Organisational Change Case Study

Introduction This essay will explore a case study of Origin Energy to illustrate an organisation that has undergone a change. The organisational culture before and after the change will be described, management styles within the organisation will be analysed, the relationship between motivation and performance will also be explored and finally the change management strategies used by the organisation will be discussed as well. Each of these sections will be explored to support the hypothesis that culture is an integral part of an organisation.Before the individual sections are discussed however, the essay will look at the background of Origin Energy. Background Origin Energy is a leading energy provider within the Asia-Pacific region. It is involved in finding new sources of energy, producing and retailing it. After the de-merger of Origin Energy from Boral in 2000 it officially became an energy company. It began as a gas company that later ventured into the electricity industry as w ell. Origin Energy has made many investments and undertaken many acquisitions of various businesses in both industries to ensure its place on the market.The environment that Origin Energy trades on is ever changing due the deregulation of the energy market in Australia (Waddell, Cummings & Worley, 2007). Therefore, certain measures have been undertaken by Origin Energy to increase the efficiency of its work and provide better service to its customers. Origin Energy did not have the resources in the founding years of their business to manage the credit and billing sections of their business and therefore it outsourced these functions to a financial business named Wipro.After many years of this function being performed by Wipro and the constant expansion of Origin Energy it was decided in 2007 that to increase the proficiency of Origin Energy’s billing and credit processes the teams that were performing this function at Wipro were provided with the opportunity to be transitione d across to work internally for Origin Energy. Organisational Culture Culture is said to be the representation of social discourses such as belief systems, attitudes, values, behaviour and norms that distinguish a society Wood et al. , 2010). This definition on culture is closely matched to the definition of culture as the accumulation of human traditions and customs and that culture is a social construction (Berry & Sam, 2006). Culture exists on a nationalistic level, however it also exists within organisations (Wood et al. , 2010). Organisational culture can often be derived from the national culture’s shared discourse (Wood et al. , 2010). It is also possible because organisations are sub-systems of a society (Wood et al. 2010). Although organisations share similarities to the host culture each organisation has their own individual culture (Select Knowledge, 2001). Organisational culture can be defined similarly to the definition of culture provided previously in that it i s the shared discourses of the people belonging to it (Bartol, 2008). It is through the process of interacting with others that a person learns culture and cultural discourses are transmitted (Schein, 1987).Organisational culture is reflected by the shared assumptions held in the organisation as well as in its rituals, policies, systems, and procedures which influence the assumed desired behaviours that the organisation believes is part of their culture (Bartol, 2008). The culture of an organisation can be explained by using Hofstede’s (1997) dimensions of values, which for the purpose of this essay will only include power distance and masculinity versus femininity.In diagnosing Origin Energy’s existing culture within its billing team after their transition from Wipro, it has been suggested that firstly the culture before the transition was completed should be compared to the current culture so that the current culture can be more clearly identified (Waddell, Cummings & Worley, 2007). The first dimension power distance describes the level at which power is distributed throughout the organisation, meaning that an organisation might have levels of power for its employees or not (Hofstede, 1997).In terms of this relating to Origin Energy’s billing teams before their transition from Wipro is that their experience with Origin Energy has let them be less subject to a power hierarchy than they were at Wipro where the structure of power is more rigid (Origin Energy, 2010). Origin uses a more collaborative approach to making decisions in that the managers communicate with and value input and feedback from their employees (Origin Energy, 2010). Also employees have autonomy is handling complex issues, although the managers hold a position of power in aking the final decision and are involved in the maintenance of procedures and behaviours (Origin Energy, 2010). This was not their experience at Wipro where they had less autonomy, as they were boss-sub ordinate and this means that they needed their manager’s approval to make decisions on issues (Waddell, Cummings & Worley, 2007). In the other dimension used to illustrate the culture before and after the billing teams were contracted to Origin is masculinity versus femininity (Hofstede, 1997).Masculinity refers to the emphasis on competition and assertiveness in an organisation and there is more attention placed on success (Hofstede, 1997). In regards to the billing team they have experienced a stronger sense of this strive for success with Origin Energy than they did with Wipro as the energy market that Origin Energy trades on is more competitive than the finance industry in light of the deregulation of gas and electricity which was mentioned previously (Origin Energy, 2010; Waddell, Cummings & Worley, 2007). Femininity refers to the emphasis on relationships and the quality of life (Hofstede, 1997).The billing team have experienced higher value on the quality of life and t he fostering of relationships with Origin Energy as they were more openly communicated to by their managers at Origin Energy as it has a more collaborative approach to involving staff participation in organisational processes than they had at Wipro where they experienced a more authoritarian approach to decision making from their managers and this is evident by the use of fortnightly meetings conducted by Origin Energy’s managers (Origin Energy, 2010).Origin also offers more flexible start and finish times for employees as long as their hours are properly completed where Wipro was more rigid about their working times (Origin Energy, 2010). Throughout this comparison of culture various leadership styles have briefly been mentioned, as they are part of organisational culture and help to facilitate it (Hoffman, 2005). Management and Leadership Styles Two leadership theories can be used to explain how Origin Energy has fostered this culture and explain their approach in managing their newly contracted billing team.These two theories include House’s Path-Goal Leadership Theory and the Transactional Leadership Theory. House’s Path-Goal Theory gives insight into the reason for the identified culture of Origin Energy as it factors in that leaders affect the motivation of employees to accomplish tasks to receive rewards and the leader’s style will influence the performance and satisfaction of their employees (Shriberg & Shriberg, 2006). The theory states that a leader is responsible to motivate employees to achieve goals and the level of motivation of the employees is dependant of the clarification of expectations (Lussier & Achua, 2010).It can be used to identify and explain different leadership styles (Shriberg & Shriberg, 2006). As mentioned previously Origin Energy takes a more collaborative approach in the process of decision-making and is less power distant (Hofstede, 1997) with its employees than Wipro. According to House’s Pat h-Goal Theory, Origin’s managers use a participative leadership style as the managers consult with and account for employee’s suggestions before a decision is made and provide employee with an understanding of the circumstances surrounding the decision (Landy & Conte, 2007).Another theory that demonstrates Origin Energy’s approach to leadership is the Transactional Leadership Theory. Transactional Leadership Theory involves the agreed expectations between managers and employees that are exchanged daily between the two parties to ascertain routine tasks on performance are completed successfully (Wood et al. , 2010). According to this theory leaders are more task driven and make employees more compliant in striving to achieve organisational goals (Martin, Cashel, Wagstaff & Breunig, 2006).Importance is placed on employees’ contribution and responsibility regarding the organisation (Kakabadse, Bank & Vinnicombe, 2004). The transactional leadership perspectiv e states that leaders will be involved with their employees when the employees require direction (Martin et al. , 2006). The focus is on the self-purpose of the employees and therefore the manager has little involvement with the employees (Kakabadse, Bank & Vinnicombe, 2004). This is evident in the organisational culture of Origin Energy as the billing teams’ employees have autonomy in their roles as discussed previously (Origin Energy, 2010).Like House’s Path-Goal Theory there are elements to leadership styles in Transactional Leadership Theory (Wood et al. , 2010). Transactional Leadership Theory may state that managers have little involvement with their employees however the theory applies to task-orientated leaders that are able to facilitate the achievement of goals (Martin et al. , 2006). The leadership styles of this theory reflect that and the style used by Origin Energy’s managers is the active management by exception approach (Wood et al. , 2010). This means concentration is placed on the correction of irregularities and mistakes of the employees’ activities (Wood et al. 2010). This is the case for Origin Energy as mentioned earlier the managers allow employees autonomy in their roles, although they are responsible for maintaining expected norms and standards of the organisation and therefore can correct any deviation from the organisations procedures and standards of behaviour (Wood et al. , 2010). Leaders have an impact on the motivation of their employees and motivation is also influenced by organisational culture, which in turn has an influence on performance (Bartol, 2008). Motivation and Performance Theories of motivation can be used to describe the relationship between performance and motivation.Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is one of the theories that can be used to demonstrate this. In this theory Maslow identified five basic human needs (Maslow & Stephens, 2000). Namely these needs Maslow identified, in orde r from the most fundamental, are physiological, safety, belongingness, esteem and self-actualisation (Pattanayak, 2005). Physiological needs refer to the basic needs of eating, having shelter and wearing clothes (Hodgetts & Hegar, 2008). As Origin Energy has contracted the billing team from Wipro they aid employees in satisfying this need. Safety needs involve security and stability (Wood et al. 2010). Origin Energy’s managers openly communicates with their staff to ensure they are made aware of change and understand the reasons for it which allows the employees to feel more secure in their positions within the organisation (Wood et al. , 2010). Third is the need for affiliation and acceptance, which comes from a desire to belong, and as previously discussed Origin Energy’s culture is feminine (Hofstede, 1997) in the sense that the organisation fosters relationships between its staff and this can be seen through the use of their fortnightly meetings.The esteem need rel ates to self-esteem, respect, achievement and recognition of performance (Hodgetts & Hegar, 2008). Origin Energy aids employees to satisfy this needs by allowing their participation in organisational processes. The highest need on the hierarchy is self-actualisation and this need is about realising one’s own potential as well as the growth and development desired to fulfill that potential (Agarwal, 1982). Origin Energy allows their employees autonomy in their roles, training to be successful in them and there are opportunities for advancement (Origin Energy, 2010).Another Theory that helps to describe the relationship of motivation and performance is Herzberg Motivation-Hygiene Theory. Herzberg’s theory is based on the assumption that there are factors that add to employees’ satisfaction and dissatisfaction (Daft, 2005). Hygiene factors relate to factors in context to the job such as organisational policies; supervision, salaries, communication and the condition s at work (Borkowski, 2010). Motivation factors are associated to factors related to job content (Montana & Charnov, 2000).Motivators directly influence individuals’ attitudes and performance at work (Waiguchu, Tiagha & Mwaura, 1999) and consist of having recognition, achievement, responsibility, advancement and the work itself (Borkowski, 2010). When motivators are present they affect the satisfaction of the job for employees and in turn creates high motivation, which leads to job enrichment (Daft, 2005). Job enrichment relates to the use of hygiene and motivators within the job roles (Sapru, 2006). Participative management is a product of this theory (Sapru, 2006).As Origin Energy is seen to use participative management, incorporate the motivators and provides the hygiene factors specified by Herzberg into their roles to lessen job dissatisfaction, they have increased the performance of the billing teams and this is evident in their productivity and behaviour since they wer e contracted to work for Origin Energy (Origin Energy, 2010). The successful performance of the billing teams and their adaption to Origin Energy’s culture can also be attributed to the implementation of effective change management strategies.Change Management Strategies Organisations are affected by the changes that occur not only in their internal environment but also from the external one in which they exist (Wood et al. , 2010). Therefore, from this awareness organisations are required to respond to change (Anderson & Anderson, 2010). The reasons for change are crucial to understand as they provide the context for the change to occur in (Anderson & Anderson, 2007). As mentioned reviously Origin Energy contracted the billing teams from Wipro in an attempt to improve operational efficiency to meet ongoing customer requirements (Origin Energy, 2010). Origin went about implementing certain strategies to successfully implement this change. Firstly, Origin Energy analysed the c urrent and future states of their business regarding the issue, which is essential to begin and prepare for the process of organisational change (Origin Energy, 2010; Anderson & Anderson, 2010).Secondly, Origin Energy and Wipro planned for the change in attempt to create communication with all stakeholders as well as evaluate and pre-empt the risk involved and ensure that there was an operational way for the change to occur, which according to Oakland and Tanner (2007) is a measure for successful change management (Origin Energy, 2010). Origin Energy implemented the change by understanding communication was the key for the success of the transition (Anderson & Anderson, 2010; Origin Energy, 2010).The managers of Origin Energy and the ones moving over from Wipro were engaged regularly by briefing meetings to inform them of the processes being undertaken to confirm the change flowed down and directed their teams, which is an effective way to implement change (Oakland & Tanner, 2007; O rigin Energy, 2010). Another change management strategy used by Origin Energy was the training of each team as they moved them over in stages (Origin Energy, 2010). This was performed by Origin Energy to align the billing teams with Origin Energy’s culture and processes (Oakland & Tanner, 2007).Origin Energy’s evaluation of the change indicated the objective of increasing the proficiency of its credit and billing function was achieved (Origin Energy, 2010. ) Conclusion Earlier in the essay the background of Origin Energy was described. A definition of organisational culture as well as Origin Energy’s culture before and after it underwent the change was discussed. It explored the management and leadership styles within the organisation, the relationship between motivation and performance and the change management strategies utilized by Origin Energy.Each of these sections was analysed to support the hypothesis that culture is an integral part of an organisation a nd this was proven through each discussion as culture influenced the process of Origin contracting the billing teams to work internally for it. References Agarwal, R. D. (1982). Organization and management. New Delhi, India: Tata McGraw-Hill. Anderson D. , & Anderson, L. (2010). Beyond change management: How to achieve breakthrough results through conscious change leadership (2nd ed. ). San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer. Bartol, K. (2008). Management: a Pacific Rim focus (5th ed. . NSW, Australia: McGraw-Hill. Berry, J. , & Sam, D. (2006). The Cambridge handbook of acculturation psychology. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Borkowski, N. (2010). Organizational behavior in health care (2nd ed. ). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Daft, R. (2005). The leadership experience (4th ed. ). OH, USA: Thompson Higher Education. Hodgetts, R. , & Hegar, K. (2008). Modern human relations at work (10th ed. ). OH, USA: Thompson Higher Education. Hoffman, S. (2005). How do motivation a nd leadership affect the corporate culture of multinational firms?.Germany: GRIN Verlag. Hofstede, G. (1997). Cultures and organisations: Software of the mind, intercultural co-operation and its importance for survival. New York: McGraw Hill. Kakbadse, A. , Bank, J. , & Vinnicombe, S. (2004). Working in organizations. Burlington, VT: Gower Publishing Limited. Landy, F. , & Conte, M. (2007). Work in the 21st century: An introduction to industrial and organizational psychology (2nd ed. ). Carlton, Victoria: Blackwell Publishing. Lussier, R. , & Achua, C. (2010). Leadership: Theory, application, & skill development (4th ed. . OH, USA: Cengage Learning. Martin, B. , Cashel, C. , Wagstaff, M. , & Breunig, M. (2006). Outdoor leadership: Theory and practice. Maslow, A. , & Stephens, C. (2000). The Maslow business reader. New York, USA: John Wiley and Sons, Inc. Montana, P. , & Charnov, B. (2000). Management (3rd ed. ). New York, USA: Barron’s Educational Series, Inc. Oakland,J. S. , & Tanner, S. (2007). Successful change management. Total Quality Management, 18(1-2),1-19. Origin Energy. (2010, November 12). Source. Retrieved November 16, 2010, from http://source. riginenergy. com. au Pattanayak, B. (2005). Human resources management (3rd ed. ). New Delhi, India: Prentice-Hall of India Private Limited. Sapru, R. K. (2006). Administrative theories and management thought. New Delhi, India: Prentice-Hall of India Private Limited. Schein, E. (1987). Organisational culture and leadership. San Fransisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Select Knowledge. (2001). Succeeding in the modern organizational culture. Retrieved from Google Books database. Shriberg A. , & Shriberg, D. (2006). Practicing leadership: Principles and applications.United States of America: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Waddell, D. , Cummings, T. , & Worley, C. (2007). Organisation development and change: Asia Pacific (3rd ed. ). South Melbourne, Victoria: Thompson. Waiguchu, J. , Tiagha, E. , & Mwaura, M. (1999). Manag ement of organisations in Africa: A handbook and reference. USA: Quorom Books. Wood, J. , Zeffane, R. , Fromholtz, M. , Wiesner, R. , Creed, A. , Schermerhorn, J. , Hunt. , & Osborn, R. (2010). Organisational behaviour: Core concepts and applications (2ND ed. ). New York, USA: John Wiley & sons, Inc.

