BUSINESS CASE Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

BUSINESS - Case Study Example The company, for this reason, wanted to restock its product line and rebrand its image. To be able to do this, the company wanted to enter into Chinas luxury market goods market that was reported to be growing by 70% each year. The plan was to open up new stores in the three largest cities of China that include Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai. The other very important objective of the company was to select a winning team that would lead this new entry into the Chinese market. These stores had to have the most talented and qualified human resource to enable them do well in the new market space. For this reason, all the actions that this company would commit itself to afterward, should be pointed towards achieving one goal of having a winning team or workforce that can lead their new venture in China. The issue that requires a decision in this case is whether to employ Mimi Brewster, daughter of John Brewster who is a good friend to the Hathaway CEO, Fred, to lead a team that would open the flagship store in Shanghai. It is hard making the decision on whether to employ her or not, to consider both the negative and positive sides of her. On the positive side, Mimi is a strong candidate for the position with both good education and experience background that fits the fashion industry. With her experience working with the largest clothing, shoe and accessories company in the United States, where she launched two new brands, she made a very good candidate to be chosen to sell the Hathaway agenda in China. On the other hand, the vice-president of Hathaway, Virginia Flanders, found a non-palatable information from Google about Mimi that would make her consideration decision be a hard thing to make. The information that was printed in the Alternative Review in 1999 identified Mimi to ha ve been the leader of a non-violent, but vocal protest group that was known to have helped mobilize campaigns against the World Trade Organization. Another newspaper featured Mimis

Panasonic supply chain security Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Panasonic supply chain security - Essay Example As Arway states (34), the security of good during the transportation of goods ensure that they are not subject to malicious actions such as theft and terrorism. The engagement of a system to protect not only the goods but the staff involved in the transit of goods ensures that the organization's operations are secure and any threats are mitigated. This is a fundamental requirement for any organization that intends to remain profitable in the market must bear in mind. Panasonic employs technology to ensure security of goods in transport in various ways. First, the organization provides a sustained surveillance and monitoring system to ensure that both the employees and the goods are safe especially in high traffic areas that are sensitive to criminal acts. The system has a provision to scan the faces if the staff involved in the transportation process and keep a survey if any interrupting person gets in the transport vehicle. This system ensures that only the authorized members are al lowed into the vehicle. Any extra person getting in the vehicle will be detected and the system will trigger an alarm to notify about the intrusion. Consequently, any entry of unauthorized systems will be captured and the staff will be prompted to respond to the intrusion as necessary (Burges 49). This is a critical dimension of security that contributes to safety during the transportation stage of the supply chain. The organization has also paid attention to cargo management as a prerequisite to ensure that the safety of the cargo is maintained all through the transportation journey. Panasonic has developed the Panasonic Toughbook gadget that helps to monitor and track the location of the products that are being carried either by a train, a plane or even an ordinary vehicle. The transportation stage is usually subject to a lot of external threats and the knowledge of a cargo location is a vital aspect of the security of cargos. For instance, often, gangsters may take a cargo and di vert it away to a different location (Panasonic). In such a case, the managers will monitor the location of the cargo and if it diverts away from the predetermined route, a security response can be initiated to secure the cargo, hence avoiding the consequential loss that is likely to occur in the event of such an attack. The Toughbook Computer enhances mobile computers have feature to ensure that the management staff can be able to monitor goods from the time they are loaded into the vehicle up to the moment they are offloaded at the destination of the vehicle. This security measure helps to guarantee to a great percentage the safety of goods and to ensure that the entire load arrives at its destination safe and sound. Inspection solution is another way that Panasonic provides security to its clients during a transportation process. Software driven Toughbook mobile computers is an innovative method of securing sustenance during transportation of goods. The gadget is GPS enabled and has a wireless connection to ensure remote connectivity and monitoring of large trucks or mobile vehicles that are likely to cause damage to the cargo on its way to its destination. The development of this system is such that the system will approximate the distance of the cargo from a threat accident and provide a warning precautionary measure that helps the driver to avoid or take a proactive action to avoid possible damages (Panasonic). Apart

Essentials of College Writing Essay Example for Free

Essentials of College Writing Essay Peer editing is an evaluative method of judging or critiquing written text with the valuable engagement of peers. The purpose of writing within the context of peer editing is to write a text that will be able to incite responses, not only from people in authority who oversee the writing process (ex. teachers, professors, technical writing instructors, etc. ), but also from an individuals’ peers. The process of peer editing follows the writing process, the reading process, the critiquing session, and the rewriting process. Peer editing allows the expression of comments or suggestions regarding a written text which an individual may use to modify errors within the text, identify ambiguous elements that defeats the purpose of a cohesive theme, and draw out additional information that are instrumental in improving the written text. (Adger, Wolfram, Christian, 2007) The overall result of peer editing is the improvement of literacy or skills in writing. (Topping Ehly, 1998) Perhaps, it is also important to reiterate that peer editing allows individuals to identify errors or mistakes in the