Thursday, October 31, 2019

Interpret the law of secured transactions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Interpret the law of secured transactions - Essay Example According to common jurisdictions, the lender in this case who is the First Savings Bank can accept intangibles as security for loans borrowed. This mostly applies where the accounts receivable are traded to the creditor just like in the case of Money Games Incorporation. According to the scenario, the accounts receivable acts as collateral whether the financial statement is filed or not (Miller, 2011). A security interest arises in exchange of the loan whereby the debtor agrees that the secured party may take collateral owned by the debtor if he or she defaults in the payment of the loan (Miller, 2011). Security agreements are contracts according to the law of business (Legal Information Institute, 2000). The collateral interest of the bank vests upon the signing of the guarantee contract. In this case, the bank security is attached. However, it has not perfected its collateral interest. In most situations, perfection can be easily achieved through filing of a financial statement. This document should include the signature of the debtor, a brief description of the collateral item and addresses of both the creditor and the debtor (Cheeseman, 2009). In normal circumstances, when the debtor delivers the note and executes the security agreement, the bank swiftly authorizes for liberation of the funds that are being borrowed. When the money is released to the debtor, then the bank’s security is attached since, it has executed a security agreement that describes the collateral and has also offered valuable security that applies to the loan. The bank is required to perfect its security interest and its claim against the accounts receivable which subordinates to the claims against the accounts receivable. This is because the bank’s security interest attaches from the agreement that secures the payment of the debt. For instance, the beneficiary of the security interest has certain rights in

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Managing finanical in health and social care organization Essay

Managing finanical in health and social care organization - Essay Example However. a number of hazards have been associated with the use of mercury-in-glass thermometers. Due to its invasiveness and potential risks, alternatives to mercury-in-glass thermometers are considered. Alternative devices include electronic digital thermometer, tympanic infrared thermometer, chemical dot thermometer and handheld infrared thermometer. The preferred option is chosen through benefit weighting, option appraisal weightings and cost-effective analysis. Consequences on levels of neonates or staff activity for agreeing or not agreeing the option and recommendations are discussed. The process of this business case is discussed in the following paragraphs. There are several mission objectives in my hospital: 1 providing quality hospital care to patient delivered by a team of competent professional staff using advanced facilities and technologies, 2 educating and training health professional who are for patients, their families and the community, and who strive for professional and team development, 3 establishing partnership with like-minded community organizations to achieve a healthy, progressive and productive community, 4 promoting a healthy lifestyle and advocating a compassionate community and a caring family culture for the Hong Kong community (Hospital Report 2005). Among them, I would like to introduce advanced facilities and technologies for delivering patient care in my dept. The hospital has only one neonatal unit, which allows admission of newly born infants. The total number of beds is 40. manpower of the neonatal unit includes 20 nursing staff, 8 health care assistants and 6 amah. There are 5 nursing staff, 2 health care assistants and 1 amah in every morning or afternoon shift. We have to work the delegated job when we are on duty. Nurses are responsible for accurate measurement of body temp. (Browne et al., 2000; Potter, 2001). Thermoregulation is a vital body function, which

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Recruitment Strategies: The Hotel Industry

Recruitment Strategies: The Hotel Industry The beginning of the 21st century was referred as the most difficult phase in the history of tourism industry. This sector was affected negatively because of terrorism, war and global health problems The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2005. However, it was in 2005 that the sector started to open out and in 2004 international arrivals increased at a rate of 8.6% compared to 2003 (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2005). Economist Intelligence Unit (2005) states that there are many reasons for this kind of relief. The relative stable geopolitical conditions, development of key sectors, such as China, the supply- driven expansion of carriers at low cost, which are currently building inroads in Asia and the Middle East, at long with the conventional markets of North America and Europe, constant pressure on the prices of many of the industries, pent up demand of former years, covering the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome). Even though the climate of the UK is not favourable, the coun try still attracts many visitors thanks to its natural beauties like lakes, rivers, rugged mountains, coastline and other factors that cover high standard of services, natural attractions and transport services (Youell, 2001). Recently the world is witnessing the significant change in the economy. Indeed, Stavrou-Costea (2005) stated that national economies are changing and as we move progressively away from a world in which national economies were relatively isolated from one another into an interdependent global economic system, we are witnessing the rapid appreciation for and development of all aspects associated with and affected by human resource management. In fact, Stavrou-Costea (2005) also stated that while the emerging international economy creates opportunities it also presents challenges and threats with which yesterdays business managers did not have to deal. In this perspective regardless of industry and the size of the companies (Ulrich, 1997) managing human resources has become vitally important for the companies in achieving the goals of the organisation (Stavrou-Costea, 2005). Similarly, Dessler (2000) stated that human resources need to be collaborator in developing a companys strategy i n order to be successful in organisational goals. Human resource management can help the company reach organizational effectiveness and thereby have a determining effect on whether or not the company is good enough, fast enough, and competitive enough not only to survive but also to thrive (Schuler and Jackson, 2000; Stavrou-Costea, 2005). Schuler and Jackson (2000) and Stavrou-Costea (2005) commonly stated the difficulty of achieving and sustaining organisational effectiveness without the efficient practises of human resources management. Tourism and hotel industry are supposed to be parts of hospitality industry. Hospitality industry has becoming a very large of source of employment. The rate of employees in hospitality industry is increasing and employees are undergoing certain problems. Some factors contribute to selection and recruitment of staff in hotel industry and HRM is facing to solve selection and recruitment problem in hospitality industry like retraining performance ,high-labour turnover, low morale ,retraining performers .In an analysis of 5000 jobs advertisements across a number of different occupations and sector in the UK,Jackson et al.(2005) found that the skills stated as necessary by employers are social skills and personal characteristic only 26 per cent of organizations mentioned the need for educational recruitments. Personal services this rate is less than 10 per cent. As a highly labour-intensive industry, tourism and hospitality organisations are often hard to talk of how their people are their greatest asset. However even cursory understanding of the nature of work employment and people management in tourism and hospitality points to many paradoxes and contradictions that are apparent in studying human resource management (HRM) in the sector. Many academics, industrialists and policy-makers have attempted to define the nature of the tourism industry-and the place of the hospitality sub-sector within this border conceptualization-yet there is still no commonly accepted definition. Hence, there are inherent problems seeking define what is large and diverse sector which means many of the activities may overlap and could be described as encompassing tourism and hospitality. For example Lucas(2004)in her recent work on employment relations in hospitality and tourism industries chose to talk in broad terms about the Hotel, Catering and Tourism sector. In some geographical areas and sub-sector areas, tourism provides an attractive ,high-status working environment with competitive pay and conditions, which is in high demand in the labour force and benefits from low staff turnover. On the other hand, it brings low pay, problems in recruiting skills in number of key areas, a high level of labour drawn socially disadvantaged groups, poor status and virtual absence of professionalism. More is known about employment in certain sub-sectors than other .For example, the commercial hospitality industry encompassing hotels, restaurants and pubs, bars and nightclubs is the largest sub-sector with around 70 per cent of employees in the UK(people 1st,2006).Unsurprisingly, then, the commercial hospitality industry is well served with extensive research on the nature of employment and HRM strategies(DAnnunzio-Green et all.,2002:Lucas,2004). In terms is the predominance of small-and medium sized enterprises is a further issue to consider is the manner. People 1st(2006) note that within the UK hospitality, leisure travel and tourism sector per cent of establishments employ fewer than 10 people and 50 per cent fewer than five. Heterogeneity is also seen in relation to the way that organisations adopt differing routes to competitive advantage. For instance, full service carriers in the airline industry are likely to have very different approaches to HRM compared to low-cost airlines(Eaton,2001:Spiess and Warning,2005)The same is true for the hospitality sector, which may range from first class and luxury hotels providing extravagant, full 24-hour service to the more homely comforts of a bed and breakfast establishment; from fast food restaurants to Michelin starred restaurants .In turn, the jobs provided by these various organizations demand a variety of skills and attributes from those employees interacting with customers , which again will impact on HR strategies such as recruitment, selection and training. Commonly selecting and recruiting and people to fill new or existing positions are a crucial element of human resource activity in all tourism and hospitality organisations, irrespective of size, activity and structure. It has been noted how the importance of service quality has increased the pressure on organisations for select right selection.(jameson,2000) pointed this may be especially true in smaller organisations that may not have well developed HRM functions or recruitment and selection systems and may recruit irregularly with heavy reliance on informal system and methods. Certainly, within the context of the hospitality sector, Price(1994) set up that 241 hotels sampled in her research a third never used job descriptions or person specifications. Lockyer and Sholarious (2005) surveyed over 80 hotels and again found a general lack of systematic procedures for recruitment and selection. Research Objective The ultimate objective of this study is to explore: What recruitment strategies applied in the UKs 5 star hotel industry? An exploratory study in London Hotels. .The research objectives can be listed as follows .To review HRM and hotel industry theories .To explore what recruitment strategies in the U.K hotel industry .To evaluate importance of HRM department in the U.K hotel industry .To identify what is the recruitment and selection problems in the U.K 5 star hotel industry .To identify if there are any weaknesses of recruitment strategies applied by the UKs 5 star hotel industry Therefore research questions for this study are; What is recruitment? What are recruitment processes? What is the importance of recruitment in achieving strategic HRM? In what way the recruitment is important for the service sector players? What is the role of recruitment in the 5 star hotel industries overall business strategy? What recruitment strategies are followed by the 5 star hotel industries? Are there any weaknesses of recruitment strategies applied by the 5 star hotel industries? Design of the Study In order to fulfil the objective of the study, paper is organised as follows: Chapter Two consist of a review of the literature on the subject. In chapter two; HRM theories and diffusion of recruitment and selection strategies, service encounter tasks, definition of 5 star hotel industries are given. Chapter Three includes methodology of this research and consists of research design, sampling methods, data collection methods, data analysis, ethical issues involved in research process and limitations of this study. In Chapter Four, data analysis provided. This chapter divided into two parts; secondary data analysis and primary data analysis. In the secondary data analysis; U.K tourism industry, recruitment and selection strategies in tourism industry are analysed. In the primary data analysis, interviews that are conducted with the management of the UK hotels are analysed. Chapter Five is the conclusion part of the study and includes some directions for the future researches.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Thomas Jeff. Outline Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Lenora Spahn   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  9/22/00   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Thomas Jefferson I. Thomas Jefferson   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A. Born- April 13, 1743 in Shadwell, Va.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B. Died- July 4, 1826 II. Background   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A. Educational- College of William and Mary (1760-1762), 5 year apprenticeship   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   studying law under George Wythe.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B. Occupational-   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  1. Began to practice law on his own: representing small scale planters from   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   western countries involving land claims and titles.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2. House of Burgesses, elected 1768: Opposed all forms of Parliamentary   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   taxation and supprted nonimportation resolutions against British trade   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   regulations.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  3. Committee of Correspondence, 1773: Served as a makeshift Central   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Government for colonies and advocated that colonies refuse to pay any duty   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   leveled by Parliament.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  4. Virginia Convention in ... ...  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   through congress.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  F. The Non-Intercourse Act, 1809: basically just a moderate version of the Embargo Act. X. Major Conflict   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A. The major conflict was foreign trade and the trade embargoes and naval troubles that   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   the United States had with Britain and France caused the most influential decisions   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Jefferson was forced to make. XI. Major Inventions and Technological Advancements   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A. Fulton’s Steamboat,1807: Robert Fulton's side-paddled, steam-powered riverboat   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   made its first commercial voyage in Clermont.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B. In 1806, David Melville attempted the construction of gas street lighting in Rhode   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Island. XII. Overall rating of the President   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thomas Jefferson is one of the most eagerly embraced Presidents in American history due not only to his Thomas Jeff. Outline Essay -- essays research papers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Lenora Spahn   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  9/22/00   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Thomas Jefferson I. Thomas Jefferson   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A. Born- April 13, 1743 in Shadwell, Va.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B. Died- July 4, 1826 II. Background   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A. Educational- College of William and Mary (1760-1762), 5 year apprenticeship   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   studying law under George Wythe.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B. Occupational-   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  1. Began to practice law on his own: representing small scale planters from   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   western countries involving land claims and titles.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2. House of Burgesses, elected 1768: Opposed all forms of Parliamentary   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   taxation and supprted nonimportation resolutions against British trade   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   regulations.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  3. Committee of Correspondence, 1773: Served as a makeshift Central   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Government for colonies and advocated that colonies refuse to pay any duty   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   leveled by Parliament.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  4. Virginia Convention in ... ...  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   through congress.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  F. The Non-Intercourse Act, 1809: basically just a moderate version of the Embargo Act. X. Major Conflict   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A. The major conflict was foreign trade and the trade embargoes and naval troubles that   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   the United States had with Britain and France caused the most influential decisions   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Jefferson was forced to make. XI. Major Inventions and Technological Advancements   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A. Fulton’s Steamboat,1807: Robert Fulton's side-paddled, steam-powered riverboat   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   made its first commercial voyage in Clermont.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B. In 1806, David Melville attempted the construction of gas street lighting in Rhode   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Island. XII. Overall rating of the President   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thomas Jefferson is one of the most eagerly embraced Presidents in American history due not only to his

