explain this with the help of an example. Suppose the Indian Rupee was freely exchangeable with only one commodity- crude oil. Let's assume the conversion rate is Re 1= 1 barrel of crude (wish it were true! ). Now there is tension in the Gulf region resulting in reduced supply. Due to the subsequent rise in price of crude oil in international markets, we would now have to pay more Rupees for every barrel of oil. Suppose crude prices rise by 10%. The new exchange rate will be Rs. 1. 1 = 1 barrel of declined from 1 barrel of crude per Rupee to only 0. 91 barrel of crude per Rupee this is the erosion in the value of the currency that we are talking about. Also note that while the Indian Rupee may be appreciating vis-a-vis other currencies, in the ‘ real sense' there is erosion in value. Another important fallout one can expect due to rising inflation is higher interest rates. The central banks aim to reduce demand in the economy by rising the cost of money. When making fresh investments or evaluating your existing holdings in potentially inflationary times you need to keep two things in mind: The possibility of higher interest rates The erosion in the value of the currency CONCEPT OF MUTUAL FUND: A mutual fund is a pool of money, collected from investors, and is invested according to certain investment objectives. A mutual fund is created when investors put their money tighter. It is therefore a pool of the investor's funds The most important characteristic of a mutual fund is that the contributors and the beneficiaries of the fund are the same class of people, namely the investors. The term mutual means that investors contribute to the pool, and also benefit from the pool. There are no other claimants to the funds. The pool of fund mutually by investors is the mutual fund. A mutual fund's business is to invest the funds thus collected, according to the wishes of the investors who created the pool. In many markets these wishes are articulated as  Ã‚   â€Å"investment mandates†. Usually, the investors appoint professional investment managers, to manage their â€Å"product†, and offer it for investment to the investor. This product represents a share in the pool, and pre-states investment objectives. For example, a mutual fund, which sells a † money market mutual fund â€Å", is actually seeking investors willing to invest in a pool that would invest predominantly in money market instruments. IMPORTANT CHARACTERSTICS: A Mutual fund belongs to the investors who have pooled their funds. The ownership of the mutual fund in the hands of the investors Investment professional and other service providers, who earn a fee for their services, from the fund, manage the mutual fund. The pool of funds is invested in a portfolio of marketable investments. The value of the portfolio is updated every day. The investor's share in the fund is denominated by â€Å"units†. The value of the units changes with change in the portfolio's value, every day. The value of one unit of investors is called as the Net Asset Value or NAV. The investment portfolio of the mutual fund is created according to the stated investment objectives of the fund. PHASES IN THE HISTORY OF MUTUAL FUND: The history of mutual fund in India can be divided into 5 important phases: A 1963-1987: The Unit Trust of India was the sole player in the industry. Created by an Act of Parliament in 1963, UTI launched its first product, the unit scheme 1964, which is even today the single largest mutual fund scheme. UTI created a number products such as monthly income plans, children's plans, equity-Oriented schemes and offshore funds during this period. UTI managed assets of Rs 6700 crore at the end of this phase. B 1987-1993: In 1987 public sector banks and financial institutions entered the mutual fund industry. SBI mutual fund was the first non-UTI fund to be set up in 1987. Significant shift of investors from deposits to mutual fund industry happened during this period. Most funds were growth oriented closed ended funds. By the end of this period, assets under UTI's management grew to Rs 38247 crore and public sector funds managed Rs 8750 crore. C 1993-1996: In 1993, the mutual fund industry was open to private sector players, both Indian and foreign. SEBI's first set of regulations for the industry was formulated in 1993 and, substantially revised in 1996. Significant innovations in servicing, product design and information disclosure happened in the phase, mostly initiated by private sector players. D 1996-1999: The implementation of the new SEBI regulation and the restructuring of the mutual fund industry led to rapid asset growth. Bank mutual fund was re-cast according to the SEBI recommended structure, and UTI came under voluntary SEBI supervision. E 1999-2003: very rapid growth in the industry and significant increase in market shares of private sector player marked this phase. Assets crossed Rs. 100,0000 crore. The tax break offered to mutual funds in 1999 created arbitrage opportunities for a number of institutional players. Bond funds and liquid funds registered the highest growth in this period, accounting for nearly 60% of the assets. UTI's share of the industry dropped below 50%. 2. 3 ADVANTAGES OF MUTUAL FUND: The following are the important advantages of mutual funds to investors: Portfolio diversification Professional management Reduction in risk Reduction of transaction costs Liquidity Convenience and flexibility DISADVANTAGES OF MUTUAL FUND, The following are important disadvantages of investing through mutual fund: No control over costs: Since investors do not directly monitor the fund's operations they cannot control the costs effectively. Regulators therefore usually limit the expenses of mutual funds. No tailor- made portfolio: Mutual fund portfolio is created and marketed by AMCs, into which investors invest. They cannot create tailor made portfolios. Managing a portfolio of funds: As the number of mutual funds increase, in order to tailor a portfolio for himself, an investors may be holding a portfolio of funds, with the costs Of monitoring them and using them, being incurred by him. NEED FOR INVESTMENT: Increasing household expense. Creation of wealth Increasing cost of living. Financial needs according to life stages. Regular income Combination of all above INVESTMENT OPTION AVAILABLE: Physical and Financial assets. Equity and Debt Govt. securities and non-govt. securities Other option Public provident fund RBI Relief Fund. Mutual Fund Others like Indira Vikas Patra, Kisan Vikas Patra CP FD, and Debenture.    |FDs |FI BONDS |Mutual Fund | |Accessibility |Low |Low |Low | |Tenor |Fixed (medium) |Fixed (Long) |No lock in period | |Tax Benefit |None  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   |Under section 80C |None | |Liquidity |Low |Very Low |none | |Convince |Medium |Tedious |Very high | |Transparency |None |None |Very high | CONCLUSION: The unique investment strategy of letting the maturity of the debt investment run down with time and targeting equity investments to capture dividends is targeted to deliver positive returns over medium time frame. The investment strategy of the fixed income portfolio is designed to remove the impact of interest rate movements over the medium term. The strategy of targeting dividends in equities over a period is expected to improve the yield of the fund. The above investment strategy expects to minimize capital loss in adverse market condition and deliver moderate returns in stable/positive market conditions. So, if you are looking for an investment product that offers you low risk of capital loss and the potential to earn reasonable returns in the uncertain environment of today, HDFC Multiple Yield Fund might be the right fund for you.