Auto Business in Canada Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Auto Business in Canada - Essay Example There are concerns about the pace of progress towards increased regulatory cooperation across North America, the implications of a possible Canada-Korea free trade agreement, the proposal by the federal government to regulate fuel consumption, and the approach to consumer incentives and levies announced in the last federal budget. There is concern about the plans of several provinces to establish their own regulations on fuel emissions. There is concern about the accelerated Capital Cost Allowance announced in the recent federal budget and the Ontario government's commitment to support environmental R&D as examples of government actions in support of certain strategies to attract investment and ensure the Canadian auto sector remains strong and internationally competitive. ("Canadian Automotive Partnership Council Discusses Competitiveness Issues," 2007) There is increased cooperation across governments and closer cooperation with the US in addressing the key issues raised with regard to auto industry. The governments should ensure a competitive tax regime and business environment, a greater degree of harmonization with the US in setting safety and environmental regulations, as well as a fair international trade regime. The assessment of the required level of assistance will take into consideration the total assistance from all levels of government (e.g., federal, provincial and municipal assistance). This includes assistance such as all Grants and Contributions being considered, implicit subsidies, forgivable loans, investment tax credits and any other grant or contribution. All recipients of financial assistance will be required to disclose any other government financial assistance received or requested for this prior to the approval of the contributions. Budget2007 demonstrates the government's commitment to addressing automotive sector interests, in providing generous capital cost allowances, significant investments in gateway and transportation infrastructure and measures to foster innovation and green technologies. Through the auto strategy, the government has leveraged more than $7billion in new investments that will create thousands of jobs and help position Ontario's auto industry for long-term competitiveness. Focus is given on how to build on this success while helping the industry meet the near-term challenges of a major global restructuring and the need for improved

Effect of Cosmetic Marketing on Consumers individual self image Dissertation

Effect of Cosmetic Marketing on Consumers individual self image - Dissertation Example A review of the recent literature shows that the cosmetics industry is at the forefront of marketing innovations and this study explores exactly what effects this marketing activity is having on the self-image of consumers. 1.2 Body, Self and Image. It has long been recognised that the way people use certain products helps them to build a concept of self (Grubb, 1967; Sirgy, 1982; Malhotra, 2002). Psychologists have noted that people seek to maintain more than one version themselves. (Adler, 1930) This is very evident in choice of clothing, for example, which people use to align themselves to peer groups, work contexts and so on, and when they adapt to different situations. There are also many products which people use in private and no one else knows that this product is being used. These two situations may connect with what psychologists call â€Å"ideal self† and â€Å"real self† (Dolich, 1969 ) or â€Å"public self† and â€Å"private self.† (Baumeister , 1986) Studies show that what people buy has symbolic as well as literal meanings for them, and by choosing some products over others, consumers are choosing to bolster one or other aspect of their own personality. (Dittmar, 1992) For women especially there are extra pressures to maintain a positive body image because the patriarchal culture that still exists in Western societies values youthful and healthy appearance in women much more than in men. (Woolf, 1991; Gimlin, 2002) As women at the start of the twentieth century increasingly took part in the public world of work, the cosmetic industry played its part in building expectations of increasing artifice in the construction of a public image for women. (Peiss, 1990) Now, at the start of the twenty first century, in a less overtly sexist society, the process appears to be extending still further into the domain of masculinity, and the marketing of cosmetics for men is growing exponentially. (Mintel, 2008) 1.3 The Cosmetics Indus try and Self Image. The cosmetics industry is intimately connected with consumers’ idea of self. to modern approaches like â€Å"Guerrilla Marketing† (Levinson, 2007) which advocates low budget persistence before, during and after a sale. â€Å"Digital Marketing† or â€Å"emarketing† (Parkin, 2009) extols the advantages of new technologies. The concept of â€Å"sticky marketing† rejects old adages like the unique selling proposition or USP because of the proliferation of almost identical products in modern society, and requires instead that â€Å"the focus move from transactions to customer engagement.† (Leboff: . p. 92) All of these have relevance in the fashion-conscious area of cosmetics marketing. It is no coincidence that some of the most psychologically sophisticated campaigns in the history of marketing come from this branch. L’Oreal Group’s long running series of haircare advertisements, for example, which ran the sloga n â€Å"Because you’re worth it† successfully bound their product to the consumer’s feeling of self-worth, creating a memorable message that has become part of the English language. The focus in these advertisements is on the effect which the product has on the consumer’s mind, more than the body, and this is a clever twist that flatters the consumer and seems to sell the product incidentally. This campaign which ran at the start of