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Case Study Counselling in the Work Placement

EA L RN E the learning centre R VIC Diploma in Counselling: Case Study Sixth term: Case Study. Length: 3,500 words (in total) General Points The subject of the case study must be a client whom you have been counselling for at least 6 sessions, preferably more. The case study is about how you and your client have worked together within your core theoretical model of counselling. This involves reflecting on your process in relationship to your client, your client’s process in relationship to themselves and the ongoing process between the two of you.Structure of the Case Study To set the scene for our case study, you need to describe the theory that informs your practice, ie. why you do what you do. We suggest you make reference to the following (this section should be no longer than 1,000 words): †¢ Your personal value system (this may include religious beliefs, your moral code, your philosophy of life) †¢ Theoretical sources (e. g. Rogers, the existentialists †¦) †¢ Ethical code of practice (personal code of practice, e. g. oundaries such as relationships with clients) †¢ Integration of the personal with the professional aspects of self as outlined above (how did you arrive at your current value system and the sources for these? ) It is important that your written case study reflects the particular quality of the relationship you have created with your client. What we would like to see and what we would like demonstrated is the way in which you have achieved this. E E S Writing Skills/Specialist coursework/15. 2 Diploma in Counselling: Case StudyR S PTO/†¦. 1 EA L RN E R the learning centre R VIC 1. Personal History Include age, sex, family history, current relationship, family situation and occupational situation. 2. Counselling arrangements Briefly describe the setting in which the counselling is provided: the frequency and length of counselling sessions, how long you’ve been counselling the client, and the number of sessions which have taken place to date. What was your initial contract with the client, and has this been reviewed? 3. Presenting issuesBriefly outline why the client has requested counselling now. As far as possible, try and use the client’s language. Please include your initial subjective responses to the client, noting your response to differences between you and your client. 4. Your assessment of this client Describe your assessment of the client and the nature of your work together making reference to relevant theory. a. b. c. d. e. On what criteria did you base your initial assessment? What is you client’s concept of self? To what extent do you agree with this?What sense did you make of this person? What was your response to both the client and their presenting issues? How did you decide that you were able to work with this client? What did you agree would be the focus of your work? f. 5. The presenting past Describe the relationship between responses to curren t issues with key events from the client’s past, e. g. loss. PTO/†¦ 2 E E S Writing Skills/Specialist coursework/15. 2 Diploma in Counselling: Case Study S EA L RN E R the learning centre R VIC 6. Counselling processDescribe the counselling process with reference to the beginning, middle and end stages. How do you consider your cl;ient changed? What contribution did counselling make to this? Evaluate your ability to demonstrate the core conditions at the different stages of the process. 7. Supervision Throughout your case study, we would like to see how you have used both your individual and group supervision in working with this client. We would also like to have some sense of how your internal supervisor is evolving during your work. . Practitioner issues In relation to your work with this client, evaluate your ability to hold professional boundaries and work within an ethical framework. You may find it helpful to mention any particular critical experiences to illustra te your practice. You might find it useful to look at Rogers ‘stages of process’ found in ‘On Becoming a Person’ (1961). See also, Mearns and Thorne (1988) Person Centred Counselling in Action, Sage E E Writing Skills/Specialist coursework/15. 2 Diploma in Counselling: Case Study S S 3

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

First impressions Essay

In my opinion it is your first impression of something that ultimately gives you the perfect vantage point in which to accurately assume the true nature of something. Your notion of this something is then unaffected or swayed by any outside sources or by second guessing yourself. Upon first experiencing this first time offered course, I immediately felt right at home concerning the direction in which the course was headed and also with the enthusiasm and involvement of the professor. The first class began as any other, anxiously awaiting an unknown professor and the educational information he bears. With a proverbial collective sigh of relief, the class was greeted with a pleasant professor offering a most interesting lesson plan on the writing in the discipline of psychology. After welcomed introductions class was underway and a new appreciation for my major was attained. Our first homework assignment required us to read and analyze an article entitled â€Å"Making Science Understandable to a Broad Audience† by Richard Reis. The article portrays the notion that we as those in search of educational advancement must accommodate the manner in which we write for individuals many whom are otherwise unaware. This piece I believe sets the tone for this course in its entirety and my perceptions as to what is seeks to achieve, in that to truly know and understand an idea or concept one must have the ability to correctly perceive and present information of the utmost importance to the vast majority. Throughout my college career I have strived to put forth my best effort and achieve a great standing in all my courses. I plan on not doing any different here, so upon perusing the course syllabus I noticed many assignments wherein groups were involved. In my past experience, sadly I have had many instances in which fellow group members became ‘clingers’ to my dedicated work whilst I labored on it. Assignments listed as anything prefaced by the dreaded utterance â€Å"Group,† made me question my position here. Despite my reservations I believe that those fellow students in my class are just as dedicated as I and wish to succeed just as much. Without further explanation of the group work involved, much of it looks fairly familiar to projects that I have done in past classes both in college and high school concerning poster presentations and literature reviews. My worries, other than those aforementioned, lie in the â€Å"Individual Components† of the course description and what they might entail. At least for me, when work pertaining to that of doling out constructive criticism is required I simply feel inadequate in telling others how to go about their work. Other than that one hiccup, the rest of the work to be done individually seems common or at least manageable. In the past I have kept a record or journal of daily events of significance, in that I can see doing well in keeping a research journal. Being accustomed to modern times and technology use should help serve me in using the â€Å"Learning E-Portfolios,† and submitting assignments online. My major is in psychology and therefore have read extensively on the subject as well as taken previous writing courses, all of which will hopefully aid me in doing well this semester. I feel as though this course will play towards my strengths and will be successful overall. Although, I do not expect to go without surprises, I trust this course to challenge my writing ability as well as my grasp on psychology ASSIGNMENT REFLECTION FORM 1. How would you describe your experience in working on this assignment (Was it difficult to begin? Did the ideas come easily or with difficulty? What obstacles did you face in the process of writing? How long did it take you?)? A: As with any paper, I found it slightly difficult to begin because I enjoy taking the time to organize my thoughts into a cohesive and coherent piece. In the writing process I found it difficult to completely fulfill the requirements in that the book contained in the courses required reading section had been backordered and in an attempt to continue, I had purchased a copy on Amazon.com and am sadly still awaiting its arrival. From beginning to end this essay took me around two hours to complete in its entirety. 2. What do you see as the strengths of this paper? A: I believe the strengths of this paper to be my honesty involving the course. It may or may not help with improvements and or changes in future assignments and course direction. 3. What do you see as areas for improvement in the paper? A: Not to sound clichà © but I believe that all papers still require improvement. No matter how many edits or drafts it takes there will always be one idea or point that may have been over expressed or a central one that had been simply left out completely. I may need to improve upon my ordering or overall flow of my paper to achieve a better read. 4. What did you learn (about yourself, the subject, writing, or reading) from doing this assignment? A: While writing this piece I learned that I truly enjoy expressing myself through writing. Although I consider myself to have a limited vocabulary I find nothing more exciting than to surprise someone with my work.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Trumans Presidentcy essays