Cheating Essay

Cheating is cheating yourself Cheating on school work is never justifiable. Students are responsible for their own work, and it is unfair to cheat in any form. Teachers grade students on their own academic ability and if a student is covertly or openly cheating that is considered infringement of being a student. Being a student requires personal interpretation, and analysis. Copying someone else’s work is disadvantageous. If cheating becomes a regular practice to someone it can be harmful to their future. Plagiarism is a major form of cheating that is distinctly forbidden. If students are not accountable for their own work, then they should be punished for it. The purpose of going to school is to learn and be able to consume new information. Copying someone else’s work does not serve this purpose and is useless regards to learning new material. For example, if a student is assigned to take notes on a certain reading, and hand in the same worded notes as another student it is possible that one student copied the other. If they worked on the notes together, and spent time to word it in the same way, this would not be considered cheating. However, if this was the case then the students should clarify with their teacher that the notes were worked on together. If this was not the case, this would be considered cheating and it should not be tolerated. From experience, I once allowed one of my friends to look over my class notes. As I graciously gave them the paper, I didn’t think that my friend would copy the notes word for word. A few days later, after handing in the notes, we got them back. I looked down at my paper and saw on th e top a zero written in red marker. I looked over at my friends paper which read the same grade. The teacher had both of us stay after class, and told us that he didn’t know who was responsible for taking the notes, and that either way it was cheating. As the year proceeded, I could tell my teacher was always skeptical of work that my friend and I would hand in following this incident. Cheating can lose values of trust, which I felt it did between my teacher and I. Since that day, I have not willingly handed out any of my papers. Since school in beneficial to an individual, cheating defeats this purpose. One of my teachers in high school would continuously repeat the saying â€Å"When you cheat, you cheat yourself.† I have seen people cheat their way through high school which does not better themselves in any way. For example, someone in my graduating class had the advantage of being one of the best football players in our conference, and was praised for it by my school and town. When ivy league schools started to recruit him, he figured he had to step his academic game up. How he did this was unfair because he regularly would copy other people’s work. Students would have no problem handing over papers to him, oblivious to what would happen to him in the long run. This phenomenal football player committed to Brown, I knew he had it coming. Since cheating became a regular practice to him, he would not be able to keep up with the academic work load at Brown. When asking a friend how he was doing, I heard that he was considering to transfer after the first semester. I assu med that this was because he did not feel like he could handle the school work since cheating had become part of his nature. In addition to cheating to yourself, this practice also includes false accomplishment. This football player had the privilege of attending Brown University, but his actions of getting there were unfair. He was a fully qualified football player for the University, but his academic level was a fraud. He might feel proud of this accomplishment for getting into and attending Brown, but really he is lying to himself. Cheating should never be tolerated, let alone regularly done because it results in negative effects such as what happened to this football player. Plagiarism is a major form of cheating that is frowned upon. Plagiarism is intolerable at colleges, and has detrimental consequences. In every one of my syllabus’s for my college course, plagiarism is addressed. It is clearly stated that if students are caught for plagiarizing, they will be penalized and consequences may even result in expulsion of the course. Plagiarism is defined as the practice of taking someone else’s work or ideas and passing them off as one’s own. It is unfair for one to claim that their work is someone else’s which is why a student is punished for it if they are caught. I have always been taught to make sure that I cite my sources if I have copied or taken information from another source. I am aware of the consequences of plagiarism so I am always careful when taking information  from other sources. I have had a friend in high school that got caught for plagiarism. There was no way for her to defend herself for the action, so she received a zero on this paper. There are no excuses for plagiarism which is why it is never justifiable. Cheating in relationships usually results in break ups. This is significant and similar to cheating on school work because as you could conclude from reading this paper, there are no advantages of cheating. One might feel that they will never get caught for such an action, but they themselves cannot feel satisfied for their work since it is not their own. My experience of handing out my paper to my friend made me more aware of the outcomes which could occur due to this action. This is why I have never cheated since this has happened. My observation of the football player at Brown demonstrated the false representation he played in regards to his academic achievements. The severe repercussions plagiarism creates are enforced at schools and universities throughout the world. Cheating is never acceptable on school work since there is nothing good that comes out of it.

Megan Fox

Writing is one of the greatest forms of creativity, allowing you to express your opinion and voice on anything you feel or any knowledge you want to share. It is also a vital learning skill to have in the workforce, as your writing skills can be reflected upon the way you communicate and present yourself. Everyone's different writing style shows their personality, allowing you to have an understanding of what the person is really like through their own words on paper. For me, I've always considered writing to be one of my favorite subjects throughout my years of school. My interest sparked at a young age when I started reading books at school, and decided to take it upon myself to write my own stories. I'd spend hours at home creating different short stories and hoped that someday I'd get them published, which of course didn't happen, but it made me realize that writing was something I really appreciate. I loved the freedom of it and being able to write down exactly what was on my mind, so that I'd never forget a certain thought, idea, or story in my head that I wanted to remember. Later on, I discovered I also enjoy writing when it is based on a certain topic, such as research papers on a particular historic figure, or research findings and my thoughts on an issue or topic. I like becoming more knowledgeable on a subject as it can provide you with information on things you never knew about, but find very fascinating. A few times in high school, for example, I remember having to do a couple of 8-10 page research papers that I absolutely dreaded, but when I was done I felt a sense of accomplishment and was happy to have learned something new. As of now, I look forward to improving my writing skills through further studying and practice. I believe writing is a crucial method of communication that you will need to be successful in whatever career you choose. Often, the methods of communication used include email, letters, and reports, all of which require adequate writing skills that you will need to make yourself look professional for your chosen career. I believe writing also improves your speech by being able to articulate your opinions clearly and concisely, as well as widening your vocabularly by coming up with new ways to say what you want to say. My main goal in becoming a better writer is to be able to come up with creative ideas and develop insight on things that I never knew. I want to be able to broaden my mind further and bring this new information with me throughout my life.

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Project Management Report And Plan - Essay Example The researcher states that Bloomsbury Hotels are regarded by its peers as an industry innovator and the standards that they set often become the industry-wide benchmark. The high level of brand loyalty has been based upon consistently high standards of facilities and service. For this reason, all Bloomsbury properties, adhere to a strict policy that is laid down in a Standard Operations Procedures Manual. This essay mentiones that the hotel was opened in 1985 on a site in West London with easy access to the Underground network and Heathrow airport. The hotel is fully air-conditioned and has 15 floors. Since opening the Palgrave Hotel in 1985, the first five floors of the hotel have remained unaltered. Even though quality materials were used at the time, these 80 rooms are no longer to a Bloomsbury Hotels standard. The ‘eighties’ style decoration of bright colours and worn furnishings are a dramatic contrast to the upper ten renovated floors. The initial proposal is that a budget of 1,950,000 pounds will be required to complete this project. Detailed budgets for the whole project will be forwarded for approval to proceed, as laid down in the company’s S.O.P. The overall theme is based around the theme of ‘nature’ that will be expressed through the range of materials, colours and images. The five floors will therefore be imbued with a new coherence with regard to each other and the outside environment. The installation of the design and control of the project will be completed by the management of the Palgrave Hotel, London.

The Housewife who got off the Couch Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Housewife who got off the Couch - Essay Example In an article entitled â€Å"The Housewife Who Got Up Off the Couch,† the story is told of Eleanor Josaitis. Josaitis is a Detroit woman who, as a housewife and mother of five, decided one day that she was going to make a difference in her backyard. Working with other community leaders, Josaitis has been successful in founding a non-profit organization in the heart of Detroit that provides job training and support for low-income families designed to get them off of the poverty rolls. Analyzing the article for evidence of enlightened self-interest provides clues to Josaitis’ goals and ethical principles as well as provides tools for assessing the role of ethics within the business organization. Enlightened self-interest is a basic concept stating that the best way one can help oneself is to help others. The article refers to this type of interest when it illustrates the reasons why Josaitis began getting involved in her community. â€Å"In 1962, as she sat watching a television program about the Nuremberg trials, Josaitis – then a housewife with five children – asked herself what she would have done if atrocities were taking place in her own backyard† (147-148). Discovering that atrocities were taking place in her backyard in the form of the Civil Rights Movement in the South followed by race riots in Detroit, she co-founded the Focus: HOPE organization. Thus, Josaitis was motivated to help others because they were suffering near her own home. Her participation in protest movements in support of the black people’s bid for equal rights is an example of indirect enlightened self-interest in that Josaitis knew something had to change for black peop le but did not see the immediate connection to her personal living situation. This became direct enlightened self-interest when she watched her city burn during race riots, literally

Economic and Moral Devastation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economic and Moral Devastation - Essay Example Your long introductory paragraph is informative, but your topical statement in the opening remarks does not give a hint of the elaborative content that readers stumble upon through the paragraph. The mention of the period in question gives us a historical background. However, I would suggest an inclusion of characters in the society other than the Populist Party that raised the alarm on the possible outcomes of the changes that were being noticed. Failure to mention Karl Marx is a great injustice to your essay given he was in the front line while advocating against capitalism. As seen in his work, he was against the idea of exploitation of laborers and peasants to generate wealth for just a few in the society. In his work, he asserts that the state had allowed few characters to accumulate capital â€Å"by increasing the degree of exploitation of labor†.   Marx addresses the concerns of your essay better as he sees how the capitalists take advantage of the proletarians and tu rn their blood and sweat to their wealth. It even hurts to realize that labor does not fetch as much as before as its supply is plenty. As Mooney notices, â€Å"their high wages were gone for good†.I find your essay address those elements that came with capitalism, but it again falls short of expectation when you downplay the rise of social classes. The United States had become conscious of classes, and the working class was the latest development back then. As you use the Populist Party as your pillar in examining the morality of capitalism.

Consulting opportunity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Consulting opportunity - Essay Example Laurent (Ferdows., 2004). 1.1. Outline of the opportunity Fast Fashion is a type of disruptive business process. In this process, smaller firms and lesser-known designers copy designs, fabrics, materials, colours and other distinguishing features from the products of well designers who display their styles in fashion magazines and in fashion shows. These designs are then given to small and independent firms based in China, Vietnam and other developing nations where labour is economical. These firms are equipped with modern machines that produce the items very quickly and in large volumes. Original designers such as Dolce and Gabanna may take up to 18 months or more to manufacture their designs. The fast fashion firms use mass manufacturing and distribution methods to productionise the designs in just a few weeks (Fiorito, 2009). The fast fashion sector is growing at a rapid pace and it fills the need of men and women to wear affordable designs and clothes, too look good and be presen table. In 2010, Fast Fashion sector was worth 27 billion GBP and it makes up 12% of the UK apparel market. While a large number of Chinese manufacturers and suppliers are present, a number of established brands have also become fast fashion retailers. Some of the more popular ones are Zara, Uniqlo, GAP, H&M and others. Some top fashion houses and retailers have also adopted fast fashion methods to fill their displays with affordable clothes. Some of these are New Look, Top Shop, Asda, Armani Exchange, Abercrombie & Fitch, Forever 21, Urban Outfitters, MUJI, Comme ca ism, C&A, American Appeal, Aeropostale, American Eagle Outfitters, United Colours of Benetton and Next. Other reputed brands are also using some principles of fast fashion by getting their outfits manufactured economically and quickly from China. These brands include Mark One, Burton, BHS, Evans, Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and many others. Clearly, fast fashion has caught the fancy of small fashion houses and leading design ers (WGSN, 2011). Fashion has two distinct genres and these are Haute Couture or high fashion and Mass or Fast Fashion. Haute Couture is designer clothing where designers take up limited designs of their apparel and very few items are produced. Besides being custom stitched, these items are very expensive and an evening dress for women by a designer such as Dior or Armani would cost more than 50,000 GBP. These exclusive items are also displayed in exclusive and branded fashion stores on high street in selected cities and capitals. Customers who wear such clothes include celebrities, movie stars, rich business people and socialites who move in their own limited circle of friends. The genre of fast fashion includes apparel used for office wear, leisure and eveningwear, formals, sportswear and other items. These are affordable and cost from 30 to 80 GBP per item. There are for everyday use and for middle class people, students, working professionals who want to look good but who cannot afford the high rates of Haute Couture designs. In many cases, fast fashion items are copies of the high street fashion items with some improvisations and additions (Tungate, 2005). This report will present an idea to start a fast fashion brand