HRM Effectiveness In Improving Performance

HRM Effectiveness In Improving Performance This article examines the strategic role of HR and its main practices, describes the outcomes of the respective category of HR practices, explains the critical reasons for measuring HRs efforts, and proposes a framework for assessing HR. Ultimately, organizations would be able to utilize the information to determine how particular HR practices correlate with better business results; determine potential areas for investments, expansions, and reductions; justify budget allocations; and be more accountable for each dollar spent within the organization. The framework proposed does not merely explain the cost for each of the major HR activity, but demonstrates the value of the activity and hence, the opportunity to determine if it is a worthwhile investment and strategy for creating a competitive advantage. What value does the human resources (HR) function contribute to the bottom line of the organization? Over the years, there has been tremendous emphasis placed on HR practitioners becoming strategic business partners and being a value-added source within organizations. Traditionally, HR professionals could talk generally and conceptually about employee morale, turnover, and employee commitment being outcomes of HR efforts. Furthermore, the HR function is often viewed as an expense-generator and an administrative function and not as a value-added partner. Ulrich (1997b) reiterated that to fulfill the business partner role of HR, concepts need to be replaced with evidence, ideas with results, and perceptions with assessments. This article examines the strategic role of HR and its main practices, describes the outcomes of the respective category of HR practices, explains the critical reasons for measuring HRs efforts, and proposes a framework for assessing HR. Ultimately, organizations would be able to utilize the information to determine how particular HR practices correlate with better business results; determine potential areas for investments, expansions, and reductions; justify budget allocations; and be more accountable for each dollar spent within the organization. The framework proposed does not merely explain the cost for each of the major HR activity, but demonstrates the value of the activity and hence, the opportunity to determine if it is a worthwhile investment and strategy for creating a competitive advantage. The framework has proven its effectiveness at many companies showing how HR creates value, utilized the information collected to increase investments in specific HR strategies and eliminating ineffective investments, and used as a critical resource in the strategic business planning and budget allocation. The companies include Fortune 500 and smaller companies from retail, transportation, and financial industries. Understanding the Strategic Role of HR In todays business environment, organizations need to be constantly evaluating their internal and external environment for challenges and opportunities to remain competitive and to sustain growth. Political, economic, social, and even psychological changes within our societies create significant impact on organizations. Given any significant change or event, how ready are we as an organization to react in order to remain competitive? Many factors are driving changes in organizations today including the use of technology, globalization, changes in workforce demographics, eliminating the bureaucracies in organizational structures, and balancing work-family issues. Understanding the potential of an organizations resources and optimizing the output of such resources given the changes, provides the impetus for HR being the key source of creating the competitive advantage for the organization. Insert figure 1 about here To create value and deliver results, HR professionals must begin not by focusing on the work activities or work of HR but by defining the deliverables of that work. HRs roles in building a competitive organization include management of strategic human resources, management of transformation and change, management of firm infrastructure and management of employee contribution (Ulrich, 1997a). Although these roles are valid and have proven to be value-added in recent years, there is now the critical need to move beyond the strategic business partner role to players in the business (Ulrich Beatty, 2001). Players, according to Ulrich Beatty, contribute to the profitability of the organization, they deliver results and they do things to make a difference. The roles of players are to a) coach b) design, c) construct, d) change the organization, e) creating followers, and f) playing by the rules. Another perspective on the role of HRM suggests that in leading-edge companies, HR profession als play four key roles: a) strategic business partners, b) innovators, c) collaborators, and d) facilitators (Schueler Jackson, 2000). As a strategic business partner, HR professionals should understand the nature of the business from a strategic, operational, financial, and other aspects necessary to be part of an effective team managing an organization. Functioning as an innovator, HR professionals are challenged to continuously search for strategies that will create value for the organization and not merely function in a reactionary mode. Furthermore, HR professionals will also serve as collaborators with senior leaders and all employees to implement business strategies forming the strategic link throughout the organization. As facilitators, HR professionals function as the change agent providing rationale, support, and readiness for planned changes designed to support the business strategies. The fundamental role of HRM is essentially to maximize profitability, quality of work life and profits through effective management of people (Cascio, 2003). Given this premise, it can be easily inferred that HRs role is to help create value to the organization. Figure 1 illustrates some of the external challenges and changes facing organizations, their impact on the organization, and how HR is impacted. The Importance of Measuring HRs Activities Even though HR professionals are convinced that their efforts add value to the organizations bottom-line, there is frequently little evidence to demonstrate such belief. A recent survey of 54 companies in the Midwest, USA conducted by the author revealed that 51 of the 54 companies conducted little or no assessment of their HR departments efforts and therefore could not have provided any quantitative measures of HRs value to the organization. In addition, a study conducted by Becker, Huselid, and Ulrich (2001) indicated that less than 10% of the 968 firms that participated in their study had a formal estimation procedure to measure HRM. Measurement in most HR departments is usually restricted to processes measuring costs and not showing value added (HRPS, 1993). There is now the imperative need to justify each dollar invested, compare strategies to determine maximum worth, and to decide on where to invest especially as companies scramble to survive after the September 11 tragedy. Pepitone (1997) reiterated that HR leaders should know how to prove the value-added of their services because management is increasingly requiring departments to give evidence of their worth. In addition, Sorensen (1995) stated that the best way for HR to gain credibility so that it can make meaningful changes is for practitioners to measure the cost and effectiveness of what they do. And they must put that into language that senior executives understand: financial results. HR managers need to measure the cost and effectiveness of their activities far more closely than they have in the past. Many organizations have been forced and are conti nuing to determine ways of being more cost-effective. Many of the other functions including finance, accounting, and marketing are able to show a return on investment for their respective efforts, so given the increased emphasis on HR practices, it is imperative for HR to be able to show its effectiveness in creating value for the organization. The new HR is a transformed role comparing itself to any other function, not only through espoused value creation strategies, but through outcomes, qualitative and quantitative measurements, and direct relationships to profitability. The simple option of showing HRs value or becoming extinct as a department presents itself to HR professionals and given the strong belief of HR as a source of added value in organizations, there is no choice than for HR professionals to be able to quantitatively and qualitatively explain its strategic role in the organization. There has been substantial evidence over the years to show the relationship between HR and organizational performance as summarized by (Yeung Berman, 1997). Some of the studies include MacDuffie and Krafcic (1992), US Department of Labor (1993), Pfeffer (1994), Arthur (1994), Huselid (1995), and Ostroff (1995). Even though these studies exist, there still lacks a framework that is grounded in theory, yet practical enough for practitioners to use that shows the major HR activities, outcomes of the respective activities, and how they can be measured. The framework describes clusters within the HR function and encompasses: a) strategic planning, b) selection, c) training and development, d) organization development and change, e) performance management, f) rewards system, and g) organizational behavior theory. HRs Activities Outcomes Even though there are several classifications or groupings of HR activities, the author uses seven groups of activities seen as being most strategic and influential in realizing the strategic business objectives of the organization. Todays economy dictates that organizations continually assess the external and internal environment and make relevant changes in order to remain competitive. The author examines each of the clusters and provides a description of each, its importance in achieving the business strategy, and how it can be measured to determine its effectiveness. Insert figure 2.0 about here Strategic Planning The role of the HR function has changed tremendously over the past 10 years where HR functions have previously been viewed as not being an integral core of the business and merely viewed as an administrative function to todays economy where HR practitioners are more frequently considered business partners. Being a business partner, the ideal situation would be the inclusion of the HR leader in the strategic business planning (SBP). In the most fundamental sense, SBP involves choosing how an organization will compete (Rothwell, 1994). The questions of what product to produce, where should the product be sold, how many to make available, how the products and services differ from the competition are included as part of the business planning process. Business strategy can also be defined as the process by which the basic mission and objectives of the organization are set and the process by which the organization uses its resources to achieve the objectives(Tichy, Fombrum, Devanna, 1982) . Why is it important for HR to be involved in the strategic planning process? In developing strategies in todays complex and dynamic business environment, there is the critical need for business leaders to continually assess their talent pool to determine if the appropriate expertise needed to accomplish the business strategies are available within the organization. If not, where and how can the organization acquire the necessary skills? Another critical area is to identify what skills are needed to be developed internally for current employees to perform at the level necessary for the organization to be competitive. Does the organization need to change any of its current policies and practices in order to derive the intended behaviors of employees? How should performance be measured and what types of rewards should be given for the intended behaviors? These are all fundamental areas of effectively managing an organization and imperative to be addressed at the strategic planning stage . Typically, the HR function has the most experience and knowledge in addressing these critical issues. Strategic planning seeks to identify those organizational decisions and actions, which yield the greatest advantage under various assumptions about the organization and its environment. The integration of human resource function into the organizational strategy provides the basis to enable the human resource function to support and implement the strategic plan to achieve a competitive advantage (Wofford, 2002). This strategy provides for the maximization of human capital, reduction of wasted and inefficient labor and other financial investment, and eventually maximizing profitability. By addressing these issues at the strategic planning stage with HR included, there is the higher likelihood of more efficiently reaching the business outcomes and avoiding chaos, massive layoffs, crises resulting from not having skilled employees to carry out particular tasks and not having the right fit among employees, corporate strategies, and business environments. C.K Prahalad (Prahalad, 1990) in describing the roots of competitive advantage, stated that the real sources of competitive advantage are to be found in managements ability to consolidate corporate wide technologies and production skills into competencies that empower individual businesses to adapt quickly to changing opportunities. Moreover, Tichy et al., (Tichy et al., 1982) reiterated that there are three core elements for organizations to function effectively and include mission and strategy, organization structure, and human resource management. Clearly, the HR function plays a pivotal role in determining the busi ness strategy through the assessment of the organizations capabilities to successfully compete through a particular strategy, determining the appropriate rewards system, determining appropriate organization structures, and developing strategies to increase employees performance. Given the definition of strategic planning as how an organization will compete, the question arises as to how would an organization be able to assess the effectiveness of its strategic plan. Indicators of a successfully crafted strategic plan include creating advantages that are sustainable over a long period of time. Has the planning resulted in a) the attainment of the organizations goals and objectives, b) financial profitability, b) positioning to create advantages for the short-term and long-term, and d) created a sense of social responsibility? In essence, this process determines the decisions and actions an organization will undertake to create and sustain competitive advantages. Acquisition of Employees In the era of increasing globalization and the struggle to create sustainable competitive advantages, organizations are continuously evaluating their strategies to ensure that they have the expertise needed to help achieve the mission of the organization. The economic challenges due to the consequences of the 9/11 terrorists attacks on the United States also continue to affect organizations financial position and subsequently on recruitment and selection strategies. Gatewood Feild (2001) define selection as a process of collecting and evaluating information about an individual in order to extend an offer of employment. Fitz-enz (2002) described ways of measuring the cost per hire, source cost per hire, and interviewing cost. Indeed, these are critical metrics in deciding the cost in acquiring employees. Nevertheless, to fully understand the value and effectiveness of the selection process, one has to analyze the impact of the employees contribution to the organization not only from a cost factor, but the performance in the short-term and long-term. Has the employee been able to contribute to the successful implementation of the business strategy? In examining the efforts that are part of the acquisition, one has to examine the effectiveness of the planning process, advertising and recruitment sources, effectiveness of the interviewers in selecting the right candidate, change in the pool of qualified candidates, and performance of the incumbent on the job. HR Planning involves the process that specifies the activities that a firm must use in order to develop its human resources to improve its overall practices (Gatewood Feild, 2001). The process entails determining how many employees the organizations needs to be performing at its optimum and where the employees should be working in the organization given the external and internal challenges and opportunities. With the economy still struggling to improve after 9/11 terrorists attacks, organizations have been forced to layoff even thousands of employees in some cases in order to survive. The real challenge for HR in the upcoming months and even years would be to predict the demand for their products and services and then to determine the need for labor. Nevertheless, one still has to be able to reasonably predict labor demands and determine if employees have to be laid off or how many employees have to be recruited within a specific period. In addition, HR Planning should involve the s kills and competencies currently available within the organization and what other intellectual capital would be needed in the future to adequately meet the needs of the stakeholders. Another aspect of the acquisition process involves the advertising and recruitment sources. Given the high costs of advertising in newspapers, internet websites, journals, employment agencies, and direct and indirect costs associated with advertising, there is a definite need for HR professionals and other senior leaders to be aware of the effectiveness of the respective sources being used to advertise and recruit their candidates. In assessing the effectiveness of recruitment and advertisement sources an organization uses to recruit its employees, it is imperative to relate the actual performance of the incumbent to the advertising and recruitment. Some of the factors that should be included in this evaluation are historical employee turnover data, absenteeism, actual performance on the job, and ability to advance in ones career. There may also be a high level of correlation with specific school, number of years of work experience, education major, GPA, and other such factors with o nes performance. Given the collection and analysis of this data, HR is much more likely to invest their advertising and recruitment budget to where real value is created for the organization. Fitz-enz (2002) described the need to ensure that the recruitment function to be efficient and further stated that it is better to measure recruiters as a team than as individuals whenever applicable. In determining their efficiency as a team, Fitz-enz stated that the measurements should focus on the productivity of their interviewing techniques, the average length of interviews for the respective job groups, number of interviews needed to make a quality hire. Another means of determining the effectiveness of the recruitment function is a measure to show the change in the number of qualified candidates that is available for selection. This could be a significant cost reduction strategy given that advertising costs can re reduced if there are qualified candidates available for future openings and other jobs currently available. Training and Development The American Society for Training Development estimates that US organizations are spending more than $60 billion annually on employee training and development. Given this significant investment, it is reasonable for one to ask about the benefits of such investments, especially since more companies are seeing a need for lifelong learning and are integrating technology in their strategies. Swanson (1995) defined employee training and development as the process of systematically developing expertise in individuals for the purpose of improving performance. The argument as to whether T D helps to create a competitive advantage has shown that conceptually, it can be a source of competitive advantage. Nevertheless, there still is a critical need to develop frameworks and strengthen the argument for being aware of the actual benefits provided by this intervention. Developing a framework for assessing the financial benefits of T D, Swanson (2001) listed three questions that provide the vari ations on the assessment of HRD, of which T D is a major category. What is the forecasted financial benefit resulting from the HRD intervention? What is the actual financial benefit resulting from the HRD intervention? What is the approximate financial benefit resulting from the HRD intervention? (Approximate financial benefit is used whenever there is some level of uncertainty of the exact value created by the intervention). The framework describes three perspectives to assess the benefits including positive benefits, relative benefits, and return on investment. The positive benefits are those indicators that show the benefits exceeding the costs. The key issue in this perspective is to determine that the benefits at least equal the costs. It may also mean the inability of the measurement to show a financial benefit, but demonstrates the benefit of for example, strengthening the culture and maintaining the tradition of the organization. Return on investment (ROI) is a ratio that expresses the relationship of every dollar of performance value to every dollar expended to achieve that value. In understanding the impact of the training, it is imperative to determine what difference, if any, the investment made in supporting the business strategy of the organization. The assessment of the training should focus on the difference of the performance of the employee, the department, the process, and the overall performance of the organization. Furthermore, were there adequate opportunities for the employee to practice what they learned in the classroom, were they rewarded for improvements made as a result of attending the training, and can a relationship be demonstrated with the training and the organizations performance? Fitz-enz (2002) suggested that in addressing the results of the training process, the following questions be answered: How well did the employee learn? How effectively did the employee apply the learning from a business standpoint? What difference did it make to the business perspectives? In sum, measuring the impact of a training initiative regardless of the scope, size of investment, and number of employees involved, there is the imperative need to determine the purpose of doing the training and if the goals have been met at various intervals after the intervention had been completed. To determine the benefit, ROI, or whatever terminologies we choose to describe the outcome, one has to consider the direct costs of developing and implementing the intervention, in addition to the indirect and opportunity costs. This total cost would then have to be compared with the intended benefits and actual benefits immediately after the training and at different intervals after the intervention based on its nature. It is therefore imperative to address the following questions given the critical need to understand the impact of the intervention: Has the employees attitude changed since the training? Did the employee acquire knowledge and expertise in an area that would enable him/her to perform more effectively on the job? Has the employees performance changed after the training? How has the change in the employees performance affected the business strategy and performance of the organization? These are all areas to be integrated in assessing the impact of training and development in todays economy. With answers to these questions, it is relatively simple to determine if the training investment was worthwhile and to articulate how training and development supports the business strategy and contributes to the bottom-line of the organization. Organization Change and Development Given the continuing changes in the global economy, demands of customers, preferences and values of employees, it is a necessary component of the HR strategy to ensure that the organization is adapting to the external and internal variables it current faces and would likely face in the future in order to meet its stakeholders expectations. The pace of global, economic, and technological development makes change an inevitable feature of organizational life (Cummings Worley, 2002). A growing importance and competency expected from the HR professional, therefore, is his or her ability to plan and implement the necessary changes for the purpose of improving performance. Swanson (1995) defined organization development (OD) as the process of developing and implementing planned changes in organizations for the purpose of improving performance. The opportunity for HR through its organization development interventions is to create organizational effectiveness at the individual, department, f unction, process, and organizational levels. Many OD practitioners may argue that OD is not a measurable effort, at least quantitatively. The challenge arises again as to what value do the change efforts really have on the bottom-line of the organization. Should OD be excluded from quantitative measurement? Given a downturn in the economy and the need to reduce labor cost, are OD practitioners able to justify their worth to the organization? In answering these questions, it is necessary to examine the outputs of OD. In many instances, the outputs should be an improvement in performance at the individual, process, and organizational levels. Fitz-enz (2002) suggested that OD can be measured through productivity, quality, service, responsiveness, development, and survival. How efficiently are products and services delivered to the customer? These factors are indeed critical in assessing the effectiveness of ODs efforts and therefore, should be part of the process of making changes in organizations. Some of the key measurements can be derived from the following questions: What is the quality of the output and does it meet the customers expectations? Does the service offered by the organization provide a competitive advantage as compared to its competitors? How effectively does the system respond to changes in the external environment? Does the organization allow for maximum sharing of information, leveraging each employee and work unit, and resolving any internal or external challenges? Are the values and ethics of each employee and work unit representative of the overall culture of the organization and supportive of the business strategy? The responses to these questions based on the respective organization provide the basic measurements in assessing the readiness and effectiveness of the organization to function effectively in its current and anticipated internal and external environments. Should the responses indicate less than optimal performance at the individual, process, and organization levels, the opportunity exists for HR to conduct an analysis and develop, and implement planned changes to improve performance at all levels. As pointed out by (Becker et al., 2001), HR professionals too often want to measure their success by their activity rather than the actual business results. By having concrete answers to these questions, there will be appropriate responses in answering the role of OD in achieving the business strategy of the organization. Performance Management Performance management systems make clear to employees what is expected of them and assure line managers and strategic planners that employee behaviors will be in line with the companys goals (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, Wright, 2003). Many organizations still rely on the performance appraisal viewed as an annual ritual and primarily the responsibility of the HR function. In todays economy and the utmost of managing performance to create a competitive advantage Noe, et al (2003) grouped performance management into three categories of defining performance, measuring performance, and the feedback aspect of performance. Performance management systems are geared to ensure that each employee within the organization, based on previously conducted job analyses, is performing the tasks intended at the expected level to support the strategic business objectives of the organization. The thinking of HR practitioners and other business leaders that an annual performance appraisal is performance management must become obsolete. Effective performance management entails a process where each employee is fully aware of his or her role in the organization, what type of output is expected, and how the output will be measured. How would one determine the effectiveness of the performance management system in creating competitive advantages for the organization? In answering this key question, the following areas should be addressed: Ensuring that job descriptions are developed through timely and effective job analyses. Job descriptions are updated on a regular basis to reflect to changing business environment. Feedback is shared continuously among all stakeholders. Every employee is fully aware of his or her role in the organization, which can easily be accomplished in the performance planning phase of the process. There are measurable outcomes assigned to every task reflecting the role of the position and incumbent in achieving the goals and objectives of the organization. There must be congruency and consistency in performance measures across the entire organization and performance standards should always be measured consistently. The process and the system must be viewed as credible, fair, valid, and reliable. A survey with numerical ratings can be used by employees and supervisors to assess if ones role and responsibilities are fully aligned with the goals of the organization, satisfaction with the actual process and satisfaction with the supervisors management of the performance management process. An aggregate of the responses produces an assessment of the performance management system and its effectiveness in improving individual and organizational performance. One of the critical strategies in performance management is to understand the fundamental role of each employee in achieving the mission of the organization. By mapping a process through the identification of the purpose and role of each incumbent, one is easily able to identify where the deficiencies may exist and to develop corrective actions, identify the strengths of each individual and to maximize each employees potential and hence their contribution to the financial contribution to the bottom-line of the organization. Rewards System The starting point for any reward system design process needs to be the strategic agenda of the organization (Lawler, 1990). By understanding where the organization is positioning itself for various intervals in the future, an organization could design the reward system to provide incentives specifically designed to foster behaviors, attitudes, and outcomes among the workforce that directly correlate with the strategic agenda of the organization. As indicated by Lawler (1990), numerous studies including (Vroom, 1964, Lawler, 1971, and Kerr, 1975) have shown that effective rewards systems can significantly increase the motivation of individuals to increase their performance. As inferred from these studies, the fundamental intent of rewards in organizations is to provide incenti