writing process that may be unknown to them. The diversity of peer characters and points of views allows one to look at the theme and quality of written works from different angles, allowing a writer to complete a written work clearly and concisely. What are some of the techniques a team can use to integrate various writers work into one cohesive document? Integrating various written works into a cohesive document should follow a series of steps. The first step is to read all the written works carefully in order to identify the main points and focus of each text. The team should then group or categorize written works according to their similarities in meaning, theme, or points of view. Once this is accomplished, the team should agree on the organization or framework of the single document they will be working on depending on the ideas or information drawn from the grouped or categorized written works. This process is similar to constructing an outline that will become the basis of the targeted cohesive document. Moreover, constructing an outline will require a team to identify what the focus of the article would be, what work will best fit in the introduction, the body, or the conclusion, etc. The next step would be to fill in parts of the outline, such that main and valuable points from each written work of team members will be drawn out to be integrated into the outline of the targeted cohesive document. At this point, the team is prepared to layout the finished document. What is the purpose and historical academic use of the APA style and why is it important to use APA style? The American Psychological Association or APA is a common citation style utilized by professionals in their written works. Its use is most common in the social sciences. The content of the APA citation style is usually the author and the year of publication, as well as the title of work and the imprint. Other elements of written works designed under the framework of the APA style include the reference list, intext citations, headers, page numbering, and page margins. (Hajnal, 1997) The origin of the APA citation format is traced back to a discussion between professionals who write journals with anthropology and psychology as subjects. It was a way to set a standard of writing for journals in order to promote structure and organization in the formality of writing professional articles. After this discussion, the APA published a written work containing writing standards and guidelines. (Hunter, 2007) The importance of utilizing the APA style is to organize a written body of work by structuring the writing styles and citation references into something formal or standard. Standardized writing will benefit readers in such a way that reading other journals is recognizable and comprehensible. (Seas Driscoll, 2007) Aside from this purpose, the significance of utilizing APA as a writing guide ensures clarity, consistency and unity all throughout the body of the written work or article. (â€Å"APA Style†) For authors or writers, following the APA format or writing style is a means of abiding by rules set forth a particular publication – in this case, publications that publish written works of professionals in fields wherein the APA writing style is commonly used (such as psychology, sociology, education, nursing, etc. ). (â€Å"Frequently Asked Questions†) Discuss what is meant by Parallel Structures in the writing process. Abiding by the rules of parallel structure during the writing process, an author or writer should present equally important thoughts and ideas appropriately. This means that if a sentence calls for the presentation of several thoughts or ideas that are within the same level of importance, structure, or content, these should be written as such. No thought or idea should go against the flow of thoughts, especially in form. For instance, a sentence calls for the enumeration of activities that a person does in the morning. If the form of the verbs being enumerated are in the present tense, they should be written as such: â€Å"†¦ waking up, eating breakfast, brushing one’s teeth, and bathing. † and not â€Å"†¦waking up, eat breakfast, brush one’s teeth, and bathing. † This rule goes the same with the use of clauses and words that follow a colon. (Purdue OWL Driscoll, 2006) Discuss the meaning of verb tense in the writing process. Like the parallel structure which signals consistency and uniformity within the body of a written work, verb tenses also results to the same outcomes in writing. Aside from the general rules of verb tenses such as past tense for actions done in the past, present tense for actions that are currently taking place, and future tense for action that are about to take place, verb tenses in the writing process also necessitates consistency and uniformity of thoughts. For instance, a written work is in the form of a narrative then it should not only be written in the past tense, but should be written in the past tense all throughout the remainder of the text. Website: http://apastyle. apa. org/ â€Å"Frequently Asked Questions. † (2008) Retrieved October 22, 2008, from The American Psychological Association. Website: http://www. apastyle. org/faqs. html#1 Hajnal, P. I. (1997). International Information: Documents, Publications, and Electronic Information of International Governmental Organizations. SC: Libraries Unlimited. Hunter, S. (2007). APA Writing Style. Retrieved October 22, 2008, from Associated Content, Inc. Website: http://www. associatedcontent. com/article/181223/apa_writing_style. html? cat=3 Purdue OWL Driscoll, D. L. (2006). Parallel Structure. Retrieved October 22, 2008, from The Writing Lab The OWL at Purdue. Website: http://owl. english. purdue. edu/owl/resource/623/01/ â€Å"Tenses in Writing. † (N. D. ) Retrieved October 22, 2008, from University of Washington. Website: http://depts. washington. edu/engl/askbetty/tenses. php Topping, K. J. Ehly, S. W. (1998). Peer-Assisted Learning. NJ: Laurence Erlbaum Associates. Seas, K. Driscoll, D. L. (2007). APA Overview and Workshop. Retrieved October 22, 2008, from The Writing Lab The OWL at Purdue. Website: http://owl. english. purdue. edu/owl/resource/664/01/

Emerging Issues In Strategic Human Resource Management Commerce Essay