Truman's Presidentcy essays Despite strong opposition from a Republican congress, Truman attempted to extend Roosevelts New Deal policies by strengthening social security, conservation, implementing rent controls, and providing housing to low-income families. At times, however, Truman was inconsistent with his own partys beliefs and the ideal of the New Deal in order to suit the immediate situation and retain public support. Furthermore, Truman supported civil rights actions and for the first time, increased the political status of African American citizens. Trumans various other reforms were much like the proposals of Roosevelt, but the mood of the nation due to its affluence and that of Congress opposed his efforts and the changing times proved that Trumans Fair Deal was not as necessary as FDRs New Deal. Trumans organized policy to elaborate on the New Deal was termed the Fair Deal and aimed to improve social conditions like Roosevelts plan had done previously. His immediate goals were full employment and an improved economy, as well as to provide for the common good. The Fair Labor Standards Act increased the minimum wage from 40 cents to 75 cents and the Social Security Act increased benefits to the elderly by 77.5%. Also, to the advantage of those who lived in rented homes and apartments, Truman lengthened rent controls to March 1951, and in addition, the Housing Act vowed to eliminate slums and established 810,000 low-income houses, thus providing a good amount of citizens with affordable housing. The president also implemented the Employment Act in 1946 to help stabilize the postwar economy. The act created a three member council of economic advisors and a joint committee to study and propose stabilization measures. Moreover, Truman attempted to establish a Missouri Valley Auth ority while extending the power of the Tennessee Valley authority, but was unsuccessful. However, the president did obtain increases in...

Monday, October 21, 2019

45 Idioms About Ordinal and Multiplicative Numbers

45 Idioms About Ordinal and Multiplicative Numbers 45 Idioms About Ordinal and Multiplicative Numbers 45 Idioms About Ordinal and Multiplicative Numbers By Mark Nichol The following is a list of idioms about ordinal numbers (first, second, and so on) and multiplicative numbers, or what the late English-usage expert Henry Watson Fowler called numeral adverbs (once, twice, and so on). (Because I have already devoted an entire post to idioms that include first, I’ve omitted them here.) 1. bottom of the ninth: the last minute, from the last segment of the last inning of a baseball game 2. break the fourth wall: speaking directly to the audience during a theatrical performance (or, by extension, a film or a television program) 3. cheap at twice the price: exceedingly inexpensive 4. don’t think twice: don’t concern yourself about it 5. eleventh hour: the last minute 6. even a stopped clock is right twice a day: someone who is usually mistaken can be correct on rare occasions 7. fifth column: collaborators supporting would-be invaders from within a country 8. fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me: a proverb expressing that one should be wary of the intentions of someone who has tricked one before 9. for once: on this particular occasion 10. Fourth Estate: journalists as a group (originally, a reference to the press in counterpoint to three other major demographic groups: the clergy, the nobility, and the common people) 11. give (one) the once-over: examine with interest 12–13. if I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a hundred/thousand times: a phrase expressing, with exaggeration, that one has repeatedly referred to something 14. lightning never strikes (the same place) twice: an unusual occurrence that has happened before won’t happen again 15. once and for all: permanently 16. once bitten, twice shy: a proverb expressing that one’s inclination is to avoid people who, or things, that have hurt them 17. once in a blue moon: very rarely 18. once in a lifetime: said of something likely to occur only once during one’s life 19. once over lightly: quickly 20. once upon a time: once in the past (used often as the beginning of a fairy tale to express that the story occurred long ago) 21. opportunity knocks but once: a proverb expressing that one may have only one chance to take advantage of an opportunity 22–23. plead/take the fifth: said humorously in response to a request for provocative information when one does not want to reveal it (a reference to the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which protects citizens against self-incrimination) 24. second banana: someone who plays a secondary role (from show business slang for a supporting comedian) 25. second best: something not as good as the thing desired 26. second chance: another opportunity 27. second childhood: a period later in life marked by renewed interest in things of interest to a child or by reduced mental capacity 28. second class: inferior, as in references to travel accommodations or disadvantaged citizens 29. second fiddle: one who plays, or is perceived to play, a subordinate role (from an informal reference to violinists in a music ensemble who are not the principal violinist) 30. second-guess: predict another’s action or decision 31. secondhand: as an adjective, not original, or previously owned; as an adverb, indirectly, or obtained from another 32. second nature: said of a behavior or habit that one seems to have been born with 33. second sight: clairvoyance, or the supposed ability to see something happening elsewhere or in the future 34. second thought: a reference to changing one’s mind, as in the phrase â€Å"on second thought† or to be inclined to do so, as in the phrase â€Å"having second thoughts† 35. second to none: better than anyone or anything else 36. second wind: restoration of easy breathing after physical exertion, or a renewal or energy or strength 37. seventh heaven: a state of bliss 38. sixth sense: a perceptiveness that cannot be achieved with the five physical senses 39. think twice: carefully consider 40. the third degree: intense questioning 41. third rail: something dangerous, like the electrified third rail of an electric railway system 42. third time’s the charm: one will succeed on the third try 43. Third World: the undeveloped world, first used to describe countries not aligned with the world’s democratic and communist nations during the Cold War 44–45. third/fifth wheel: a person thought to be unwelcome in the company of a pair or quartet of people; usually a reference to a single person with one or two couples Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Good At, Good In, and Good With"Wracking" or "Racking" Your Brain?5 Examples of Insufficient Hyphenation

Saturday, October 19, 2019

A concept analysis of courage

A concept analysis of courage Courage is a virtue vital for good nursing, and has brought many benefits and advancements to the nursing profession, yet it has received little credit as a nursing skill. Making courage visible to nursing, can help incorporate it as part of the skills training for nurse leaders in nursing schools. This can bring further advancement to the nursing profession. Also, Having a courageous character can benefit patients since it provokes them to be more willing to take treatments and fight illnesses. The literature review identified physical courage, moral courage, psychological courage, and civil courage as different extensions of courage, and it reinforced that moral courage is the one necessary for nursing. It also identified caring, knowledge, and the ability to overcome fears as some of the defining attributes of courage. The willingness to have a courageous character can be provoke by confidence and a sense of duty, and it can lead to self esteem boosts and good learning experience s. Currently, only a few qualitative methods have been identified to study the phenomena of courage in nursing. It is harder to measure courage with quantitative methods because it is subjective in nature, and people experience it differently, depending on their values, believes, and cultures. More studies need to be done to incorporate courage as a nursing concept, and to identify tools and therapies that can entice courage in patients. Introduction The identification of nursing concepts has facilitated theory development and the growth of nursing knowledge, which has lead to many nursing advancement. Many concepts have being identified and inquired in nursing, yet there are some that still remain unexplored; one of these concepts is courage. Courage still remains undefined in nursing. Spencer and Smyth (2007) stated that courage is a concept that remains invisible in nursing, Yet it is essential to the advancement of nursing practice (Spencer, and Smythe 2007). While, Day (2010) s tated that â€Å"Courage is a virtue that is necessary to the conscientious practice of all health care providers† (Day, 2010). It is the virtue that leads nurses to develop other virtues and skills like leadership, advocacy, commitment, caring, and conflict resolution amongst others. Without courage, nursing would be a robotic job that implies following orders without any regards for the patients health care outcomes. According to Thomas (2007), courage is a requirement to be a leader. â€Å"Leaders must consistently find the courage to hold true to their beliefs and convictions† (Thomas, 2003). Today’s nursing leaders need to be courageous to face the politics of the health care systems and improve nursing for the future. Courage is a virtue that can also benefit patients in the health care. Being diagnosed with an illness often times creates fears and uncertainties that may cause loss of self esteem and dignity. This can lead to non-compliance to treatments a nd poor outcomes. Patients need to find the courage from within to fight the physical and physiological disruptions and restore their health. According to Wein (2007), having a fighting spirit can bring real benefits to the patients. Health care providers can use it as a therapeutic tool by appealing to the patient’s sense of courage, through facilitating therapies that ameliorate suffering, restore self esteem, and allow rediscovery of meaning (Wein, 2007).

