Ibm Case Essay

History By the 1950’s, IBM became the dominant vendor in the computer industry with the release of the IBM 701 along with many other series of mainframes, which are large central processors. Then in the1960’s and 1970’s, the company had to diversify to get on the same level as smaller companies, such as Digital Equipment Corporation, who were introducing microprocessors. This threatened IBM’s position in the computer industry. Their response was coming put with a personal computer, software, and services. In 1981, IBM officially introduced the IBM PC with a compatible hardware platform. This was a large accomplishment for the company. A few years later, on May 1st, 2005, IBM sold its PC division to the Chinese company Lenovo for $655 million in cash and $600 million in Lenovo stock. Then on January 25, 2007, IBM sold their printing systems division for $725 million to Ricoh and created a new Ricoh subsidiary called InfoPrint Solutions Company. Ricoh will now own a 51% share and IBM will own a 49% share. Also in 2007, IBM’s yearly revenue was $98. 8 billion and they had a net income of $10. 8 billion dollars. IBM is run by about 427,000 employees. There are three main people who keep the business running smoothly. The most important one is Samuel J. Palmisano, who is the Chairman, President, and CEO. Another important associate at IBM is Mark Loughridge, who is the SVP and CFO. And lastly, Douglas Elix, who is another SVP, a Group Executive, and is in charge of Sales and Distribution. These three men are vital to the company’s success. Besides them, most of the employees at IBM are IT Specialists, Application Services Consultants, and Managing Consultants. Every company has to have competitors. Competition makes a healthy industry. Some of the top competitors IBM runs against are EDS (Electronic Data Systems Corporation), Hewlett Packerd, and their biggest competitor, Microsoft, whom they are ranked right behind in second place in their industry. IBM has many recent accomplishments within that last few years. One of the major ones was the development of the world’s tiniest nanophotonic switch, which is a device for routing light on a chip scale. Another project they have completed wasweb 2. security concerns with â€Å"SMash,† which is one of their development tools. Another very large project they completed was the design of the microprocessor for the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and Nintendo Wii. All three of those were a good addition to the list of products they already design. This opened up their age range of consumers as well since a lot of children play these video systems. Besides recent accomplishments in their elec tronic field, IBM also had many of their employees win multiple awards for their achievements. They have had three of their employees win Nobel Prizes, which are achievements in either physics, chemistry, literature, peace, economics, medicine and physiology; four have received a Turing Awards, which are awards for technology; five have National Medals of Technology; and five more have received National Medals of Science. These are all very big accomplishments that IBM is very proud of. IBM is currently working on many projects. One of its big ones is Eclipse, which is a platform-independent, Java based software framework. Another is developerWorks, which is a website run by IBM for software developers and IT professionals. It contains large numbers of how-to articles and tutorials, software downloads, code samples, discussion forums, podcasts, blogs, wikis, and other resources. Then there is alphaWorks which is IBM’s source for emerging software technologies. They are also working on more semiconductor designs and manufacturing for them. Open client offering is another project they are working on. It is to run on Windows, Linux and Apples. Used for word processing, presentations, Lotus Notes, instant messaging, blogging, etc†¦ UC2: Unified Communications and Collaboration is an IBM and Cisco joint project. It will offer numerous Eclipse applications developers a unified platform for an easier work environment. Examples of this would be click-to-call and voice mailing. SWOT on Management IBM holds more patentsthan any other U. S. based technology company. IBM’s Project Management Center of Excellence, or PM COE, is first-rate. PM COE is considered IBM’s â€Å"Think Tank†. It is a program that has been set up to define the steps needed to strengthen IBM’s project management capabilities. PM COE combines external industry trends and directions with IBM business, organizational, geographic requirements and insight. Using PM COE, IBM has developed project management policy, practices, methods, and tools (Wikipedia, 2008). For someone to be considered for a management position, they must complete IBM certification or accreditation. To be accepted in to the certification or accreditation process an individual must have done the following. Successfully passed PMI exam (i. e. be a certified PMP). Verifiable documentation and approval for mastery/expertise in a well-defined set of PM skills. Several years of PM experience spanning at least 3 verifiable projects within the immediate 5 years (including specific role, team size, and budget requirements). Verifiable documentation and proof of at least one area of specialty. Demonstrated the use of IBM’s Worldwide Project Management Method (_WWPMM_). Completed extensive classroom and online education and testing. To become a Junior Project Manager, you must go through self assessment and get supervisors authorization to be accredited. Becoming a Senior Project Manager requires going through the rigorous IBM certification process, which involves Candidate preparing a detailed package with proof of above requirements. Package review, approval, and support by at least two levels of Senior Management. Package review and re-verification by PM COE expert. Personal interviews with the PM COE Certification board. Candidates whose experience, skills, knowledge and education are deemed valid, verifiable and accurate, are certified by the board as either Certified Senior Project Manager (CSPM) or Certified Executive Project Manager (CEPM). Senior Project managers must validate their skills and expertise against IBM’s worldwide standards. It is a deliberately long process with multiple checkpoints designed to ensure the integrity, fairness and legitimacy of the certification. This helps IBM maintain customer confidence in their products (Wikipedia, 2008). Since IBM is such a large, diversified, and established company they do not have many weaknesses. One weakness is they have a tendency to â€Å"strong arm† clients that are highly dependent on IBM products (Bradley, 2004). In the future this reputation could lead companies to be hesitant to rely on IBM’s merchandise. This reputation could also create bad enough relationships with current clients to make them transfer to a competitor’s product. IBM has also been known to â€Å"over promise† (Bradley, 2004). Since they are such a large corporation, with many capabilities, they tend to promise unrealistic deadlines to their customers. Businesses don’t like losing money, and opening later then planned is a good way to do that. These delays in their customers start-ups, could also lead to unfavorable relationships that could cause clients to move their business elsewhere. IBM is constantly looking for new opportunities to expand their share of the market, or start a new market. IBM is looking into revolutionizing the prevention of traditional and online fraud and Identity thefts. They are working on a comprehensive anti-fraud program that is going to help banks protect themselves and their customers, while continuing to offer their products and services (IBM, 2006). IBM is also conducting case studies for the automotive industry. The case studies are going to help them change the industry, and become more innovative (Lunani, 2006). Hopefully, the innovations will alleviate some of the stress the industry is under. Management Practices ; Theories SWOT analysis is a very important part of finding out a lot of information pertaining to current management functions within the company. However, it is what the management does after they find their strengths, opportunities, weaknesses, and threats that are the most relevant part of determining a company’s success. The theories and practices the company uses to take advantage of their strengths, try to combat their weaknesses, use opportunities to their best interest, and to defend themselves from threats are the key determinant on what the company’s future looks like. IBM as one of the top companies in the world clearly knows what they are doing. They have taken into careful consideration their SWOT analysis and their management theories and practices are derived from their analysis. Being involved in competitive global competition, the company’s workforce is an essential part to IBM’s success. In knowing of this, IBM has created a list of seven key core workforce capabilities. These capabilities include: Understanding the demographics and capabilities of the workforce, predicting future labor supply and demand, utilizing social networks to increase the visibility and application of knowledge across the organization, enabling individuals to perform work regardless of location, facilitating collaboration across traditional organizational boundaries, driving the rapid development of skills and capabilities to meet changing business conditions, and evaluating employee performance and providing appropriate feedback. IBM has implemented these guidelines so their workforces can constantly adapt to the ever changing global business environment. In addition, workers are paid incentives for their input to keep the employees with a sense of involvement which is important to keeping them excited about IBM. At IBM, the managers believe and in a workforce that is diversified. According to Ron Glover, VP for Global Workforce Diversity at IBM, focuses on what it means to retain a true culture of diversity is IBM’s greatest competitive advantage. From all the way back to World War I, IBM has romoted workforce diversity when they hired disabled veterans to work for the company. Even when no one was using diversity IBM was. Way back in 1953, CEO at the time Thomas Watson sent out a very controversial stating that IBM needs to hire the best people, regardless of their race, ethnic origin, sex. In addition, the company added sexual orientation in 1984. He knew that this would give IBM a competitive advan tage because IBM would then be able to hire talented people the it’s competitors would turn down. (hrmreport. com, 2008) Another way IBM tries to get the best workers is using their program called Extreme Blue. This is an internship program for graduate and undergraduate students. This internationally known program is great for getting students prepared to work for IBM. IBM believes this will give students interested in working for a IBM a realistic perspective on what it would be like to work for them. IBM runs this diverse workforce under a classical management perspective. Money is assumed to be the primary motive and have a traditional compensation plan. The main forms of pay to employees are base pay and valuable other forms of benefits such as retirement plans and insurances. According to the company’s website, â€Å"cash compensation opportunities include base pay, commissions, performance bonuses, awards and other forms of earnings. † In addition to these forms of pay, IBM also offers generous paid vacation and holidays. There are also some benefits to relieve stress and just get away from the company for a little while. These benefits include reduced-prices, cooking lessons, and fitness centers. This management style has worked for them and we think they should stick with the classical approach to management and not move to a behavioral perspective. IBM uses an analyzer strategy which most large companies use. An analyzer strategy is a strategy in which the firm attempts to maintain its current businesses and to be somewhat innovative in new businesses. They use this strategy because they want to produce some new product opportunities while protecting their base of operations. (Griffen, 2007) Management Structure â€Å"The management structure that IBM maintains is an effective internal control structure. This structure has clearly defined lines of responsibility, as well as comprehensive systems and control procedures. This structure is beneficial because it assures customers that their transactions are put through correctly and efficiently. â€Å"(http://sec. edgar-online. com) An important part of IBM’s management structure is a good internal audit program. IBM takes a good amount of time to train its workers correctly. Each employee receives written policies and procedures to ensure that each employee knows exactly what to do under any circumstance or problem that may arise. By doing this everyone is on the same page and everything is done the way they want it done. IBM is now thinking about cutting 13,000 jobs most of which should be mostly in Europe and other headquarters around the world. Ethics With all of the diversity that exists within the company it would be hard for IBM to conduct any work without ethics on their minds. As in any large company there is some sort of unethical behavior going on, however these behaviors have not been detrimental to the company thus far. So far it is obvious that IBM won’t make any large scale unethical decisions such as the like of Enron. The ethics are very important in the business process and will be discussed more in an interview with a former employee. Interview With a Former Employee Flat or tall management structure? â€Å"The structure tends to be taller than most companies, especially within the consulting group. † Management Style? â€Å"The managers take a very classical by the book style to their decisions. Everything that had happened before was documented and later considered protocol, if there was success. † What ethics does IBM use in decision making? â€Å"IBM has well defined guidelines on many ethical issues, and it is required that all new employees review these guidelines. Employees are also required to take an annual review test to comply with IBM corporate policy. In my experience IBM relies on individual managers to make judgment calls on grey areas, and the managers I worked with all took ethic approaches to handling the issue. † What are the area’s for improvement? â€Å"IBM has had difficulties integrating its consulting division, since the acquisition of Price Waterhouse Coopers consulting in 2002. Much effort has been focused on getting full value from this acquisition, and at least initially the purchase was viewed as a misstep. With changes over the last few years, the consulting division has become the bulk of IBM revenue, but there are still opportunities to better leverage the consulting division in light of other IBM business units. IBM has also been severally criticized for its outsourcing practices, and has taken very proactive measures to combat this public criticism. † Any alliances? â€Å"IBM has numerous alliances with companies, all the way from suppliers to working with competitors. The number of alliances in likely in the thousands. † What makes IBM so successful? The ability to solve large scale business problems, especially in the IT sector, by combining various internal specialties and partnerships to create and implement end to end solutions. † Have you witnessed any unethical behavior throughout the company? â€Å"I have not personally witnessed any unethical behavior, but have spoken to a former VP who was put in a position to take an unethical action by someone who wa s very senior in the organization. † Hiring procedures? Promotions procedures? â€Å"Hiring is done at the group level, based upon target numbers that are established at the top of the organization. Final hiring decisions are made at the senior manager level. Promotion decisions occur annually with promotions and compensation based upon the outcome of the decision. Promotion is granted if the employee can show sufficient evidence that he/she is operating at the intended promotion level, and that the results are sustainable (ie. , results must be shown for a relatively long time and consistent time period, in various situations) . The implementation of the corresponding compensation typically occurs six months after promotion decisions are made. The timing of promotions and compensation increases are an area which many employees feel needs to be corrected, and IBM has stated it intends to reduce the total time of the process. † Relationship between managers and subordinates? â€Å"Varies greatly based upon individual relationships. IBM offers many channels to discuss issues, but the design of the promotion/compensation/staffing structure makes it imperative to have a successful working relationship with direct and next level management. † Is there a lot of management restructuring? Yes, at the lower levels, especially in consulting, management roles are very fluid and change frequently in comparison with other companies. Some of this is based on market changes, some on promotions/exits, and some on business results. † What kind of fringe benefits do workers receive? â€Å"Discounts with partner companies, cell and broadband reimbursement, 401k contribution, pension (eliminated in 2006), corporate educatio n, annual bonus (consulting division), extensive health care coverage at low rates. † Is there a lot of communication between the different headquarters? Conclusion It is obvious that IBM is successful because their values and the way they conduct business. This is a direct reflection upon their management structure, style, and practices. They will surely stay on the same track of success for many years to come. As they push forward in their business they are becoming one of the most well known businesses whether it be for technology or consulting around the world. No matter what kind of work a person is in one thing is for certain, everyone can learn from the way IBM conducts their business.