LOCAL VANCOUVER ISLAND TOURISM - PARTICIPATION AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO Essay

LOCAL VANCOUVER ISLAND TOURISM - PARTICIPATION AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO QUALITY OF LIFE - Essay Example The thematic exploration of local tourism with regard to the quality of life becomes significant as its findings could be exploited not only for enhancing the overall well-being of the local people but also in promoting new opportunities of growth across the Island population. The study had focused on the views of women in the age group 30-39 years. The main reason being that women’s outlook is linked to wider community encompassing friends, relatives, children etc. as they are perceived to be the epicenter of family. The thesis questions were very pertinent to explore and identify the factors that link local tourism to the holistic welfare of the people. The questions had focused on three major ideas: How women in 30-39 years perceive local tourism; their perception of ‘quality of life’; and how quality of life is related to local tourism. Local participation and sustainability have underpinned the research objectives which makes the study hugely relevant to the socio-economic development of the Island. The exploratory research has exploited the tenets of descriptive qualitative research methods using semi-structured interview schedule and focus group. Total numbers of participants were nineteen: six from the industry stakeholders; an d thirteen female participants representing diverse community across Vancouver Island. The thesis findings had revealed some very interesting aspects of human relationship that have wide ranging impact on local tourism. The quality of life had varying meanings for different participants but it was unanimously confirmed that it had positive impact on their life and happiness. It could broadly be divided into three categories: being a healthy and happy person and enjoy all amenities of life like good food, good work-life balance and being independent. The second category is linked to better social relations, safe environment, strong sense of pride and lifestyle choices. Lastly, cost effective peaceful

Cross Cultural Perspectives Essay Example for Free

Cross Cultural Perspectives Essay The Microsoft Corporation is a fortune 500 company that ranked # 35 on the fortune 500 list in 2013 (Fortune 500, 2013) and is one of the largest business corporations in the world. It was founded in 1975 by two guys named Paul Allen and Bill Gates, the business developed very rapidly as the years went by and reached a marker of 89,000 employees, with a revenue of $62 billion dollars and had offices located all over the world (Fortune 500, 2011). From the initial headquarters that is held in Albuquerque New Mexico, the Microsoft Company steadily increased the offices held within the United States and expanded that to include more than 100 countries abroad. This expansion into different countries became a challenge because of having to deal with new lifestyles, new cultures, people, and languages. Proper research needed to be conducted not to mention the implementation of a proper working strategy to help the integration of these new ethics and cultures into those of the Microsoft Corporation. The homepage of the Microsoft Corporation shares a summarized version of its culture and says â€Å"We as individuals and as a company value honesty, integrity, constructive self criticism, openness, mutual respect, and continual self improvement† (Microsoft Corporation, 2011). The Microsoft Corporation also presents their official responsibilities as part of their ethical obligation. â€Å"We at the Microsoft Corporation hold ourselves accountable to our shareholders, customers, employees, and partners, and we do this by honoring our commitment, providing results, and striving for the highest quality possible† (Microsoft Corporation, 2011). When making a move into new cultures and countries, it becomes very important for employees old and new to not only understand but also accept the Microsoft Corporations ethics and culture. As we all know Microsoft products are used all over the world in both businesses and homes. When they first made the decision to open an office in Lebanon, a majority of the computers ran on the Microsoft Windows operating system and the Windows Office program was the most popular word processing and spreadsheet program. However, there was a problem and that problem was the fact that there was a bunch of versions of this system that had been pirated and distributed in that country. In a country where buying a five dollar pirated software program from a local computer store made it a little hard in terms of convincing some people that it was not only unethical but also illegal. This brings about the question of, â€Å"How is The Microsoft Corporation going to sell authentic versions of their software when there are pirated versions being distributed at such a cheaper price not to mention a lack of government control involved†? Because of this, Microsoft proceeded to send letters to these major organizations warning them against using this pirated software. They also offered to visit these businesses in order to conduct a site survey so that assessments could be made in terms of what software would fit the company the best and at what the cost would be. The Microsoft Corporation also provided the organization that behaved ethically and invited Microsoft in for the survey assessment; Microsoft turned around and gave them a very good price deal on the software. Microsoft also introduced to them a payment facility for the companies that had to make large purchases of the software in order to get licenses for the pirated software they already had in place. Everyone knows that not all organizations and businesses operate within ethical boundaries. Lebanon, just like the U. S. , is similar in the fact that it is an individualist culture. However, bribery is common throughout this country. Microsoft has an ethical standard that is against these types of acts and it is totally against their integrity. It was however, improbable to sell these authentic copies to many of these businesses without presenting these managers with some type of gift in exchange. Some of these organizations proceeded to offer gifts to the Microsoft Corporation’s employees. They in return were hoping for some type of special discount, or a deal would not work out. The Microsoft Corporation has an ethical obligation to their shareholders and that obligation is to protect and increase the value of the shares. The Microsoft Corporation has to be able to earn a said profit in order for the share values to increase. On a bad note, Microsoft cannot legitimately sell software copies in a country that has corruption and bribery within its ethics and culture. According to Transparency International â€Å"The transparency in Lebanon ranked 2. 5 out of 10 in the world in 2010† (Corruption Perception Index 2010 Results, 2010). When comparing that score to 8. 9 out of 10 in Canada and 7. 1 out of 10 in the United States, the difference is quite staggering. Microsoft has to be able to find a way to adapt their approach in order to conclude some type of successful business in the country of Lebanon. According to the text book â€Å"The biggest source of anxiety for business people in America who operate abroad is the expectations of bribes and payoffs† (Trevino Nelson, 2007). When the Microsoft management team was faced with bribes or offerings in order to sell their software to the organizations who where operating on pirated copies, they in return chose to use an ethical model in order to make a decision in regards of choosing which course of action would be best to take. The judicial systems of these countries that have a low transparency, that are similar to those in Lebanon, are very weak. So filing a lawsuit against the businesses that are running the pirated versions of the Microsoft software programs would turn out to be very costly, time consuming and may end up yielding no type of results in the end. Management teams that are faced with different types of ethical situations can apply different types of ethical models in order to help assist in the process of decision making. In the case of bribing a manager of an organization in order to purchase software that is legal, it is possible that they could apply the utilitarianism ethical model. By looking at the result, it might be easy to try and make a decision on whether or not the employees at the Microsoft Corporation may try and bribe a business into purchasing Microsoft software that is legal. On a positive note, Microsoft selling more software to organizations and businesses that need it or may already be using it may help in the reduction of software being pirated within the country. The share prices at Microsoft are being maintained by the revenue and the employees receiving a commission. On the negative side, if a bribe is being paid to an employee or a member of the business or an organization who is purchasing the Microsoft software. The Utilitarianism’s ethical model shows approval of this as a decision that is ethical. Being able to apply different ethical models, such as the deontological model may end up having different ending results. The question that this raises is â€Å"Should all businesses or organizations pay some type of bribe or bribes in order to help sell their products? † The answer to this naturally is, â€Å"no†. Global businesses are faced with many different challenges everyday as they expand into different foreign organizations. Ethical challenges will always arise for an organization as they expand. The ethical decisions made in regards to different business matters can usually be solved by applying the different ethical models that are available. There are plenty of tools available for helping solve arising ethical problems and they need to be used so they may be helpful in making solutions. With the launch of Microsoft in the country of Lebanon they need to confront these ethical issues of bribery so that they can enter the market. The Microsoft Corporation must learn to adapt their policies in order to comply with the ethical standards they have in the country of Lebanon. References Corruption Perception Index, 2010 results (2010). Transparency International Retrieved August 11, 2013 from https://www. transparency. org/policy_research/surveys Fortune Global 500 (2011) CNN Money, Retrieved August 11, 2013 from https://money. cnn. com/magazines/fortune/global500/2011 Microsoft Corporation (2011) About Microsoft, Retrieved August 10, 2013 from https://www. microsoft. com/about/en/us/default. aspx Trevino. L. K Nelson. K. L (2007) Retrieved August 9, 2013 from Managing Business Ethics (4th Ed). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley Sons.