Friday, October 18, 2019

Leading in a changing world Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Leading in a changing world - Article Example A manager may adopt Laissez faire style of leading and guidance, in which the members enjoy equal privileges and decision making leverage (Bass, 2009, 145). These two terms are often used in a co relational manner, on others in a contrasting manner, and on others in a complementing manner. Management pertains to the organizing of the activities, personnel or other decisions pertinent to the scope of organization. Leadership on other hand may include these qualities but its referential context is relatively broader and it pertains to decision making, leading, guiding and administrating over the necessary functions. Managers may not be the sole decision makers, while leaders are. The role of guiding and motivation may be performed by the managers in an unannounced way, while the leaders do so in a completely declaratory manner (Tripathi, 2008, 302). Other styles that may be adopted by a manager are relatively strict and may qualify for authoritative style of leadership. There are number of considerations attached to such form of management style. The first and foremost is the potential of alienation creation between the manager and his subordinates. The second element is the potential build up of fear within the hearts of sub ordinates. The excessively authoritative style of leadership at times takes out te element of incentives from the subordinates mind and physical behavior. This enables providing the subordinates the sense of security and ownership within the organization and in turn enables achieving the desired results. It leads to working of the entire unit as a team that is directed along single line of strategy. The other advantages served in this style of management are the removal of any gulf that may arise as a result of gap between the top management and the file members of the organization. A manager may also

Heart attacks and stress Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Heart attacks and stress - Essay Example Medicine Net (2010) has reported that if left unmanaged, stress can lead to emotional, psychological, and even physical problems, including heart disease, high blood pressure, chest pains, or irregular heart beats (Medicine Net, 2010). Stress can increase both the blood pressure and the cholesterol level in our body which can lead to heart attacks. This paper focussing mainly on stress related heart attacks. In simple terms Heart attack is the blocking of blood flow to the heart due to some problems. Barrier less flow of blood to and fro heart is essential for the smooth functioning of heart. Heart pumps blood to all over our body through veins and whenever this pumping disrupted, heart functions may cease. â€Å"If the flow of blood isn’t restored quickly, the section of heart muscle becomes damaged from lack of oxygen and begins to die† (What Is a Heart Attack?, 2008) Heart attacks are common both in men and women. Different reasons were cited as the cause of heart attacks, But generally it is accepted that lack of physical workouts and changing life styles are the major reasons behind heart attacks. The current generation is tied with so many commitments to their family, society and to the workplace. It is difficult for a layman to manage all this commitments equally well. The failure in the management of commitments may result in increased level of stresses and stress causes many physical and mental problems and heart attacks are one among them. Friedman and Rosenman were the first to explain why specific behaviours (overt pattern behaviour A" or Type A) could cause heart attacks and contribute to coronary artery disease. Stress can cause accelerated atherosclerosis and coronary occlusion that is associated with elevated cholesterol, triglycerides, and free fatty acids, increased fibrinogen, haptoglobin, plasma seromucoids, platelet aggregation and adhesiveness, polycythemia, and accelerated blood clotting (Stress And Heart

Try to pick something thats not boring Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Try to pick something thats not boring - Essay Example Every parent of every American child is responsible for the health and well being of their child so they need to be actively inculcating and encouraging a momentum towards a healthy lifestyle and healthy eating habits within and outside the home. Doctors, scientists and health promoters expound advice telling us that although obesity can sometimes be caused by physiological factors, such as genetics, hormonal problems or slow metabolism, it is more commonly caused by poor diet. We are told that obesity is the result of eating more calories than necessary and indulging in a diet high in saturated fats and sugars, or leading an inactive life, or both; it increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes and strokes, as well as other emotional and psychological problems. Without doubt however, obesity is growing rapidly in the United States in adults and children. The First Lady’s Move to Schools campaign is a step in the right direction, and the â€Å"project is a small piece of the big picture† (Sweet, 2010) but the problem of obesity is multifaceted and the solution cannot rest on government campaigns, Acts or Legislations; the problem requires cooperation and action from everybody, including schools, health providers, food industries and most importantly the American public themselves. Governments and other stakeholders can advise, promote and assist in promoting healthy lifestyles but the reality is that it is up to the individual to make choices and it is up to the parents to make the right choices for their children. Obesity may be caused by wrong diet but we also need to consider other factors that impact on the issue; factors like the environment which in itself promotes a more sedentary lifestyle than in the past with more public transport options, more convenience stores, inadequate security in parks, unsafe walking areas and poor

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Process Costing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Process Costing - Essay Example In the contemporary period, process costing is one successfully adopted accounting methodology in organizations. Organizations use process costing for effective cost calculation, especially at times when other costing models (job costing or activity based costing) are futile and not producing desired outcomes. Process costing is applied when activities like cost accumulation, cost assignment and cost assessment are to be performed and conducted. When both cost of fixed and variable natures are to be calculated then process costing comes into organizational application. Importance of Process Costing When an organization involves the multi-level production process and manufactures products in departmental sequence, then cost management is really a critical task. Process costing is a methodology than enables such organizations to calculate costs in the critical times. It is one methodology that can effectively be applied in manufacturing firms and organizations. Organizations where information flow is departmental can successfully adapt the strategic approach of process costing. This elaborates the comprehensive application of process costing in processing organizations. Literature Review Journal Article 1: Process-Based Costing: The Best of Activity-Based Costing Aim: Process costing is considered as a cost allocation process. It is known to be as a methodology that assigns cost to different process patterns with respect to assigning cost to process a sequence. The aim of this study is to determine that how process costing is effective in cost allocation procedure. How process costing applies in the activity of assigning costs to sub-sections of the process is answered in this study. Methodology: The study has adapted the case study format to conduct research and assessment. The case of semi conductor manufacturer is observed and analyzed in this study. The company was earlier a R&D unit which later on became a semi conductor manufacturer. This company was selected to understand process costing in a practical manner. The researcher first performed theoretical research to find out the importance of process costing manufacturing firms. Later the researcher analyzed the case of a manufacturer that produces semi conductors in batch forms. Functio nal activities of the selected company were analyzed to understand the practical implication of process costing(Sievanen & Tornberg, 2002). Conclusion: The study recognizes that a two-dimensional approach can be adopted on the basis of process costing methodology. These two dimensions are strategic and operational information collection. The study identifies that using the process costing with two dimensions, organization’s overall process cost can be calculated. Adopting the two dimension approach of process costing, cost of departmental procedures, functional activities and cost of objects and materials can be calculated. When departmental costs are known, cost allocation is an easy task to perform(Sievanen & Tornberg, 2002). Journal Article 2: Accounting for Process Cost Systems Aim: It has been noted that theories presented on process costing are certainly on a gap with the practical evidence that is present in this subject. There is certainly a gap present between proces s costing theory and practice as projected by most of the UK and Australian companies. The aim of this study is to understand this gap, which is done by means of understanding the New Zealand environment perspective(Parkinson, 2012). Research Methodology: The researcher adopted a pragmatic research design to conduct this study as both primary and secondary sources were used to perform

Stereotypes Versus Women Of All Ages Throughout Boob Tube Ads Essay

Stereotypes Versus Women Of All Ages Throughout Boob Tube Ads - Essay Example The truth is media is really a hand mirror where guild understands and automatically build up awareness in addition to routines. By far the most groundbreaking induction never to simply modifying awareness and also altering demeanor along with lifestyle with respect to press can be an advertisement (Alice as well as Johnson, age 14). The top, accurate, pernicious in addition to excessively influential these include the tv commercials. That is almost certainly given that tv set interests both the optical and ability to hear feelings to be able to effect into a mix of particularly influential emails which could probably create stereotypes associated with grammatical gender (Blain and McElroy 16). As a matter of fact, promoters are very well aware of this particular reality to a level they're able to adjust adverts in a fashion that powerfully stay in addition to pressure societal behavior dynamics. It really is nevertheless significant which television advertisement tends to sneakily d evelop a kinda mortifying, lowered and weak importance to fair sex (Maring 56). To help conclusively study this spread generalization against girls in media, enable’s explore forecasts of girls with regards to spouse and children, profession, political relation, enterprise, aroused counterbalance, sporting activities and also manual labor. The reason is, many of us assess these representations determined by a variety of issues with advertisement including the track record, item kind, and end feedback, argumentation of the advertisement, method involving presentment, prize kind, reliability time frame, area, but enthusiasm and also boiler suit political theory (Blain and McElroy 16). Resolution of the actual relativity theory involving these elements of idiot box advertising show wide-spread misrepresentations versus females.