Benetton baby Essay

Benetton baby was produced as a 1991 advertising campaign that also included images of a priest kissing a nun and coloured leaves floating in a sea of petrol. Although I would presume Benetton would be trying to show the beauty and goodness of the new born baby they claim â€Å"Benetton is not trying to emphasise the beauty a and goodness of its apparel, but rather is trying to capture the interest or people†¦ The objective is to brake through the barrier of indifference. † But I believe that the image is in anyway offensive or wrong. The image consists of a newborn baby trailing its umbilical cord, the baby is covered in blood, and two hands, presumably of a Doctor, are waiting to receive the child. This was created to appear on billboard so the shire size would make the image impossible to be missed. The background is white therefore the baby stands out. The logo is included to the left of the advertisement and is very small almost insignificant. The image is very clear and not edited in any way to make the situation more attractive I agree with the advertisement entirely. Although it is a strange way to advertise I have no objections. The image is very large and might not be what all people want to witness it but birth of babies are publicized on the television as entertainment or education in more graphic detail. Isn’t a baby being born â€Å"the most wonderful experience†? But people did however complain, the public disagreed strongly with this image â€Å"the poster†¦. Has attracted more than 800 complaints. † 800 is not a particularly large amount when in comparison with the millions that would have witness the advertisement. The complaints consisted of â€Å"the image is shocking and distasteful†¦ â€Å", â€Å"many children are reported to have found it disturbing†¦ â€Å"and objections regarding the â€Å"exploitative use of such an image to sell clothes. † All complaints where made to an advertising organisation called the ASA. The ‘Advertising Standards Authority’ began in 1962 by the advertising industry. The ASA practises a voluntary code of practice called ‘The British Code of Advertising and sales promotion practise. The code declares that all advertisements must be legal, decent honest and truthful. They must not be offensive or downgrade competitors they must not deliberately misinform. Benetton baby does break some of these rules. The first rule broken in some points of view is ‘decency’ â€Å"No advert should contain any matter that is likely to cause widespread offence†¦. â€Å"The advert may be offensive to a mother who recently had a miscarriage. As to a woman whose child has recently died or to a woman who cannot become a mother. Etc. however this information cant be held against Benetton as a second rule in the code states, â€Å"[t]he fact that a product may be found offensive by some people Is not†¦ a sufficient basis under the code for objecting an advertisement for it† therefore the advert is within its own rights. ‘Honesty’ â€Å"†¦. cause be easily grasped and clearly understood†¦ † the advertisement isn’t entirely clear. From the advertisement alone you are not able to grasp what exactly the clothing company is retailing. However the advertisement does not lead you to believe that the Benetton Company sells babies or anything else, for that matter. â€Å"Looking death in the face† An ad showing the image of a man dying of AIDS, surrounded by his family. The logo is present also but, as with the others, it is small and unimportant. The camera shot is very provocative, it is very close up. The dying man obviously and purposely is made to resemble Jesus this has been done by computer. The image almost makes you fell an intruder in the scene. This has led to furious debate about the limits of advertising. Benetton claims, â€Å"It was as if the reality of suffering only had dignity and moral value in the editorial section of a newspaper and lost all its ability to denounce and sensitize people when in `contagious’ contact with advertising. † Published by an English daily before its official presentation, the photo provoked a controversy that extended from Great Britain throughout the world. The AIDS ad may, however be seen by some as trying to profit from people’s pain rather than simply offending the more traditionalist members of society. One British AIDS charity agreed, while some American gay activists disagree, saying the advertisements gives the issue a higher public profile. The parents of the dying man may feel the same since, according to Benetton, they approved the company’s use of the photo. With this new project, Benetton has once again chosen to look reality in the face by embarking upon a social issue, as he did in previous campaigns that focused on war, Aids, discrimination and racism. Harshly attacked by some and internationally applauded by others, Benetton’s campaigns have managed to tear down the wall of indifference contributing at increasing the awareness of universal problems among world’s citizens. Both the advertisements, â€Å"Benettons baby† and â€Å"looking death in the face† Where concealed and eventually banned across the world. There is more to this than the old saying that all publicity is good publicity. Oliviero Toscani, Benetton’s â€Å"adman,† claims the campaigns are not designed to offend, but rather to â€Å"raise consciousness. † A more plausible interpretation is that Benetton is trying to sell sweaters to the young and hip and those who like to think of themselves in that way. What better means to appeal to them than by offending an older generation of their parents? 7th January 2000 – At the beginning of the new millennium, Benetton publicized the real faces of the prisoners on death row, without a future. Remorseful or unremorseful, smiling or sad, healthy or ill, they all are guilty in the eyes of the human law. Many have their arms crossed; one is shown reading the Bible. Almost all of them are looking directly at the camera, at you. These portraits of dozens of individuals sentenced to death are the results of Oliviero Toscani’s two years of work which he visited several American prisons. The campaign is about the death penalty this project aims at presentation to the public the reality of capital punishment, aiming to prevent people considering the death penalty as a distant matter, just something they might hear about on television. Toscani’s images intend to give back a human face to the prisoners on death row, to remind â€Å"respectable people who are always so sure they’re right†¦ † that these people are human Beings not virtual characters easily removed or secured with a simple click as with a game. The campaign appeared on billboards and on the pages of the major publishing companies around Europe, America and Asia in January 2000. Toscani spoke for the prisoners when he said, â€Å"that having killed has changed them forever, and for the worst. † Speedy Rice a writer, on behalf of the NACDl (National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers) who has contributed to the campaign by patiently contacting and negotiating with prisons’ Mr. Rice mentions that during 1999 there has been a huge rise in the number of executions in the United States. Of the 600 death sentences that were passed between 1976 and the end of the 20thcentury, approximately 100 executions were carried out in 1999. Benetton advertisements to me have a strong meaning, which differs from individual to individual. For some the adverts are merely indicating how ignorant the world is today. How people emphasise on looking a certain way and how they foresee others. To others they may be seen as a source of entertainment something to discuss on the train or to your local cab driver that will never silence. There are many other views but mine is this I agree entirely with the advertisements, although others wont. The ads are unique and contain moral issues that may keep the brain puzzled all day to find. As there has been such uproar in disagreement concerning the ads this has given Benetton a vast amount of free advertisement. I like all the adverts I have been analysing although I do prefer the â€Å"death row† images. These appeal to me a majority more as they have more of a moral message, and become challenging to comprehend the death penalty law. You are left asking yourself, â€Å"Do I agree with the death penalty? † All of the benetton advertisements caused great amounts of controversial disagreement. The three mentioned esspecialy, as to more than half the world they have no meaning, as to others they offend highly.