language in presidential debates :: essays research papers

Language was a very important tool in the 2004 presidential campaign. The way that both John Kerry and President George W. Bush used language was extremely important in this election. The way a candidate uses language can make people feel connected if used effectively and aloof is used ineffectively. There are many components of language such as word choice, vocabulary, repetition of words, and dialect used in political discourse. Each candidate used several of these components in their campaigns. I will analyze a speech from each candidate and focus on how effectively or ineffectively each candidate used language in the 2004 presidential election.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In order to best analyze political discourse in the 2004 presidential campaign it is important to look at the different uses of language in each candidate’s campaign. John Kerry used several components of language throughout his campaign. In his speech given at the Democratic National Convention many of these components were displayed. Kerry delivered the speech in Boston on the 29th of July 2004. Kerry opened his speech by giving his audience a positive message about America and its future, saying, â€Å"We are here tonight because we love our country. We are proud of what America is and what it can become† (Command). This opening is very common in political discourse, it conveys a very positive message filled with hope and also unites his audience using the pronoun â€Å"we†. Kerry also uses other language components to connect with his audience and their ideologies. Speaking about his mother, Kerry says: She was my den mother when I was a Cub Scout and she was so proud of her fifty year pin as a Girl Scout leader. She gave me her passion for the environment. She taught me to see trees as the cathedrals of nature. And by the power of her example, she showed me that we can and must finish the march towards full equality for women in this country. (Command) Kerry uses a powerful simile when he refers to trees as cathedrals of nature. Kerry uses word choice and vocabulary to convey his passion for the environment but by using the word cathedral he also shows his connection with religion. Kerry’s word choice is very important because it helps present to his audience a candidate who is concerned with both religion and the environment. Religion and the environment were important issues in this year’s election.

The Pilgrim’s Progress

If there is one book that tops the list of most translated books, surprisingly even more than the Bible, it is The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, a famous religious writer in the English language. Bunyan is said to have a minimal proper education and a modest background, probably the reason for his simple, narrative, allegorical English writing style. It is also assumed that his learning of the English language may have come from his readings of the Bible since some parts of his book are being compared to the latter. He is regarded as a religious man who was put in jail for preaching without properly obtaining a license for such act. It was during his second time of imprisonment that the book, The Pilgrim’s Progress, materialized. The complete title of his book is The Pilgrim's Progress from this World to that which is to come. The first part was published in 1678 and the second part was in 1684. The first part of story is about a man named Christian who leaves his home upon reading in the book that he is holding that his house will burn down, but his family thinks he has gone mad. A man named Evangelist instead advised him to start his journey, passing from one mysterious place to another in search of redemption in the Celestial City. The second part engages his wife, the inspired Christiana, and their children following the same journey that he takes. The Pilgrim’s Progress is an intense Christian writing that has influenced generations, and making it as one of the Christian books in English widely read by both the young and adult readers, particularly for Christians who are taking the journey to achieve spirituality against the temptations of life. It is considered to be one of the greatest writings of English literature, and in that it has released more than one hundred copies in translated languages. II. Body A. Themes of the Poem 1. Major Themes a. Path to Salvation The philosophy of the story is that people do not reach heaven by practicing their religion and maintaining the good nature of one’s character, but rather they are particularly chosen by God to enter the gates of Heaven. However, a closer reading of the text also proves that a true believer must show that he is willing to face anything – obstacles or difficulties along the way – to achieve salvation, because even if chosen by God, he is not excused from worldly temptations around him. He is continuously tried everyday of his life to prove his devotion to Him. In real life, especially to the Catholic religion, this is not the case though. Catholics believe that to achieve salvation and witness Heaven one must be good to oneself, to other people, and repent for one’s sins aside from the fact that one must hold on to that religion by heart. Salvation or God, for that matter, do not choose people who will experience eternal gratification. Instead it is the people themselves who choose themselves to lead a life into the goodness of God. And through this, God opens his heart to those who believe in him and may eventually enter the gates of heaven. b. Faith over Family Since this is a Christian book, the reader may attempt to question if the actions of the protagonist Christian are ethically correct – choosing to pursue the path to salvation over staying with his family. The argument lies whether one should pursue what he thinks is right to his religious faith against his social responsibility of being a father to his family. Isn’t choosing social responsibility also ethically correct because it’s for a collective good? But as for the Catholics, we are also expected to take God first above all else as stated in the Ten Commandments. Therefore, the story takes its readers on a tug of war between faith and family significance. c. Lessons from Seeking Travel Journey has always been a wonderful experience for any person. And in this book, Bunyan clearly presents to us the relevance of finding oneself and growing within this journey that one seeks. Life may be rough because one learns from his mistakes as he goes through that journey, but these difficulties prepare him to be a worthy person to the gates of Heaven. He becomes not only a traveler but a pilgrim who seeks to grow spiritually. Christian here is described as a pilgrim who takes his mistakes as lessons and eventually learns from the experience so as not to commit the same mistakes again. Bunyan also points out that what makes a pilgrim different from a plain traveler is the understanding of the whole experience of journey. Our life today is already considered a personal journey towards self discovery. We are tested everyday as to how much faith we can keep inside of us against worldly temptations. However, with the current states of mind of different people, not everybody takes home a nugget of lesson and learn from it. Some people let themselves fall prey into the pitfalls of human weakness and be immersed in the world of sin. d. Significance of Reading The book emphasizes throughout the whole story why reading the Bible is significant in any Christian life. Like Christian’s readings, reading the Bible is one of the keys to achieving happiness and salvation because it shows us the ways to enter Heaven. Take for example the part where Christian is crying while holding a book firmly in his hands and finds out a fearful revelation that leads him to seeking God. That book is the Bible, revealing to him the pains and truths about life. Reading is not only acquiring knowledge. To read a book is to understand deeply what it says and apply it in our daily lives. To read the Bible is to be one with the words of God and to accept Him in our lives. e. Importance of Social Interaction If the first part of the books offers pilgrimage as an individual activity of Christian, the second part shows Christian’s wife, Christiana, who welcomes her own pilgrimage as a social activity, where more people get involved in the journey to salvation. It is Christiana’s strength as a socially active person that makes her pilgrimage a more productive one than Christian’s journey, because the former brings forth a communal force towards enlightenment. The story awakens in us the need for other people to share in our discovery for true salvation and how it makes it easier for all of us to closely work together in achieving happiness. 2. Minor Themes Bunyan also plays with some minor themes such as the value of suffering in one’s life, the perseverance required to an individual to win the pursuit to happiness and salvation, spirituality over material interests, and that only few could make it to the gates of Heaven. Most of all, it reminds us that as long as we keep our faith in God, his grace is sufficient enough to help us make it through the difficult journey in life. B. Comparison to the Bible Much has been discussed about the implications of the writings in the Bible with Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress. Critics say the book is similar to the Bible with regard to its subjects, linguistic styles and techniques, symbolism or imagery as presented in the style and form of the Bible. For one, his English language is said to be the English of the Bible that one already sees all phrases as a natural expression or means of his own thoughts. He is relating the existing observation of a biblical approach in his book. He stands up to his use of allegory by requesting to look into to the patterns in the Bible. However, the book extends the significance of still writing religious texts in an artistic language: â€Å"Solidity indeed becomes the pen Of him that writeth things divine to men,† (Bunyan 4) Plus, he argues specifically about his use of allegory: But must I needs want solidness, because By metaphors I speak; was not God's laws, His gospel-laws in older time held forth By types, shadows and metaphors? Yet loth Will any sober man be to find fault With them, lest he be found for to assault The highest wisdom. † (Bunyan 4) He validates the belief that the Bible has become his model in writing since the text comes from God, the absolute power of knowledge. Another similarity that can be derived between the two texts is seen in this statement by Christian, â€Å"I sink in deep waters, the billows go over my head, all his waves go over me, Selah†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Bunyan 126). This quotation is adapted from Psalm 42:7, â€Å"He has sent waves of sorrow over my soul†, and Psalm. 9: 2, â€Å"I am sinking in deep mud, and there is no solid ground; I am out in deep water, and the waves are about to drown me. † (Good News Bible) It validates the argument that Bunyan knows his Bible very well, so as not be to be mistaken as accidental quotes. More is to be said about the relating qualities of Bunyan’s book with the Bible, it’s as if the words of the Bible are encrypted in his head, obviously making him als o the character in the pilgrimage – journeying, making mistakes, and learning from it until he achieves salvation. But far more important than anything else is the shared theme of Bunyan’s book and the Bible – to reveal the truth about the gates to salvation and eternal happiness. III. Conclusion While it has been suggested also that several other books may have been used as sources in The Pilgrim’s Progress, it is however clear that the book’s masterpiece is due to Bunyan’s creativeness and extensive knowledge of the words of the Bible. The subject of human life being a spiritual pilgrimage that each person has to pursue may have long been a subject for many other literary writings, but Bunyan’s wit and inventiveness makes the book as notable as the Bible. The book expresses a somber, deep, and serious tone all throughout the story in its vision of man’s journey to the gates of Heaven. The trials that these pilgrims have to face are rather traumatic but overwhelming. These obstacles are dealt with great patience and perseverance The two parts of the book are concentrated and drenched on the philosophical idea of puritanical salvation and the ultimate quest for eternal happiness. Ideas and themes presented are far more essential than the plot or the actions within the story. Its allegorical features make it a point for the reader to instill in his life the values that are shared, to understand the story rather than just merely reading it, and to live by it to attain the gratification of seeing the gates of Heaven open on him. And the realistic account, closer-to-life style brings weight to the inspiring reflections in the book. Like most of the writings of John Bunyan, his themes offer us spiritual guides, notes on personal awakenings from a dark past, answering the call to your personal or social duties, and the goodness we achieve from God’s graces. Among his many writings include The Holy War, Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, and The Life and Death of Mr. Badman.