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Wireless Internet

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Wireless Internet Wireless Internet is also called Wireless Web, Mobile Internet, and Internet Wireless. Wireless Internet means access the internet through a wireless devices, For Example laptop, cellular telephone , PDA, etc , Using Wireless internet any person can do their day today activities like e-mail, e-banking, communication, conferencing, etc.., In addition to that can be accessed weather and travel information, etcà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ any where any time. Advantages of wireless Internet Fast installation Efficient use of resources Less susceptible to disruption Capacity can be added, removed or reallocated more easily To enable users to bring their own laptop, therefore reducing the cost of owning many PCs. To enable you to easily move PCs. Disadvantages of wireless Internet Cost Technology is newer and more expensive for some applications Speed Radio Frequency (RF) characteristics make high data transfer rates more difficult with wireless than with wired Security Wireless signals are relatively easy to intercept Frequency spectrum saturation Scope Of The Survey What are the current wireless internet technologies Give detailed view about each technology Compare each technology by giving advantages disadvantages of them What are the new trends of wireless internet and the improvements of them with compare to current technologies Current Wireless Internet Technologies LEO IEEE 802.11 IEEE 802.16 LMDS 1G-Analoge Cellular MEO (WIFI) (WIMAX) MMDS 2G-Digital Cellular GSO 2.5/2.75G- (GPRS/EDGE) 3G/3.5G Mobile WiMAX (IEEE 802.16e/m) Detailed view about each technology Mobile Wireless Internet Technologies First Generation mobile wireless technology (1G) First Generation mobile wireless technology (1G) are analog , voice-only cellular, telecommunications standards, that were Introduced in the 1980s. One such standard is NMT (Nordic Mobile Telephone), used in Nordic countries, Eastern Europe and Russia. Others include AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System) used in the United States, TACS (Total Access Communications System) in the United Kingdom, JTAGS in Japan, C-Netz in West Germany, Radiocom 2000 in France, and RTMI in Italy. Second generation wireless technology(2G) Second generation mobile wireless technology is based on GSM was launched in Finland in the year 1991, 1G technology use analogue radio signals but 2G technology use digital signals to transfer data,but both technologies connect to the tower using digital signals ,In 2G voice call is encoded to digital signals but 1G signals are modulated to higher frequencies like 150 MHz and up. There are three common technologies used by 2G cell-phone networks for transmitting information Time division multiple access (TDMA) -GSM,PDC(japan),iDEN(US,Canada),IS-136(US) Code division multiple access (CDMA) -IS-95(US,Asia) 2.5G(GPRS) The term 2.5G usually describes a 2G cellular system combined with General Packet Radio Services (GPRS). that means it implements a packet-switched network domain in addition to a circuit-switched domain. It can be provide data rates 56 kbit/s-115 kbit/s and also Services like Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) access, Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS), and for Internet communication services such as email and World Wide Web access. 2.75G(EDGE) EDGE Defined as GPRS with 8PSK encoding, EDGE was introduced in 2003, EDGE achieves higher data-rates (up to 236.8 kbit/s) Third generation wireless Internet(3G) Third generation mobile wireless technology is based on International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000), 3G is collection of standards mobile telecommunications which includes UMTS, and CDMA2000 with non-mobile wireless standards DECT WiMAX, Compared to 2G and 2.5G services, 3G allows simultaneous use of speech and data services and higher data rates (at least 200 kbit/s). today 3G systems can provide up to 14.0 Mbit/s download speed and 5.8 Mbit/s upload speed. Mobile WiMax(IEEE 802.16e) Mobile WiMAX or 802.16e standard was introduced by the IEEE in late 2005 as real competitor to 3G technologies, However South Korea elected to take a mobile WiMAX compatible standard called wireless broadband (WiBro) to market. WiBro/Mobile WiMAX uses an OFDMAà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ technology called 1K-FFT. Service for the WiBro/Mobile WiMAX standard is in the 2.3 GHz spectrum range at least in Korea. The technology can be easily adapted to other licensed spectrum. Wireless Wide Area Networking Technologies WIMAX(Interoperability for Microwave Access) Wimax is a telecommunications technology that offers transmission of wireless data via a number of transmission methods; such as portable or fully mobile internet access via point to multipoints links. The current WiMAX revision provides up to 40 Mbit/s which is based on Standard IEEE 802.16, it also called Broadband Wireless Access and it was formed in Mid June 2001 Wireless Local Area Networking Technologies WiFi WiFi uses radio waves to provide wireless high-speed Internet and network connections. WiFi is owned by the organization Wi-Fi Alliance, and it is based on IEEE 802.11 standards. 802.11a transmits at 5 GHz and can be provide data rate up to 54 Mb/s and it uses technology orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM). 802.11b is the slowest and least expensive standard which transmits at 2.4 GHz can be provide data rate up to 11 Mb/s and it uses complementary code keying (CCK) modulation to improve speeds. 802.11g transmits at 2.4 GHz and it can provide data rates up to 54 Mb/s. 802.11g is faster because it uses the same OFDM coding as 802.11a. 802.11n is the newest standard that is widely available and it can achieve data rates up to 140 Mb/s. Fixed Wireless Internet Technologies LMDS (Local Multipoint Distribution System) LMDS is a technology for broadband microwave wireless transmission direct from a local antenna to homes and businesses within distance 1.5 miles (2.4 km) . LMDS offers a download speed up to 1.5 Gb/s and 200 Mb/s upload speed. LMDS commonly operates on frequencies across the 26 GHz and 29 GHz bands. In Europe, (ETSI) is equivalent technology. In Canada, it is called Local Multipoint Communication Service (LMCS) and it is based on IEEE 802.16.1 standards. MMDS(Multichannel Multipoint Distribution Service) MMDS provides digital video- and Internet- (including VoIP) access using various over-the-air microwave frequencies. Services are provided within distance 20 miles or 32 km from the transmit site. MMDS commonly operates on frequencies across the 2 GHz and 3 GHz. The MMDS band was separated into eleven channels and Each channel was capable of 10 Mbit/s Satellite wireless internet technologies Communication via satellite can be done using one or two way dish. Satellite dish was placed minimizing the interference with other satellites . the dial-up connection can be used for uploading purposes and the satellite internet connection can be used for downloading data. Mostly, the two-way communication dish is preferred by residential users and small businesses. The two-way internet service is characterized by Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) and single channel per carrier (SCPC). There are three satellite constellations, GEO (geostationary earth orbit), LEO (low earth orbit) and MEO (middle earth orbit). low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite is placed in between 160 2,000 km above the Earths surface. Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), satellite place in between 2,000-35,786 km above the Earth surface High Earth Orbit(HEO) , satellites place in between 35,786 km above earth surface Comparison of wireless internet technologies Compare some wireless internet technologies Standard Base Technology Usage Radio Technology Download speed(Mb/s) Upload speed(Mb/s) Additional details EDGE Evolution GSM Mobile Internet TDMA/FDD 1.9 0.9 3GPP Release 7 UMTS ,W-CDMA HSDPA,HSUPA HSPA+ }UMTS/3GSM }General 3G CDMA/FDD CDMA/FDD/MIMO 0.384 14.4 56 0.384 5.76 22 HSDPA widely using today, Typical download rates 2Mbit/s, upload ~200 kbit/ HSPA+ download up to 56 Mbit/s. UMTS-TDD UMTS/3GSM Mobile Internet CDMA/TDD 16 16 Use 16QAM modulation like HSDPA+HSUPA 1xRTT CDMA2000 Mobile phone CDMA 0.144 0.144 EV-DO Succeeded Wi-Fi 802.11 (11n) Mobile Internet OFDM/MIMO 288.9 can gain 600 using 40Mhz channel width throughput and/or spectra efficiency (310km 382km Mobile WiMAX 802.16e Mobile Internet MIMO-SOFDMA 144 144 WiMAX update to IEEE 802.16m expect download speed up to 1 Gb/s fixed speeds LTE UMTS/4GSM General 4G OFDMA/MIMO/SC-FDMA 360 80 LTE update to LTE-Advanced expect rates of at least 1 Gb/s fixed speeds and 100 Mb/s to mobile users http://mobilania.com/articles/wimax/what-is-wimax/ Compare throughput of the wireless internet technologies Standard Maximum Download Speed(Mb/s) Maximum Download Speed(Mb/s) coverage Typical Download Speed(Mb/s) GSM GPRS Class 10 0.0856 0.0428 ~16 mi 0.014 GSM EDGE type 2 0.4736 0.4736 ~16 mi 0.034 GSM EDGE Evolution 1.8944 0.9472 ~16 mi UMTS W-CDMA HSDPA 14.400 0.3840 up to 124 mi 4.1 (Tre 2007) UMTS W-CDMA HSUPA 14.400 5.7600 up to 124 mi UMTS W-CDMA HSPA+ 42.000 22.000 up to 124 mi UMTS-TDD 16.000 16.000 CDMA RTT 1x 0.3072 0.1536 ~18 mi 0.125 WiMAX: 802.16e 70.000 70.000 ~4 mi >10 WiFi: 802.11a 54.000 54.000 WiFi: 802.11b 11.000 11.000 ~30 m 2 WiFi: 802.11g 54.000 54.000 ~30 m 10 WiFi: 802.11n 200.00 200.00 ~50 m 40 LTE 326.4 86.4 Future trends of wireless internet Why world move towards new wireless technologies Requirements of the people are increasing day by day also so they need to communicate and get connected with