Emerging Issues In Strategic Human Resource Management Commerce Essay This report is based on the case study Apple Inc.s Corporate Culture: The Good the Bad and the Ugly. The report tried to investigate and find out what is good and what is detrimental to the organisational culture in terms of Human Resource strategy and practice in Apple Inc. The conceptual investigation was totally focused on Human Resource Management perspective issues of Apple, though the case study has included wide areas of analysis including Apples operations, marketing, accounts etc. This theoretical research provides a reasoned and academically underpinned critical analysis as well as provides coherent and justified recommendations for changes to HR strategy and practice in Apple Inc. Based on the above mentioned case study, this essay reviewed the impact of people (employee) in apples magical success as well as it has reviewed the Apple Incs management and leadership styles. In the progress of the essay, Apples human resources policy is also critically evaluated and detrimental HRM issues are identified. Appropriate models and frameworks also has been identified which could be used for better managing of human resources. Good HRM practices also given credit which they can effectively keep implementing for sustainable future success. Critical appraisal of the contribution people has made to Apple Inc People, in organisational term employees have great impact towards organisations success or failure. Michigan model (Cited in Price 2007, pp 40) explains that employees are resources in the same way as any other business resource. So exploiting the peoples are crucial as with other equipment and raw material of the organisation. Peoples in Apple Inc. have made huge impact and they are the key of companys success. Its CEO Steve Jobs is the person who has been the figureheads for the company. He is the founder of the company, however after his initial spell with the organisation he had to leave. When he came back after twelve years, he has made Apple most innovative and profitable organisation on earth. He is an iconic figure and everybody wants him around in the company. He is worlds greatest salesman (case study). Apple and Jobs have become synonymous. How one person can make a crisis-ridden company to a world most recognised company, what might be impact of peoples to an organisation, Apple and Steve Jobs would be used as an example surely for long. It is not only Steve Jobs, apart from him it is peoples who works for Apple made the difference. As the case study suggests, totally awesome team of people working in the company. Everyone is respectful, intelligent and good at executing. Apples employees had high passion and believe in the corporate mission and it was the competitive advantage for the company. Apple exploits it employees in various roles right from engineering to marketing to operations and sales. People working for Apple feels proud working for the most innovative company and work hard for the company which is phenomenal within the industry. According to the case study the key people in the organisation are the position of technical, marketing and staff positions. The organisations success largely depends on attracting and keeping these peoples. Redman Wilkinson (2009) indicates that personal and organisational success is increasingly correlated with the profession of skills. Skilled individuals can command a premium salary in periods of high economic activity. It is the interests of any company to maximise its human resources by investing in the skills of its workforce: its human capital. Price (2007) suggests human capital is a crucial component of an organisations overall competitiveness. Companies like Apple where human resources become the driving force in the development of strategy; there is an overriding emphasis on developing their skills and capitalising on their competencies. Apple has successfully focused on the people resources and capitalised it to achieve competitive advantages in the market place. Apple is acknowledged as the most innovative company within the industry and no doubt, its peoples (management and other employees) has made it worlds top innovative company. Analysis of factors concerning the management of the human resource in Apple Factors concerning the management of the human (people) resource vary within an organisation and across situations. The output of any organisation, however it is measured, relies heavily upon market factors which determine how the organisation operates. RDI (2010) suggests, future trends must be identified and the organisation must be able to adapt to them if it is to continue to function in a profitable and effective way. The HRM function must support these strategic perspectives. In developing a strategic perspective, an in-depth understanding needs to be acquired of the relationship between an organisations environment and its people (HRM) strategy. HR professionals must therefore have an understanding of the strategic HRM process in term of people aspects. . Most organisations are being held back by people issues. They need to be handled with care and effectively. It seems Apple has adopted a balance of Best fit and best practice approaches to manage its human resources. The objective of Apples Human Resources is to maximize the return on investment from the organizations human capital and minimize financial risk. These responsibilities are conducted by human resource managers in an effective, legal, fair, and consistent manner. Human resource management in Apple serves these key functions: Recruitment and selection, work analysis, training, job rotating, leadership development, performance appraisal, incentive compensation, benefit profit sharing, employee development, employee security and health, employee relation etc. However some key factors concerning the management of human resource in Apples are discussed below: Recruitment Apple recruits people with computer based knowledge. Highly selective recruitment process was designed to hire only the best who would fit well to the organisational culture regardless of their experiences. Organisational fitness is more important in Apple than job-fitness. Case study suggests that selection process is a short procedure, where prospective employees organisational suitability is measured by verbal interview. Equal opportunity and diversity Apple is the equal opportunity Employer and promoted diversity within the organisation. Apples employees are from diverse background. Diversified workforce is one of the positive aspects of Apples corporate culture. Compensation and benefit: Apple offers various benefits to its employees and its compensation and benefits are very competitive. Benefit package varied depending on location and employment status. The common benefit included insurance coverage, flexible spending accounts, an employee stock purchase programme and a 401(k) saving and investment plan. Product discounts, on site fitness centre, and the opportunity to work on big projects with some of the experienced players in the industry were added bonuses. Salary and compensation reviews include year-end bonuses, vacation time and other perks and reimbursements. Apple also offered the FlexBenefits programme to its employees where they could choose benefits that best fit their lives. Recognition and appreciation In 1995 Apple created the