Anasazi Indians Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Anasazi Indians - Essay Example Anasazi Indians practiced artwork, which was different from other tribes, hence giving them a uniqueness. For instance, they practiced pottery used for cooking or storage. The potteries were smooth and unpainted (Linda 18-19). Similarly, Anasazi Indians decorated pottery with black paints on a white background between 500 to 1300 CE (Maestri 5). They decorated their pottery using fine hatching and contrasted them using a mineral-based paint. Tall cylinders also characterize the community for ceremonial purposes. The narrow-necked jar was used for storing or drinking liquids (Linda 18-19). Additionally, this community also created pictographs and petroglyphs such as â€Å"sun dagger† that allowed sunlight to pass (Brian 35). The sitting of the dagger on the Petroglyph varied throughout the year to symbolize different positions of the sun and different seasons of the year (Brian 35). For instance, dagger-shaped light form pierces through the heart of the spiral during summer; this is an indication that it serves different purposes, and the community identified themselves with the different positions. Sun daggers also marked winter and equinoxes hence were important for the community in marking the events or the four seasons (Maestri 9). Architecture is also another aspect that defines the cultures of Anasazi since they were uniquely designed within the community spaces (Brian 35). The ancient community settlements were based on apartments-like structures made of stones and other local materials (Brian 35). The ancient towns were multi-storied building and served multipurpose as they also surrounded the open plaza; people occupied them (Brian 35). Similarly, they served the purpose of hosting cultural and civil events important for this community (Brian 35). The Anasazi Indians architectural structures marked by villages and towns acted as defense symbols because of their locations (Bureau of Land Management 6). For example, some were placed in strategic

The Impact of the History of the Youth Justice System on Current Essay

The Impact of the History of the Youth Justice System on Current Policy and Practice - Essay Example This number represents 20 percent of the 1.4 million offences committed in that year. These figures have been an alarming and the subject on the Youth Justice Systems remains to be in scrutiny by the eyes of many. There was an escalation of youth offenders in the United Kingdom during the early 1990s. Thus, the Labour party reacted to the situation and produced the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 which created the Youth Justice Board (YJB) and Youth Offending Teams (YOT). According to Pearson (1898), the general impression running through the pages of youth crimes was a riot of impunity, irresponsible parents, working mothers and lax discipline in schools, with magistrates and police believing themselves to be impotent before a rising tide of mischief and violence-particularly the recent serious increase in ruffianism among city youths." It is this recent drive to administer justice locally that highlights the historical comparisons in the methods used to tackle youth offending. Whether it is local authorities issuing antisocial behaviour orders, community courts being created to administer penalties or police publicising the names and faces of young offenders, justice is increasingly administered closer to home (Hayes 2008). The Youth Justice Board (YJB) This is an executive non-departmental public body under the joint governance of the Ministry of Justice and the Department for Children, Schools and Families which aims is to prevent offending among under 18-years-old and it delivers this by setting standards and monitoring performance, promoting good practice and making grants available to local authorities and other bodies. The YJB also manages the juvenile secure estate including arranging placements for sentenced young people. TheYJB has set up a number of diversionary schemes to engage with young people, increase their knowledge and deter them from offending. (Youth Justice Board 2008) This body established the Youth Justice System (Table 1) which serves as the system's summary and guide. Table 1. Steps through the youth justice system Youth Justice System Persons Involved Prevention YOT, LEA, Social Services, Police Pre-court Police, YOT, Local Authority Court Police, YOT, CPS Police, YOT, CPS, Solicitor, Youth Court YOT, Solicitor, CPS, Youth Court / Crown Court Youth Court / Crown Court YOT, Custody YOT = youth offending teams; LEA = local educating authority; CPS = crown prosecution service. Source: Youth Justice System (2008) The Cautioning Plus Project Cautioning plus is defined as a form of cautioning-official warning by the police-which included voluntary participation by the young offender in a preventative programme. One component of the Youth Justice Board is the Cautioning Plus Project (Dawson 2001) which provides direct services, such as counselling, befriending, information, advocacy, holistic welfare, and early crisis intervention to challenge cycles of drug use and crime. With this project, there's a network among the youth offenders with a combined focus among these individuals. Punishments Based from

Effective Team and Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Effective Team and Management - Essay Example One outstanding person who has shown this is Virgin Group founder, Richard Branson. This essay will evaluate the success and achievements of Richard Branson (as a case study) on leadership and teamwork in relation to the theoretical models that conceptualise leadership and at the end it will unfold in a much more practical way, those ways that an effective leadership can be achieved. To meet this objective, the essay will analyse critically leadership styles that Richard Branson deployed that heightened his performance in effectively coordinating the teams he had and comparing this to the existing theoretical conceptions. Richard Branson was born on 18th July, 1950 in England and later on started going to school of which he did not complete. His school life was a misery and at age 16, he stopped going to school, an event that saw his life change for what it is today. It was this drop-out that got him into business enterprises which begun from the sector of music but has since developed to a myriad other sectors. His mother Eve (flight attendant) and father (Edward Branson) struggled with him so much to help him in education as he had dyslexia disorder but these failed and at age 16 he drop out. This prompted him to found a youth magazine called â€Å"Student† which he ran for some time until 1969 when he thought of venturing in a record shop that could help support his magazine financially and in 1973, he launched Virgin Records. Branson continued to go in his business enterprises step by step and today the Virgin Records he launched in 1973 has grown expansively and it is now a group of companies that host over 200 companies in very many countries. It’s not only that one line of business that Branson owns but number of several other businesses across the economy that has escalated him financially to become a billionaire. Virgin Group is a

Briefing paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Briefing paper - Essay Example First and foremost, Subway must develop understanding and acceptance about cultural differences. This will be accomplished through an exchange and training programs to all of its subsidiaries to facilitate the easy exchange of information. With the concept of open-mindedness, expatriation will be successful. Finally, Subway must somehow consider other motivating factors and a change of management structure in order to remain competitive. 2. Terms of Reference Motivating people is one of the challenging tasks a manager must handle. Usually, work motivation among employees is influenced by cultural issues particularly in international companies. â€Å"Managing across cultures requires motivating employees from various cultures, but finding a framework for motivating and managing behavior across cultures has proven to be difficult† (Silverthorne, 2005, p.98). Based on the research conducted by Kreitner (2009, p.102), employees are looking for a process that is geographically cohe rent. However, because of diversity in individual needs and workplace expectations, motivating practices from one organization will not be anymore successful towards other jurisdiction. Management-Expert (ME) is a global firm that gives consulting services and training programs to all kinds of management issues. ... Just recently, Subway management decided to expatriate workers for them to experience the culturally diverse global workforce. However, the company encountered some disadvantages and one of those is the adaptability to the culture of foreign environments. Because of these cross-cultural differences, employees are having low morale and at the same time turnover becomes high. Per evaluation of the management team, employee motivation is severely damaged. This briefing paper will serve to explain the nature of Subway’s problem, the overview and analysis of the situation, and some suggested remedies/ recommendations to the problem. 3. Overview of the Situation Expatriating employees is one of Subway’s management strategies to make their employees globally skillful. The organization’s objective is to increase the cultural intelligence of their employees in terms of adapting to different cultures. This is also some kind of private motivation among their front line peop le and managers for them to have a broader global perspective among their international subsidiaries. However, the decision brings some drawbacks and it caused a severe damage to the attitudes and behaviors of employees toward their jobs. In other words, employees are not anymore motivated plainly because of the differences in work values, practices, and culture of foreign environments. According to Finsterbusch (2003, p.6), even though most of the countries nowadays are driven by technological and economic development, there is still no room for uniformed global culture. Values will only shift based on the trend but the origin of the culture in which it is employed will not be constant and so dealing with expatriates need to be

AIS-1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

AIS-1 - Essay Example eeping in view the requirements of the business operations the treasure evaluates need for procurement of funds and investment of surplus in profitable ventures. He/she drafts policies and procedures for account collections and offering credit to customer and signs notes of indebtedness as approved by higher management. Finally he/she prepares financial reports for management and advises them on investments and loans (Kerr & King, 1984). The controller’s functions include accounting, reporting and control. The accounting function involves preparation and maintenance of accounting records related to each business transaction. Controller directs and coordinates financial planning and budget management functions based on each forecasts submitted by each department’s manager. He/she identifies any variations in operating results against budget by carrying out analytical review of company’s procedures and outcomes and manages the preparation of annual and interim reports of the company. The controller is primarily involved in planning and policy making committees and work as legislative liaison to handle company’s financial issues. The company’s tax issues, payroll and internal audit activities are also governed. Other activities may include preparation of budgets and financial statements. Finally he/she overseas financial management of the company’s foreign operations and assist them to improve (Bragg, 2002). Transaction processing cycle begins with a transaction. A transaction is an agreement between buyer and seller to exchanges goods or services for payment. Transaction processing cycle therefore relates to repetitive flow of the activities of an ongoing enterprise. There are three major transaction cycles which include (1) Revenue Cycle which relates to sales, shipping, receivables, and collections arising from company’s activities (2) Buying Cycle which relates to purchases, payables, and payments of company’s activities and (3) Production

Examine and assess how political order is made and repaired Essay

Examine and assess how political order is made and repaired - Essay Example For example between right-hand-driving and left-hand-driving, they may be indifferent in terms of advantages or disadvantages. In some countries the system of right-hand-drive is followed, and in the others it is left-hand-drive. However, for orderly movement, either right or left-hand-drive is required to be followed, and not both, in a particular country. congestion in roads, pollution, etc. Traffic controls and the related group behaviors resulted into major issues of social order. Road user charges and congestion zone charges and toll charges were used as tools for recovery of cost and as a form of control to bring down the level of traffic. In the case of unwritten rules, assumptions and interpretations come into play. These are largely governed by customs in a society, which vary from place to place. Therefore, for the persons living in an environment which is new to them, the assimilation process or adjustment and readjustments would be frustrating initially. Understanding the disparities within the society and among the societies is very important since these are the two fundamental factors which governs social as well a political order. There are disparities in a society on account of income levels. The governments constantly endeavor to narrow down these disparities, and introduce social welfare programs for economically weaker sections of the society to ensure peace in the society. But, the disparities exist within the society on account of caste & creed, color, origins, religions, culture, etc are deep rooted.   The social order becomes vulnerable to these factors, if common minimum standards are not worked out and accepted by various groups of the society. These common minimum standards are naturally evolved, in different walks of life over a period of time and form the basis for all the activities in the society. â€Å"Ever since the man started living in group, it became an endeavor of the persons to understand the group for

Leisure Outfit Ltd (LOL) Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Leisure Outfit Ltd (LOL) - Assignment Example The bank currently wants the overdraft amount to be reduced over the tenure of next six months. In this regard, the paper presents a comprehensive analytical report to the board of directors of the company on the financial position of LOL so that the roots of the problem is understood and resolved accordingly. Two problems have been detected so far with respect to the company and these are the excessive dependency on over-draft and cash management. It is expected that this situation will affect firm’s short term and long term solvency as well. Considering this factors, the ratio analysis was considered appropriate for evaluating financial position and profitability of the company. The cash position of the company will also be compared between both the years so as to understand where the firm has been investing most of its cash. The liquidity assessment is best conducted with the help of current ratio and acid test ratio. The current ratio points towards a proportionate financial relationship between current assets and current liabilities. The current assets of LOL have improved from  £4356, 000 to  £9974, 000 which can be considered healthy but deeper analysis suggest the sharp decline in the cash position of the company. In addition, inventory has also increased significantly over the year. The ratio has shrunk from 1.76 to 1.13 indicating illiquidity. The other reasons for the decline were determined to be high overdraft that the company received from the bank and almost doubled trade payable. Considering other factors being justifiable, the issue related to the sharp decline in cash require significant attention of the management (Penman 1-35). In addition to that, the acid test ratio revealed that the ratio has declined from 0.78:1 to 0.47:1 which is again another concerning area. The main reason was determined to be the high amount of stocked inventory.  