each other and get information at any where any time, that increase the demand for mobile wireless technologies.When the demand increase the major wireless service providers keep on monitoring the growth of new mobile wireless technologies. North America, Europe and Asia Pacific total mobile uses in 2010 is expected to grow up to 2500 million and penetration will be greater than 50 percent So to survive from this kind of demand growth, need new wireless technology with higher capacity and higher data rates, so world move towards 4G,LTE Advance, IEEE 802.20,IEEE 802.16m technologies. (T.Saito et al ,2009) Trend towards 4G over 3G 3G network not compatible with demand of higher data rates so wireless world move towards fourth generation (4G) wireless networks, it will expect to support above 100 Mbps data rates and also high quality video and audio than 3G technology because of 4G networks consist of some advance technologies like Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) and Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) , 3G networks are based on ITU-T, IMT2000 standards but 4G standards are not defined yet. OFDM and OFDMA can be used to effectively allocate resources of the network to multiple users. In addition to that 4G is expected to provide higher security and lower data transmission latency than 3G. The emerging 4G will be fully packet-switched network. All the elements of the network must be digital and also 4G services have some key features like adaptability and dynamism. Throughput of the 3G only greater than 2, but throughput of 4G is greater than 200, moreover operating frequencies of 3G is 900,1800,1900,2100(MHz) but 4G operates on 2-8(MHz) frequency , so data transmission is more efficient in 4G than 3G, in addition to that signal coverage of 3G technology is greater than or equals 6 miles but in 4G signal coverage is greater than or equals 30 miles. Trend towards IEEE 802.20 -Broadband Wireless Access (MBWA) The IEEE 802.20 is designed for support internet client in vehicle which is moving speed up to 250 Km per hour . IEEE 802.20 supports Qos to give good quality, low-latency services like IEEE 802.16e, and also like IEEE 802.16e its uplink and downlink are synchronous but in 3G uplink and downlink are Asynchronous. IEEE 802.20 is support global roaming facility with the support of 3G, but with compare to IEEE 802.18e it only support local roaming facility. IEEE 802.20 made up of combining good features of 3G and 1EEE 802.16e and reducing the limitations of them. Trend towards LTE-Advance LTE uses Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) technology to gain good frequency performance, and also it uses single-carrier FDMA(Frequency division Multiple Access) technology, LTE support Multiple Input Multiple Output( MIMO) technology in order to gain good spectrum usage and increase coverage. LTE also support SU-MIMO(Single User MIMO) and MU-MIMO(Multiple User MIMO) and also LTE support spectrum between 1.4-20 MHz. Latency of the LTE is very low (10-20ms) with compare to other technologies. Low latency is very important feature for time critical application like online gaming, etc , And also LTE only use packet switched domain which leads simple protocol architecture. LTE-Advanced can be defined as LTE plus IMT-Advance requirements and it is backward compatible with LTE , With compare to LTE, LTE-Advanced is support collection of multiple carriers which help to gain higher transmission rate with compare to LTE using multiple frequency blocks each have 20 MHz bandwidth. And also LTE-Advanced is support DFT-S-OFDMA combining with aggregation improves user throughput and uplink capacity. With compare to LTE, LTE advance also support SU-MIMO but will have eight uplink and four downlink which improve user throughput and spectrum usage. LTE advance also introduce relay stations to improve coverage, newly introduced technology for LTE-Advanced is relay stations which expand the signal coverage. When compare Peak Spectrum usage efficiencies(b/s/hz) of LTE and LTE-Advanced, Peak Spectrum usage efficiency of LTE is greater than 5 in downlink and greater than 2.5 in uplink, but Peak Spectrum usage efficiency of LTE-Advanced is greater than 30 in downlink and greater than 15 in uplink. When Consider average spectrum usage efficiencies(b/s/hz), LTE has 1.6-2 spectrum efficiency in downlink and 0.66-1.0 in uplink, but in LTE Advanced has 2.4-3.7 Average spectrum efficiency in downlink and 1.2-2.0 in uplink. So Peak and Average Spectrum efficiencies both uplink and downlink in LTE-advance is greater than LTE . Operating Bandwidth of the LTE is 1.4-2.0(MHz) and Operating Bandwidth of LTE-Advanced is greater than 100(MHz), Connection setup delay of the LTE is greater than 100 and, in LTE Advance it is greater than 50, so LTE-Advance is more efficient than LTE Because of advantages of LTE-Advanced researchers found that world will move towards LTE-Advance technology over LTE. Trend of IEEE 802.16m over IEEE 802.16e Current WiMAX technology is based on IEEE 802.16e but next generation WiMAX will follow IEEE 802.16m standard which is extended version of IEEE 802.16e. so it will support basic WiMAX technologies like OFDM, TDMA/FDMA, MIMO, in addition to that, it will be also introduced extended MIMO technologies. IEEE 802.16e is using two antennas to transfer and receive data, but IEEE 802.16e will use 8 antennas to transfer and receive data moreover it will support SU-MIMO technology which help to gain high data transmission rates, furthermore, MU-MIMO, Multi-BS MIMO technologies are being considered. And also Multi carrier technology is being introduced to support higher throughput. Hierarchical frame structure is being included in IEEE 802.16m, which is being consisted of super frames and sub frames to improve spectrum usage efficiency. It is being decided to introduce another new technology is femtocell technology which improve the throughput, in addition to that multihop relay system is supported to the IEEE 802.16m in order to overcome low signal strength in indoor due to the loss of penetration through building, so multihop relay system increase signal strength and that leads wide signal area, high indoor troughput. Future Of WIFI When consider the recent history of WIFI in 2009-2010 main target of WIFI was access points and laptops, but 2010-2011 it is and it will be mobile devices like mobile phones, PDA , etc, then 2011-2012 main target of WIFI will be consumer electronics like TV, Cameras, etc, 2012-2013 and beyond main target of WIFI will be embedded systems. That is the deployment road map of WIFI, more over current WIFI technologies are IEEE 802.11n and IEEE 802.11w, main purposes of these technologies are Throughput efficiency and security, future WIFI technologies will be IEEE 802.11v, IEEE 802.11s, IEEE 802.11aa, IEEE 802.11ac, IEEE 802.11ad, Main purpose of IEEE 802.11v will be power efficiency, and Main purpose of IEEE 802.11s will be compatible with mesh networking and Main Purpose of IEEE 802aa/802ad will be high throughput.IEEE 802.11v will expect to available to public in end of 2010, IEEE 802.11s and IEEE 802.11aa will be available in 2011, and IEEE 802.11ac/ad will be available 2012 0r beyond . IEEE 802.11s will be capable of using mesh standards, self configure in to multi-hop wireless technologies where access point from different manufactures. And also IEEE 802.11s support different functional requirements of Applications like, some Applications require large scale high throughput and some require quick setup. IEEE 802.11v Systems to control the clients connect to it which leads to efficient use of system infrastructure so using that can improve performance of the system. Conclusion Internet was introduced early 1980 but it became more popular after 1990, from that day wireless internet technologies have became more and more popular until today, it will be more popular in the future to match with the complex life style of the people , that means when the world develop with other fields, requirements of the man is increasing rapidly when the requirements are increasing, Collection of data, services over data, communication requirements is being increased , so data can be able to access any where any time and also any person can be able connect other people any where any time to exchange ideas, that is why world move towards wireless technologies, because of its mobility, so demand of wireless technology is being increased so existing wireless technologies couldnt bear such a high capacity and cant provide higher data rates and bandwidth. For a solution to that problem we can see how 1G,2G,3G,3GPP LTE, etc like new technologies have introduced and became more popular time to time to satisfy communication and data requirements of developing world, when reading the document can be found out how technology increase and how data rates, capacity, bandwidth has increased according to the improvements of the technology, but performance requirements are not the only reason for introduce new technologies, some people need low cost solutions with fair data rates, for a example WIFI IEEE 802.11b over 802.11a which 80211b is cheaper than 802.11a. Today, demand for the wireless technologies are increasing more rapidly, to survive from that, in future world will move towards 4G,IEEE 802.16m,LTE-Advanced,IEEE 802.20 technologies over current wireless technologies like 3G, LTE, WIFI, WiMAX, etc, because current wireless technologies cannot provide higher capacities and data rates that the world is asking in future. According to the document wireless technologies also have disadvantages like security issues, data rate issues, cost issues over wired technologies, but over that disadvantages, people cannot survive without wireless technologies because of the reasons above mentioned.