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Try to pick something thats not boring Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Try to pick something thats not boring - Essay Example Every parent of every American child is responsible for the health and well being of their child so they need to be actively inculcating and encouraging a momentum towards a healthy lifestyle and healthy eating habits within and outside the home. Doctors, scientists and health promoters expound advice telling us that although obesity can sometimes be caused by physiological factors, such as genetics, hormonal problems or slow metabolism, it is more commonly caused by poor diet. We are told that obesity is the result of eating more calories than necessary and indulging in a diet high in saturated fats and sugars, or leading an inactive life, or both; it increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes and strokes, as well as other emotional and psychological problems. Without doubt however, obesity is growing rapidly in the United States in adults and children. The First Lady’s Move to Schools campaign is a step in the right direction, and the â€Å"project is a small piece of the big picture† (Sweet, 2010) but the problem of obesity is multifaceted and the solution cannot rest on government campaigns, Acts or Legislations; the problem requires cooperation and action from everybody, including schools, health providers, food industries and most importantly the American public themselves. Governments and other stakeholders can advise, promote and assist in promoting healthy lifestyles but the reality is that it is up to the individual to make choices and it is up to the parents to make the right choices for their children. Obesity may be caused by wrong diet but we also need to consider other factors that impact on the issue; factors like the environment which in itself promotes a more sedentary lifestyle than in the past with more public transport options, more convenience stores, inadequate security in parks, unsafe walking areas and poor

Stereotypes Versus Women Of All Ages Throughout Boob Tube Ads Essay

Stereotypes Versus Women Of All Ages Throughout Boob Tube Ads - Essay Example The truth is media is really a hand mirror where guild understands and automatically build up awareness in addition to routines. By far the most groundbreaking induction never to simply modifying awareness and also altering demeanor along with lifestyle with respect to press can be an advertisement (Alice as well as Johnson, age 14). The top, accurate, pernicious in addition to excessively influential these include the tv commercials. That is almost certainly given that tv set interests both the optical and ability to hear feelings to be able to effect into a mix of particularly influential emails which could probably create stereotypes associated with grammatical gender (Blain and McElroy 16). As a matter of fact, promoters are very well aware of this particular reality to a level they're able to adjust adverts in a fashion that powerfully stay in addition to pressure societal behavior dynamics. It really is nevertheless significant which television advertisement tends to sneakily d evelop a kinda mortifying, lowered and weak importance to fair sex (Maring 56). To help conclusively study this spread generalization against girls in media, enable’s explore forecasts of girls with regards to spouse and children, profession, political relation, enterprise, aroused counterbalance, sporting activities and also manual labor. The reason is, many of us assess these representations determined by a variety of issues with advertisement including the track record, item kind, and end feedback, argumentation of the advertisement, method involving presentment, prize kind, reliability time frame, area, but enthusiasm and also boiler suit political theory (Blain and McElroy 16). Resolution of the actual relativity theory involving these elements of idiot box advertising show wide-spread misrepresentations versus females.

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Native American culture Essay Example for Free

Native American culture Essay Native Americans were influenced by the environment, plants, and animals in the areas in which they settled. Some practices were influenced over time by migration and contact with other tribes along trade routes. Many tribes used herbs and seeds gathered from their immediate environment and from hunting excursions for healing rituals or ceremonies. Many Native medicine practices were lost or driven underground because they were banned or illegal in parts of the United States until 1987; when the American Indian Religious Freedom Act was passed. In 1987 there were difficulties with ceremonies and rituals on sacred sites, as ritual activities are sometimes forbidden because the land now serves other purposes. Today, Native American and American Indian community-based medical systems still practices some Native American healing rituals, while others secretly practice in their homes and refuse to use conventional medicine. Those who grew up within the Native American culture still apply what they learned or grew up with, which is healing spiritually along with their illnesses. They do not believe in modern medicine and question any of the practices that are available now. Native Americans tap into the knowledge gained from their ancestors and prefer to â€Å"sweat it out† instead of giving in to conventional medicine. Beliefs and Practices. With this in mind, the Native American culture carries the understanding that the harmonious balance between oneself, man and nature is sophisticated and should not only exist, but it needs to be respected. Rituals and practices bring participants into harmony with themselves, their tribe and all of life. There is a belief that violating tribal laws carries consequences to include mental and physical illness, ongoing bad luck, disability or trauma. Any violations must be made right in order for harmony and good health to be restored. Among Native Americans, the idea remains that the sickness and illness that one experiences is related to a spiritual cause, and in turn creates a disparity between mind, body and spirit. Native Americans deem their bodies as an expression of the spirit and just as each person has to keep harmony with oneself, each person is responsible for his or her own health and also recognizing that all thoughts and action (negative or positive) carries consequences; creating either harmony or disharmony. Any disharmony or disparity may cause illnesses. Native Americans believe that they are related to and intertwined with all forms of life; therefore they can call on or evoke spirits, which strengthens their inner being and can be called upon to render assistance; further emphasizing why harmony and oneness in the Native American culture is a necessity. The Native American philosophy recognizes that there are various aspects of natural world that cannot be seen by the naked eye or with any form of technology, but can only be experienced spiritually. Furthermore, Native American healing also includes a variety of practices; such as religion, spirituality, herbal medicine and rituals to treat people with medical and emotional conditions; including the use of sweat baths, usually in a â€Å"sweat lodge† to purify, cleanse and allow participants to emerge reborn. The lodge is a darkened enclosure heated with stones from a fire and represents the warm moist heat of the womb, allowing them to be renewed into the Light of the world. They also wear medicine bags, which are painted or beaded with designs and patterns for the wearer; this is done to entice the spirit of the animal figure of symbol. Most medicine bags usually contain common object such as stones, ash from a ceremony fire, roots and barks, herbs, feathers, dirt from a ceremonial ground, or wood from a tree struck by lightning. Native Americans primarily used herbs to correct and to fix the mind, body and spirit; for example, sage is believed to protect against bad spirits, heal the stomach, nasal passages, colon and kidneys; cedar is used for coughs and forehead colds and sacred or pure tobacco which allows their breath, the source of life to become visible; rising up to the Great Spirit carrying prayers. Native American healing practices differ greatly, as there are over five hundred and the type of ritual is based on their Native American Nations, which are called tribes. There are many tribal differences and the most sacred traditions are still kept secret, passed from one healer to the next. The most common healing ritual involves herbal remedies which can include teas, tinctures, and salves. For example, one remedy for pain can be treated with bark from a willow tree which contains acetylsalicylic acid also known as aspirin. Native American medicine addresses imbalance on every level of life, from the most personal inner life to the most overt behavior. Some illnesses are believed to be caused by angry spirits; a healer would perform a ritual to cleanse this person and them. Disease is not defined by physical pathology, but viewed from an expanded context that includes body, mind, spirit, emotions, social group, and lifestyle. Most Native Americans believe that illnesses come from spiritual problems and that their healing practices can cure almost anything. Some healers are believed to have cured heart disease, diabetes, thyroid problems, asthma, and cancer. Scientifically, there is no evidence that supports that Native American healers or herbalists can cure cancer or any diseases and there have been no scientific studies that have supported those claims. On the other hand, individual reports suggest that it can reduce pain and stress and improve quality of life and Native and non-Native Americans alikesuggest that these methods really do work for a range of physical and emotional ailments, including heart disease, diabetes, thyroid conditions, cancer, skin rashes, asthma, alcoholism, and depression. Native Americans use a wide variety of treatments such as herbal remedies, purifying rituals, shamanism, and symbolic healing rituals to treat illnesses of both the body and spirit. Native Americans rely heavily on herbal remedies which are used to treat physical conditions, whereas purifying rituals are used to cleanse and prepare the body for healing. Shamanism refers to the belief and practice of communication with the spiritual world. Shamans are intermediaries between the human and spiritual world and treat sickness and diseases by healing the spirit. Symbolic healing rituals use ceremonies involves the community and sometimes included chanting, singing, painting bodies, dancing, exorcisms, sand paintings, and limited use of mind-altering substances can be incorporated into the ritual to persuade the spirits to heal the sick person. These rituals can last hours or even weeks and are a way of asking for help from the spiritual dimension and the healing treatments are usually a slow process, spread over days or weeks. The person who is ill is with the healer most of the time to make sure that the healer can connect with the spirit of the one who is ill. Prayer is also an essential part of all Native American healing technique. Most Native Americans see their healers for spiritual reasons, such as to seek guidance, truth, balance, reassurance, and spiritual well-being and call conventional medicine a cure to the â€Å"white man’s illness. † They prefer to use spiritual healers and native remedies in place of conventional medicine. Conclusion Finally, Native American health beliefs and practices as patients and as medical professionals can have an adverse effect. Healers and family members perform or participate in ceremonies to rid patients of bad spirits, or offer song and prayer in blessing a room where someone has died, but modern medicine, also known as the cure to the â€Å"white man’s illness† still has to intervene. This intervention is frequently a must as herbs and potions used by herbalists, medicine men and women may have not been thoroughly tested to find out how they interact with medicines, foods, or dietary supplements. When a Native American physician goes to see a patient, due to strong cultural doctrines and beliefs, eye contact is avoided and speaks in third person when delivering a difficult diagnosis. If the patient does not inquire about the chances of survival, nothing is said about it. Strongly held Navajo cultural tenets do not allow directly linking a person to an illness and its consequences. To do so could be interpreted as wishing harm. Cultural deference only goes so far; ultimately, the patient has the right to know everything and all options for treatment in order to make an informed decision. Nowadays, Native American patients may seek medicine men for encouragement and to restore their spirituality, yet they also must put faith in modern doctors. Bridging the cultural chasm between physicians and traditional healers is seen as essential for improving care to the Native American population. Although Native American healing has not been shown to cure disease, anecdotal reports suggest that it can reduce pain and stress, and improve quality of life. Also, due to the limitations in the studies that were conducted, it is impossible to draw conclusions about the effectiveness of Native American healing, consequently requiring more clinical studies to confirm the benefits of the specific healing methods. Regardless, the communal support provided by this type of healing could have beneficial effects. Prayers, introspection, herbal remedies native ceremonies, rituals and meditation can be calming, reduces stress and can create a lifetime of comfort, benefit and peace of mind for those who live and believe in it.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Strategic HRM Case Study