Apple fellows program in order to recognise the best of its employees who had made extraordinary contributions to personal computing. Each Apple fellow acted as a leader and visionary guiding the company in their particular area of expertise. According to the case study apple is well known to appreciate and value its employees. It is considered a great place to work for people who are passionate about innovation. Career opportunity: Apples positive recruitment policy emphasis on candidates suitability to suit the organisational culture rather than their skills to fit in a specific position. However opportunities are given to employees to gather skills within the organisation. Opportunities for training and development include internship, on-the-job training etc. Internship with apple offered real learning experiences that led to prospective careers in diverse fields. Apple attracted most talented people to come as interns, as people valued Apple best place to learn, they joined them and worked for them as interns. They thought once they get chance to work at Apple, whatever basis it is , it would not be a problem for them to find jobs in elsewhere, the fact is that it wasnt as according to the case study most of Apples interns were able to find jobs promptly once they had some experience from Apple. On-the-job training is applied successfully in Apple. In this casual work culture employees get an opportunity to work with experienced and talented people with no end to challenges. Employability security: Apple has no mutual obligation between the company and its employees and the employees should opt for a better opportunity if it came along. Apple is always unapologetic about layoffs and made it clear that the company believed in employability security rather than employment security. The employability security means that an employee after working with apple would learn enough to be attractive to another employer if laid off. Apple emphasis on psychological contract rather than physical contract. Price, (2007) viewed psychological contract as an informal understanding between the employer and employee. Unlike the formal employment contract, this has no physical existence. It is a set of expectations held by both employers and employees in terms of what they wish to give and receive from their working relationship. Comparison and contrast of the concepts of management and leadership in context of Apple Inc The effectiveness of any organisation depends upon the structure of the management system in operation, as well as its cultural environment. According to the case study Apple is ranked in the top position for the people management within the industry. Jobs is a charismatic CEO whose management style has influenced by Douglas McGregors Theory Y type attitudes (Price, 2007) who leaves his employee to work on their own, taking initiatives, being self-motivated and tending to work hard. However when it comes to take final decisions, the case study suggests it is always one person who takes them and it is Steve Jobs himself as well as his job delegation was very selective only to whom he (Jobs) trusted which is named benevolent authoritative style of management by Likert (2009). One of the problems of management was span of control and information communication gap. As the case study suggests one of the employees said, six different supervisors gave him six different answers and they did not communicate together. Apples management coordination is characterised by Japanese centralisation (Torrington et al 2008) orientation the typical Japanese approach is for strong headquarters group to keep for themselves all major decision. Steve Jobs is a visionary leader who has who has always identified the need of change and has vision of future desired state. Anon (2002) dubbed him as a transformational leader who has single-handedly turned the organization around and delivered it from crisis when he was called back to the company in the year 1997 after twelve years of his departure. Jobs inspired the employees at apple to come out with unconventional products by thinking differently. However though Jobs leadership has brought success for Apple, it does not guarantee that same style would work for future leaders. According the case study Jobs leadership in Apple is supported by Great man theory of leadership where he practices CEO centric power. Anon (2008) suggests that he is secretive, controlling, hog credit, makes people cry and parks his Mercedes in disabled spots. In the world of continuous change this sort of leadership is ineffective for long run. Jobs has been a successful manager who has showed his competency of managing task and people in Apple at the same time though he is a transformational visionary leader but on the other side of the coin he is a autocratic dictator who has been subjecting his employees to tyrannical outburst and fostering a culture of strict secrecy at the company. Apples future leader should adopt more integrating style of leading rather than Jobs traditional controlling leadership. Apples organisational culture is ingrained by Steve jobs and he has made Apple an Institutional mirror of himself. However the company thinks that they would keep operating the same way even when Jobs was no longer there. As the case study suggest that Jobs put an executive team, trained and groomed in his way of doing things in place to take the company forward in his absence. It seems the scheme is successfully working as in Jobs recent six months absence period the company ran smoothly and even Apples stock price was up 66%. Steve jobs has put bold management succession plan in place as it is clear after Jobs sudden exit, Cook will take over as the CEO. Torrington et al (2008) describe it as individual succession analysis. This process is focused to an informal approach to promote with short-term focus on who would be able to replace senior people if they left suddenly. However it is not undisputable that Apple is a visionary organisation or Steve Jobs is a visionary leader as some critics thinks they live just in present. Like Boivin, C. Roch, J. (2006) said Apples leadership are stonewalling; these people, accustomed to the veneer of emergencies, could find no heart or time in their calendars for thinking beyond next months products, next months programs. Too many Apple people, live only in the present and are so wrapped up in the present, so totally engrossed in fighting todays battles, that they live unaware of the past and the future. All today, no yesterday, no tomorrow. They werent stonewalling on the strategy; the strategy dealt with tomorrow, and there was no time in their calendar for tomorrow. Leading and developing effective teams Though Apples work culture is driven by intense work ethic, however it has also another side. In one side we