Maritime security requirements Essay Example for Free

Maritime security requirements Essay Maritime security refers to the security offered to the shipping industry in a country. It refers to the measures taken by the government to ensure that the port, the employers, the employees as well as the equipments in the ports are well guarded from threats which face them. The ports face risks which may arise due to unlawful acts done on them or even on the persons stationed in them. Strategic planning to cub any uncertainty is thus essential for the well being of a nation and its citizens. The security of a country like the United States is dependent on the security of the world’s oceans. There are different forms of threats which face the maritime security. To attain maritime security, it is thus vital to combine the efforts of both the public and private sectors globally. Maritime security may also be used to refer to the comprehensive security for the international shipping which started functioning on July 2004. It forms part of the IMO’s activities. This is a security practice code which is exercised in ports which is meant to compliment the international ships and the port equipments security. The IMO/ILO code was implemented to offer security for the whole port area and was approved in March 2004. IMO is an acronym for international maritime organization while ILO refers to the international labor organization. IMO code of practice is not binding and should not replace the laws and regulations of a country. It does not affect the fundamental rights and principles of the workers as provided by the ILO document or the workers access to the ports or terminals and even the vessels. The IMO is thus used to provide guidance to member countries on how to deal with matters relating to security in the ports. It also helps in identifying a government’s roles and responsibilities as well as for those of the employers and their employees (Pugh, 1994). The main objective of the formation of the code of practice relating to security on the ports was to enable all the stakeholders including the government minimize the risks which may be incurred by the port due to unlawful acts in the port. It was also intended to provide a common basis of approach to security on ports amongst affiliated states. This code also sought to extend the area covered by port security to include the whole port. Threats and measures used to combat maritime security Maritime insecurity has been on the rise for the past few years with terrorists using this domain to attack most countries. This has called for strict measures to ensure such attacks are reduced or eliminated. For maritime security to be attained, a number of plans have to be put in place to address the different forms of maritime security. These plans form the basic requirements for successful attaining of maritime security. One of the plans which are vital is a national plan to create and achieve Maritime’s domain awareness. After creating a national awareness, a global integration of intelligence is important and hence its plan. A single country may not be in a position to fight and lead to maritime security thus the need to cooperate with other countries. Other plans are the maritime infrastructure plan and the maritime security plans. The security plans includes the transportation plan, the commerce plan and the facilities plan. Before the formulation of these plans, the country needs to understand the threats which maritime environment faces (Hawkes, 1989). For a country to formulate the measures it has to take to attain maritime security, it needs to evaluate the threats the oceans are exposed to which in turn affect the countries stability. Different countries have adopted different measures to ensure that their ports are safe. The most common threats that face the oceans include the threat to the maritime security itself. Today’s maritime environment is marked by complexity and ambiguity thus making it difficult to maintain and protect it. This is more pronounced in the maritime environment. This is enhanced by the operations carried out at the sea which exposes the countries to acts of terrorism. These kinds of attack are more dangerous and pure military actions may not be effective in fighting them. They thus require other measures and the countries exposed to such threats must device ways to combat them. Advancement in telecommunications and the expansion of the international and commercial logistics have led to an increase in the range and also the effects which arise due to the terrorist attacks. They have made it possible to enter even the borders considered to be most secure with great speed and for greater distances. Terrorists take advantage of such capabilities and cause great damage globally and also in the political and economic environment (Higgie, 2005). Maritime domain could also be used to export illegal goods to other countries thus posing a threat to the other country. Strict measures are thus required to cub this and to ensure that all transported goods are of high standards and are not harmful to the citizens in a country. Terrorism acts are rampant in the maritime domain. Fighting these threats is becoming more difficult since different terrorist groups from different countries have joined together due to the improved telecommunications. They also operate under the shadows thus making it hard to fight them. Cooperation amongst the member states is required to maintain maritime security. The increasing international trade through the maritime domain has also led to increased maritime related criminal activities. Such activities include smuggling of drugs and weapons to or out of a country. People smuggling has also been on the rise in the maritime domain especially in areas characterized by heavy commercial seas activities. In countries with unstable political environment, this is more rampant. Illegal immigration through the sea has been rampant in the recent past thus posing a major threat to maritime security and also to the economic and political stability of a country (Pugh, 1994). The main objective for the countries faced by these maritime threats is to eliminate or reduce the activities which pose these threats. One of the major steps towards preventing the terrorist attacks and other criminal and unlawful acts is through monitoring and controlling or patrolling the maritime borders. High seas areas which are of national interest should be safeguarded. Detecting and stopping criminal activities before they are committed is the main aim of the countries exposed to maritime threats. To be effective in detecting the threats to maritime security, the country has to be aware of the threat and have detective capabilities. Such knowledge helps in deterring and also defeating adversaries early enough before much damage have been caused (Higgie, 2005). Another objective of a country in cubing maritime insecurity is by protecting the critical maritime infrastructure and also the related population centers. All the main and important infrastructures both physical and network operations should be guarded by military facilities for security purposes. Population should also be controlled so as to make it difficult for people to collect information which could be used in committing criminal maritime acts. Overcrowding in the ports makes it easier for illegal immigration and smuggling of goods and people. The responsibility of protecting these infrastructures should be taken up by both the private and public sectors. A country should also work towards minimizing the damages which may arise in the maritime domain. Safeguarding the maritime domain and their resources from exploitation is another aim of a country (Pugh, 1994). For a country to attain maritime security, there are a number of things or requirement that it has to meet. There are no international standards which have been set to control, regulate or maintain maritime security and thus a country has to set its own standards and work towards maintaining maritime securities. However, as mentioned earlier the international maritime organization has set guidelines which a country may apply in dealing with maritime related issues. Attaining maritime security is a continuous activity especially with the emergence of different activities which are posing threats to maritime security. International cooperation and coordination is vital in achieving maritime security. Information sharing and also intelligence assistance are also vital in effective elimination of maritime insecurity. Public and private sectors should also work in cooperation to attain and secure maritime security (Hawkes, 1989). The minimum requirement is the acquiring of an identification card of maritime security. This card shows that the holder has been checked from his background and thus can work in the port unescorted. This card covers the seafarers and the persons working or who supply oil and gas facilities offshore. This card mainly operates in the Australian waters. For one to qualify to be given unmonitored access to the maritime security zone, one should not have an adverse criminal record and should be a citizen. If he is not a citizen, he must have a right to work in the country. Automatic identification systems are also a requirement in maritime security. These systems are supposed to be installed on commercial vessels which are on international voyage. This may include vessels used in fishing and even passenger vessels which are over 65’ in length (Office of the Press Secretary, 2003). Prescreening cargo before lading is also another requirement for attaining maritime security. All international cargos should be examined before they are allowed into a country to ascertain their safety and to eliminate possibilities of threats. Procedures to enforce action against a cargo suspected to be carrying illegal commodities or terrorists into or out of a country should be formulated. These procedures should be implemented and enforced to reduce the possibility of a repeat of the same action. Seizing cargo procedures should also be implemented and streamlined for easier confiscation of the goods or persons (Bahar, 2007). One of the vital requirements in achieving maritime security is by enhancing international cooperation amongst the member states. The oceans cover more than two thirds of the earth’s surface. As such, no single country can achieve maritime security on its own. Cooperation with other countries is thus a vital tool in achieving maritime security. Countries which are interested in attaining maritime security and are willing to fight terrorism and other maritime crime come together to device ways to combat these crimes. These countries should seek to understand the threats and prioritize them according to there urgency. Unified actions and plans are then implemented to reduce maritime insecurity (Hawkes, 1989). To enhance this cooperation, the nations should endeavor to standardize international security to ensure that all the goods and people going to a country through the maritime domain are not a threat to the citizens that country. The use of automated systems should be implemented to register maritime vessels, their ownership and also their operations. The crew operating them should also be registered as well as the cargo being transported to enhance transparency. The member states should also develop a mutual fund ensure effective and efficient implementation of measures to interdict criminals before the damages are done. The means of rapid exchanges amongst the government and intelligence agencies should also be enforced by the law and suspected criminals should be persecuted. Streamlined procedures should also be adopted to verify vessels nationality so as to take appropriate enforcement measures on time (Bahar, 2007). Another requirement for maritime security is the foreign vessel security plans. This requirement has a provision that members of SOLAS are not required to produce their security plans to coast guards for their vessels to be approved. However, those who are not affiliated to this group of SOLAS have to produce their security plans before being allowed to enter into a country. Their security plan should also comply with the measures which are stipulated in the trade agreement. SOLAS is an acronym for safety of life at seas. A vessel not complying with these requirements is denied entrance to a country. This is in operation in the united stated (Office of the Press Secretary, 2003). Vessel security plans is also another requirement for ensuring maritime security. All vessels are required to have security plans before being allowed to move in the American waters. This requirement however exempts vessels which carry less than one hundred and fifty passengers without considering the number of overnight passengers in the vessel. Other vessels exempted in this provision are the drilling units which are non self propelling and are operated offshore. Industrial vessels like the dredges are also exempted from the security plans provision for vessels. Facilities are supposed to come up with their individual plans for security. Exempted in this requirement are facilities which only service the passenger vessels but whose vessels do not carry passengers. Others are the public access facilities which are purely used for recreation and retail purposes by the public. Vessels which the public uses for entertainment and tourist purposes are also exempted. The owners and the operators of these exempted facilities are held responsible and are supposed to implement necessary security measures. These measures are supposed to comply with the area security plan (Office of the Press Secretary, 2003). These requirements are made possible and viable by offering assistance and training to the maritime security operators. Economic assistance is also vital in ensuring that maritime security among the nations is attained. Another way that the governments have done to ensure maritime security is maintained is by expanding the international port and maritime security officer programs. This ensures that the diverse threats posed by unlawful acts are minimized and awareness is created. The number of agency attaches has also been increased (Pugh, 1994). Deploying layered security is also another requirement for ensuring that maritime security is achieved and maintained. A system of layered security ensures that the capabilities of the member governments and those of commercial interests are integrated globally. Both the public and the private sectors can help in controlling terrorism activities if they could act in concert. These two sectors may use diverse though complementary measures to eliminate the criminal acts instead of relying on the government alone. A layered approach is not a static approach but keeps on being improved. These changes serve to create uncertainty thus reducing the possibility of terrorist attacks. This approach is mainly used in the most vulnerable areas like the marine transportation sector, passenger and cargo ferrying, staff and also in conveyances. It is also effective in ports and also the route of transportation (Bahar, 2007). Maximizing domain awareness is a vital tool in eliminating threats and maintaining peace and security in the maritime environment. Understanding the trends and all the events in a domain helps to predict likely events and also the possible threats facing a certain domain. Prior knowledge of the threats is important for securing the security of a maritime domain and also helps in reducing detrimental events. In trying to gain knowledge of the possible threats, the government and all the stakeholders should aim at trying to understand who their enemies are and their capabilities and also their goals. Factors influencing their behavior and also their organizational structure should be analyzed. A vital area is learning the adversary’s weak points and also the centers of their gravity. This knowledge is used in planning the course of action and also in deciding and prioritizing the allocation of resources. Awareness of maritime domain thus helps in earlier identification of threats and thus prompts appropriate actions to be taken to prevent such attacks (Higgie, 2005). Conclusion Maritime security as discussed above is not only vital to the seas environment but also affects the whole country and the world in general. No single country is immune to maritime threats and as such, all the countries should work together to attain maritime security. Creating awareness may be costly but should be advocated for to ensure that terrorist attacks and other criminal and hostile acts are recognized and deterred. Stern measures should be undertaken by the international body concerned with maritime security on countries that collude or allow terrorist to operate from their waters. Those convicted of violating maritime security should be persecuted and heavy punishment imposed so as to deter others from engaging in similar acts. However, while dealing with matters relating to maritime security, extra care should be taken. Damages caused by criminal acts via maritime domain may be devastating thus caution should be exercised. The countries should also strive at protecting the maritime domain from exploitation so as to preserve the ecosystem of the country as well as that of the aquatic life. Reference: Bahar M. (2007): Attaining Optimal Deterrence at Sea: A Legal and Strategic Theory for Naval Anti-Piracy Operations Journal article of Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law, Vol. 40 Hawkes K. G. (1989): Maritime Security. ISBN 087033395X. Published by Cornell Maritime Press Higgie D. (2005): Combating Terrorism: Dell Higgie Surveys the International Counter-Terrorism Scene. Journal article of New Zealand International Review, Vol. 30 Office of the Press Secretary. (2003): Fact Sheet: Maritime Security Requirements. Retrieved on 10th December 2008 from, http://www. dhs. gov/xnews/releases/press_release_0282. shtm. Pugh M. C. (1994): Maritime Security and Peacekeeping: A Framework for United Nations Operations. ISBN 0719045630. Published by Manchester University Press