Strategic HRM Case Study Introduction An organization is constructed of people. These people who assemble together as an organization’s workforce are recognized as human resources. Human resources department clutches all the scopes of employee concerns like recruiting, training and motivating. Basically, the function that focuses on how to manage the people within an organization is known as Human Resource Management (HRM). HRM deals with issues related to people such as compensation, recruiting,  performance management, organization development and employee concerns like- safety, wellness, benefits, motivation, communication, administration, and training. HRM thrives to manage the workplace  culture  and environment. Effective HRM enables employees to contribute efficiently and productively to the overall company direction and the accomplishment of the organizations goals and objectives. HRM is not managed using the traditional approaches anymore. Rather, the increased use of outsourcing has created the urge for building up new and innovative ways to manage the workforce in today’s workforce. It calls for comprehensive and thorough strategies to respond to the contemporary issues of globalization and diversity. Company overview: Complete IT (CIT) is an UK based IT support Service Company that has been providing with local IT support to SMEs for over 20 years now. They tend to maintain the highest levels of technical expertise and accreditations to resolve IT issues. They hold the motto of not just fixing problem, but finding ways to improve systems and positively impact on their clients’ tea, and business. Their services range from reactive support to proactive management of the clients’ IT, but each built specifically for each client. They promise to deliver IT support with passion and commitment with a friendly, honest and simple approach. 1. Role and Importance of Strategic HRM 1.1 Strategic HRM Strategic HRM is known as the preventive management system of the employees in an organization. More elaborately speaking, it is a technique of managing human resources that brings a strategic outline to upkeep long-term business objectives and outcomes. There are three major theories of strategic HRM used in today’s HRM. Like many other companies, CIT also uses these theories into application. Universalist Approach: Also known as Best Practice Approach, this theory assumes that high performance output in an organization can be achieved via a set of HRM practices. These practices are described in a set of four policy goals- Commitment: Confirming the faithfulness of employees to the organization so that they provide with their best of performance. Strategic Integration: The integration of the HRM to the company’s strategic planning so that HRM can be a part of company’s overall strategy should be ensured. Moreover it should also be ensured that the line managers use HRM strategies in their everyday work. Quality: The fact that employees should always be kept satisfied and motivated in order to bring out their optimum performance so that they can deliver products and of the highest of quality should be ensured. Flexibility: Today’s workforce seek out flexibility in their workplace. Administration should ensure this aspect in order to keep the staff driven enough to deliver the maximum productivity. However, it is to be noted that Guest believed all of these theories shall work only together, and not individually, to attain the company objectives. Fit or Contingency Approach: HR plans and practices must be coordinated with the organization’s plans and practices for the maximum performance to be produced. This synchronization of HR and Company strategies can be labeled as the â€Å"vertical fit†. This approach is also known as the â€Å"best fit approach†. The best fit approach:The best fit approach supports that HR strategies and organizational policies have to be aligned. There are three available simulations of this best fit approach- Lifecycle model: Organizational development is done in four stages Start-up, Growth, Maturity and Decline. The HR department should be well aware of the company’s ongoing stage so they can select the correct strategies to match up the company’s current stage. Strategic configuration: In this model it is said that companies can be on the operative front if they can implement tactical configuration policy (market-type structure or internal type structure), coordinated with company types (namely Defenders, Prospectors and Reactors, Analyzers), and (classified as; Machine Bureaucracy, Divisionalised form, Simple Structure, Adhocracy Professional and Bureaucracy). Best fit and competitive strategy: three competitive strategies are; Quality, Cost-Leadership and Focus (Niche). Companies should adopt competitive strategies in order to maximize performances. This is more important because of the increasing competition in today’s business world. It is always better to have a competitive edge and to use that edge in the best way possible. The Configurationally Perspective: This model deals with the importance of the outline of several HR policies and in what way these outline of HR policies (independent variables) affect the Organizational performance (dependent variable). The term configuration is explained differently by various scholars and writers for two reasons. The first one being â€Å"the scope to which HR policies are associated into an overall HR structure† and the second one- â€Å"the notch of fit amid an overall HR structure and an administrative type†. 1.2 Importance of HRM In CIT, HRM is perceived as one of the most consequential drives of the corporation. HR management’s significance can be classified into the following subsequent activities: Enrollment and Training: Recruiting new people and training them as per the organizations’ needs are the key responsibilities of HRM. To fill up the vacant position in the organizations, HR managers plan test and trials for potential candidates. HR also fixes the terms and conditions of the contract that takes place between the employee and the organization. Performance Evaluations: HRM prompts the workforce to bring out their finest performance. It provides with feedbacks to the employees that creates a proper communication between the employees and the employers. Nourishing Work Atmosphere: Work ambiance is a crucial aspect for employee satisfaction and high level of performance. HRM manages to maintain a decent, safe and clean working environment for its employees. The performance of the workforce largely depend on the work atmosphere and company culture. So, HRM strives to keep up the best possible work environment for its staff. Handling Disputes: Inner disputes and conflicts among colleagues is a very common element in organizations. It is always the HRM’s duty to mediate in such situation so as to resolve such clashes and therefore establish an order in the workforce. While it’s important to take care of the disputes in a fair manner, the HRM must also be very cautious in handling such cases as sometimes, the methods can easily create employee displeasure. Increasing Public Relations: Developing public relation with numerous interested parties and stakeholders of the organization is a vital role played by the HRM. HRM stands responsible for organizing meetings, seminars, workshops etc. to interconnect with these parties. In some cases HR department even helps into business and marketing planning. 1.3 Analysis of different Frameworks of HRM The Harvard Analytical Framework for HRM: Produced by Beer et al. (1984), is a good equilibrium between the Universalist Approach and the Fit Approach. CIT relates this model in its HR management. This framework works on the conjecture that the problems of managing employees can be explained when the general managers of the company have their own perspective about how they want the employees to be involved in the company and what sort of policies are best for this method. Ulrich’s Multiple Role Model: Ulrich et al. (2009) proposes a multiple competency framework involving of four potentials for HR mangers other than recruiting, training, and motivating. It is specified below: Figure 2: Ulrich’s Multiple Role Model HR roles are demonstrated in this framework into two axes. The horizontal axis designates the leading focus of HR—either Future Strategic or Day to Day Operational, and the vertical axis indicates leading actions of HR, either process and systems or people connected. These two axes form the four qualities of HR- Strategic Partner, Change Agent, Employee Champion and Administrative Expert. CIT’s HR managers ponder in these features with attention. 2. Formulation Implementation of HR Strategies 2.1 Analyzing the Strategic Human Resource Process Strategic HR Process can’t be constructed of any single approach, it can always vary between organizations. CIT uses a specific model for Strategic HR process that encompasses of the following key facts: Structuring the strategic course: When the HR policies are backed up by the company’s mission, vision and objective, this process is constructed. In CIT, the entire HRM process is established by concurring the company leaders’ long term objectives. So the entire process of recruitment, training, motivating and additional processes are planned to achieve long term company goal. Developing the HRM System: Since CIT is an IT based firm, it allows its employees to work from home by using internet. Also, CIT believes in creating variety in their workforce in lieu to which they are engaging female employees in definite positions. Planning the total workforce: Defining the essential future workforce depending on the company’s progress and necessity is a very challenging activity of the HRM, especially now-a-days. Producing the required human resources: The key focus of this process is to recruit, contract, organize, formulate and convey staffs grounded on the tactical provisions of the management’s workforce strategy. Dedicating to HR progress and performance: HR development process marks on the growth and use of business proficiency and the cooperating elements, all of which lead to a thriving organizational performance. A good encouragement program for the employees should comprise a mix of base pay, bonus, profit share, priority in company share etc. in overall. (Robert C. B., 2003). Evaluating and supporting managerial aptitude and performance: Basically, there is no exact approach to precisely measure the changes in HR policies or how performances affect the company’s output. This can be overcome by the usage ‘balance scorecards.’ 2.2 Roles in Strategic Human Resource Management The strategic roles of top management, front-line management, HR executive, HR specialists are the ones that sums up the roles of strategic HRM. Their roles in CIT are described below- Strategic Part of Top Management: The long term business goals of the company are set by the idealistic leaders of the company- the ones who forms the top management. This set consists of the CEO, CFO and President. They ensure the concurrence of the company growth and objectives with those of the individual departments. Strategic Part of Front-line Administration: According to Eduardo Salas et al (2001), front line managers ‘bring HR policies to life’. This means that if the managers are against a new HR strategy, it would be problematic to device the strategy which will gradually lead to dissatisfaction among employees. Tactical Role of the HR Director: Because they are the part of the top management, the HR Directors hold a great position in the strategic planning. They ensure the integration of HR policies and tactics with overall business goals and supervise the implementation of those plans. Strategic Part of HR Authorities: HR executives have various tasks like new preparation programs, performance management, granting employees, improving the work atmosphere etc. therefore, at any given point, they should work on a priority basis. 2.3 Development of HR Strategies There is no single way to advance HR strategies. For example, CIT uses the six step method proposed by Gratton (1999): Figure the superintendent association: Comprising people from all parts of the professional. Envisaging the upcoming: Building a shared idea for the regions of strategic prominence. Identifying present abilities and pinpoint the gap: Assessing the company’s present point and analyzing the break between company’s upcoming goals and current condition. Shape a map of the system: This is done to safeguard the small stages taken can be expressed into a whole plan. Model the refinements of the structure: All possible future results should be taken into account to evade any unexpected change or uncertainty in the strategic plan. Bridge into action: Involving line managers, creating guiding principles, forming cross-functional collections to recognize objectives and performance devices. 2.4 Implementation of HR Strategies HR strategies implementation can always vary from organization to organization, it has no perfect model. CIT practices the following tasks to implement HR policies. Supporting employees to understand the strategy: Employees must have the proper understanding of the ‘what and why’ of the policy to actually execute it in the workplace. A failure to comprehend the company policy properly will prohibit the employees from using their full level of talent to achieve company objective. Improving employee responsibility to the strategy: It is always known that change causes disharmony. Any kind of modification in strategy can easily cause displeasure among employees. Employees must be given the understanding that accepting the current change will lead to a better outcome. Reforming local work with the strategy: The proper understanding of the strategies by the employees is not always enough, it must also be executed by dismissing off-strategy works and starting on-strategy works with new vigor. Generating inter-departmental assistance: Creating bridging relation among the employees of different subdivisions is always a little challenging because of their different work nature. Activity 2 3. Contemporary Issues in Strategic HR Management 3.1 Identification of Contemporary Issues Affecting Strategic HRM Strategic HRM is mostly affected by the following issues- Job Stress: The adverse reaction that people tend to show when they’re incapable of coping up with the pressure and atmosphere of work can be defines as Job Stress. It can lead to illness, absenteeism, low efficiency rate, frustration, personal problems etc. Work-Life Stability: Everyone is always busy in today’s competitive corporate world. The use of advanced technology allows employers to engage employees in work even after office hours, via internet. Diversity: In any organization today, people from diverse backgrounds come together to work. Globalization has become a major issue in today’s HR management. Downsizing: Many companies are economizing their workforce due to recent economic recession, as a measure of cost cutting. 3.2 Analysis of Contemporary Issues Affecting Strategic HRM The increasing challenges in HRM management are forcing today’s organizations to consider strategic HRM in a different way. Recruitment procedure is now a two-way approach. Employers can use a resume record or ‘corporate poaching’. Because job switching has become a very common issue today, keeping employees, specially the most adept ones, motivated and satisfied is becoming much tougher. Even CIT has not been able to keep a hold of many of its most capable employees. So, they’re now forming new strategies to keep their staff driven. Activity 3 4. Assessing the range of HR Strategies its Application This section discusses different types of strategies in HR and their application in business organizations. 4.1 Range of HR Strategies The ranges of HR strategies include different tools. The ones used by CIT are discussed below: Strategies for improving organizational effectiveness: Concrete leadership from the upper management. A strong management team. Continual pressure to renovate and expand. Ability to react fast to opportunities and threats. Strategies for Learning and Expansion: This ensures the correct training of the employees in order to achieve organizational goals. This is related with housing a learning culture, encouraging organizational knowledge, providing for individual learning and launching a learning organization. Strategies for Performance Measurement: Performance Management â€Å"carries a mean of joining business strategy and technical assembly to direct the whole organization to achieving mutual organizational objectives† (Purcell et al, 2005), it delivers the best means to attain organizational goals. Strategies for Employee Relations: Here, the intents of the organization about what is required to be done and what is needed to be altered in the customs in which the organization maintains its relationships with employees and their trade unions is explained. It is to be noted that employee policies are different than strategies. Strategies are dynamic. 3.2 Application of HR Strategies CIT attempts to achieve its organizational goals by applying all the strategies defined above, including resourcing strategy and reward strategy. It can be quite impossible to measure the exact amount of return these applications of HR strategies bring; nonetheless, there are some indicative measures that can help us towards greater understanding of the impact of change in HR policies. For example, if the workforce management program has been integrated properly with the company’s goals and company is performing well, it can be said that we are getting good return on HR strategies. Another example of good HR outcomes is found on Michael Armstrong et al (2006) research reports on hospitals which decreased mortality rate by creating efficient HRM. Conclusion It can be concluded that human resource management is one of the crucial activities in today’s organizations. No workplace can be run proficiently without correctly trained and motivated employees. And with the increasing globalization today, proper Human Resource Management is becoming more and more challenging.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Race and Intercultural Relations in the United States Essay -- Racism