Aging in the elderly

There is what people call as the art of getting old. This has probably an element of truth because getting old makes many people seriously inferior, insecure and irritable. To grow old takes wisdom; meaning the aging physical aspects are there but to be gracious about it may help us view our mortality, accept all with humility that limitations are inevitable.Many who were once strong and athletic, the reality of losing one’s vigor would seem unacceptable. It’s hard to swallow the negative realism of aging. The simple chores that once were indeed â€Å"simple† have now become impossible tasks to some individuals who were once upon a time, mighty competitors in some events in sports.Running may not be advisable anymore. Walking, the most common movement to a normal functioning individual is difficult when arthritis has already crept into his joints (Smith et al, 1997 in http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004023.htm).Physical changes are natural occurre nces of wear and tear and are included in the order of things since time immemorial (Smith, Suzanna et al in Rantanen et al, 1997).This is one of nature’s physical laws that no matter how many technological breakthroughs have been discovered and come to the forefront of human existence, up till now, the best of these man-made intelligent inventions are not able to arrest these signs of deterioration.A senior citizen has to deal with problems such as high blood pressure, the cumulative effects of fatty deposits or cholesterol build up, some parts of the body that almost do not work anymore, and those parts that work may incur pain and a degree of discomfort (Seek wellness, 2000).Physical activity as mentioned, have some benefits to slow down degenerative disorders but are not designed to reverse the course of aging. What is more tragic at times is, whenever people realize that the symptoms of aging are already there, it’s too late for them.They are now coping with regre ts for earlier times and opportunities that had passed; these were opportunities supposed to avert and prevent the speedy physical breakdown and enjoy more quality of life in their later years.Aging people have diminished enjoyments in their twilight years because they are subjected to abuse, mistreatment and exploitations simply because they are appraised as frail and inept by the majority. The increasing isolation they are experiencing even from their own children who, oftentimes, relegate them to homes or institutions do not help diminish the perception of their capabilities (Seek wellness, 2000).Regular exercise does help. Because of the many physical changes that occur in aging, a lot of adjustments as well are in order so that the body is better able to cope with these changes.Two major parts of a person’s physique are affected in the aging process; namely, the muscles and bones. Joints and bones’ structure become rigid with age. This causes a decrease in height, a bent posture, and hence, pronounced limitations in movements. The prospect of these changes, however, need not hinder nor discourage a person to establish or maintain a regular regimen.Though it may now hurt to move and stretch one’s joints, to yield to inactivity will all the more result to deterioration and more agony (Smith, in http://nihseniorhealth.gov/exercise/benefitsofexercise/03.html, 2007).Because the tendency of less and less movement goes with aging, and because calcium (a necessary mineral for the bone) is not absorbed into the bones generously as when younger, the resulting consequence is the brittling of the bones, a common cause of skeletal or bone fracture among the elderly.When ligaments connecting bones lose flexibility, it causes pain and discomfort. Older people as compared to younger ones need more cushioned shoes as the fat between the bones of the foot is becoming thinner (______Aging: physical changes).For many of the older or aging individuals the issue about mental health is not affecting them to a significant degree. Problems that commonly beset younger generations such as alcoholism, depression and other illnesses may not necessarily afflict them and in many cases may even be reversed, for instance, dementia, as long as timely treatment is afforded to the patient.Only Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and multi-infarct dementia are cases where the patient’s condition is no longer reversible (Papalia et al, 2002).ConclusionResearchers have provided us with much information on how to help and what kind of services are most likely will yield more positive results where the aging issues are concerned. Gleaning from those available informations, here are some helpful suggestions:Outreach Education (Redwood, 2003). This approach is effective. Most of the elderly are just waiting to be helped. Some of them just do not know how to avail with the resources that the government has made available for them.The least that we can do is to assist them with the help of some social workers or personal outreach just to engage them in the options that are available to them such self-maintenance, exercise regimen, diet, healthy outlook towards their aging years, and treatment or case management services (Baker et al,2000).A regular show of care to establish personal relationship in order to encourage them such as what was suggested by Ms. Banks on reading to the elderly (Griffith, 2000) or to receive preventive and treatment and or intervention options (Telford and Rogers, 2003) as well as catering with their various needs are aspects of educating the elderly.Reference:Baker, D. W., Gazmararian, J. A., Sudano, J. and Patterson, M. 2000. The association between age and health literacy among elderly persons. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B : Psychological sciences and social sciences 55B (6), S368. Retrieved on August 3, 2007, from Proquest.Griffith, R. W. 2000. Reading to the elderly. Retrieved on July 24, 2008, from http://www.healthandage.com/Home/%21gm%3D20%21gsq%3Delderly%21gid2=755. Redwood, Heinz. 2003. Patients Health and Education: How Strong Is the Link? Retrieved on July 24, 2008, from http://www.healthandage.com/Home/%21gm%3D20%21gsq%3Delderly%21gid2=2189.Seek Wellness, 2000. Fitness facts for older Americans. Retrieved on July 24, 2008, from http://www.seekwellness.com/fitness/fitness_facts.htm.Smith, Suzanna, Jennifer E. Gove in Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies. (1997-2005). Aging gracefully–physical activity. Retrieved July 24, 2008.Smith, Suzanna, Jennifer E. Gove in Fall Hazard Checklist (1987). Clinical Report on Aging,   Ã‚  Ã‚   1, 5. from Physical Changes of Aging National Institute on Aging   Ã‚  Ã‚   (n.d.). Aging and Your Eyes. Retrieved July 24, 2008, from http://www.nia.nih.gov/health/agepages/eyes/htmSmith, Suzanna, Jennifer E. Gove in Rantanen, T., Era, P. & Heikkinen, E. (1997). Physical   activity and the changes in maximal isometric strength in men and women from the age of 75 to 80 years. Journal of the American Geri atric Society, 45, 1534-1535.Smith, Suzanna, Jennifer E. Gove in National Institute on Aging (n.d.). Aging and Your Eyes. Retrieved July 24, 2008 from http://www.nia.nih.gov/health/agepages/eyes/htm______Aging: physical changes. University of Iowa, Hospital and Clinics   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Accessed in http://www.uihealthcare.com/topics/aging/agin4120.html > July 24, 2008Telford, R. and Rogers, A. (2003). What influences elderly peoples decisions about whether to accept the influenza vaccination? A qualitative study. Health Education Research 18 (6), 743. Accessed on July 24, 2008, from Proquest._____Aging : Outlline, Accessed July 24, 2008 in

Collective Nouns in Spanish

Collective Nouns in Spanish See in this selection how a singular noun can refer to a group of more than one person. Excerpt from news article: El Papa Francisco dejà ³ claro que su primer objetivo era estar con el pueblo. Y asà ­ fue. El vehà ­culo que llevaba al Santo Padre y a [presidenta brasileà ±a Dilma] Rousseff desde el aeropuerto hasta la ciudad avanzà ³ arropado por una multitud de gente que se acercaba a tratar de ver de cerca al  «Papa de los pobres », sin vallas de seguridad que los separase. (The bracketed description of Rousseff was added to the original for clarity here.) Source: ABC.es, a Madrid-based news site. Retrieved July 23, 2013. Suggested translation: Pope Francis made clear that his first goal was to be with the people. And so it was. The vehicle that transported the Holy Father and [Brazilian President Dilma] Rousseff from the airport toward the city proceeded while enveloped by a crowd of people who got near in order to see the pope of the poor from nearby without security barriers to separate them. Key grammatical issue: This selection shows how collective nouns - pueblo, multitud and gente - are singular in form even though they sometimes are translated as plurals. Although both pueblo and gente are translated here as people, note how in Spanish they are singular words. Pueblo is used with the singular definite article el, and the singular verbs se acercaba (from the reflexive verb acercarse) and separase (a subjunctive form of separar) go with multitud de gente. We do the same thing in English - the most common translations for multitud, crowd and multitude, are singular even though they refer to multiple people. If pueblo and gente seem confusing, its only because they arent translated here as singular terms (although in a different context pueblo could refer to a small town). Other notes on vocabulary and grammar: Personal titles in Spanish - such as doctora in la doctora Snchez (Dr. Snchez) and seà ±or in el seà ±or Robles (Mr. Robles) - are not capitalized, and it would have been acceptable here to write el papa Francisco instead of el Papa Francisco. However, it is not unusual to capitalize the titles of certain people, Catholic popes among them, out of respect. When talking about people using their titles, the definite article (such as el in el Papa Francisco or la in la doctora Snchez) is used. If you were speaking to these people using their titles, however, you would not use the article. Dejar claro is an idiom meaning to make clear. Dejar en claro means the same thing and is more frequently used. Primer is the  apocopated form of primero. Llevar is a common verb typically meaning to carry.Note the double use of the personal a after llevaba. It is used here both before Santo Padre (al  is the combined form meaning a plus el) and before Rousseff. The personal a is also used befor e the phrase in angular quotes. The preposition desde often suggests motion from a place, in this case the airport. Motion toward is indicated by hacia.While was used in the translation for clarity. There is no equivalent word used here in the original Spanish. Arropado is the past participle of arropar, which typically means to wrap. However, it would be usual in English to say that someone was wrapped by a crowd. But the image the verb conveys is one of being closely surrounded, and enveloped seemed to work fine, although other phrases might have been used as well. Acercar usually means to bring nearer. In the reflexive form, as here, it usually means to approach or to get nearer. Tratar is a common verb often meaning to try. Angular quotation marks are used in the same way as standard double quotation marks. They are more common in publications from Spain than those from Latin America. Note how the comma after pobres is placed outside the quote marks rather than inside as it would be in American English. Valla is a word for fence. The term vallas de seguridad usually refers to small, metallic, portable fencelike structures that are used to control crowds and keep people in orderly lines.