Media In The Game Of Cricket In India

Media In The Game Of Cricket In India This essay intends to argue that cricket in India has forged an uneasy juxtaposition of national, regional and global identities. By looking at the pre and post independence periods in India and contemporary time, the essay will show that these identities have differed or developed according to national or, regional global developments of the time. 2.0 Cricket during British India Cricket was first introduced by the British in 1721 when they were playing on a western Indian beach (Bose 1990, p.16).The early days of cricket was a platform for communal identities following the British divide and rule policy which also involved many cacophonous inducing constitutional reforms and legislations ( Stern 2003, p.19). For instance, communalism between the Indians and Muslims found expression in the Pentagular cricket tournament in 1937 that had teams pitted against each other along their religious backgrounds (Bose 1990, p.33.) These tensions persisted beyond the Partition in 1947 which resulted in the creation of Pakistan, as cricket in India acquired nationalistic overtones above and over the existing communal identities. One might expect that any colonial legacy would be strongly resisted by the colonized. On the contrary, cricket was embraced in India as a national game and this should largely be attributed to Gandhis nationalist movement which was principally focussed on non violence and love. He had urged people to accept the British for their good deeds and ignore their evils (Bose 1990, p.17). This simply meant that cricket would generally be accepted by the Indians as one of the benign effects of the imperial rule after independence. Hence, despite deepening communalism, cricket at this stage served as a consolation to many Indians who had been subjected to years of systemic oppression. 3.0 Post- independence : Economic developments and cricket The end of British occupation in India marked the beginning of cricket as a vehicle for entertainment as well as the appropriation of nationalism and consumerism. Under President Nehru, cricket became a tamasha spectacle as he was an active promoter of the game. Unlike the British, the game could not be played politely before an elite crowd in India. Instead, due to the exuberant nature of the masses, cricket in India had to be celebrated like a festival with popular Indian celebrities like Dilip Kumar attending the games (Bose 1900, p.37, 165, 218). One can attribute the festivity nature of the game to the economic development in India. Since India adopted economic socialism, a hybrid model between socialism and capitalism, masses from villages started coming to the cities to look for job opportunities (The Parliament of Commonwealth of Australia 1998, p.3). As a result, the value of entertainment took precedence over nationalistic sentiments as cricket became a source of escapism that allowed these masses to overcome the drudgery and hardships of their daily lives. Furthermore, in the absence of one day test matches during this period, crick et was played over five days and hence became a definite source of entertainment. Conversely, the appropriation of cricket primarily as an identity for entertainment has resulted in critics belonging to the higher strata of the Indian society to argue that India has failed to generate a body of cricket literature beyond journalism (Sen 2005, p.95). These critics believe that owing to the rich tradition and history of the game in India, cricket should not be confined within the spheres of entertainment but instead be used to document the progress and development of the nation. Hence, this criticism exposes the possibility of existing tensions between various classes in India regarding the general appropriation of cricket as a source of entertainment. 3.1 The intervention of media in the game of cricket in India 3.2 Assertion of Global/ National Identities It would be unjust to affirm that the value of entertainment has wholly displaced the nationalistic overtones associated with cricket in India. With membership of the state being a crucial source of national identity, the Indian media has played an integral role in fostering a strong connection between citizens and the nation through the televising of cricket matches involving the Indian national team (Mahajan 2005, p.120).The increasing commercialization of the game ignited nationalism as Indians looked towards cricket to assert their global identity. With the screening of one day test matches on television, many Indians could now bask in glory by watching their nation frequently defeat financial powerhouses and developed nations, like its former colonizer, England, at the game of cricket. Cricket therefore transformed into a barometer of a nations self worth and a tool for global and regional dominance. For instance, in 2001, the controversial dismissal of Sachin Tendulkar for chea ting in a game umpired by Mike Dennes resulted in a massive uproar in India as effigies of Dennes were burnt and the Board of Control for Cricket in India threatened to withdraw itself from the International Cricket Council. This exemplifies the interlink between cricket and global identity as Indians regard the accusations of cheating as an insult on their nation (Crick 2007, p.5). The media has also been instrumental in spreading the game to the remote villages in India. As a result, smaller towns started to produce players who made it into the national team. For instance, the rural village of Jallandher is the birth place of famous Indian cricketer, Harbajhan Singh, while Mohammed Kaif hails from Allahabad (Ugra 2005, p.88). Since the national team is made up of players belonging to various regions and religions, it may seemingly reflect the collective identity and nationalistic spirit of India. However, this collective identity seems artificial and uneasily juxtaposed between communal identities. For instance, Muslims in India are still being accused of supporting Pakistan during India- Pakistan matches (Crick 2007, p.5). Although Guttmann(2003, p.369) argues that sports can allow ethnic or religious minorities to be part of the collective identity without forgoing their individual identities, the Indian case proves to be of contrary and suggests that it is difficult to forge a singular hegemonic national identity. In addition, with Indian Diaspora scattered throughout the world due to globalization, the Indian media has been highly influential in helping these communities to cling on to their Indian identities through the televising of cricket matches (Majumdar 2008, p.129). However, this has led to the questioning of the allegiance of these immigrants to their newly adopted countries. For instance, the British Conservative Minister, Norman Tebbit once proclaimed that Indian immigrants in the United Kingdom should display their loyalty to their new home by supporting the English cricket team instead of the Indian team (BBC News 2006). This essentially puts the Indian immigrants in a predicament as they are presented with two conflicting global or national identities: India will consider them as traitors if they were to support any other country apart from India while, the countries that they live in would label them as sojourners if they elected to support India during the matches. 3.3 Consumerism and cricket in India Next, the close intertwine of cricket with consumerism has led to the creation of many alternative identities within the nation. Firstly, the liberalization of the Indian economy and the widespread effects of the media, meant that cricket had infiltrated the lives of the marginalised middle classes belonging to many of the rural areas in India (Sen 2005, p.103). This has resulted in the creation of a new consumerist society. These groups often do not know the nuances and technicalities of the game but adopt cricket as a reflection of their metropolitan life style and identity. For instance, these groups idolize cricketers as national celebrities and as a symbol of their metropolitan self. On the flip side, the appropriation of cricket merely as an identity for modernity might be resented by the puritans of the game who vehemently insist that the passion for the game can only be developed through the thorough understandings of its technicalities. Secondly, consumerism is also said to have liberated Indian womens role in cricket although, the game largely continues to have masculine connotations. Women have started to religiously follow cricket due to players like Rahul Dravid and Dhoni who are adored for their good looks. This marks a move away from the ideal notion of an Indian woman who is supposed to be traditional and domesticated. Furthermore, these women are not merely passive followers of the game. They play active roles in cricket as well. For instance, there is a female Indian national cricket team and Bollywood actresses like Priety Zinta own local cricket teams. These women signal the arrival of the new modern yet feminine Indian woman who shares like interests of the game with her husband or male acquaintances (Sen 2005, p.105). However, there is a tendency by traditionalists to equate the modern Indian woman with westernization, therefore creating a possibility of a struggle between the values of the East and the West. Despite the apparent liberalization of women through cricket, ideas of masculinity associated with the game still force themselves through. The female national team does not get the due recognition or exposure unlike its male counterpart. Furthermore, the presence of women in a game played and dominantly viewed by men means that these women would still be objectified and may be treated as sexual fantasies. This certainly exposes the tension between the masculine identity and the identity of the liberated Indian woman within the nation. Last but not least, the heavy monetizing of cricket in India also marked the beginning of match fixing and gambling scandals. During the period of 2000-2001, India was embroiled in match fixing scandals following the arrest of South African cricket captain Hansie Cronjie (Majumdar 2004, p.310). As a consequence, the national identity fostered by the game suffered a major blow as masses began to lose their romanticisation with cricket and started to doubt the performances of the national team. This illustrates that global developments can have significant impact in the shaping of a national identity. 4.0 Cricket in contemporary time 4.1 Fervent nationalism (Jingoism) During recent times, Indian nationalistic aspirations associated with cricket has transcended beyond patriotism and developed into jingoism. The nature of one day test cricket matches mean that the final outcome of the games is of the utmost importance to an Indian cricket fan. Since cricket victories have become the platform to the Indian nations assertion in the global and regional arena, there has been immense pressure on the national team to churn out victories. Whenever the team lost, Indian cricket fans would behave in an extreme and appalling manner. For example, when India lost to Australia during a World Cup match in 2003, fans burnt the effigies of the Indian players and carried out mock funeral processions of the players outside their homes. This is ironical because it was the same fans who celebrated the success of their team which defeated Pakistan in the tournament by placing players like Sachin Tendulkar and Saurav Ganguly on a pedestal and worshipping them as gods dur ing the Hindu festival of Shivarathiri (Majumdar 2004, p.346). Moreover, fans have become more vocal in expressing their dissatisfaction with the Indian national teams affairs, signalling their increasing stake in the game. For instance, following crowd favourite Gangulys exclusion from a test match, widespread protests erupted in Kolkata as fans set up road blockades and carried out mock hangings of the team coach(Express India 2005). 4.2 India- Pakistan rivalry continues in Cricket The political tensions within the South Asian region continue to exist since the Partition in 1947. Cricket therefore remains a battleground and a reflection of India- Pakistans hostile sentiments with one another. Mahajan (2005, p.117) argues that history continues to underpin the politics of friends and foes and the relationship between India and Pakistan is of no exception. The history starting from the hostility between the National Indian Congress and the Muslim League before independence, the bloodshed during the Partition and the continuing struggle over the control of Kashmir carries on to reinforce enmity between both nations (Mcleod 2008, p.1). As such, cricket cannot be played as a normal and friendly game between both teams. Furthermore, the matches do not symbolize a competition between two sporting nations. Instead, the anathema of communalism kicks in as India- Pakistan matches become a faceoff between the Hindus and Muslims. Muslims in India are also viewed suspiciously whenever these two teams clash. Hence, this supports the view that the collective national identity forged by cricket in ethnically diverse India has struggled to transcend beyond the considerations of religion. Besides, Indian politicians and the media have continued to exacerbate the relationship between the nations in the name of nationalism. For instance in 2003, following India s victory over Pakistan in a quarter final match, the ruling party at the time, Bharata Janata Party (BJP), announced that the national players need not pay income tax for their payments arising from the match (Crick 2007, p.10). The BJP thus appropriated the win to reinforce their communalistic sentiments and quest for a dominant Hindu ideology in India. The Indian media on the other hand, fuels nationalistic sentiments by dramatizing the matches between the nations. Newspapers often represent India- Pakistan matches with imagery of war (Chatterjee 2004, p.625; Dasgupta 2004, p.577). However, attempts at mending the ties between both the nations need to be acknowledged. For instance, the India Pakistan Goodwill cricket series in 2004 was a diplomatic plan to forge a stronger relationship between both nations (Hutton 2008, p.146). Whether cricket will propagate peace within the South Asian region or will be continued to use as a declaration for fervent nationalistic and communalist sentiments, ultimately lies in the hands of the politicians. 4.3 Cricket continues to represent the Indian Demographic Despite the uneasy union of various identities, it needs to be conceded that cricket continues to represent the demographic in India. To illustrate this view, the Oscar nominated Bollywood film, Laagan, will be used as an example because films play a large role in Indians lives. Laagan was based on a real life incident that occurred in 1911. A group of bare footed Indian players from Mohun Bagun had defeated an English team in a game of soccer (Ugra 2005, p.91). However, with certain modifications to the screen play, the filmmakers decided to adapt the incident using the popular Indian game of cricket instead of soccer. This shows us the extent that cricket has become a modern symbol of the Indian national identity as the movie goers were able to identify themselves with the popular sport. It is highly doubtful that the movie would have been well received by the masses if it was based on any other game apart from cricket. 5.0 Conclusion Cashman (1980, p.111) argues that a cricket crowd is the reflection of the homogeneity of a nations population. However, this must be viewed with reservations in the case of India because cricket has been a vehicle for the expression of various alternative identities. Despite dominantly representing the aspirations of a third world Asian country on the international stage, Indian cricket has also created contradicting identities within the nation itself. It is further contended that these differing identities have gone on to aggravate political tensions within the South Asian region as demonstrated by the India- Pakistan matches. It is hence concluded that India will only be able to foster a singular Indian identity through cricket if it is able to reflect each and every communitys diversity in the universal (Carens 2000, p.166-73).