can see a group of eccentric workaholic peoples who work unusually longer hours on the other side we can see that Apples work environment is relaxed and casual, which has certainly helped leading and developing effective team spirit. Employees are followed by casual dress code on the job. According to the case study, Apples employees think it has funny, brilliant, relaxed co-workers and modern, spacious, beautiful offices filled with comfortable couches. Case study also suggests, employees are upbeat about Apples workplace experience and corporate diversity and shared passion. Apple has been able to instil a sense of pride towards its employees. The work culture at Apple was driven by passion for products and attention to the minutest details. Every department is equipped with smart, creative and hard-working people. The work culture is much more like club rather than family. Product development team is formed at Apple with peoples from diverse experience background. By hiring innovative people from diverse background, apple was able to incorporate different perspectives and skills and achieve its goal of making the best products on the market. Teams in Apple work in challenging and creative environment and explored new ways of performing common tasks. Apple provides them ample opportunities to learning and growing. There was amazing level of coherence among the executive teams at Apple. However rather than team work in apples corporate culture encourages individual performance. In Apple, employees had to do their work independently and each individual was his/her best resource. Guidance was occasional. As a company policy employees were not allowed to take note in meetings. Apple appreciated hard working employees and rewarded those who demonstrated their skills and capabilities. It seems Apple fostering an individualistic culture rather team culture. It selects independent thinker who likes to work alone. Apple created a club/community like environment to motivate and retain employees. Analysis of HRM problems in Apple Inc and appropriate models to develop solutions The absence of systematic standard human resource management tools is major problem for Apple. In the absence of well-structured systems and process, the corporate culture became dysfunctional. Many talented people left Apple, because they did not like Apples culture. Without systematic HRM strategy which should be aligned with organisational strategy the company will not prosper for long time. Lack of proper tools to recognition and appreciation Case study suggests that employee had to look after their career as organisation has no proper talent tracking system. Management did not care about interests of other employees, recognising their hard works. Employees innovative product ideas have never been accepted by the company. Though in the early stage employees were appreciated for their work e.g. those who worked for Mac their signature were engraved in the inside of computer case. However it was not the practice later on. Promotion unfairness According to the case study unfairness in promotions and overall employee treatment existed at Apple. Apple worked its employees to the bone but did not reward their hard work and dedication. Only top executives were rewarded. In Apple, appraisal is not based on contribution to the team and support of others, rather based on individual outstanding performance. Career progression and development In a flat hierarchical organisational structure career advancement opportunities were very limited. Reward and bonuses Reward is not based on team performance and contribution, rather individual performance and individual effort. The top management seems in Apple is content with their pay. Lower level employees have not got bonuses or pay rise. Even lower level employees do not have stock option though they worked 60 hours per week. Pfeffer (1998) models suggests profit can still be made with higher pay rates if the right pay format is used such as gain sharing , stock options and pay for skills (cited in Price, 2007). When employees think they are fairly rewarded they will show more commitment. Apples management must pay attention on this. It is important task for any HRM department to aligning an organizations payment arrangements and wider reward systems with the business objectives (Torrington et al. 2008, pp. 638). Long work hours Apple is criticised for its long work hours. Employees struggle to balance work and family life and Apple was blamed for having no regard for family life. Even the company was sued by its employee on the ground of breaking the Californian labour law. Adopting a commitment model (Torrington et al 2008) and changing the organisational culture could solve most of the HRM issues for Apple. commitment model: Communication: Outlining the direction that the organisations strategy is taking and the purpose of any changes. Staffs need to understand why decisions have been before they will cooperate in their implementation. Apples top level managements strict secrecy and rigid mentality must need to be changed. Ownership: Ownership is encouraged by involving people in decisions and making them responsible for implementing specific action. Steve Jobs himself and his successor must stop taking all decisions without employee involvement and participation. Employee involvement is all about their participation with organizational decision making process. Employee involvement is largely concerned with preventing or alleviating alienation (Torrington et al. 2008, pp. 484). Staffs can be involved within the organization through ownership or empowerment. ABE (2001) HRM study manual suggests that empowerment involves people in the operation of organization, so they feel personal responsibility for their actions (pp. 115). Emotional Identification: It is more likely in an atmosphere of enthusiasm. This can be created by acknowledgement and encouraging responsibility and recognising hard work. Performance: Performance assessment and reward structure should be focused on commitment. Apple must put proper performance appraisal system in the place and act accordingly to identify well performing individuals and reward them accordingly. Change of organisational culture: Moreover organisational cultural shift is also needed which would change Apple from an excessive control cultural company to a collaborative cultural company. To survive in future transference and collaboration is essential. A culture that is constantly in pursuit of operational excellence. Good organisational cultures flourish the organisational growth. Leadership in control cultures is a function of authority, and decision making is tied closely to title and role in the organisational. Such organisations tend to be more hierarchical in structure (RDI, 2010). Apple belongs to this