Israels Economy essays

Israels Economy essays Israels economy stands on natural resources. Copper and salt can be found there. Also, natural chemicals like potash and phosphates come from the Dead Sea area. Israel is one of the top producers rubber, plastics and chemicals. Also, clay and sand come naturally to Israel. Scientists have proven that Israel can grow fruits and vegetables in its hot and dry deserts. That gives them a bigger amount of plants to sell and help their economy. Citrus fruits and vegetables help a great deal to Israels economy no matter where theyre grown. Israels economy needs a little help but their natural resources do quite a bit for them. Israel depends on trading with other countries and manufacturing goods in order to have the things they need. Israels main trading partners are England, America, Germany, Italy and France. In fact, one third of the countrys exports go to The US. Clothing and other household goods are manufactured in Israel but are mostly not traded because the country is unable to make enough of an abundance. The clothing industry employs over 46,000 workers in Israel. Israel is also the top exporter of cut and polished diamonds. Products for the military have to be manufactured because of their political state. The only vehicles manufactured in Israel go to their armed forces, forcing them to import all of their cars. Israel produces electronics like laser equipment, image processing devices and fiber optic materials. Israel trades great amounts and manufactures great amounts. All of this Israel has huge amounts of tourism. More than 2,000,000 tourists visit the country every year. Tourism is one of Israels most profitable industries. People travel to Israel because of their religion, to visit family or for just sight seeing. In 1986, 929631 tourists traveled to the country by air. All of those tourists earned ...

Carroway Clothing Essay Example for Free

Carroway Clothing Essay Re: Current accounting issues, employment benefits and financing options. Thank you for the opportunity to address the current accounting issues, employment benefits and financing options facing Carroway Clothing Limited (CCL) 1. SR& ED and Development costs treatment: In reviewing the financial statements it appears that the development costs and SR&ED treatment may not have been recorded appropriately. The SR&ED are tax credits to be used towards taxable income and should not have been recorded as government grants. Since CCL may not have needed them in the initial years, it can use SR&ED tax credits against taxable income in the future. It is necessary to identify all SR$ERD activities for proper recording practices so that the credits generated by the SR&ED can be used against future income. The $975,000 development costs can be expensed or capitalized depending on if the following criteria are met The project is technically feasible CCL intends of complete the project CCL has the ability to use or sell the product There is probability of future economic benefit will be generated Availability of adequate technical and financial recourses CCL has the ability to measure reliably the expenditures attribute to it. Since the Walton Work Wear line is in the production stage, its accumulated development costs should be capitalized. The Carroway Cool Top has not started it commercial production which would allow the development costs not to be amortized yet. Also interest costs on loans to generate financing for the R&D activates of a product can be capitalized rather than expensed. The capitalization of interest would allow CCL to reduce taxable income in the future when it is more profitable. I would recommend that CCL make the above changes immediately so that the financail statements are not incorrect. These changes would help CCL reduce its future taxable income when it may be more profitable. 2. Allowance for Doubtful Accounts. CCL currently has no allowance for bad debts. Even though CCL does not have issue with uncollectible, having an allowance account will provide CCL with the ability to write off debts such as the disputed shipment. Without being able to write off the shipment, will leave the Accounts Receivables overstated, which in turn leads to misstated financial statements. Having an AFDA would allow CCL to record the sale but also recognise that they do not expect payment from the client. Leaving this account on the accounts receivable would be misleading to CCL’s stakeholders as it would lead them to believe that CCL is expecting to receive the cash in the near future. IF in the future, the dispute is resolved and the payment is received, CCL can recover the bad debt at that time. I would recommend that CCL create a policy regarding Accounts Receivables immediately. The method for determining the bad debt amount should be determined by CCL management. Methods such a percentage of sales or a percentage of Account Receivables can be used. Whichever method is chosen, it should be consistent from year to year and the amount should be reasonable. 3. Long Term Debt or Initial Public offering. CCL is currently looking at an initial public offering (IPO) and long term debt as two options to help finance the new research and development (R&D) of new products. The bank loan can provided financial stability but will have the interest repaid over a longer time is higher and would be tax deductible. Banks may require financial statements that are audited. CCL will need to be able to prove that it can repay the loan as well as the interest. It may also be required to maintain a debt to equity ratio that may prevent it from taking advantage of other opportunities in the future. An IPO offering has the potential to increase capital which would improve financial rations such as the debt to equity. The increased cash flow will help CCL pay it current payables and reduce debt by negotiating better interest rates in the future. The disadvantage to an IPO would be the potential to lose control over the company and having to be more accountable to other investors. The IPO would also require the financial statement and note disclosure to conform to more stringent requirements, which increase the cost of producing the financial statements. Financial statements will need to follow IFRS and securities regulators generally require 3 years of annual audited financials. It should also be noted that there is a significant cost to offering an IPO and it can be difficult to evaluate the stock price of the shares. I would recommend that CCL consider the IPO as a viable on to its financing issue as it will be more beneficial in the long term. The change from ASPE to IFRS will be a short term challenge but can be overcome with appropriate professional assistance. I would highly recommend that CCL seek the opinion and assistance of a professional who deals with IPO’s. CCL is considering providing employees stock options as a way to reward its employees. As a CCPC, CCL will have no tax consequence for the employees receiving the stock options until they dispose of the shares. The amount taxed as employment income in the year of disposal is the difference between the option price and the FMV of the shares at the time of the option was exercised. The employee may be able to claim a deduction from taxable income equal to half this amount if the shares were worth less than the exercise price when the option was issued or the employee hold the shares for at least two years before selling the shares. There are many alternatives to rewarding employees besides cash bonuses and stock options. Options can range from published recognition to merchandise such as shirts that the company makes. Time off with pay can also work to  motivate employees for hard work. I would recommend that CCL consider alternatives such as free products and time off as these will be less costly to provide than the stock options. Doing an employee survey would provide feedback to the rewards that the employees would value most. CCL is currently facing a pending lawsuit regarding a chemical leak and the non-compliance with environmental regulations. When both of the following conditions are met the amount of the contingent loss must be accrued. Disclosure will be need if the following conditions are met: The likely hood that the verdict will be against CCL A reasonable estimate of the amount o f the lawsuit can be made. The lawsuit may also lead customers and the public to believe that CCL acted negligently. This will reflect poorly on CCL and may lead to decreased sales and a damaged reputation If there is no accrual, there should be disclosure in the financial notes, stating the nature of the contingency, estimate of the amount or that an estimate cannot be made and exposure to loss in excess of the amount accrued. If CCL does not disclose, it would be misleading to the financial statement user. I would recommend that CCL consult with their legal advisors immediately to determine the likelihood of a lawsuit and the potential liabilities. Also, CCL should be prepared to address the negative publicity that the lawsuit may create. Should you require further clarification on any matters, please do not hesitate to contact me. Carroway Clothing. (2016, Aug 16).

Respiratory therapy case study asthma Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Respiratory therapy case study asthma - Essay Example P: The patient must be treated aggressively since she is presenting symptoms of life-threatening exacerbations of asthma, including: severe asthma history, poorly controlled asthma, psychological factors/anxiety, previous hospitalization for asthma, and history of intubations with mechanical ventilation. Albuterol must also be stopped as this further aggravates bronchospasm. Hence, the following respiratory care protocol must therefore be administered: (1) 100 percent nonrebreather face mask, (2) continuous SaO2 monitor/pulse oximetry, (3) inhaled short acting beta2-agonist hourly or continuously with the addition of anticholinergic, (4) IV fluid is a must since insensible water losses are increased with the work of breathing. IV hydration also helps in reducing viscosity and mucus plugging; however, urine input and output should be monitored to avoid overhydration, (5) intravenous corticosteroids, (6) CBC, electrolytes, ABG, chest radiograph, EKG, and theophylline level should be o btained (Veteran Health Administration, 2002). Leukotriene modifiers is known for its anti - inflammatory effects and should be added to the aforementioned medications (Louisiana State University database, 2006). Additionally, ABG revealed that patient has metabolic acidosis (HCO3- 19 mmol/L), an ominous sign of asthma. The patient has metabolic acidosis as a compensatory mechanism of impending respiratory alkalosis. Treating the underlying causes of respiratory alkalosis such as anxiety and asthma per se is a must to avoid further complication. It should be noted that if possible, intubation and mechanical ventilation should be avoided if at all possible, because the â€Å"underlying dynamic hyperinflation will worsen with positive-pressure ventilation† (Werner, 2001). Inspection: high fowler’s position, pursed-lips breathing, cyanotic, using accessory muscles of inspiration,

Japan Earthquake and Tsunami 2011 Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Japan Earthquake and Tsunami 2011 - Term Paper Example Natural disasters account as a perfect example signifying the limitations of the human knowledge and control over the world. Scientists and researchers have tried to devise techniques to find out a solution to these occurrences but they have not achieved success in this field. A tragic natural disaster hit the country of Japan on the 11 march 2011. This tragic occurrence was analyzed to be the worst earthquake that had occurred in the history of the country and was highlighted to have set up alarms up till the United States and the South America. The earthquake was accompanied with a tsunami and resulted in a nuclear disaster in the country which was termed to have a higher severity than the Chernobyl nuclear event. These disasters not only hampered the infrastructure of the country but led to the displacement and deaths of thousands of people and resulted in great economic losses for the country (Japan — Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear Crisis 2011). The earthquake in Japan ha s been ranked as the fifth most powerful earthquake of the world since the twentieth century. The earthquake was of the magnitude of 9.0 on the Richter scale. The earthquake had the highest severity in the northeastern part of Japan. Twenty four thousand people lost their lives or were missing following the earthquake. The tsunami, that resulted due to the earthquake, led to the destruction and drowning of complete villages in the northeastern part of the country. It was estimated that more than 3,400 buildings in the country had undergone destruction and damage. The power supply across the major cities was disrupted and people had to survive with no electricity and gas. Fires erupted across the areas that were hit mainly in the industrial locations as well as in places where there were oil reservoirs meant for storing the oil. The severity and strength of the earthquake did not settle and 100 minor earthquakes followed within a short period. The communication network across the are as that were hit was also disrupted. Immediately following the earthquake, it was understood by the nuclear experts that the tsunami that had resulted due to the earthquake had posed risk of damage to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. The chaos that had resulted has not led to provide for a complete analysis of the situation. But owing to the risk, hundred thousands of people were moved from the areas that were close to the nuclear power plants to avoid the adverse effects that could have resulted due to the radiations from the power plants. The combined national organizations and the forces of the country set to work to save the people and move them to safer locations. These included the people from the fire department, police department as well as the armed forces of the country (Dawson et al 2011; Japan — Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear Crisis 2011). The earthquake and the tsunami caused enough destruction and negative effects in Japan but the devastation in the country was aggravated by a nuclear breakdown and leakage that occurred in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. The nuclear power station had been affected by the tsunami as well as the earthquake. The day following the earthquake hit the country, there was a first blast reported from the nuclear power plant. This was accompanied by a second blast after three days. The

The Arguments and Propels for Disciplining New Media Research Paper

The Arguments and Propels for Disciplining New Media - Research Paper Example Cinematic critic Lev Manovich has analysed the techniques of digital cinema and has argued that contemporary digital cinema is marked by the pre-cinematic movement of image techniques which shows a return to earlier cinematic methods. Contemporary digital cinema seems to be characterised by interactive narrative (Manovich, 1996). Manovich, however, claims that the digital media helps to present narratives in a new way yet considering the discussion of the central focus of digital media, narratives according to Manovich is far from the essential elements of digital storytelling (Manovich, 1996). Digital cinema seems to have redefined the identity of cinema as with digital cinema, simulation of all real events could be done without necessitating real physical space events to occur and be recorded within photographic limitations. Cinema has been seeing what is widely called a digital revolution in which the computer is used more extensively to create fictional forms and moving images in a specialised manner. According to Manovich, the essence of cinema is in ‘recording and storing visible data in a material form’ (Manovich, 1996). Just like a computer, a film camera records cinematic data onto a film and the film projector reads it as the computer is controlled by a program and records input data. To show the essential similarities between the cinematic process and the recording of data in a computer, Manovich has claimed that digital cinema thrives on these similarities as in case of cinematic techniques; distinct mages are recorded in celluloid strips whereas, in case of the computer, data is stored electronically in the form of a binary code.

Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 33

Assignment - Essay Example American Airlines has started using an efficient Baggage operation system that ensures efficient working of all systems, as well as accurate processing and handling of passengers’ bags. Another way to resolve the issue of mishandled baggage and improve customer loyalty is to do smarter baggage management. Moreover, the airline can also use IBM software solutions to improve its services in baggage handling. IBM solutions include innovative technologies, such as, built on service oriented architecture (SOA), a robust infrastructure, and full track and trace bar code readers that ensure improved safety and security of passengers’ bags. Summing it up, ensuring safety of passengers’ bags is critical for the success of any airline. American Airlines should take the above-mentioned steps immediately in order to improve baggage mishandling issue, as well as to improve the level of customer satisfaction with the

Strategic Evaluation of Apple Inc Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Strategic Evaluation of Apple Inc - Essay Example The annual revenue of Apple for the fiscal year of 2015 is $233 till September (Apple, 2015). Apple Inc. is found to provide high level brand products. It offers the most valuable brands to its customers. The organization offers the best personal experience of computing to the students, inventive proficient, educationist and clients across the world through its inventive hardware (De Wit and Meyer, 2010). It is a perpendicularly incorporated organisation that supplies and industrializes a wide range of software, hardware as well as many operating systems that are innovative. Apple followed this strategy to sustain the company’s profit level with a pledge that they would not lose their margins and growth of profits by investing in somewhere else. The main reason behind the adoption of this strategy is to ensure that they look up to all the significant segments of the company by investing mainly on research and development (R&D). However, there are other strategies as well that Apple Inc can adopt for its future growth (Ocasio and Joseph, 2008). This may include marketi ng and advertising. The paper thus focuses on the strategies of Apple Inc. and evaluates them. It also suggests a potential alternative strategy that the organization can adopt for its marketing purpose. The figure below shows the advertising budget of Apple Inc. It can be seen from the table that the budget of Apple Inc is 1.8 billion$ in the year 2015, almost a double from that of the year 2011. Though the company’s advertising budget is not largest among its competitors, but the organisation uses it most effectively. Recently, Apple integrated with the market of mobile phone for a new model of iPhone. According to Mintel (2015), Apple Inc. is a ‘multimedia download market’. This is because, the Company is able to transfer anything in the form of copy from the internet to portable devices, personal computers etc.

Benefits of E-Recruitment on Human Resource Supply Chain Management Dissertation

Benefits of E-Recruitment on Human Resource Supply Chain Management - Dissertation Example The researcher has taken help of diffusion of innovation theory (DIT) in order to formulate the research model. Findings – Benefits of e-recruitment such as cost efficiency, broader access to potential candidate’s profile and short recruitment cycle can positively increase efficiency for human resource supply chain management for Indian healthcare companies and also can help them to achieve competitive advantage in terms of profitability and return on investment. Originality/value – This research will try to shed light on relational matrix between e-recruitment and human resource supply chain management in terms of Indian healthcare industry perspective, the research problem for the study is ignored by the previous researchers for a long time. Findings of the researcher will create not only scope for future researchers but also help companies to decide e-recruitment strategy. Keywords – E-recruitment, Recruitment, Human resource management, Health care ind ustry, India Paper type- Research paper Table of Contents Table of Contents 3 Chapter 1: Introduction 4 Chapter 2: Project approach 5 Chapter 3: Literature review 6 Chapter 4: Critical evaluation and analysis of the data 11 Chapter 5: Discussion 26 Chapter 6: Conclusion 29 Reference 31 Appendices 38 Chapter 1: Introduction According to research scholars such as Ensher et al (2002), paradigm shift of traditional human resource strategy to e-HR strategy is a major breakthrough in the field of human resource management. Ensher et al (2002, p. 238) have defined e-HR policies as, â€Å"increased emphasis on HR as a strategic business partner whose primary challenge is to recruit, develop and retain talented employees for the organizations.† Other research scholars such as Lengnick-Hall and Moritz (2003) and Ulrich (2000) have stated that e-HR policies and e-recruitment not only help companies to reduce time and cost regarding recruiting employees through â€Å"HR middleman† but also help make HR professionals more competent by challenging them to learn new technological applications. On the other hand, Joyce (2002) and Dixon (2000) have pointed out that, e-recruitment or recruiting employees by using the internet has become a revenue generating options for third party recruiters. E-recruitment has become latest buzzword in service sector of India and other South Asian countries, South-East Asian countries (Labanyi, 2002; Fisher, 2001; Gomolski, 2000 and Galanaki, 2002). Teo (2001), Sanchez-Franco and Roldan (2005), Liu and Wang (2007) and Karlsen et al (2006) have found that, e-recruitment system with less technological complexity attracts more job seekers, hence it is a challenge for organization to build an effective e-recruitment strategy which is simple but effective. According to the limited knowledge of the researcher, very few researchers have tried to understand benefits of e-recruitment in context to Indian healthcare service industry; such g ap in the literature has encouraged the researcher to develop following research objectives. 1.1 Research objective To investigate how benefits of

Strategic Evaluation of Apple Inc Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Strategic Evaluation of Apple Inc - Essay Example The annual revenue of Apple for the fiscal year of 2015 is $233 till September (Apple, 2015). Apple Inc. is found to provide high level brand products. It offers the most valuable brands to its customers. The organization offers the best personal experience of computing to the students, inventive proficient, educationist and clients across the world through its inventive hardware (De Wit and Meyer, 2010). It is a perpendicularly incorporated organisation that supplies and industrializes a wide range of software, hardware as well as many operating systems that are innovative. Apple followed this strategy to sustain the company’s profit level with a pledge that they would not lose their margins and growth of profits by investing in somewhere else. The main reason behind the adoption of this strategy is to ensure that they look up to all the significant segments of the company by investing mainly on research and development (R&D). However, there are other strategies as well that Apple Inc can adopt for its future growth (Ocasio and Joseph, 2008). This may include marketi ng and advertising. The paper thus focuses on the strategies of Apple Inc. and evaluates them. It also suggests a potential alternative strategy that the organization can adopt for its marketing purpose. The figure below shows the advertising budget of Apple Inc. It can be seen from the table that the budget of Apple Inc is 1.8 billion$ in the year 2015, almost a double from that of the year 2011. Though the company’s advertising budget is not largest among its competitors, but the organisation uses it most effectively. Recently, Apple integrated with the market of mobile phone for a new model of iPhone. According to Mintel (2015), Apple Inc. is a ‘multimedia download market’. This is because, the Company is able to transfer anything in the form of copy from the internet to portable devices, personal computers etc.

Logically Social Essay Example for Free

Logically Social Essay The article is titled â€Å"Logically Social† on which it tackles the role played by Logic in mans social being. As I study mans social being, I have learned that it will involve language, the fundamental tool for communication. A good example is a relationship between speakers and listeners whereas the speakers must establish the truth of what they say and express and uses reasoning as a way of relating to listeners and the listeners play their part by understanding the message we receive and like the speakers they use reasoning as the means of analyzing the intended meaning of the speaker. Reasoning is one of the objects of study in Logic, which is a fundamental learning to me. I also learned that Logic constitutes two basic types of reasoning, the inductive and the deductive which are both necessary for the correct understanding of a matter. I’m enlightened that under the province of logic there is a hodgepodge of studies under the realm of reasoning: the criteria for our arguments to be valid, the conditions for the statements become true, the fallacies we commit, the norms in properly defining terms, and the way to eliminate ambiguity and vagueness in our expressions. I can also tell that Language is Logic because it prompts us the proper usage of language and it is an objective standard that work in authentically effective communication. I’ve been made aware that logic facilitates the option of choosing among ambiguous, vague, or definite terms that are useful for every call of usage. Like poetry, we must use vague or ambiguous terms for aesthetics. Also when clarity is of prime concern, it must use well defined or exact terms. As I read through I’ve observed that logic plays a big role in the grammatical construction of sentences; good usage of logic means a choice between misleading or precise sentences. I’ve learned that misleading sentences falls in two categories: vague and ambiguous. Ambiguous sentences are those that have two or more meaning and it’s vague when its meaning is not determined with precision. Now I learned that an argument is basically a group of statements, one of which is the conclusion and the rest are the premises. Upon learning I also procured the two kinds of argument based on the two kinds of reasoning that: deductive and inductive. A reasoning or argument is deductive if the premises claim to give conclusive grounds for the truth of the conclusion, or if the premises claim to support the conclusion with necessity. Deductive argument is therefore either valid or invalid. I have learned that to make a deductive argument valid, the premises that should be assumed are true. It will be inconsistent and self-contradictory to accept these premises but deny its conclusion, because the conclusion necessarily follows from the premises. I have also acquired the meaning of invalid deductive argument, where the conclusion does not follow necessarily from the premise/s. I have also learned that when you reason inductively on the other hand, you infer a general conclusion from a collection of particular facts. Whereas deductive argument is either valid or invalid, inductive argument is either reliable or unreliable. I have known for the fact that inductive reasoning to be reliable; the conclusion must be based on ample amount of individual representative instances. I must be aware not to confuse inductive argument with invalid deductive argument because its difference between deduction and induction is not the difference between good and bad reasoning, but between two ways to support the truth of conclusions. I’ve learned that when creating argumentative paragraph in writing or speaking, logic prescribes that we can use both valid deductive and reliable inductive argument. To sum all this up, what logic warns us from, when it comes to using arguments is the use of invalid deductive and unreliable inductive argument.