My Philosophy of Education Essay -- Philosophy of Teaching Statement

Philosophy of Education If I had to pick one view that is most compatible with my own view and learning and teaching it would have to be Constructivism. If I got to choose another one I would go with Cognitive. Constructivism is a view that focuses on the active role of the learner and a Cognitive view sees learning as an active mental process of receiving, remembering, and using knowledge. Both of these views see the role of students as an active role; an involved role. I believe that we learn knowledge and change our behavior based upon this knowledge; instead of the other way around. I used to be somewhat of a behaviorist in that I put too much of the teachers focus on the behavior of the students. I have began to stray away from the idea that teachers are to teach there students morals and ethics. One of the major changes in my philosophy is the student/teacher relationship. The relationship that students and teachers have now is one that really doesn’t allow for the teacher to teach thin gs like morals and ethics. I see that this relationship is becoming more and more impersonal. This goes beyond the classroom though; for some reason this is just the general direction that our culture seems to be heading; impersonal relationships. My philosophical view on education was most closely related to Progressivism. I realize that having a pure Progressivism point of view, or any pure philosophy for that matter, is a dangerous perspective to have. My belief that Progressivism is 100% correct would be a pure Progressivism philosophical view. This was straight from my original philosophy and as you can see it really reveals a constructive view of learning. All educators as well as students should constantly be open ... ...r of today’s teachers for the job to be taken lightly. Our future President is in a classroom right now. Realizing this, teachers should have a desire to teach children and to prepare them for the future, and if this takes completely changing my style because it isn’t compatible with my students then so be it. A lack of this desire to do whatever it takes will no doubt show in a classroom and in the world we will live in. Teachers are the ones who need to go through a rigorous education in order to be better equipped to do the job efficiently. Trust and respect should be maintained and teachers should always encourage their students. It is a teacher’s job to help young men and woman obtain the knowledge they will need to be successful adults. No one can dispute the fact that teachers affect the future. What students are being taught today will effect tomorrow.

Environmental Inequality Essay -- Natural Disaster, Hurricane Katrina

In August of 2005, Hurricane Katrina vigorously tore apart the U.S. Gulf Coast Region killing at least 1500 people, ranking at the third deadliest hurricane in United States history. Author of Survival and Death in New Orleans, Patrick Sharkey (2007), looked specifically at data on New Orleans residents that perished during Katrina in an attempt to look at the communities that were most affected by this unfortunate disaster. The storm took the largest toll on the elderly population and by African Americans, who he argued were overrepresented in comparison to whites. The toll was not only physical but mentally damaging as well, due to the overwhelming amount of loss to their homes, family members, pets, and childhood neighborhoods in which they grew up in. Evidence from Ismail White’s (2007) study entitled, Feeling the Pain of my People, concluded that African Americans felt that the federal governments lacked in response to the hurricane and was so insufficient that had the vi ctims been white, the government would have acted differently. Therefore suggested traditions of economic and racial segregation has misrepresented segments of urban neighborhoods that have been isolated from resources, political influence, and economic gain and are therefore more susceptible to disasters, like Katrina. Images of New Orleans residents stranded throughout the city left a permanent impact towards those who followed media coverage, suggesting that the storm’s damage has been viewed at as anything but a natural disaster. â€Å"Katrina has come to be interpreted by some as a â€Å"metaphor,† for the inequality that pervades urban American, affecting poor, primarily Black segments of the urban populace most directly† (Sharkey 2007: 483). African Americans... ... a separation due to race, but in fact due to environmental justice. Therefore there is not a substantial amount of evidence to support either author’s claims. The studies lacked evidentiary support in both reports, such as the correct number of deaths and had insufficient samples that were not directly affected and could have been influenced by the media’s response or prior opinion. While examples such as the bridge incident did include racism towards New Orleans residents, it did not specify the race or ethnicity of what kind of people were forbidden to walk across the bridge to safety, but instead excluded everyone. Perhaps therefore then the issue is not simply race, but more so geological, economical, and social inequality that has led those citizens to feel that they had been the target of such a tragic disaster that has changed their way of life forever. Environmental Inequality Essay -- Natural Disaster, Hurricane Katrina In August of 2005, Hurricane Katrina vigorously tore apart the U.S. Gulf Coast Region killing at least 1500 people, ranking at the third deadliest hurricane in United States history. Author of Survival and Death in New Orleans, Patrick Sharkey (2007), looked specifically at data on New Orleans residents that perished during Katrina in an attempt to look at the communities that were most affected by this unfortunate disaster. The storm took the largest toll on the elderly population and by African Americans, who he argued were overrepresented in comparison to whites. The toll was not only physical but mentally damaging as well, due to the overwhelming amount of loss to their homes, family members, pets, and childhood neighborhoods in which they grew up in. Evidence from Ismail White’s (2007) study entitled, Feeling the Pain of my People, concluded that African Americans felt that the federal governments lacked in response to the hurricane and was so insufficient that had the vi ctims been white, the government would have acted differently. Therefore suggested traditions of economic and racial segregation has misrepresented segments of urban neighborhoods that have been isolated from resources, political influence, and economic gain and are therefore more susceptible to disasters, like Katrina. Images of New Orleans residents stranded throughout the city left a permanent impact towards those who followed media coverage, suggesting that the storm’s damage has been viewed at as anything but a natural disaster. â€Å"Katrina has come to be interpreted by some as a â€Å"metaphor,† for the inequality that pervades urban American, affecting poor, primarily Black segments of the urban populace most directly† (Sharkey 2007: 483). African Americans... ... a separation due to race, but in fact due to environmental justice. Therefore there is not a substantial amount of evidence to support either author’s claims. The studies lacked evidentiary support in both reports, such as the correct number of deaths and had insufficient samples that were not directly affected and could have been influenced by the media’s response or prior opinion. While examples such as the bridge incident did include racism towards New Orleans residents, it did not specify the race or ethnicity of what kind of people were forbidden to walk across the bridge to safety, but instead excluded everyone. Perhaps therefore then the issue is not simply race, but more so geological, economical, and social inequality that has led those citizens to feel that they had been the target of such a tragic disaster that has changed their way of life forever.