Structure And Culture Of Volkswagen Commerce Essay

Structure And Culture Of Volkswagen Commerce Essay In a fast-changing world, large business organisations have to take decisions to enhance the strategic growth to be competitive. This report includes a critical evaluation of the organisation Volkswagens structure and culture; it also covers the management role and a strategic decision. Volkswagen is a part of the Volkswagen Group of America, but only the brand Volkswagen will be emphasised and not the other brands such as Bentley, Bugatti, Audi and Porsche. Important factors of this organisation will be explored, and links will draw it together with the aim to reveal their relationship and influence in a large organisation such as the Volkswagen Group of America. Furthermore, these factors will influence the firm performance, thus it crucial to continuously observe and analyse the internal and external environment around the organisation in order to achieve long-term success (Kunc, 2010). Structure and Culture An organisation is a social unit of people that is structured and managed to meet a certain need and/or to pursue shared goals. All organisations have a management structure that decides relationships between the different activities and the members, and subdivides and assigns roles, responsibilities, and authority to carry out distinctive tasks. Organisations affect and are affected by its environment because it is an open system (Murcko, 2012). Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft (VW AG) is an international company based in Wolfsburg, Germany and is the parent company of Volkswagen Group of America. The parent company guide and control the Volkswagen Group of America, but the group is managed by its own respective managers. The executive board of VW AG make sure that the framework of the VW AG is being enforced for each decision made the Volkswagen Group of America (Volkswagen, 2007). The structure within Volkswagen Group of America is made up by different divisions, because the departme nts in form of different brands are grouped together and based on similar organisational output (Daft, 2011, p. 282). A common issue in structuring a company is how to make the entire company work. Make it work means the structure of the company has to adapt to major factors such as environment changes, and the change in culture, strategy and technology (Rosen, 1995, p. 69). Volkswagen Group of America has a horizontal structure based on the work processes rather than departmental functions. This is beneficial as it allows the company to be more flexible in a changing environment, and especially for a rapidly change in technology, which is crucial for a car manufacture company. Business performance is heavily influenced by how well the structure of a company is connected and aligned with the strategic intend (Daft, 2011, p. 297). If the environment in which the company is operating or affected by is changing, it is sometimes necessary to change the structure of the company. Successful managers have to observe the environment carefully and create a structure and strategy which are congruent. Culture is closely related to the main assumptions and beliefs of an organisation that provide a guideline for its members, including attitudes, perception, norms, ways of thinking and behaviour (Rosen, 1995, p. 71). Culture can also focus more on people, relations meanings, commitments, motivation and emotion. (Alvesson, 2008, p. 36). The internal environment of an organisation is vital as it has to fit in the external environment and strategy of the organisation. Volkswagen Group of America has applied this theory to achieve an industry orientated culture and environment, which relays on performance, innovation and responsibility. Volkswagen is known as a producer of people cares, and has performed actions to support this claim for several generations. Innovation and responsibility are the other two key factors where innovation is indispensable for technological change to reduce the level of CO2 and responsibility focus on people as workers or craft men and treat them as individual (Volkswagen, 2007). Individual culture within the Volkswagen Group of America is focused around social responsibility, national pride and the flagship of philanthropic in the education sector. The Group of America has a particular strong goal to recruit and select students for future workforce in the US with the right attitude and mind-set (Wiley, 2010). Culture can guide companies, enhance control and foster loyalty and identification with a group (Smircich, 1983). A danger to organisation culture is that it can become uncontrollable and unreasonable and may hurt the organisation (Anthony, 1994, p. 93). Management role and decision taking In todays fast changing global world it is essential to succeed as an organisation in times of turbulence and recession. The correct management style has to be chosen and developed in order to be successful (Rosen, 1995, p. 72). Over the decades many important strategic management operations and related decisions have been made by the Volkswagen Group of America. These strategic decisions play a part in the long-time well-being of the organisation (Fitzroy, 2005, p. 5). Culture as described in the previous section of this report should reinforce the decision making of managers (Rosen, 1995, p. 71). The new car Volkswagen New Midsize Sedan (NMS) is an excellent example of strategic management. The car was designed just for the US market, but Volkswagen decided to start shipping the model to South Korea as well. Volkswagen NMS is produced in Chattanooga, Tennessee, US, and use mainly American suppliers. The aim is to increase the low numbers of sales from the past and to build a Volksw agen made by the US, by using American employers and suppliers (Jacoby, 2009). The car will cost around 20k USD and will compete with other everyday cars in this price range. The idea for this decision is to exploit the technology, innovation and experience of a German car manufacturer with the tradition of manufacturing made by the US. This long term strategic decision is determined by selling one million units in the United States by 2018 (Kurylko, 2009). Volkswagen has also made a Chinese version of this car for the Chinese market. This car will be produced in China by Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive, which is another group within Volkswagen (ChinaAutoWeb, 2010). In the example above the strategic decision to launch the Volkswagen NMS model was made by the German CEO of Volkswagen Group of America Stefan Jacoby. He was transferred from Volkswagen AG to increase the profit of Group of America (Kurylko, 2009). This decision was based on the rational model which uses rational economic assumptions regarding shareholders, employees, suppliers and customers (Woiceshyn, 2011). Quantitative research collection is important, because this method relies on accurate information. The rational model also use market analysis, strategic direction, evaluation, market response and forecasting, agreed goals and alternatives within the group but also the intuition of the manager as means to make a rational decision (Stewert, 2011). The rational model is made after analysing a cause and development of alternatives but this model also has room for intuition (Dane, 2007). The overall and long-term direction of an organisation is decided by its strategic planning (Rosen, 1995, p. 76). Furthermore, long-term direction is also determined by structure and culture, and if these factors are not taken into account, the organisation will most likely not meet designated goals. In the US drivers tend to use their car more frequently, and they are doing more activities such as eating, drinking coffee, putting on make-up, etc. (Kiley, 2007). This is because the car is associated with the American dream and every individual with respect for themselves will own a car, which again makes the public transport system less used (Will, 2012). Volkswagen NMSs predecessor did not take the difference between the American and European culture into account, and could be a reason why the sales were not adequate. The CEO from Germany has to understand and implement the American culture if he wants to maximize Volkswagens sales in the US market. For this reason, the Human Resour ce Management (HRM) has the significant role to attract and motivate talented employees with the necessary culture to cope with the environment (Daft, 2011, p. 84). By hiring American employees and using local suppliers Volkswagen makes sure that the culture will agree with the market. No strategy can be effectively implemented without the right people; hence all levels and functions of an organisation should have and exercise of influence. Conclusion The culture in an organisation can be weak or strong depending on the degree of individual behaviour. Organisation structure can have a flat or a steep hierarchy, where the role of the management in this context is to set the right goals and objectives related to the defined values (Bushardt, 2011). To achieve the designated goals and objectives, the strategic decisions should comprehend the main values of the organisation. A manager who does not follow the defined culture within an organisation can influence others and may change the culture in the organisation, even in large companies such as Volkswagen. If the goal setting is different to the defined values, the outcome will be unsatisfied, which means a change in the structure of the organisation has to be made. In large organisation the structure is normally deep anchored and therefore the people who make the decision have to be changed. This was done in 2007 when Volkswagen Group of America changed its former CEO. Dropping sale s and no profitability since 2002 forced Volkswagen to make major changes to adapt to its environment (Prospero, 2007). Producing a precise and correct forecast of an important strategic process in a business is very difficult, as there are many uncertainties in todays global economy. The CEO and managers of an organisation can attempt to minimise the uncertainties of the business if they follow all values of the organisation including the consideration of change in the environment.

Standardized tests in Illinois Essay example -- Standardized Testing Es

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Standardized tests are administered to allow reliable and valid comparisons to be made among students taking the test. Two major types of standardized tests are currently in use; norm-referenced and criterion-referenced. A norm-referenced test is a test that has been given to representative samples of students such that norms of performance are established. Each student taking the test receives a score that can be compared to the norm or normal or sample of students. The scores are then reported in percentiles. The main purpose of these tests is to rank students along a distribution of performance. Because of this tests are likely to have items that are very difficult for the grade level so students can be ranked. A criterion-referenced test looks like a norm-referenced test but multiple choice items are used and directions are standardized. The reason these tests are administered is based upon the content that all students are expected to learn. Scores are based on the amount learned by the student and a passing score is then given. These scores are not compared to other students. Standardized tests are used to show how a student is doing. They can show if a program is working well and can show if the educators are using effective teaching methods. Schools are graded to see if there overall program is helping the student to achieve their goals. In the next paragraphs I am going to explain to you about the purpose of the American College Testing Program (ACT) and the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Learned helplessness is a phenomenon containing three components: contingency, cognition, and behavior. Contingency addresses the uncontrollability of the situation. Cognition refers to the attributions that people make regarding their situation or surroundings of which they are a part. Behavior allows individuals to decide whether they will give up or proceed with the obstacle set before them† (Peterson, Maier, & Seligman, 1993; Firmin, Hwang, Copella, & Clark, 2004). When a student thinks about college he must take either the ACT or the SAT test to be admitted into the college. Students have a lot of decisions to make that can be stressful. Failure is an aspect that students fear and can determine whether they will succeed in life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The ACT was founded in 1959. A l... ...t you are allowed to guess on the ACT and on the SAT if you are unsure you want to leave it blank because getting it wrong will give you a lower score.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  If you are graduating high school in 2006 and beyond there will be a new SAT test. The test will contain three sections: Math, Critical Reading, and Writing. The math section will have 44 multiple-choice questions and 10 in-grid questions. You will be allowed 70 minutes to complete this section. The critical reading section will have 67 multiple-choice questions and you will be given 70 minutes to complete. The writing section has 49 multiple-choice questions and you are given 60 minutes. You are graded on Grammar, usage, and word choice.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The need, as we view it, is to develop a number of different alternative evaluation instruments and strategies that provide hard data but are not in the form of the standard paper-and pencil multiple-choice tests now being used in most testing programs. What we advocate are assessment instruments that support proven methods in the visual arts and also take advantage of all the newer imaging technology† (Medeja, Dom, & Sabol, 2004).