The war for talent Attracting and retaining organisational commitment

The war for talent Attracting and retaining organisational commitment Time has changed the way organisations operate today. Contemporary organisations not only need to compete for reputation and tangible organisational resources, but also need to participate in the war for talent (Bartlett Ghoshal 2002). Bartlett and Ghoshal (2002) described the war for talent as competing for talented and skilled workers by attracting them to work for the organisation as well as retaining their loyalty. Hence, this paper will centre around three human resource management (HRM) strategies, that is, attraction, motivation, and retention. These strategies are important because they help organisations to gain competitive advantage (Bartlett Ghoshal 2002; Global Reporting Initiative 2002; Jensen 2005). Competitive advantage refers to an organisation maximising its strengths as a method to compete in the marketplace (Bartlett Ghoshal 2002) which consists of cost leadership and differentiation in products and services (Global Reporting Initiative 2002). Organisations can win the war for talent and hence increase their competitive advantage by creating and maintaining loyalty within organisations, albeit sometimes requiring considerable investment, effort, and commitment to overcome obstacles. This discussion will demonstrate that HRM performs more than administrative duties and plays a vital role in determining an organisations success. Examples of organisations successes in attracting, motivating, and retaining employees will be illustrated throughout the discussion. This essay concludes with an analysis of the skills HR managers need to become an organisations strategic partner. Attracting staff into an organisation is one of the main HR activities and is usually the first step towards acquiring skilled employees or talent to build competitive advantage (Holland, Sheehan De Cieri 2007). The relationship between employee attraction and organisational factors can be perceived through the workplace attraction model developed by Amundson (2007). In developing his model, Amundson (2007, p. 161) reviewed different approaches and identified ten attractors that appeared to heavily influence workplace attraction; security, location, relationships, recognition, contribution, work fit, flexibility, learning, responsibility, and innovation. Amundson (2007) drew meaning of attractors from Bright and Pryors (2005) chaos theory of careers whereby career behaviour needs are mostly understood in relation to uncertainty, adaptability, possibility, ongoing change, and predictability (p. 156). Amundson (2007) also espoused that the impact of each attractor differs for everyone and can change with time. In addition, there are basic guides that encourage behaviour on one hand and limits on the other (Bright Pryor 2005). Consequently, it is important for organisations to actively motivate and retain employees once they become part of the organisation since attracting factors vary according to individuals needs, desires, and circumstances. Kimberly-Clark runs on the values of care and innovation from its brands to the way it treats its employees, customers, community, and the environment (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). This is demonstrated with its Employee Participation Program in which it enables and supports the contributions of employees to any cause or community organisation of their choice (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). For example, all employees are allowed to take a paid working day off in a year to volunteer at the charity of their choice (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). Furthermore, the employees contributions are acknowledged with an award (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). Kimberly-Clark also emphasises its dedication towards employee training and development, as well as safety and wellbeing. This commitment has led to the reduction of reported injuries by 30 per cent in 2008 (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). Overall, it appears that Kimberly-Clark corresponds to Amundsons (2007) attractors which would in t urn invite skilled workers to be part of the organisation. Kimberly-Clarks motto of care would also attract people who hold the same values and consequently, be motivated to strengthen and maintain its reputation as a company that cares. Accordingly, organisations can win the war for talent with investment, effort, and commitment and thus, increase its competitive advantage. In order to gain competitive advantage, organisations need to attract intellectual capital to ensure sustainability (Earle 2003). Sustainability refers to the capacity for organisations to survive and be successful in a dynamic and competitive environment (Global Reporting Initiative 2002). It also includes policies and practices of attracting, motivating, and retaining employees (Earle 2003; Global Reporting Initiative 2002; Holland, Sheehan De Cieri 2007). Sustainability is significant as people are unique. They create growth in the organisation by bringing distinctive knowledge, skills, and experience into the organisation (Amundson 2007; Harell Daim 2010; Ramlall 2004) which further contributes to organisational value and enhanced performance. To illustrate the argument above, St. George Bank, as part of the members of Australias leading Retail and Business Banking brands (St. George Bank n.d.) has proved its sustainability by winning numerous awards and recognition, including participating in the 2008 Family Friendly Employer of Choice program to appreciate family friendly practices and diversity; as well as being the winner of the Australian HR Awards 2007 Employer of Choice (St. George Bank n.d.). These awards also resemble Amundsons (2007) relationships, recognition, and contribution attractors which could then serve as an encouragement for people to work at St. George Bank. Furthermore, these attractors have the ability to create and maintain loyalty towards the bank. Organisations are required to actively seek talented employees due to the challenge of globalisation. This is because in order to survive, more markets are internationalised to compete both locally and internationally (De Cieri et al. 2008; Jorgensen Taylor 2008; Ma Trigo 2008). Besides this, multinational enterprises face the challenge of managing the global workforce mobility due to the international assignments of its employees (De Cieri et al. 2008), which usually involves a significant amount of investment (Dowling, Festing Allen D. Engle 2008). Subsequently, the result of having an increased global human capital movement increases competition for skilled employees (Earle 2003; Jorgensen Taylor 2008; Ramlall 2004). Therefore, there is a need for organisations to actively implement strategies to attract and retain skilled employees. Organisations are also competing to attract skilled employees because of critical skill shortages (Amundson 2007; Holland, Sheehan Cieri 2006; Holland, Sheehan De Cieri 2007; Hunt Rasmussen 2007; Jorgensen Taylor 2008; Ma Trigo 2008). Skill shortages are intensified due to an increase in the ageing population, which is characterised by increased longevity and lower birth rates (Australian Bureau Of Statistics 2007; De Cieri et al. 2008; Jorgensen Taylor 2008; Office for an ageing Australia 2001). Hence, the issue of skill shortages becomes more prominent as the ageing population retire (Ruch 2000). Subsequently, organisations that also attempt to attract the ageing population indirectly create a diverse workforce (Erickson 2010; Jorgensen Taylor 2008). As a result, organisations can win the war for talent as numerous research suggests that diversity within organisations leads to competitive advantage (e.g., Henry Evans 2007; Kochan et al. 2003; Riach 2009). This is because di fferent groups bring different knowledge and experience into the organisation, which consecutively creates richer intellectual resources. Three complementary employee retention models are briefly mentioned. The first is the matching model; a form of employee selection approach where both the company and applicant tries to mirror the requirements, interests, and principles of the other (March Simon 1958, cited in Samson Daft 2005). Second is the goodness-of-fit model that concurrently considers individual and contextual factors (Latham Pinder 2005). Finally, the career decision-making model considers internal and external factors that impact upon peoples career decisions (Parsons 1909, cited in Hartung Blustein 2002). These models also complement Amundsons (2007) attraction model that was previously discussed. Consequently, it is advantageous that organisations recognise individuals appealing factors so that HRM can devise attracting strategies and policies to invite and maintain talent in the workplace. Organisations need to proactively retain its employees to prevent voluntary turnover because significant expenses are associated with its loss (Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency n.d.; Garger 1999). The Diversity Dividend (2002, cited in Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency n.d.) reported that each employees departure costs organisations between 90 and 2000 per cent of an employees yearly salary. Moreover, recruiting and retraining new employees costs money and time (Brundage Koziel 2010; Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency n.d.; Peterson 2005). Furthermore, losing talent equates to losing knowledge since employees have unique talent (Amundson 2007; Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency n.d.; Ramlall 2004), as previously discussed. Additionally, company targets are not achieved (Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency n.d.; Garger 1999), the remaining employees productivity and morale are affected (Equal Oppor tunity for Women in the Workplace Agency n.d.; Garger 1999; Hunt Rasmussen 2007), and the organisations reputation might be jeopardised (Garger 1999). Wal-Mart has successfully demonstrated effective retention strategies through its beliefs of getting, keeping, and growing good people, amongst other HR strategies (Peterson 2005). Value is placed upon knowing a person during the recruiting process so that the applicant and organisation can determine a match of needs, interests, and values. This corresponds to the matching model (March Simon 1958, cited in Samson Daft 2005) and goodness-of-fit model (Latham Pinder 2005). Managers are involved in the orientation programs so that a good working relationship is built (Garger 1999; Peterson 2005). Successively, employees can feel connected towards the organisation and feel secure in voicing out grievances (Peterson 2005). Besides that, clarification of goals and paths within the organisation are established from the beginning (Garger 1999; Peterson 2005). Furthermore, strong leadership is emphasised in Wal-Mart since leaders become a role model for the employees (Garger 1999; Peterson 2005). With these, Wal-Mart has illustrated organisational commitment towards its employees, and is likewise rewarded with loyalty from its staff. While there are various strategies available for organisations to improve employee motivation, it is valuable for HR managers to ground them from motivation theories so that they can be more efficient (Ramlall 2004). Since numerous motivation theories can be applied to employee attraction and retention; and since theories of attraction, motivation, and retention complement each other in winning the war for talent, this essay will mention a synthesised model; Jeffries and Huntes (2004) extension of Lockes motivational sequence (1991). This is because the model connects key motivation theories into a successive structure to illustrate individuals motivational drivers (1991, cited in Jeffries Hunte 2004). Amongst the theories included are Maslows (1970) Hierarchy of Needs to represent the antecedents of values and desires (Locke 1991, cited in Jeffries Hunte 2004); Adams (1963) Equity Theory to illustrate individuals value-driven choices and actions (Locke 1991, cited in Jeffries Hun te 2004); Banduras (1986) Social Cognitive Theory that states performance is determined by direct, immediate purposes and a sense of efficiency (Locke 1991, cited in Jeffries Hunte 2004); and Hackman and Oldhams (1980) Job Characteristics Theory where work performance determines job satisfaction (Locke 1991, cited in Jeffries Hunte 2004). Jeffries and Hunte (2004) introduced the role of intermediaries in which appropriate interventions can have influential factors on individuals. A synthesised motivational model is also relevant because organisations usually use more than one approach in motivating and retaining employees (e.g., Wal-Mart, in Peterson 2005), although they may not be grounded on theory (Ramlall 2004). Additionally, researchers have warned of the dangers for managers to generalise a theory because this could jeopardise their employees motivation aside from their career (Harell Daim 2010). As mentioned earlier, one of the consequences of staff turnover is the loss of motivation and productivity amongst the remaining employees (Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency n.d.; Garger 1999; Hunt Rasmussen 2007). In addition, overall productivity decreases with the use of new, inexperienced staff (Smith et al. 2004). Therefore, motivating employees could prevent or at least reduce turnover intention (Ma Trigo 2008) and simultaneously improve productivity (Hunt Rasmussen 2007). In turn, organisations can prevent major expenses related to innovation, production, and quality (Harell Daim 2010) and create a high-performance workforce (Jensen 2005). A classical strategy to attract, motivate, and retain talent is by offering financial rewards, such as high wages and profit sharing (e.g., Ma Trigo 2008; Ramlall 2004; Smith et al. 2004). Besides that, some organisations also practice salary increments whereby wage increases according to tenure (Ramlall 2004; Smith et al. 2004). An extensive study conducted by Chew and Girardi (2008) particularly draws attention to the suggestion that wage is one of three strategic methods of motivating and retaining employees. The researchers believe that financial rewards are one of the most important factors that lead to organisational commitment, which subsequently, results in retention (Chew Girardi 2008). Other forms of financial incentives include loyalty bonuses (Smith et al. 2004) and performance-based bonuses that is determined by the employees financial objectives and individual accomplishments, as well as the organisations performance (Bartlett Ghoshal 2002; Brundage Koziel 2010; Gullickson Gunn 2003; Smith et al. 2004; Ma Trigo 2008). Thorough investigations conducted revealed that these strategies aid employee motivation because they are regarded as the managements form of recognition and appreciation (Chew Girardi 2008; Harell Daim 2010). Thus, organisations can succeed in motivating and retaining employees, although it involves great financial investments. While financial rewards seem to be an evident strategy of attracting, motivating, and retaining talent, the use of non-financial rewards succeed equally well. Organisations can recognise employees efforts by honouring them with reputation and awards (Hunt Rasmussen 2007), such as commonly practiced in the advertising field (Medcalf 2008) and as demonstrated by Kimberly-Clark. Therefore, as Adams (1963) Equity Theory suggests, when employees feel that their management recognises their efforts, they would feel more motivated and hence remain in the organisation. Financial and non-financial rewards can also be associated together such as during an awards-giving ceremony. Aside from