Role-Reversal in Macbeth

When Macbeth first receives the prophecy predicting he will be king and Banquo's heirs will be kings, he is satisfied with the idea of being king. Banquo's heirs do not concern him at this point. Once he assassinates Duncan and is crowned king, however, this isn't enough. Now he wants his heirs to be king. He asks himself, why should he have taken all this risk just to put Banquo's heirs on the throne? Unsatisfied with just ruling himself, he plots to kill not only Banquo, but Fleance. His ambition has grown and become even more menacing.Banquo's murder without consulting his wife because he wants to protect her from the corruption that he has involved himself with. His role is now completely changed and there is no turning back for him. Macbeth's evil deed causes him to suffer from fear and guilt, which leads to even more evil crimes. Then Macbeth becomes paranoid, suffering from hallucinations and sleeplessness. He becomes less human as he tries over and over to establish his manho od. His ruthlessness in killing Banquo and Macduff's family shows how perverted his idea of manliness really is.As Macbeth goes off on his own course during this time, Lady Macbeth's guilt is overwhelming and, cut off from him, she descends into madness. Her guilt emerges in Act III, Scene ii when she says she would rather be dead, and it grows from then on until her death. Lady Macbeth's character change is also evident in Act III, Scene ii when she backs out of Macbeth's mysterious murder plan and tells him, You must leave this. The relationship between the couple is being torn apart by this time. And Macbeth allows the witches to take the place of his wife by allowing them to boost his ego, thinking he cannot be harmed by any man.Macbeth is, of course, mistaken about the witches' prophecies, but this just that he now allows his evil nature to control his actions. By the end, Macbeth has degenerated into evil personified, totally inhumane When Macbeth first receives the prophecy p redicting he will be king and Banquo's heirs will be kings, he is satisfied with the idea of being king. Banquo's heirs do not concern him at this point. Once he assassinates Duncan and is crowned king, however, this isn't enough. Now he wants his heirs to be king. He asks himself, why should he have taken all this risk just to put Banquo's heirs on the throne?Unsatisfied with just ruling himself, he plots to kill not only Banquo, but Fleance. His ambition has grown and become even more menacing. in his actions. They are headed in separate directions – Macbeth towards a life of evil and Lady Macbeth towards insanity and grief. As Shakespeare developed the characters of Macbeth and his wife, their changing roles ironically ended up resembling the other one's role. At the beginning of the tragedy, Macbeth was the hesitant character with a strong conscience, respected general, a devoted husband, and a loyal subject of the king while Lady Macbeth was powerful and firm.However, by the time these two characters were completely changed, Macbeth ended up being decisive and greedy, as Lady Macbeth turned out to be weak since her guilty conscience drove her insane. Shakespeare's exchange of roles in Macbeth is clever yet unusual, but after all, things aren't always what they seem. In Shakespeare's tragedy, Macbeth, the characters and the roles they play are critical to its plot and theme, and therefore many of Shakespeare's characters are well developed and complex. Two of these characters are the protagonist, Macbeth, and his wife, Lady Macbeth.They play interesting roles in the tragedy, and over the course of the play, their relationship changes and their roles are essentially switched. At the beginning of the play, they treat each other as equals. They have great concern for each other, as illustrated when Macbeth races to tell Lady Macbeth the news about the witches and she immediately begins plotting how to gain for her husband his desire to be king. At this point, Lady Macbeth is the resolute, strong woman, while Macbeth is portrayed as her indecisive, cowardly husband.He does have ambition, but at this point, his conscience is stronger than that ambition. Lady Macbeth explains this characteristic of her husband in Act I, Scene v, when she says, Yet do I fear thy nature; it is too full o' th' milk of human kindness to catch the nearest way. The next stage of change developing in the characters of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth is in Act II. This is the act in which Macbeth kills King Duncan. Macbeth's character change is apparent because it is obvious that he has given in to his ambition and has murdered the king.He is not entirely changed, though, because he is almost delirious after he has committed the crime. He exclaims, Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No; this my hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the green one red. He believes that instead of the ocean cleaning his hands, his hands would turn the ocean red. Macbeth's role has changed somewhat but not entirely, since he has committed the crime but his conscience is still apparent after the murder. Lady Macbeth's role similarly changes somewhat in Act II.The reader sees a crack in her strong character when she tells Macbeth in Scene ii of Act II that she would have murdered Duncan herself if he had not resembled her father as he slept. Her boldness is still evident, though, when she calms Macbeth after the murder and believes a little water clears us of this deed. Unlike the roles of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, their relationship remains unchanged from Act I to II. Their relationship is still very close as seen through Duncan's murder – a product of teamwork.At the end of Act III, both the roles and the relationship of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have reached the final stage of their change. Now that Duncan is dead and Macbeth is hopelessly headed toward a life of immorality, Lady Macbeth fades into the background. Macbeth takes it upon himself in Act III to plot Banquo's murder without consulting his wife because he wants to protect her from the corruption that he has involved himself with. His role is now completely changed and there is no turning back for him.As Macbeth goes off on his own course during this time, Lady Macbeth's guilt is overwhelming and, cut off from him, she descends into madness. Her guilt emerges in Act III, Scene ii when she says she would rather be dead, and it grows from then on until her death. Lady Macbeth's character change is also evident in Act III, Scene ii when she backs out of Macbeth's mysterious murder plan and tells him, You must leave this. The relationship between the couple is being torn apart by this time in Macbeth. They are headed in separate directions – Macbeth towards a life of evil and Lady Macbeth towards insanity and grief.As Shakespeare developed the characters of Macbeth and his wife, their changing roles ironically ended up resembling the other one's role. At the beginning of the tragedy, Macbeth was the hesitant character with a strong conscience, while Lady Macbeth was powerful and firm. However, by the time these two characters were completely changed, Macbeth ended up being decisive and greedy, as Lady Macbeth turned out to be weak since her guilty conscience drove her insane. Shakespeare's exchange of roles in Macbeth is clever yet unusual, but after all, things aren't always what they seem.

Analysis of Dinner Party Essay

The text under analysis is named The Dinner Party, written by Nicholas Monsarrat. Monsarrat is a British novelist known for his sea stories and his novels, The Tribe That Lost Its Head and its sequel, Richer Than All His Tribe. The Dinner Party is a piece of narration. It tells us about a rich man (uncle Octavian), who was a hospitable and friendly man, and liked to give parties – until January 3, 1925. It was his fifty-fifth birthday. As usually on such a day he was giving a party, a party for twelve people. All of them were old friends. During the party he was admired a magnificent diamond ring on the princess’s hand. Then the ring was passed from hand to hand, and so it was lost or stolen although all the guests were close friends. Nobody returned the princess’s ring back, so it was never found and it never appeared. Since that event Uncle Octavian never gave a single lunch or dinner party for the last thirty years of his life. He died a comparatively poor man with the special sadness of a hospitable host. The purpose of the author is to show how it’s significant to have values, principles and it doesn’t make a difference if you are poor or rich. Uncle Octavian believed in his friends and suffered from this at the end as one person, one of his close friends is appeared to be a thief. Uncle Octavian lost all his friends and was never able to believe anyone from that day. The story is well-structured, so it may be divided into the following parts: exposition, complication, conflict, climax and denouement. The first part begins with â€Å"There are still some rich people †¦Ã¢â‚¬  and ends with â€Å"†¦until January 3, 1925.â€Å" It tells us about rich people in their princess world and claims that even those have their problems. In this part we meet with the author, unnamed, and the main character (my uncle Octavian), who is described as a charming, hospitable and most amiable man with the help of epithets. The second part begins with the words â€Å"Let me tell you a story †¦Ã¢â‚¬  and ends with â€Å"all old and intimate friends of my uncle Octavian.† This passage describes the author’s feelings about staying at such event – the 55th birthday of his uncle, and the party itself. Here we observe a description of uncle’s friends and to stress how rich and important the friends of Octavian were the author uses metaphor â€Å"old flames†, and epithets such as â€Å"respective husbands†, â€Å"exceptional intelligence and his fabulous American wife†. The next part begins with â€Å"Towards the end of a wonderful dinner †¦Ã¢â‚¬  and finishes with â€Å"†¦saw her pass it on.† Here we become  acquainted with a princess and her magnificent ring, loved by everyone at the table. The ring itself is described very vividly to stress its importance for example here the author uses an allusion to Genghis Khan. The climax of t he story is the moment when everyone understands that the ring is lost or stolen. Here the author describes dreadful embarrassment of Uncle Octavian’s cherished friends and uncle’s belief in good of his close friends. Colorful epithets are used to show growing anxiety among the guests: dreadful, fruitless. In the epilogue we see that the ring was not never found and Octavian died poor man, never throwing a single party again as he lost his trust in people. Monsarrat uses antithesis to express how uncle’s life has changed since his 55th birthday: at the beginning he writes that he was â€Å"a happy rich man†, at the end â€Å"comparatively poor†. Poor here is also a metaphor used not only to describe his financial status, but also to show his inner feelings after that date – he lost his trust, his beliefs were deceived. The tone of the story is grammatical and ironical at the same time, as the theme is judging people of being such liars even among friends – the theme itself is quite ironical.