category. Scholars place a high value on collaboration not just internally, but with its customers and partners. It emphasises the power of teamwork. By collaboration it seeks to be closely in touch and in tune with the customer and the market at large. RDI (2010) hints that leadership in a collaboration culture is role-based, not person or title-based, and authority is situational (dependent on the particular client engagement, project etc). The natural organisational structure of a collaboration culture is cross-functional teams aligned to market opportunities. According to the case study Apple has been subject to the criticism for an organisational culture characterised by Steve jobs over controlling, top management strict secrecy maintaining and practice of lack of transference. To attain sustainable customer trust, transference and collaboration are necessary in all levels of the organisation. Conclusion It is obvious apple has many good thinks which are strength for the company including strong management, leading, skilled and dedicated people resources. However it is also evident that companys overall corporate culture is out dated which is characterised by absence of morale and lack of alignment of people with organisational strategy. So change in organisational culture is crucial and should be imminent for sustainable long term success. Future leaders initiatives to address these issues, their openness to change and implementing changes to the organisation would become vital factor to success. It is also need to be seen whether Apple finds a perfect successor (predictably Cook) for Steve Jobs, a man who has always been well ahead of competitors to create future vision. It is not drastic change Apple has to go through in near future in terms of its HRM strategy but they must implement some changes which will put the company from one man show to a systematic practice. Apples existing workforce comprise by 35,000 employees worldwide (case study), however this number is inevitable to increase in future and without proper Human Resource strategy and defined policy it will be difficult to manage a diverse huge workforce. Future leaders and managers must set out a standard HRM policy aligned with organisational strategy addressing all emerging issues of HRM. Reference Anon (2002) Transformational leadership; Organizational change; Management styles. Review of Transformational leadership in the context of organizational change by Eisenbach, R. et al (1999). Strategic Direction, 18(6), pp.5-7 [Online] Available at: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?issn=0258-0543volume=18issue=6articleid=869238show=html [Accessed: 19 July, 2010] Anon (2008) Leading personalities. Review of The trouble with Steve by Elkind, P. (2008). Strategic Direction, 24 (11), pp. 17-19 [Online]. Available at: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?issn=0258-0543volume=24issue=11articleid=1747898show=html [Accessed: 19 July, 2010] Bovin, C. Roch, J. (2006) Dominant organizational logic as an impediment to collaboration Management Decision, 44 (3), pp. 409-422 [Online]. Available at: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?issn=0258-0543volume=18issue=6articleid=869238show=html [Accessed: 19 July, 2010] Likert, R. (2009) Management Operations. Harlow, England: Pearson Education Price, A. (2007) Human Resource Management in a Business Context. 3rd Edition, London, UK: Cengage Learning EMEA rdi (2010) Managing the Human Resource Manual [Online] Available at: http://moodle.bl.rdi.co.uk/course/view.php?id=168 [Accessed: 18 July, 2010] Redman, T. Wilkinson, A. (2009) Contemporary Human Resource Management Text and Cases. 3rd Edition. Harlow, England: Pearson Education Torrington, D. et al (2008) Human Resource Management. 7th edition. Harlow, England: Pearson Education

Concentration of Salt Solution :: Papers

Concentration of Salt Solution (dmÃâ€" ¿Ãƒâ€šÃ‚ ³) 1st set of results (g) 2nd set of results (g) 3rd set of results (g) Average of the 3 sets of results (g) 0 2.11 1.79 1.05 1.65 0.2 2.30 1.87 1.09 1.75 0.4 2.32 2.03 1.12 1.82 0.6 2.40 2.01 1.12 1.84 0.8 2.43 2.10 1.08 1.87 1.0 2.38 2.01 1.09 1.83 1.2 2.33 2.12 1.09 1.85 1.4 2.27 2.02 1.08 1.78 1.6 2.27 2.01 1.08 1.79 1.8 2.27 2.11 1.17 1.85 2.0 2.24 2.01 0.96 1.74 Results This is a table to show the mass of the potatoes at the start of the experiment. Each weight was carried out three times. The next table shows the weights of the potatoes after the experiment Concentration of salt solution (DmÃâ€" ¿Ãƒâ€šÃ‚ ³) 1st set of results (g) 2nd set of results (g) 3rd set of results (g) Average of the 3 sets of results (g) 0 2.11 1.79 1.05 1.65 0.2 2.30 1.87 1.09 1.75 0.4 2.32 2.03 1.12 1.82 0.6 2.40 2.01 1.12 1.84 0.8 2.43 2.10 1.08 1.87 1.0 2.38 2.01 1.09 1.83 1.2 2.33 2.12 1.09 1.85 1.4

The Three Mile Island Accident Essay -- Essays Papers

The Three Mile Island Accident When someone thinks of problems plaguing the world, nuclear energy is not the first thing that comes to peoples minds these days.[1]Nuclear power was once deemed the new energy of the future.[2]However, numerous nuclear power plant accidents around the world put a damper on that notion.The United States considers itself one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world, but 103 nuclear reactors currently operating within her borders, one was bound to fail sometime or another.[3] Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Station is on an island that is located about 10 miles from the town of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.The plant housed two nuclear reactors, Unit 1 and Unit 2.Now there is only one that is operable, Unit 1.[4]A week or two before the accident a movie called the â€Å"China Syndrome† was released.This movie was about the possible aftermath resulting from nuclear reactor meltdown.Coincidentally, Unit 2 was in trouble a little while after.[5] Around 4:00 a.m. March 28, 1979, in a non-nuclear section of the Unit 2 plant, the main feed water pumps stopped running.Because of this malfunction, steam generators were not able to remove the heat.This led to complicated chain of events.First, as designed, the turbine shut down, followed by the reactor itself.This led to a rise in the pressure, so the pressurized relief valve opened, just like it was supposed to do.However, when the pressure decreased to accepted levels, the valve should have closed, instead it remained open, it was stuck.This led to a continued decrease in the pressure of the system.[6]Also, in another part of the plant, the emergency feed water system failed to operate because of a human error; the valve was left closed whe... ...21. [2] Lavelle, Marianne.â€Å"When the World Stopped.†U.S. News and World Report, 29 March, 1999, p. 38. [3] See Lavelle p. 38. [4] "Nuclear Disasters andAccidents" http://library.thinkquest.org/17940/texts/nuclear_disasters/nuclear_disasters.html (1 March 2000). [5] Denton, Harold.â€Å"Nightmare at Three Mile Island.†George, March 1999, p. 48. [6] "Nuclear Disasters andAccidents" http://library.thinkquest.org/17940/texts/nuclear_disasters/nuclear_disasters.html (1 March 2000). [7] Nuclear Regulatory Commision. "Three Mile Island 2 Accident" http://www.nrc.gov/OPA/gmo/tip/tmi.htm (1 March 2000). [8] See Nuclear Regulatory Commission [9] See Nuclear Regulatory Commission [10] See Nuclear Regulatory Commission [11] See Lavelle p. 38 [12] See Nuclear Regulatory Commission [13] See Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Italian Renaissance: Earliest Form of the General