Capital Punishment Must be Abolished :: The Case Against the Death Penalty

"Crimes against children are the most heinous crime. That, for me, would be a reason for capital punishment..." -- Clint Eastwood "I could not become an American citizen. I would not like to become a citizen of a country that has capital punishment." -- Werner Herzog In most of the industrialized world, capital punishment is not used to punish criminals. However, it is still used in the United States. The capital punishment debate in the United States has raged for almost four hundred years. Supporters of capital punishment often cite its roles as deterrent and retribution as reasons for their support of the death penalty. Opponents of capital punishment cite its arbitrariness and finality as reasons for their opposition against the death penalty. Because capital punishment can lead to an unequal application of justice, sometimes to the point of executing innocent persons, no amount of argument from its supporters should prevent it from being abolished. The Arguments of Those Who Favor Capital Punishment Supporters of capital punishment begin by arguing that capital punishment deters murder. This view has been held for thousands of years. In his book The Penalty of Death, Thorsten Sellin notes what the famous 18th century English law commentator William Blackstone wrote in his Commentaries on the Laws of England: As to the end or final cause of punishment, this is not by way of atonement...but as a prevention against future offenses of the same kind. This is effected three ways, either by the amendment of the offender...or by deterring others...or lastly by depriving the party injuring of the power to do future mischief. (Sellin 77) This sentiment was expressed by Socrates (in Gorgias) and by his antagonist Demosthenes some 2,000 years before Blackstone (Sellin 3-5). But what evidence is there to support the idea that the death penalty deters potential murderers better than any other form of punishment? Until Professor Isaac Ehrlich released his study on this subject, only anecdotal evidence existed, and that had been provided by people in the law enforcement, judicial, and corrections fields. By 1953, the Royal Commission on Capital Punishment in England noted: ...capital punishment has obviously failed as a deterrent when a murder is committed. We can number its failures. But we cannot number its successes. No one can ever know how many people have refrained from murder because of the fear of being hanged.

“The Tell Tale Heart” and “The Black Cat”

Kaleb Clem Mrs. Winslow English II Honors 31 October 2012 â€Å"The Tell-Tale Hearts† – â€Å"The Black Cat† Comparison â€Å"The Tell-Tale Hearts† and â€Å"The Black Cat† are two stories that share more similarities than differences. The plots both start out the same with a main character whose actions throughout the story makes apparent to the reader his insanity and have to deal with the internal and external dilemmas that are caused by the evil deeds, which both happen to be involved with murder, due to the unstable state of the man’s conscience.The two stories have settings that are both strikingly similar. Both stories have a gothic, mysteriously dark setting. And both stories are set within the narrator and the main character’s home; however, â€Å"The Black Cat† had more than one setting. In â€Å"The Black Cat† the main character’s house is burned down and so he is forced to get a new one. More details ar e given about this house than his earlier house or the home in â€Å"The Tell Tale Heart. † We are told that the house is old, unlike the first one, and not what he and the wife are used to.The story also tells about the cellar, being such an important setting the narrator tells us that the psychological confinement is increased and taping that gets into our deepest fears concerning home and life. The characters from â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† and â€Å"The Black Cat† we see that for the most part, the stories are unbelievably alike. Both stories feature a man who is undoubtedly considered insane by the end of the story and who is the main character and policemen investigate under suspicion of murder. The Tell-Tale Heart† also has a neighbor who plays a small role in the story and The Black Cat contains the man’s wife, Pluto, and the second cat. The plot is almost exactly the same in both stories. Both stories feature a man who claims to be sane in the beginning although he proves to be otherwise later. The insanity in both characters differs. In â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart,† the man just seems to have a mental condition of sorts. In The Black Cat,† however, the main character is a raging alcoholic, which seems to be the main cause for his abnormal and malevolent behavior, like when he cut out Pluto’s eye. Pluto never did anything wrong, but the man was intoxicated. â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† and â€Å"The Black Cat† were very similar. They had almost the same plot. The settings in the stories were much in common, and both plots featured gothic elements with large houses and lack of character variety.

From a Chinese Perspective

Contemporary Art in China unravels as a budding butterfly out of its cocoon. Years of militant ruling and the imposition of state-centered concepts made contemporary art mundane and stagnant. At the onset of globalization, modern artists from China found more room to wiggle as they begin to showcase their talents in a more matured Chinese setting. Unable to resist the pressures of globalization, Chinese modern art has slowly opened up to the challenge set by global competitors as it hones its craft into the local and international scene with a distinctive Chinese mark. This new found freedom has resulted in emboldening Chinese artists to meld different mediums and points of view into their artwork, creating a time capsule that pays homage to the past and elucidates the future. Most of the world renowned Chinese artists such as Zhang Xiaogang, Zhang Huan, Ai Weiwei and Liu Xiaodong have made themselves visible because of their unique perspectives about Chinese life and I do not think that their creative impact would have been grand if it did not involve a disturbing quality, especially a distorted one. The function of these artists was not merely to beautify the tedious surroundings of modern China but to diversify its angle on Chinese culture, unfettered from the shackles of its restrictive past. In this respect, I believe that the responsibility of the contemporary artist lies in creating ripples within their immediate environment. I also deem that contemporary artists also have the opportunity to make use of modern tools in order to produce an artwork that is relevant in today’s society of technological advancement and multiculturalism. I have had the prospect of visiting the Museum of Contemporary Art in Shanghai recently wherein the current theme was â€Å"Couples in Contemporary Art†. It featured the artworks of 15 coupled artists in celebration of their varied outlook on gender and power relations between sexes. The artworks exhibited the use of different materials and mediums such as acrylic on canvas, watercolor on marble, bronze and stainless steel sculptures, ceramic and mineral color on silk among other things. I was specifically entranced by the works of the couple Chen Xioadan and Yang Jianping as they used bones and Silica gel for their artworks. It was the first time I had ever seen an exhibition wherein couples were involved so it was very interesting to see the polarities in their viewpoints. Another art showcase that I am very fond of is the selected paintings of Zhang Xiaogang in Charles Saatchi’s gallery. Although I have not been to London, I have seen some of his paintings online and in magazines and I believe his artworks depict our cultural past in its barest form. His paintings merge Asian and European techniques through his use of surrealism and portrait like images of the Chinese family. These artworks incorporate the aesthetics of traditional Chinese charcoal drawings, which give off hues of grey, black and white. A likeness to old photo studio shots, it illustrates the continuous link of the past to the present. The paintings demonstrate a timeless appeal that places emphasis on genealogical roots as each character is a mirror image of another, distinguished only by certain features or marks. The occasional interruption of such marks and colors indicate a focal viewpoint that Zhang had intended for the observer to ponder. The dream-like distortions of Zhang’s paintings signify a complex psychological dimension of Chinese culture in the past, as can be observed in the way the body parts were portrayed such as characters with big heads and eyes and small arms. These suggest narrative readings about personality and a claustrophobic sense of self as images distort the cultured past. Learning about Zhang’s artworks being patronized by people all over the world made me realize how China has matured in order to allow artists like Zhang to represent the country in the world of art. If it were not for globalization, many creative talents from China would still be bottled up in a trend of conformity. Outside influences has greatly affected the crafting of contemporary art in China, which has placed Chinese artists at par with their foreign counterparts. This is why I believe that being exposed to an environment where diversity of culture is encouraged and established among daily interactions could bolster the creative identity of an artist. Constructing art and interpreting its parameters establishes a concrete notion of the abstract realm. As an artist seeking approval from his or her peers, I regard that such activities that expand one’s knowledge would also be culturally beneficial since I would be able to acculturate myself to the modern ways of western thinking and at the same time, impart my Chinese heritage to the fellow artists that I come into contact with. I trust that the network of people that will cross my path would also be able to contribute in strengthening cordial relations between the Chinese and the Americans. I believe that change is important for the growth of an individual artist as that is how creative identity is isolated and constructed. It would be interesting to see and learn from the different viewpoints and techniques of other artists, as well as the opportunity to handle challenges found in a multicultural setting. Such experiences will surely create an impression on my worldview as a Chinese and as a budding artist.