Clayton College Of Natural Health Essay

This thesis is an exploratory study which investigates the phenomena of holistic healing through a phenomenological approach and the potential of this process to reveal the importance of relying on the client as the most important information resource. Using qualitative design, this research chronicles the experiences of people for their impressions regarding their healing experiences and their search for wellness through traditional medical and complementary therapies. Objective data will be collected to validate the nature of this research through the completion of self-assessment forms, in addition to a subjective inquiry into the energetic process of each client through the art and narratives of this researcher. The discoveries that will be produced during the course of this research is expected to reflect the numerous implications of the holistic healing process. 3. Statement of Purpose and Background Holistic healing is on the edge of mainstream scientific thought. It is contrary to the accepted view that we will always be able to find a specific cause for any given disease. Holistic healing was described by Pelletier (1997). For him, all states of health were psychosomatic, each person representing a unique interaction of body, mind, and spirit. Illness was a disturbance in the dynamic balance of these relationships. The client and the practitioner shared the responsibility for the healing and both creatively learned about themselves during the healing process. This study seeks to add valuable information about the growing phenomena of holistic health. It strives to explore the process of holistic healing. In the process of investigating the studies hypotheses, this study hopes to discover novel, unanticipated themes that help further our understanding of holistic healing. In spite of its importance as a central phenomenon in medicine, the word holistic healing is rarely used in nursing or medical literature unless the authors are describing some form of indigenous healing ritual or in the context of purely physiological healing. A holistic healing perspective would imply that healing is much more than physiological change. In spite of a thorough search of the literature, no studies have been found that relate directly to the focus to this study, the experience of holistic healing. The literature review is not the theoretical foundation on which the study is based, but it is represented in order to illustrate the current state of the relevant literature. The initial review established the appropriateness of this study. The majority of the review will be accomplished after the data will be analyzed and will be guided by the findings. Literature from both the initial review and the later review will be combined and the connections between the literature and the results of this study will be explored in the later chapters. Topics will also be discussed that might relate to the experience of healing, such as health status, recovery, and survival. In this related literature the independent variables such as social support, optimism, and hardiness are often well defined with reliable and valid measures. The dependent variables such as â€Å"being healthy, having minor health problems, suffering from chronic disease, being disabled, and being dead are treated as equally-spaced points on a continuum† (Hobroyd & Coyne, 1987, p. 364), and are not often well-defined or measured. Other measures sometimes defined as â€Å"healthy† are help seeking behaviours and compliance with medical recommendations. This research investigates these questions: 1. What does it mean to be holistically healthy? 2. What is the mechanism of the health creation process? Hence, this study hypothesized that: 1. Personal experiences will be a key contributing factor to participants` developing a holistic healing approach. 2. Participants will report healing experience with holistic health as key to developing their interests. This study assumes that holistic healing have an integrative theory that guides its process. Additionally, it assumes that holistic healing adhere to a theoretical orientation that promotes universal spiritual ideals as opposed to specific religious ones. The researcher believes that human existence is multidimensional. In addition, this study assumes that illness, whether physical, psychological or spiritual effect our all the levels of existence, body, mind, and spirit. Furthermore, the researcher believes those treatment regimens, regardless of the discipline of origin, increase their efficacy by addressing more of the levels-of-being thorough utilizing a holistic approach. Hence, involving human subjects in this research will be justified. 4. Subjects a. Subject Characteristics In this study a target number of ten participants will be chosen. Their ages range from 28-65. The participants are expected to come from a variety of occupations. Moreover, these participants are expected to demonstrate unique behaviors prior to surgery that appeared as if they might add important insight to the study. The researcher would like to have equal number of male and female participants (5 males and 5 females) to have an equal perspective from both genders. Further, in phenomenology it is important to choose participants who are able to speak with ease, express their feelings, and describe physical experiences (van Kaam, 1966). All the participants are expected to be verbal and expressive and should have little trouble discussing their healing experiences. b. Selection Criteria Participants to be chosen are those who: 1. had had recent surgery (first interviews will be conducted one week after hospital discharge); 2. were expected to return to their presurgical level of functioning. To insure that the participants would have a significant enough surgery to focus their attention on healing, they: 1. were in the hospital for at least three days; 2. were not expected to return to presurgical functioning for at least three weeks. Certain situations related to the surgery could have distracted the participants from focusing on healing. It was not assumed that these situations could not be healing experiences, but individuals with the following characteristics were not included: 1. external disfigurement from the surgery, beyond the incision; 2. an illness that was expected to be fatal. c. Special Populations No special group will be used in this study. d. Recruitment Source There are three surgeons known to the researcher that are the sources and they will be contacted by telephone and then by letter (see Appendix A). Nurses in surgical practice will also be contacted for help. Through the researcher’s own private practice she had many contacts with lawyers, personnel departments and other referring sources. The need for participants was expressed to many of them. Participants referred by professional friends are also good recruitment source. e. Recruitment Method All the participants will be given the researcher’s telephone number and a brief description of the study (see Appendix B). It will be up to the potential participants whether they would make the first contact. Their participation in the study will not be discussed with referring person. The researcher will assume that access to participants would be much easier this way. The resources who were able to provide participants all knew and trusted the researcher. This knowledge could have made it easier to believe that patients would not be harmed by participation in the study. More personal contact beyond telephone and written contact may help to build the necessary trust with potential providers of participants who have never met the researcher. f. Informed Consent Process Because of concern for protection of human subjects, potential participants will be the one responsible for contacting the researcher, not visa versa. This may add to the difficulty of finding participants. Perhaps more potential participants could have been contacted sooner to insure a less prolonged interview schedule. Phenomenological research is a relatively unknown methodology in the medical community and potential providers of participants may have been concerned about the validity of the research. After the potential participants called the researcher, a short interview will be conducted on the telephone to ascertain whether they met the requirements for the study. They will be told what would be expected of them and asked whether they will be willing to participate. Participants will be informed about the nature of the study verbally and through a written consent form (see Appendix C). The nature of the study will also be discussed over the telephone and at the start of the first interview. Questions about the study will be answered at this time, as well as later. As stated in the consent form interviews will be tape-recorded. The tapes will be transcribed by the typist. Pseudonyms will be substituted whenever the participant’s name is used on the tape. The tapes, transcriptions of the tapes, information sheets, and any other materials written by or about the participants’ actual names will not appear in any written reports, nor will they be used in any other way. A list of participants wishing information about the results will be kept separate and will be in no way connected with the data. Participants will be assured that they could withdraw from the study at any time, and that this would not affect their treatment in any way. g. Study Location Attempt will be made to interview all participants in their homes as it will be likely the place where they will feel comfortable and will be sufficiently relax to be able to talk about their experiences. The home is a more appropriate setting than the hospital. Although healing probably will not occur in the hospital, many factors are present which may influence the ability to focus on the process. Pain, recovery from anesthesia, lack of privacy, and immersion in the patient role are notable destructors which are expected to be less pronounces at home. Most of the interviews will be conducted in the home but if the participant will find it more convenient to be interviewed in their office or in other comfortable place (i. e. restaurant) then that will be granted. h. Potential Problems It is anticipated that some questions may cause emotional trauma, thus the participants’ emotional state will be assessed throughout the interview and time will be allotted to discuss any difficulty they will have. 5. Research Design and Methods a. Research Design A suitable design for exploring holistic healing from the perspective of the person in the mechanism of the health creation process is phenomenology. In phenomenology, the essence of human experience (Solomon, 1980) will be studied. It is based on careful consideration of rich complex data, using logic and insight (Cohen, 2001). Then careful interpretation will clarify this reality of human experiences. In the process of interpretation, data will not created, but they will be analysed with an attempt to discover their essence. So, in order to address the research questions posed in this study, select individuals will be asked to discuss their experience of holistic healing and the mechanism of their health creation process. Asking people directly seemed an effective way to study meaning, experience, beliefs, expectations, and perceptions of holistic healing. Benner (2002) pointed out that physiological aspects of healing can be studied readily with traditional quantitative research. Much of the research available on psychological, interpersonal, and personality dimensions of health has also been done using quantitative methods. But there is now a current interest in exploring holistic healing using qualitative means, but no qualitative studies have explored healing. As healing is a lived experience it seems appropriate to use a qualitative method to ask individuals who are in the process of healing to attempt to articulate what they believe is happening. The following is a list of the steps proposed by Colaizzi (1998) that will be followed in this study: 1. carefully interrogate presuppositions; 2. conduct pilot interviews; 3. integrate personal presuppositions and the thoughts about the pilot data, to generated a series of interview questions; 4. gather the data; 5. read all the transcriptions of the data and acquire a feeling for the whole; 6. underlie significant statements in the data; 7. try to formulate the meaning of the combined significant statements. Creative insights can be used to go from what the subjects say to what the researcher believes they might have meant; 8. organize formulated meanings from all the interviews into groups of themes. Validate these themes by asking whether there is anything in the original data that is not included in the themes, or whether the themes imply anything not in the original data; 9. write an exhaustive description of the results so far, including any discrepancies or themes that do not fit into a cohesive framework; 10. reduce the description to the fundamental structure of the phenomenon; 11. validate findings with selected participants. In a phenomenological study, oral interview is indispensable. The purpose of the interview is to elicit information about the participants’ experience in their own words, order of priority, and depth of emphasis. Hence, interviews will usually lasts from 60 to 90 minutes or even longer. Then, it is expected that there will be two interviews (first and a follow-up). The first interview is intended to be conducted approximately one week after hospital discharge. After the first interview with each participant, the data will be analyzed to discover whether any of this information needed clarification or expansion or whether any of these data pointed to the need for another area of questioning. A list of specific questions will be drawn from each participant to explore during the second interview. The second interview for each participant is planned to occur three weeks after the first interview to allow enough time to pass to have some additional thoughts on healing, yet to be early enough in the process that the participant will still focused on healing. The second will start with general questions before the more specific questions will be asked. Again, he purpose was to elicit the participants’ experience in the most uncontaminated way possible. The participants’ thoughts about the healing is expected to be stimulated during the first interview so that they will add new ideas to express during the second interviews and it will be validated as the emerging themes and interpretations of the researcher.