We don't have problems understanding ourselves. We have problems understanding our interactions with others. See yourself as another sees you and you will begin to understand their viewpoint Preface The development of a culture in the United States has been a winding road of interactions between differing, oftentimes opposing cultures and races from the first footfalls of Europeans upon the American continent’s shores. Each group of settlers and immigrants have brought their own unique perspectives and underlying values to the table. Many of these perspectives have been incorporated into the mainstream way of life, many others however, have been dismissed and discarded as either foreign or outright dangerous. The patterns that have emerged from this interaction of cultures and peoples define who we are today as Americans, not a homogenous amalgam of those who came before us, but an inter-connected group of varied cultures living within the same system of democracy. Whether for good or bad, our collective interaction has defined our reference set of values and norms in our interpersonal and cultural development. The patterns that define the macroculture of the United States are deeply rooted in the intercontinental strife and politics of Europe, Africa, and Asia prior to the colonization of North America. The developing European empires and their social, cultural, commercial and religious differences set the stage for intercultural interaction and development for the next 400 years in North America. These groups religious bigotry’s (Protestant vs. Catholic vs. Islamic†¦), social inequalities (noble vs. peasant), and outright greed all combined to contribute to and define our unique American experience... ...ities and privileges to all members of society, regardless of class, race or religious belief. It is the hope that all people can live the American dream of equality and prosperity. References 1) Deconde, Rappaport & Steckel. (1973). Patterns in American History, (3rd edition), Volumes I & II. Wadsworth Publishing Co., Belmont, CA. 2) E.D. Hirsch, Jr. (1987). Cultural Literacy. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, MA. 3) Margaret Connell Szasz. (1988). Indian Education in the American Colonies, 1607-1783. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, NM. 4) J. R. Pole. (1993). The Pursuit of Equality in American History, revised edition. University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles, CA. 5) Gorton Carruth. (1993). The Encyclopedia of American Facts and Dates, (ninth edition). Harper Collins Publishers, New York, NY.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Frankenstein vs. the Terminator: Themes of Science, Feminism, and Roman

Author of Frankenstein, Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin; Born on 30th August 1797-Died on 1st February 1851. In her time she was a British novelist, short story writer, dramatist, essayist, a travel-writer and her Gothic novel Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus 1818. Marry Shelley, when she made a conscious decision to produce Frankenstein, she literally collected her own demons together to create her own autobiography in Frankenstein. Her book shows heartbreak towards conception. In other words where she had problems of having children of her own, she wanted to show this in her book. The author of Frankenstein also managed to make it a science-fiction novel of its time as one of the classics. Mary Shelley knew her book would be in trouble if she didn’t go along with her husband Percy’s wishes. When she asked him to edit Frankenstein he did it in hid own style, which she didn’t like. Even though, she was the daughter of Mary Wollstonecraft the creator of feminism there was still mail dominance in publishing. Percy published her first book anonymously in 1818 They both knew it would be a flop if she went along with her own name therefore Percy took upon himself edit and change the text to suit his own standards before he went along and published it. So by the time it was published there was nothing left to say that she had written the novel. Shelley’s mother Mary Wollstonecraft was one of the very first women to champion equal rights. After her mother’s success with feminism, eventually freedom for women had enabled her to gain authority to her own novel and she was able to republish the novel under her own name in 1831. For my Frankenstein essay I will be focusing on how to critically compare the original text of F... ...the idea of marrying Victor. Elizabeth keeps her character as very girly, flowery and stays week in character through the book. With Sarah’s character she does start with girly character but you can actually see the strength through her personality that the plot has given her to start with. After the terminator shows his face to her she becomes a protector of her son, saver of the future. By the end of the terminator film, Sarah has been shredded all her feminine side what was left of it after sleeping with again from the future male character. , how it drowns to his attention how much he had longed for his sister/future wife to be. Yet he never felt so lonely whilst within her company. Whether it was the fact that the burning desire driven him away. Or just his sheer highly intelligent curiosity got in the way of settling for second best.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Case on TQM Essay