1. Italian Renaissance – earliest form of the general European Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement that began in Italy. 2. Jacob Birthmark – historian of art and culture, and an influential figure in the historiography of each field 3. Oligarchies – small group that ruled a city and its surrounding countryside 4. Conditioner – the mercenary soldier leaders (warlords) of the professional, military free companies contracted by the Italian city-states and the Papacy from the late middle ages and throughout the Renaissance. 5. Republic of Florence – TheRepublic of Florence, or the Florentine Republic, was a city-state that was centered on the city of Florence, located in modern Tuscany, Italy 6. Medici Family – political dynasty, banking family and later royal house that first began to gather prominence under Cosmic De' Medici in the Republic of Florence during the late 14th century. 7. Cosmic Domenici – Cosmic d id Giovanni De' Medici (27 September 1389 – 1 August 1464) was the first of the Medici political dynasty, De facto rulers of Florence 8. Lorenz Domenici – Italian statesman and De facto ruler of the Florentine Republic during the Italian Renaissance 9.Duchy of Milan – constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire in northern Italy. It was created in 1395, when it included twenty-six towns and the wide rural area of the middle Pad Plain 10. Spoors family – ruling family of Renaissance Italy, based in Milan. They acquired the dukedom and Duchy of Milan from the previously ruling Viscount family 11. Republic of Venice – state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797 12. Papal States – territories in the Italian peninsula under the sovereign direct rule of the Pope 13.Kingdom of the Two Sillies – largest of the Italian states before Italian unification. It was formed off union of the Spanish Bourbon Kingdom of Sicily and the Kingdom of Naples 14. Charles VIII – monarch of the House of Valves who ruled as King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. He succeeded his father Louis XSL at the age of 13. 15. Giordano Savonarola – Italian Dominican friar and preacher active in Renaissance Florence, and known for his prophecies of civic glory 16. Humanism – group of philosophies and ethical perspectives which emphasize the value and agency of human beings 17.Civil Humanism – Classical republicanism is a form of republicanism developed in the Renaissance inspired by the governmental forms and writings of classical antiquity. 18. Patriarch – Retina scholar and poet in Renaissance Italy, and one of the earliest humanists 19. Vacation – Italian author and poet, student, and correspondent of Patriarch, an important Renaissance humanist and the author of a number of notable pieces of literature. 20. L eonardo Bruin – Italian humanist, historian and statesman. He has been called the first modern historian 21.Lorenz Villa – Italian humanist, rhetorician, and educator. 2. Latin Vulgate – late 4th-century Latin translation of the Bible done by Saint Jerome. 23. Amarillo Fiction – one of the most influential humanist philosophers of the early Italian Renaissance 24. Pico Della Miranda – Italian Renaissance philosopher 25. Balderdash Castigation – Italian courtier, diplomat, soldier and a prominent Renaissance author 26. Virtue – concept theorized by Niccole ¶ Machiavelli, centered on the martial spirit and ability off population or leader 27.Johann Gutenberg – German blacksmith, goldsmith, printer, and publisher who introduced printing to Europe 28. Quaternion – cultural and artistic events of 15th century Italy are collectively referred to as the Quaternion 29. Giorgio Vassar – Italian painter, architect, writer and historian, most famous today for his Lives of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects 30. Pope Alexander VI – head of the Catholic Church from 11 August 1492 to his death in 1503 31. Perspective – certain view one may have regarding an opinion or event 32.Chiaroscuro – use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition 33. Stylized faces – medieval faces in art–more stylized and generic 34. Suffuse – fine shading that produces soft, imperceptible transitions between colors and tones. It is used most often in connection with the work of Leonardo ad Vinci and his followers 35. Contrasts – Italian term that meaner countertops. It is used in the visual arts to describe a human figure standing with most of its weight on one foot 36.Ghetto – Italian painter and architect from Florence in the late Middle Ages 37. Brucellosis – most famous for his discovery of pe rspective and for engineering the dome of the Florence Cathedral, but his accomplishments also include other architectural works, sculpture, mathematics, engineering and even ship design. 38. Lorenz Gibber – Florentine Italian artist of the Early Renaissance best known as the creator of the bronze doors of the Baptistery of Florence Cathedral, called by Michelangelo the â€Å"Gates of Paradise†. 39.Denotable – early Renaissance Italian sculptor from Florence 40. Mosaic – first great painter of the Quaternion period of the Italian Renaissance 41. Sandra Poetical – Italian painter of the Early Renaissance 42. High Renaissance – the period representing the apogee of the visual arts in the Italian Renaissance 43. Aberrant – Italian architect, who introduced Renaissance architecture to Milan and the High Renaissance style to Rome 44. Leonardo Ad Vinci – Italian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician, mathematic ian, etc. 5. Machiavelli, The Prince – The Prince is a political treatise by the Italian diplomat, historian and political theorist 46. Cesar Boring – Italian conditioner, nobleman, politician, and cardinal. He was the son of Pope Alexander VI 47. Sack of Rome 1527 – military event carried out by the mutinous troops of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor in Rome, then part of the Papal States 48. Charles V- ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles l, of the Spanish Empire 49. Raphael – Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance 50.Michelangelo – Italian sculptor, painter, architect, poet, and engineer. 