those, organisations can attract, motivate, and retain employees with the use of perks such as employment benefit packages (e.g., car, phone, insurance, and holidays) and the physical environment (Earle 2003). Earle (2003) noted that organisations that usually gain recognition in Fortune Magazines 100 Best Companies to work for (p. 252) are the ones that offers perks to improve employees quality of life. She noted that the top ten listed companies offered practical facilities, such as health-related and family friendly amenities. Therefore, while organisations can win the war for talent by investing in various tangible and non-tangible perks, investing in perks that directly improves employees well-being is more effective. Moreover, when an individuals well-being is increased, turnover due to poor health is likely to decrease (Jorgensen Taylor 2008). Organisations that strive to create a corporate identity are often well rewarded with talented employees (Earle 2003; Hunt Rasmussen 2007). This is because the brand or reputation of the organisation tends to reflect employees sense of identity (Earle 2003). Successively, organisations can work towards achieving the title Employer of Choice that further attracts, motivates, and retains employees (Ruch 2000). Kimberly-Clark has won the Federal Governments Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA)s Employer of Choice for Women award several times (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). It is necessary for organisations to fulfil stringent criteria in order to receive this recognition (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). Kimberly-Clark was recognised because it offered mothers paid maternity leave and flexibility in arranging work (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). For instance, they could work from home or work on a part-time schedule (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). Flexible work arrangements are significant especially for females who may be caring for others or want to coincide work with school hours (Wrekin Council 1997, cited in Smith et al. 2004). Additionally, flexible working arrangements can draw females into employment (Earle 2003; Wrekin Council 1997, cited in Smith et al. 2004) while retaining valuable employees (Earle 2003). As demonstrated, flexible work arrangements appear to be an important factor in attracting, motivating, and retaining employees. Recent research suggests that employees prefer flexibility (Jorgensen Taylor 2008) because it can contribute to work-life balance (Earle 2003; Hunt Rasmussen 2007; Holland, Sheehan De Cieri 2007). Furthermore, this practice promotes the retention and re-engagement of the more experienced, older workers (Holland, Sheehan De Cieri 2007). Earle (2003) noted that Baby Boomers who are offered more flexibility and autonomy to balance their professional and private lives are more open to work in a different and possibly, less comfortable environment. Consequently, as diversity, knowledge, and experience are maintained, organisations can win the war for talent and increase its competitive advantage. Organisations can also provide other variations of flexibility and work-life balance such as flexi time, job sharing, unpaid leave, and the ability to telecommute (Earle 2003). Earle (2003) notes that there are people who highly value the ability to control their own work schedule. Therefore, they would determine their own work datelines or even only work on certain days (Earle 2003). She also notes that some employees prefer to telecommute because it is more convenient and they can save on travelling time (Earle 2003). Thus, organisations can win the war for talent by attracting skilled workers who may happen to live a distance away or find travelling difficult. Meanwhile, these strategies can motivate and retain existing employees because there is less organisational pressure and demand. Organisations can increase its competitive advantage by being familiar with generational differences because their formative years shape much of their values, needs, and expectations (Earle 2003; Erickson 2010). Nevertheless, each generation would also require different needs and wants according to their stages of life (Earle 2003). This reflects Amundsons (2007) attraction theory, Bright and Pryors (2005) chaos theory of careers, as well as Jeffries and Huntes (2004) extension of Lockes motivational sequence (1991). Therefore, different attractors and motivators apply when recruiting, motivating, and retaining them (Jeffries Hunte 2004; Lancaster Stillman 2002, cited in Jorgensen Taylor 2008). It is useful for HR managers to consider that they are also hiring attitudes besides expertise (Ruch 2000). It is documented that Baby Boomers generally favour a stable and peaceful working environment (Earle 2003), appreciate longer time lines to complete the assignment, prefer to be involved in consensus building, and participate in management activities (Jeffries Hunte 2004). Nevertheless, they are willing to endure less than optimal conditions if they are highly compensated and are provided with good health plans (Earle 2003). Besides that, organisations could make necessary adjustments and involve Baby Boomers in management. These benefits the organisations since older workers tend to have more knowledge, skills, and experience, and are aware of the organisations goals and processes (Earle 2003). While Baby Boomers tend to be loyal towards their employer (Earle 2003; Jeffries Hunte 2004), adjusting to their needs further strengthens their commitment. On the other hand, Generation X are comfortable with ongoing changes surrounding their job and environment (Earle 2003). They prefer to work in empowered teams, but will only put in as much effort to what is appreciated by the organisation (Earle 2003; Ruch 2000). This corresponds to Adams (1963) Equity Theory. In addition, Generation X places a lot of emphasis on work-life balance (Earle 2003; Jeffries Hunte 2004; Ruch 2000). Therefore, flexibility and recognition plays an even bigger role in attracting, motivating, and retaining them (Earle 2003; Ruch 2000). In fact, they are willing to receive lower wages in exchange for flexible work arrangements (Earle 2003). Therefore, in order to gain competitive advantage, organisations need to adapt to the working styles of Generation X as the older generation retires (Ruch 2000). Finally, Generation Y are more ethically diverse (Howe Strauss 2000, cited in Jeffries Hunte 2004). Consequently, they tend to be more selective with their work places and are more apt to leave the organisation if they perceive it as meaningless (Earle 2003). They value factors such as training and development, recognition, innovation, relations, consistent and timely feedback, and a positive working environment (Earle 2003; Jeffries Hunte 2004). Generation Y also welcomes new challenges in their work (Earle 2003). Hence, in order to attract, motivate, and retain Generation Y, organisations need to invest a considerable amount of time, effort, and commitment to comply to the factors above as well as to establish their company image as one that is worth working for. A good example of this is Kimberly-Clark, which this essay has illustrated several times. Moreover, Generation Y grew up in a time of technology advancement (Jeffries Hunte 2004) which enables anyone to research a part icular employer at any given time. Henceforth, upon winning the war for Generation Y talent, organisations can increase its competitive advantage since Generation Y will create the bulk of the workforce in the near future (Earle 2003). This essay has discussed some strategies organisations can implement to attract, motivate, and retain skilled workers. Organisations can be successful in winning the war for talent through the role of its HRM to devise strategies that will contribute to employee satisfaction (Jeffries Hunte 2004). Nonetheless, in order to achieve this, organisations need to regard HR managers as strategic partners (De Cieri et al. 2008). This is because employees are less likely to resign if the management system is good (Ma Trigo 2008). Consecutively, an increase in job satisfaction will lead to an increase in affective commitment and hence, more success in talent retention (Ma Trigo 2008). Despite HRMs recognition of the importance of attracting, motivating, and retaining skilled employees, many fail to focus on these, focusing instead on administrative tasks (Jensen 2005). Furthermore, whilst HR managers may recognise the different strategies available to win the war for talent, it is futile if they are not utilised appropriately. One way of overcoming this is by using information technology (IT; Jensen 2005). For example, Delaware Investments outsources administrative work via technology to alleviate administrative time in order to focus on strategic human resource management (SHRM; Jensen 2005). Besides that, to maintain employee relations, Delaware Investments uses IT to help deliver messages efficiently and in a timely manner, especially those that would have a big impact on employees such as major organisational changes (Jensen 2005). Effective SHRM needs to be based on research, theoretical models, and information received from exit interviews (Garger 1999). It also needs to begin from the stages of selection and orientation so that organisations can determine the right people to hire (Garger 1999). Wal-Mart (Peterson 2005) demonstrated this with the practice of getting to know applicants before hiring. As cited, this relates to the matching model (March Simon 1958, cited in Samson Daft 2005) and goodness-of-fit model (Latham Pinder 2005). It is important for organisations to provide offers and values that are consistent with their advertisements during recruitment. Otherwise, motivating and retaining talent will be more challenging, if not failed, because the employees would leave for other organisations that provide better compensation and matching principles (Terjesen Frey 2008). This reflects Parsons (1909, cited in Hartung Blustein 2002) career-decision making model. Another method of achieving SHRM is by tailoring strategies according to the factors that each generation favours more, such as training and development, motivational factors, and compensation. For example, Generations X and Y appreciate constant feedback and evaluation (Earle 2003; Jeffries Hunte 2004). Therefore, a strategic method to motivate and retain them would be to develop a comprehensive learning and development module that fulfils their learning goals (Earle 2003; Jeffries Hunte 2004). Nonetheless, Jeffries and Hunte (2004) noted the irony that the additional skills would prepare the employees to leave the organisation for a different one. Therefore, an approach to overcome this effect is by developing a personal retention plan for individual employees such as flexible work arrangements, as discussed earlier, as well as developing goals surrounding approaching organisational opportunities (such as Wal-Mart). Targeted retention policies that are relevant include setting ma nageable jobs and expectations, providing career management, promoting good communication within the organisation, offering flexibility to achieve work-life balance, stating clear goals, and mentoring (Ruch 2000). In addition, since Generations X and Y seek challenges and prefer to work in teams (Earle 2003; Jeffries Hunte 2004), management could develop projects which requires an amalgamation of knowledge, skills, and experience of the generations. Organisations that maximises its employees resources tend to achieve competitive advantage (Jeffries Hunte 2004). An exemplary organisation previously cited is again, Kimberly-Clark. It is also worth noting that Kimberly-Clark has a dedicated HR team that works towards informing organisational strategy (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide 2009). This essay acknowledges Jeffries and Huntes (2004) extension of Lockes motivational sequence (1991) because the model connects key motivation theories into a successive structure to illustrate individuals motivational drivers (1991, cited in Jeffries Hunte 2004). In addition, the authors considered generational differences as one of the intermediaries that can influence interventions (Jeffries Hunte 2004). Thus, HRM can carefully formulate attracting, motivating, and retaining strategies following this synthesis. For example, HRM needs to consider the provision of recognition and health-related benefits to Baby Boomers (Jeffries Hunte 2004) while focusing more on learning and development for Generations X and Y (Jeffries Hunte 2004). Besides being highly proficient in the business strategy and being able to lead, HR managers need to be skilled in networking to obtain and share knowledge in order to be an efficient strategic partner in the organisation (Bartlett Ghoshal 2002). Thus, HR executives need to be able to communicate with the employees and be on the same wavelength in order to meet the employees needs (Harell Daim 2010). Subsequently, it is imperative that HR executives follow up on the feedback in a timely manner (Harell Daim 2010) to prevent the loss of employee confidence in the organisation. Additionally, HR managers need to understand that a wide combination of strategies is involved when attracting, motivating, and retaining talent. It is insufficient to only utilise a few convenient strategies and anticipate employee retention. It is also vital that HR managers regard employees as partners of the organisation and compensate them alike other stakeholders (Bartlett Ghoshal 2002). Smith et al. (2004) documented two transnational Japanese manufacturing plants in Britain that consistently experienced high employee turnover. They attributed this to company paternalism while acknowledging its HRMs role in minimising production disruption. Nevertheless, the strategies only focused on wage, careful employee selection, and job routinisation (Smith et al. 2004). Therefore, motivating and retaining employees greatly depends on the factors that employees value, as well as the organisations response to them (Dolea, Stormont Braichet 2010). Furthermore, HR managers need to understand that financial incentives programmes alone are not the basis of attracting, motivating, and retaining employees since employees who were initially drawn by an offer that pays well will usually leave for a different organisation that pays better (Bartlett Ghoshal 2002). It is important that HR managers understand this phenomena because it is common for policy-makers to use finance as an immediate boost when faced with a lack of human capital (Dolea, Stormont Braichet 2010). Clearly, competitive challenges like globalisation and skill shortages have contributed to a spirited war for talent. Adding to these is the challenge of satisfying the demands of different generations. Various literatures have documented the trend that parallels the views presented by Bartlett and Ghoshal (2002). This essay has explored strategies that HRM can adopt to attract, motivate, and retain talent in order to gain competitive advantage. Nonetheless, there is recognition that some strategies would require considerable investment, effort, and commitment to surmount the competitive challenges. This essay has also highlighted that HRM is an integral part to an organisations success. A review of selected models has been presented to guide organisational strategic planning to win the war for talent. In addition, this essay has identified several organisations accomplishments in attracting, motivating, and retaining skilled workers. Finally, this essay indicated the competencies HR executives require to become an organisations strategic partner. This essay closes with a reiteration that organisations can create and maintain commitment.