ABSTRACT: Using case study methodology, the authors asked quality managers about their company’s experience with ISO 9000:1994 and total quality management (TQM) implementation. The results show that initially the standard could help some companies reorganize their procedures and define responsibilities and duties. However, managers’ perspectives on its possible effect on company performance are not positive. Only product quality improves after implementation. On the contrary, TQM has improved many aspects of performance, the most influential aspects being those â€Å"soft† dimensions of leadership and human resource management. These aspects were not included in ISO 9000:1994. After analyzing ISO 9000 as a first step toward the TQM implementation, as much of the literature advises, the authors’ findings suggest that managers consider it to be a disturbing element when implemented jointly with TQM. Their study points out that, in practice, there are two parallel quality systems in a company. To get better results, it is important to adapt ISO requirements to facilitate TQM implementation; otherwise, the only advantage of the registration is the â€Å"permission† to selling the market. INTRODUCTION: Over the last decade, ISO 9000 certification has been the subject of many articles. The phenomenon of its quick development led to a belief that it was a great advantage for a company to attain registration. In keeping with this, many researchers tried to identify the impact of ISO 9000 certification on companies’ results and management. An important group of researchers has not found any strong positive relationship between certification and results. However, there is another group of articles that points out an influence of registration on product quality. Apart from any influence derived from implementation, some authors advocated that certification could be a good first step toward a total quality management (TQM) system, raising awareness of quality among workers and a good climate in which to implement it. Regarding this point, implementation of the standard was advised with the aim of implementing TQM in order to obtain maximum benefits from the registration (Brecka, 1994; Meegan and Taylor 1997; Huarng, Horng, and Chen 1999; Hughes, Williams, and Ryall 2000; Sun 2000; Gotzamani and Tsiotras 2002). The question is: Do companies really implement ISO certification with this aim? Is the accepted wisdom that ISO certification could â€Å"help† companies attain a TQM system true? Which aspects of ISO do that? The purpose of this research is to empirically evaluate the real contribution of ISO 9000 toward TQM implementation. METHODOLOGY: Case study methodology is best when the objective is to build theory in preliminary phases of a research study or to add new perspectives to previous research (Yin 1994). Part of this research can be considered as preliminary, because there is still little evidence on how the ISO 9000 and TQM act jointly in management. The objective of the case study is not the statistical generalization, but the analytical one. This methodology tries to generalize from case to theory; it does not attempt to extrapolate facts from sample to population. Relating to the number of cases, the lower number will allow the researcher to obtain more information (Voss, Tsikriktsis, and Frohlich 2002). However, a multiple case study increases reliability and external validity. †¢ Predict similar results (literal replication) †¢ Get different results due to predictable reasons The authors chose a multiple case study instead of a single one to increase external validity and reliability. Fourteen companies among the biggest manufacturing companies in Spain were selected for the study. The cases were selected with the condition of being certified at least by the ISO 9000:1994. Three of them were applying TQM and two were recently certified by the new version of ISO 9000:2000. The case study protocol included two questionnaires in order to apply triangulation. One of them was used in the interview with the quality manager. The other questionnaire was to be completed by other managers not associated with the quality area. The authors took into consideration other documents supplied by the company and direct observation through plant visits. Table 1 shows the companies participating in the study and their characteristics. Later in this article, the authors assign a number for each company in order to safeguard confidentiality of responses. The criteria used to select companies were mainly: †¢ Homogeneity of external factors: The authors focused on manufacturing companies since ISO 9000 was initially designed for industrial companies. RESULTS: Effects of TQM on Company Performance: First the authors classified companies according to the degree of implementation of a total quality system. They identified three companies with high levels and experience in TQM the remaining companies had a low degree of TQM implementation. This classification was based on information about TQM dimensions such as customer orientation, work teams for continual improvement, consciousness about quality, quality planning, and so on. Managers of the three TQM companies were asked about the perceived performance improvements as a result of TQM implementation. The three managers agreed that TQM implementation had benefited the company in many ways. Then the authors asked them to position the improvements in a set of performance measurements, explaining why the TQM system had improved every measure. Measurements were obtained from a literature review that relates quality management and performance. The richness of the case study is that the manager is able to explain at the moment of completing the questionnaire the â€Å"why† of each rate and to add evidence to the question. Table 2 shows the results along with some notes from managers. The last column shows the value of the influence on each measure based on the majority of responses (1-2=low, 3=medium, 4-5=high). In the cases where companies’ responses are very different (one of each) there is not enough evidence to affirm that TQM influences that point. According to these managers’ perceptions, TQM influences product quality, customer service, fast response, competitiveness, customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction and motivation, rate of defects, and stock price. Regarding the customers’ claims, it is important to note that two managers indicated that this point had not improved because customers today are more demanding than before. A similar explanation is valid for warranty costs. One company also pointed out that these costs often come from a wrong use of the product and not from its quality. Exports and innovations were not tested because of the particular characteristics of the companies interviewed Financial measures were difficult to mark. Managers agreed that they would need more information to position themselves, although they perceived that the market in general values the fact that the company has implemented a TQM system and consequently, the stock price rises. After completing the questionnaire, managers were asked to indicate the elements of TQM that are â€Å"more responsible† for company improvements. Following are their responses †¢ Company 1: â€Å"The most important aspect is that everybody in the company, including the cleaning service, the doorman, and the accountant, is conscious and worried about quality. Before, the only people interested in quality were the quality department staff.† †¢ Company 4: â€Å"Personnel motivation and participation. If you get this, then the complete system works.† †¢ Company 12: â€Å"First, the general belief of the importance of quality. Second, the decision to be real leaders. Managers and staff move together towards the same aim.â⠂¬  Effects of ISO 9000 on Company Performance: Quality managers were also asked about the influence that ISO 9000:1994 registration has had on the same aspects of company results that were considered for TQM. They were asked to give a score from 1 to 5 (1=no influence, 5=very strong influence). The global influence that ISO 9000:1994 has had over each variable, evaluated according to the majority of responses, is presented in the final column of Table 3. As can be seen, the only aspect that clearly improved from the date of certification was product quality. One manager said this was because they had to create procedures and reduce variability in the production process because of ISO implementation. All of them agreed that the product was the same as before certification. The only difference was that after ISO implementation it was more controlled. The defect rate had consequently decreased as well. The effect on both customer satisfaction and competitiveness was medium. It is worth explaining that when the quality manager considered that certification could improved these variables, he always explained that â€Å"customer satisfaction† was derived from the accomplishment of a previous requirement from him: to attain certification. Some other managers pointed out that this satisfaction could be due to improvement in claims management. When ISO 9000 was first created, being a certified company was a competitive advantage. Today this advantage has disappeared and it has become a requirement to compete in the market. The effect on customer service was also medium. In this sense, ISO 9000 certification has been useful to organize the claims management system. Each claim must be registered and evaluated. There must exist a procedure to solve claims. Regarding the employees, the ISO 9000 system improved their productivity and their interest in quality problems. Improvement in productivity is again explained by better procedures and work instructions. However, many managers have confessed that employee satisfaction worsened because of the bureaucracy of the system. The documentation needed to sustain the system increased their workload. The remaining variables are not considered to have any impact on results. Note that the financial measures were not influenced by the implementation of the standard. When managers were asked about the main advantages and disadvantages of certification, they agreed that certification is helpful to organize the production system through procedures and work instructions. The paperwork generated was identified as the most negative consequence. After asking if certification was profitable, the majority answered that â€Å"it had to be,† pointing out that nowadays it is a basic requirement. â€Å"If we did not have it, we couldn’t sell,† they affirmed. ISO 9000 and TQM: If data on the companies that had implemented TQM are analyzed, it can be seen that certification had less impact on nearly all results. The first company shows higher marks in some variables. This company was the only one that started the quality journey by implementing ISO 9000 first and then TQM. It would explain the fact that the ISO standard could help managers organize the production process when quality management was at an initial stage. In fact, the manager of this company stated that formalization was useful for learning and for having criteria for future comparisons. The other two managers of companies applying TQM did not find any impact, although they suggested that the certification could help in some cases when companies had problems regarding process management. Finally, as an interesting note, one of the managers was worried about the new version of the standard, ISO 9000:2000. As explained before, managers try to establish minimal requirements in the quality manual to avoid what they believe as disturbances in their normal work. In his opinion, the new version represents a higher level of a quality system, is more demanding, and tries to incorporate some points more in line with the TQM system. It would mean that the auditor should have access to new fields in his or her company, and they would have to allow him or her to interrupt many aspects of the process. It could mean that the company worked less well than before. CONCLUSION: The authors asked quality managers of 14 companies about their experience with both ISO 9000:1994 implementation and TQM. Only three of the 14 companies had implemented TQM. Those companies have had improvements in performance as a result. These were mainly in product quality, customer and employee satisfaction, and competitiveness. When asked about the most important dimensions of TQM for getting these better results, managers agreed on leadership and employee participation. Regarding ISO 9000, the results show that the only clear improvement is in product quality. Managers agree that certification was useful in the initial stages of quality system implementation, mainly because they improved their production process through the development of work procedures, creating an atmosphere in which quality played an important role and defining responsibilities and duties. Initially, ISO 9000 certification was a competitive tool because it was still a novelty. However, today, certification is no longer a competitive advantage, but a prerequisite to play in the market. The authors have detected that companies that are applying TQM have fewer improvements in performance when ISO 9000 was implemented than the others. One of them presents slightly higher values, and, by coincidence, it is the only one that was ISO 9000 registered before implementing TQM. This could give the impression that the standard could be a good first step toward TQM implementation n. However, a more in-depth interview with managers changed the authors’ point of view. The managers point out that the ISO standard can be an obstacle when implemented jointly with a TQM system, interfering in the normal operation of the business and allowing the auditor to â€Å"inspect† too many aspects of the quality system and slowing it down. The solution to this problem provided by some of the Spanish managers interviewed was to completely separate implementation of a TQM system from the ISO 9000 system. Within other business culture contexts, the solution could well be different. Those companies that decided to apply the ISO regulation more strictly introduced all those aspects related to GCT in the manual. Then, the auditor will have a more important role and his or her understanding of what TQM is will be more important in these cases. Therefore, the effect of ISO 9001:2000 on company results will also depend on two factors: 1) the managers’ fulfilment of norms, and 2) the auditors’ understanding of TQM. Differences among countries due to different management cultures will then be a cause of differences in ISO 9001 effects and an interesting topic of analysis. The new version of the standard is closer to a TQM system. In particular, it tries to improve human resource management, customer focus, and leadership. According to managers, and supported by the conclusions of previous authors, the â€Å"soft† variables of TQM are responsible for the improvement in results derived from TQM implementation. It is an opportunity for companies to achieve better performance by applying the new version adequately. This new standard could also be a good first step toward a TQM system. Further research in this sense would be interesting to help managers attain more benefits from certification.