51 . El Greece – painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance 52. Northern Renaissance – Renaissance that occurred in European countries north of Italy 53. Christian Humanism – emphasizes the humanity of Jesus, his social teachings and his propensity to synthesize human spirituality and material ism 54. Erasmus – Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic rises, social critic, teacher, and theologian. 55. Thomas More – English lawyer, social philosopher, author, statesman and noted Renaissance humanist. 6. Franà §ois Rabble's – major French Renaissance writer, doctor, Renaissance humanist, monk and Greek scholar 57. Michel De Imitation – one of the most influential writers of the French Renaissance, known for popularizing the essay as a literary genre 58. William Shakespeare – English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language 59. Miguel De Cervantes – Spanish novelist, poet, and alright. His magnum opus, Don Quixote, considered to be the first modern European novel 60.Flemish Style – flourished from the early 15th century until the 17th century. Flanders delivered the leading painters in Northern Europe 61 . Jan Van Check – Flemish painter active in Brumes and is generally considere d one of the most significant Northern European painters 62. Peter Brushed – Flemish Renaissance painter and printmaker known for his landscapes and peasant scenes 63. Albrecht Udder – German painter, engraver, printmaker, mathematician, and theorist from Murderer 64. Hans Holstein the Younger – German artist and printmaker who worked in a Northern Renaissance style 65.Fugues family – German family that was a historically prominent group of European bankers, members of the fifteenth and sixteenth-century 66. Christine De Paisa – Italian French late medieval author. She served as a court writer for several dukes 67. Artemisia Genteelism – Italian Baroque painter, today considered one of the most accomplished painters in the generation after Aggravating Questions: 1. What are the main characteristics of Italian Humanism? How do these compare tit earlier medieval Scholasticism? Why were Italian humanists so interested in Classical civilization? A.Stressed the superiority of ancient Greek and Roman literature, history, and politics and emphasized learning and personal and public duty. The Italians were interested in â€Å"humanism† which dealt with literature, the art of persuasion and were poetically, historically centered on standardized forms borrowed from ancient Greece and Rome. B. On one side is faith; the other side is reason. Humanism brought in the subjective elements of faith, trust and conscience while scholasticism emphasized reason. . Humanists admired classical literature, they were eager to discover lost works of ancient authors.Patriarch hunted for manuscripts and made important finds, including many of Cicerone's letters; but the early fifteenth century was the golden age for rediscovery of Latin authors. The recovery of Greek literature was even more striking. Italian humanists brought back from Constantinople hundreds of previously unknown Greek books. 2. What characteristics of Italian cities in the fifteenth century created an environment that fostered the development of Renaissance culture? A. The Italian cities had a geographical advantage that helped foster the Renaissance culture.Italy was located in an area that had many trade routes. This sparked a strong economy which could, for example, allow painters to afford supplies. 3. What political, social and economic factors caused the Renaissance? A. A decline of agriculture as the main source of revenue for majority. The production shifted to mass quantities, which was in the hand of emerging wealthy urban class. Ideologically was the church discredited and people were looking for answer why God had allowed plague, or why after centuries f relative stability, Europe fell into chaos and warfare.Church divided by Schism was unable to give satisfactory answer, and thinkers and educated elite were looking for their own thinking that was outside of approved church doctrine. Collapse of Byzantine and renewed interest in Greece culture, literature, and philosophy. The geopolitical shift from eastern Mediterranean towards more centrally located northern Italy in feudal Europe, ensured that the idea of Renaissance spread from there to the rest of the continent. 4. Analyze the impact of Renaissance humanism n the development of Italian art from 1400 to 1550. A.Due to the popularity of Renaissance humanism, many forms of art were greatly impacted. Before humanism, many artists would depict scenes of religion and mythology. After, there were mostly portraits of families and people, as well as very detailed sketches of people. It showed that the human body was already a piece of art. 5. Compare and contrast the Renaissance in Italy and the Netherlands. A. The Renaissance in the Netherlands put a greater emphasis on living a pious, simple life. Therefore, artists like Peter Frugal the elder painted pictures such as â€Å"Haymaking. It showed regular peasants carrying out their normal everyday tasks. B. The Ital ian Renaissance, on the other hand, focused more on the wealthy class (aristocracy). Paintings were elaborately detailed, and showed how wealthy and powerful people were. This was because a lot of trade was going on during the time of the Italian Renaissance, especially in the Mediterranean. Therefore, individuals were becoming very wealthy, and thus gaining political influence 6. Analyze the impact of women on the Renaissance and the impact of the Renaissance on women a.The â€Å"debate about women† allowed the topic to come up which in turn had a few women recognized for their bravery and morality. The Renaissance had virtually no help for women in women's rights movement. 7. In what ways did the role of the artist and the prestige attached to art change? Why was this so important? A. Artists had begun to make art under the funds and commission of patrons. Patrons ordered specific scenes that the artist was to create, while other oversaw he work being done. All these reques ts were done for a payment towards the artist. B.Renaissance portraits often showed human detail and portrayed more realistic images. 8. Explain how the Avignon exile, the Great Schism, and the conciliator movement contributed to the weakening of the Church and, especially, papal authority. How did the papacy's secular concerns contribute to this? A. Due to the loss of prestige and the Church's inability to keep their education system comprised and centralized, the councils that laypeople made had discussed their own education system and using it instead of the Churches; the pope had no longer intimidated the people because he got pushed around.